UNESCO's Memory of the World Register

The Rig Veda manuscripts from Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Pune, have been selected for inscription in UNESCO's Memory of the World Register, 2007. India has had three other nominations inscribed on the Register, The IAS Tamil Medic Manuscript Collection (1997), Archives of the Dutch East India Company (2003), a Dutch nomination, and the Saiva Manuscripts in Pondicherry (2005).The Rig Veda, oldest of the four Vedas, is among the 38 items of documentary heritage of exceptional value which have been added to the prestigious World Register, bringing the total number of inscriptions since 1997 to 158.The Memory of the World programme seeks to guard against collective amnesia, calling upon the preservation of the valuable archival holdings and library collections all over the world, ensuring their wide dissemination.The Vedas are the first literary documents in the history of humankind, and they transcend far beyond their identity as scriptures.The Rig Veda, oldest among the four Vedas and a collection of 1028 hymns of exceptional literay qualities eulogising the Vedic deities, is the fountain source of the Aryan culture in all its manifestations that spread beyond the Indian subcontinent to large parts of South and South East Asia as well as parts of Central Asia.Out of the total number of 28,000 Manuscripts housed at the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Pune, the 30 manuscripts of the Rig Veda form a valuable part of the collection.Besides the Rig Veda, the list of 38 items of documentary heritage includes Unpublished Papers of Christopher Okigbo, considered one of the most renowned African poets of the 20th century, killed during the civil war in Nigeria.