KARNATAKA, INDIA, May 6, 2011: Raghuram Ashok and his cousin Sreenivasa S.L., both Bangalore-based photographers, were intrigued by the thought of a 16th century transcription of the Sampoorna Ramayana resting just 81 miles from their city.
They first visited the Academy of Sanskrit Research in Melkote–a temple town in Karnataka and a historical centre of Sanskrit learning three months ago. After several persistent inquiries, they’re now working on a self-initiated documentary project on the academy’s archives.
With more than 6,000 manuscripts in its fold, and 10,000 bodies of work spanning epic literature, general science, history and literature, the archives only whet the photographers’ interest further.
Established in 1977 and currently headed by Professor Bhashyam Swami, a retired Sanskrit scholar from the University of Mysore, the academy has been striving to collect, preserve and catalogue ancient manuscripts. A recent survey by the Institute of Asian Studies in Chennai reports that about 100,000 palm-leaf manuscripts have survived in south India alone, and several others are scattered across the globe.
Centuries of oral culture are contained in these manuscripts, etched by scribes using a metallic stylus and when done, applying soot over the letters for readability. Since they were written on organic materials, the manuscripts were elaborately rewritten from time to time to preserve the content.