A Certain Ambiguity

A Certain Ambiguity =A mathematical novel by [Gaurav Suri + Hartosh Singh Bal] ; Publisher Penguin / Viking;Pages 281 ; Price Rs.450/-

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“Teaching mathematics, like teaching any other art requires the ability to inspire the student. Inspiration requires marketing and marketing requires stirring communication.” These lines from the novel ‘A Certain Ambiguity- a mathematical novel’ stayed in my mind long after I had finished the novel. As an individual who grew up fearing and dreading the subject, the statement renewed memories of the dull and boring mathematics lessons that I used to have in schools. But the fascinating aspects presented in this feast had me “asking for more” like Oliver Twist. By the end of the novel I could almost sense regret within myself for not having been able to see the beauty of this wondrous subject!

The novel not only brings out the fascinating aspects of mathematics but also relates the concepts of mathematics to the concepts of God, religion and faith. The journey of a young boy from his initiation into the fascinating world of numbers at the age of 12 till he decides to study mathematics with unbridled passion is the tree of this novel. Around it is wound like a creeper the story of the boy’s mathematician grandfather-how he was imprisoned for blasphemy, how he proved to the skeptical New Jersey judge that mathematics and religion are both based on faith and neither one is a true science, how he helped the judge and through his story the boy to learn the historical development of mathematics as a branch of science.

The issues that troubled mathematicians of yore still rankle mathematicians of today and the search to find the ultimate truth is on, just like the truth about God is still a never –ending mystery. The novel cleverly weaves history, religion, mythology and mathematics into a magical tapestry.