The other side of genius

The telephone buzzed at the bedside of the President of the Princeton University at midnight. Irritably, he lifted the receiver. The voice at the other end was apologetic for disturbing him at this unholy hour. He enquired rather shyly, "Can you guide me to 112, Mercier Street sir?" The President was startled and immediately sat up. He- as well as the entire world knew what that address means in New Jersey, U.S.A. He shouted "but why do you want to disturb that old man in this unholy hour? That is the house of Albert Einstein''. The reply came even more naively. "Pardon me sir, but I am Albert Einstein!''.

The President was dumbfounded. He lost all the dizziness. He virtually stood up. "But sir, where are you?''. Einstein tried to explain helplessly. "Let me see. I am near a service station, opposite to it is a 10 storey building and�'' The President pulled his shirt on. "Please be there sir, I'll be with you in 10 minutes'' and ran to his automobile.

The mind of a genius has only one-way equipment. It cannot take more than his own specialization anymore. Ask Srinivasa Ramanujan the price of a litre of petrol or enquire Graham Bell the name of his third niece- they may be dumbfounded. The brain is so thoroughly and so cruelly fine tuned that it refuses to accommodate any trivial nuance. Such is the genius of the brain of a genius.

There is any number of weird and hilarious stories about this legend called Einstein. He was once travelling in a train when the ticket checking officer saw him. He wished him reverently and asked for his ticket rather apologetically. Einstein started searching in his pockets. Not finding it, he became panicky and even nervous. The official saw his predicament and told him 'not to bother' and proceeded away.

But after an hour, he happened to pass that way and found Einstein still checking his pockets for the ticket- a shattered man, by now. The official was surprised. He came to him and politely told him not to bother about the ticket anymore as he knew who he was. But Einstein replied helplessly "I am not searching it, for you young man. I forgot my destination. That ticket is the only source that can remind me!''

One layman once enquired: "Sir, we people cannot comprehend what this 'theory of relativity' is all about. Can you explain to us?''. A genius he is, he simplified it in lay terms. "Look, when you sit on a frying pan, a minute will look like a lifetime. But when you are in the company of a beautiful damsel, a lifetime looks like a minute. This, in short is the theory of relativity''. The enquirer was amused but astounded too for his genius in elucidating the best of the invention in the commonest of common terms.

Einstein wanted to purchase a pair of shoes and at last could find time to go to the shop. To save his time and also save him from embarrassment of facing odd questions of the shopkeeper, his secretary took a nice print of his foot on a paper and put it in his pocket. When he entered the shop the owner respectfully welcomed him saying that it is an honour to have him there. Einstein found the paper given by his secretary missing. Searching his pockets in futility, he turned back to quit the place.

The owner was nonplussed. "Sir, can I help you?'' he enquired. Einstein was apologetic. "I don't find the measurement of my foot given to me by my secretary. But I will come again with the paper'' He said!

This is even more hilarious. His driver, who used to attend almost all his lectures-, became so instinctively perfect, that he can almost give the lecture of his boss with as much authority. He once requested his boss to give him a chance to do so. Einstein was amused. In a gathering where he was not known personally - he allowed the driver to don his role and he sat on the last row, watching him doing his job rather professionally. But when the question and answer session started in the end, the driver started fumbling to answer a difficult question from the audience. Einstein sensed it and stood up and addressed the gathering: "Sir, you don't require my boss to answer this trivial enquiry. I, his driver can jolly well do it''. So saying, he gave a masterly elucidation as only he can!

He was always undisciplined about his food habits and frequently skipped his meals, served to him in his laboratory. Two cats used to frequent his laboratory for the sumptuous food. It eventually became a perennial problem - particularly of two cats- a bigger one and the other a kitten. He could at last solve the problem after working out a careful strategy. How? He boasted it to a friend. He created a bigger hole in the wall for the bigger cat and a small hole for the smaller one! Don't forget he is the genius who invented the theory of relativity!

Once he attended a private party where there was a small orchestral presentation. It so happened that the violinist did not turn up. Though it was a very closed party, the host was at a loss not knowing what to do. Somebody whispered in his ear that Albert Einstein is in the gathering and he has a crush for violin. The host hesitantly approached him enquiring whether he would care to join the orchestra. Amused, Einstein readily agreed.

The crippled orchestra served the evening. While driving home, Einstein joked to his friend: What do you think? The world is yet to know that I am also a 'fiddler'''. Fiddler in British parlance means 'a fraud' and 'a cheat'.

It was Albert Einstein who commented on Mahatma Gandhi's 70th birthday "Generations to come, it may well be, will scarce believe that such a man as this one ever in flesh and blood walked upon this Earth." Both the great leaders were nominated for the world's highest honour. Einstein received it, but the Nobel committee was hesitant to hurt the sensitivity of British Empire by honouring a great crusader of freedom as the Independence movement was almost reaching its goal then. It was the famous filmmaker and director Sir Richard Attenborough who quoted Einstein in the very first scene of his film "Gandhi'' while showing the funeral procession of the slain Mahatma.

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