Early Life and Education
Pandit Ramavatara Sarma was born the son of a Brahmin Sanskrit guru, Dev Narayan Pandey, on March 6 in Chapra which lies on the northern bank of the river Ganges in the state of Bihar. His father asked him to join him in his work when he was 12 so young Ramavatara headed for India's greatest seat of Sanskrit learning, Varanasi, and became a disciple of Gangadhar Shastri, the most famous guru of the day.
He passed the Kavyateerth examination at the age of 15 and wrote his first book the same year, Dheernaishadham. He took admission to Queen's College in Benaras which was patronised by Dr Annie Besant and completed his Sahityacharya the same year, topping the list. But one of the professors at Queen's College, Dr Vennis, happened to comment that were he to acquire some knowledge of English he would fare better.
At this Ramavtar Sarma went right off to pawn his only prized possession, his lota and borrow a copy of the Encyclopædia Britannica which he read through once. After that all his life he was able to tell which word appeared on which page, in which column, after which word and before which. This was the time he changed his name from Pandey to Sarma which roughly means 'the knowledgeable one'.
Read more about this topic: Mahamahopadhyaya Pandit Ram Avatar Sharma
Famous quotes containing the words early, life and/or education:
“Parents ... are sometimes a bit of a disappointment to their children. They don’t fulfil the promise of their early years.”
—Anthony Powell (b. 1905)
“Thus far women have been the mere echoes of men. Our laws and constitutions, our creeds and codes, and the customs of social life are all of masculine origin. The true woman is as yet a dream of the future. A just government, a humane religion, a pure social life await her coming.”
—Elizabeth Cady Stanton (1815–1902)
“Infants and young children are not just sitting twiddling their thumbs, waiting for their parents to teach them to read and do math. They are expending a vast amount of time and effort in exploring and understanding their immediate world. Healthy education supports and encourages this spontaneous learning.”
—David Elkind (20th century)