Meet India’s Math wizard, who once worked with NASA, IIT, mysteriously disappeared for many years, was found…

After coming out of treatment, Vashishtha Narayan suddenly disappeared in the middle of a train journey. Years later, he was found living as a destitute in his home village.

Written by: Victor Dasgupta Edited by: Victor Dasgupta

Updated: September 16, 2024, 5:38 PM IST

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Vashishtha Narayan Singh Inspirational Story: Regarded as one of the most brilliant minds in India’s history by those familiar with his life story, Vashishtha Narayan Singh was born in 1942 in a small village in Bihar’s Basantpur district. Narayan was a child prodigy who rose to prominence after topping both BSc and MSc in consecutive years.

Singh, once hailed as a potential successor to Ramanujan, went to prestigious institutions such as NASA, IIT, and Berkeley. However, his promising career was derailed by mental illness, leading to a rapid decline from a brilliant mind to a figure of “what could have been” within a few years. He even disappeared for an extended period.

Vashishtha Narayan, who hails from a small village in Bihar, is said to have challenged Albert Einstein’s famous theory. A well-known legend about Vashishtha Narayan Singh suggests that he was once called upon by NASA to perform calculations when the space agency’s computers malfunctioned. Another interesting story about Narayan claims that he contributed to NASA’s efforts during the Apollo missions to send a man to the moon.

Vashishtha Narayan: All You Need To Know About This Genius

• Vashishtha Narayan was the son of a police constable.
• He studied at the Netarhat School in Jharkhand. He then went to Patna Science College.
• Narayana was soon recognised as a child prodigy and a mathematics wizard.
• The college principal was so impressed with his brilliance that he got the governor and university chancellor to bend the rules to have his education expedited.
• He earned his PhD in 1969.
• Prof John L Kelly recognised his genius and arranged his travel to the US. He later got admitted to the University of California, Berkeley.
• Vashishtha Narayan returned to India after staying nearly for 9 years in United States.
• He taught at prestigious institutions like the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur, the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), Mumbai and the Indian Statistical Institute (ISI), Kolkata.
• He got married but mental illness struck soon after.

Vashishtha Narayan Singh Suffered Schizophrenia

Vashishtha Narayan Singh who achieved so much in life, unfortunately suffered schizophrenia. The illness led to his marriage ending in just a couple of years. His academic stardom was also soon forgotten and by the mid 80s he was an institutionalised patient.

After coming out of treatment, Vashishtha Narayan suddenly disappeared in the middle of a train journey. Years later, he was found living as a destitute in his home village.

Initially, Vashishtha Narayan Singh was admitted to the mental health institution NIMHANS in Bengaluru, and later, BJP MP Shatrughan Sinha arranged for his treatment at IHBAS in Delhi.
Later, Narayana returned to academia by joining BNMU Madhepura. Despite his brilliance, he could not reach his full potential and passed away at the age of 72 on November 14, 2019. He was posthumously honored with the Padma Shri award.