Major Dhyan Chand - Immortalising the past for a newborn present

Do Indians know who Dhyan Chand was?

So, who is Major Dhyan Chand in essence? For a nation to have marked his birthday as the ‘National Sports Day’, he must have been someone stupendously great – as out-of-the-world as the word itself.

Yes, we all know that there is a Major Dhyan Chand stadium in New Delhi, and we all relate to his strong persona reflected through his statue, but who really was Major Dhyan Chand?

Being a part of the current times, it is hard to imagine what the man might have been like really, just like people never acknowledged the greatness of Milkha Singh until only a Bollywood film was released by his name.

But then, that is the way to go. Stories of the past can only be successfully told keeping the present times in mind. That is how evolution takes place, and sacred cultures are kept alive. So, if we want to have a national sports day, in honour of Major Dhyan Chand, we also need to value its sacredness, or else, the value is lost – wherein no one knows that such a day exists, and even if they do, no one realises its significance.

In that case, the entire point of having a ‘National Sports Day’ is lost. Why do we need a ‘National Sports Day’ then? Of what relevance is it?

In a nation that is only yet developing in the field of sport, such an opportunity comes once in a blue moon. And so, it needs to be valued even more, not swept under the rug.

It is only those who have lived in those times and experienced his magic, who can paint a true picture of his powers for the upcoming generations. Otherwise, ironically, it becomes only harder to imagine.

It’s like Sachin Tendulkar being a part of legend or stories by the current generation told to their grandchildren in the future. And that is how the stream of great sportsmen can be kept flowing in this country, just like the mythological stories that are available in plenty in any household, for a kid.

If those stories are what we grow on, then there won’t be a problem of “not being able to produce a few outstanding sportsmen in a population of a many million”.

To have navigated India to three Olympic medals (1928, 1932, 1936) and anchored India’s greatness in the sport of hockey for a long time to come, must have been surreal quality of play – much like Barcelona. It must have been sensational.

India cannot afford to lose such jewels that it preserves in its chest, for their shine still lasts. We need to open that chest and let the light spread.

To end, words like these, published by a newspaper reflecting his mammoth presence over the game, make an entire world of a difference: “This is not a game of hockey, but magic. Dhyan Chand is in fact the magician of hockey.”

And this, is apart from the statue laid in Vienna, Austria, wherein he’s portrayed mastering the ball with four sticks instead of one, to symbolise his masterful control over the hockey ball.

No doubt that he was indeed called ‘The Wizard’.