Pics: Spoorthi Ullal
Daijiworld Media Network – Mangaluru (DV)
Mangaluru, Mar 3: "The 'Sritala' (Corypha umbraculifera) or Talipot palm is on the verge of extinction. These palm leaves, which were used as manuscripts, are now listed in the International Union for Conservation of Nature (ICUN) Red List," said Kadatthilashree S A Krishnaiah, founder-director of Prachya Sanchaya (Oriental Archives).
He was speaking during the "Archives-A Repository of Knowledge in the Digital Age," a symposium of learning, experience, and ideas organized by the St. Aloysius Museum Light Hill on Friday, March 3, at the Museum Hall.
"It is just because of superstition across the globe. This is just a blind belief. 'Sritala' or palm leaves were used in manuscripts from the time of Buddha to the present time. I have witnessed people throwing the manuscripts knowing their value; I have conserved such palm-leaf manuscripts. I have conserved 810 palm-leaf manuscripts. 'Sritala' requires 64 years to bloom flowers," he added.
He also said that recently, talipot bloomed and was pruned in Venur. "When we witness global warming, we still remember the Jain woman called 'Siri' or Vanasiri who made efforts to save Sritala by donating its seeds. She is also an inspiration to me. Till date, we have saved 84200 trees. This tree is symbolic of greenery, food, and hunger. The tree has medicinal components," he added.
On the occasion, S A Krishnaiah handed over the digital version of palm leaf manuscripts of Drona Parva, a chapter of Gadugina Bharata written by Kumara Vyasa, and a splinter of the basement rocks of Pokhran to the rector of St Aloysius College, Melwin J Pinto.
S A Krishnaiah stated that the splinter of the basement rock of Pokhran was handed to him by Colonel B Ramachandra Rao, who is also an alumnus of Aloysius College. The splinter belonged to the Pokhran-II nuclear test site experimented on in the year 1998.
Former vice-chancellor and International Archives Researcher B A Vivek Rai, in a keynote address, said, "Educational courses should be centers for spreading knowledge. Museums should not be dumping centers of ancient materials. They should be used for research."
"The museum or Museology is part of colonialism. This culture was in Europe during 1960-65. Later, it was called modern Museology, which means not gathering things from other places and conserving them but knowing how to use them. The third stage is called critical museology, which deals with ethics," he explained.
He also said that there are 5,000 manuscripts in the manuscriptology department in Kannada University, including 3,500 palm-leaf manuscripts and 3,000 digital manuscripts.
"We need a digital form because we need a soft copy. The role of digital libraries is very important. Our educational institutions should make use of this. Digitalization is also important because physical space is very difficult in the upcoming days. We should collect and conserve things that are very rare. If find these old books. He also said that the name Valencia is named after the city in Spain. There are many European names in the city for example like Kordail. We can make an archive of the places in Mangaluru", he said.
Rector of St Aloysius College Mewyin J Pinto presided on the occasion.