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Lhasa,
July 28:
Tibet
has launched a two-year project to study and preserve a
bundle of Buddhist scriptures that were written on leaves
more than 1,000 years ago and brought to the region from
India.
There
are some 4,300 pages of the rare tree-leaf Buddhist Sanskrit
scripture in 426 volumes, said Hu Chunhua, a top official of
the region quoting figures provided by the local cultural
heritage administration.
The
documents were brought to Tibet from India between the 7th
and 13th centuries and have remained quite well preserved,
said Cewang Jinme, president of the Tibet Academy of Social
Sciences.
The
scriptures are inscribed on stripes of leaves of the pattra
tree, which is native to tropical climates and similar to a
palm tree. The tree’s leaves are easily transportable and
durable. A steel pen was used to etch the Sanskrit words
directly on to the leaves, which themselves became a
Buddhist symbol of brightness as the scriptures brought
enlightenment.
The
inscribed strips contain narratives of ancient Indian
literature, legal codes and classic Buddhist writings. Most
of the leaf-inscribed scriptures are stored in major
monasteries, museums and research institutes in Lhasa,
Xigaze and Shannan, said Hu, adding that they are better
preserved than others that remained in India where many
decayed in the hot, humid climate or were lost in wars.
Hu
said Tibetan researchers would carry out a thorough survey
of all the scriptures written on pattra leaves. “Some of
the pieces are in the hands of private collectors and
smaller monasteries and remain undocumented,” said Hu.
They
will also make photocopies of all the documents to
facilitate their study by Sanskrit specialists, he said.
“It’s
important to train more Sanskrit professionals in order to
preserve the ancient documents,” said Lhagba Puncog,
secretary-general of China Tibetology Research Centre. He
said only 10 people in Tibet can read the language. Four
Tibetan specialists have enrolled in Beijing University to
study Sanskrit and they are expected to later train more
language professionals.
The
preservation project is jointly sponsored by the Chinese
Academy of Social Sciences and the China Tibetology Research
Centre.
Courtsy
: The Himalayan Times Online, July 29, 2006
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