Role of Sri Venkateswara Oriental Research Institute Manuscripts Library in Preserving the Cultural Heritage of a Nation

Prasantha Kumari, M.

Prasantha Kumari, M. Department of Library and Information Science Sri Venkateswara University, Tirupati, India

Abstract

Oriental Research Institutes are institutions especially devoted to Indological studies. Indology is the science of study of culture in all its aspects. With the disappearance of the Gurukula system and the ancient universities like those at Nalanda and Taksasila and also the gradual dissolution of the powerful kingdoms by conquests from outside, it became necessary to evolve a method by which the ancient knowledge and wisdom of the country could be revived and preserved. Sri Venkateswara Oriental Research Institute was started in July, 1939 by the Management of Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams with a vision that it should be a first-rate Research and Training Centre with appropriate divisions for the study of Sanskrit and other languages of the Hindu religion and Philosophy and of Hindu culture generally. The library has a rare and valuable collection of paper and palm leaves manuscripts in different languages. Paper manuscripts are scanned and/ stored in the Tiff and Palm leaves are stored in JPEG format. Later these will be written in CDs. These CDs are rewritten and has been given to students and scholars of different countries like USA, Australia, Germany and various North and South states of India who are visited this library for their research purpose.

References

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