Talk:Outdoor Sports:Swimming
By Vishal Agarwal and The Hindu Society of Minnesota
Proficiency at swimming can be a lifesaver in instances like capsizing of the boat in which one is crossing a river, for instance. Saints Śaṅkaradeva of Assam (15th century CE) was an excellent swimmer who could swim across the river Brahmaputra in flood, a distance of a few miles. A celebrated story is narrated from the life of Lakṣmībāī, who later became a Queen and a celebrated Indian freedom fighter.
Rāṇī Lakṣmībāī Swims to Save a Boy from a Crocodile Rāṇī Lakṣmībāī was born in Vārāṇasī in the year 1835. Even as a little girl, she showed great valor.
The girl’s name was Manu, and she grew up to be the famous brave Queen Rāṇī Lakṣmībāī. The girl’s bravery was witnessed by the Marāṭhā Emperor Bājīrāo II. After a few years, Lakṣmībāī herself married King Gaṅgādhar Rāo of a small kingdom Jhānsī in Central India. As the couple did not have their own child, they adopted one. Unfortunately, the King died soon thereafter, leaving Lakṣmībāī a widow.
