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Palm Leaf Manuscripts

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financial-engineer

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Hi,

I finally had the time to scan my large collection of palm leaf manuscripts. I started with a range of small and medium-sized bundles. I joined forces with two digital libraries in the US:

The Digital South Asia Library
The Southeast Asia Digital Library

They are providing guidance and support for me to upload my digital images for the benefit of everyone. Since I am a one-man team, progress is slow. In the meantime, I am uploading one bundle in the hopes of someone being able to identify the contents. Since the file is somewhat large, please download from the following URL:

docs.google.com/file/d/0B8hixLFBw2dfenU4YnNzNmt2NXM/edit?amp;invite=CLLpzfgE

Any help in the identification of the subject matter is much appreciated.

Cheers,

Ram
 
financial-engineer said:
Hi,

I finally had the time to scan my large collection of palm leaf manuscripts. I started with a range of small and medium-sized bundles. I joined forces with two digital libraries in the US:

The Digital South Asia Library
The Southeast Asia Digital Library

They are providing guidance and support for me to upload my digital images for the benefit of everyone. Since I am a one-man team, progress is slow. In the meantime, I am uploading one bundle in the hopes of someone being able to identify the contents. Since the file is somewhat large, please download from the following URL:

docs.google.com/file/d/0B8hixLFBw2dfenU4YnNzNmt2NXM/edit?amp;invite=CLLpzfgE

Any help in the identification of the subject matter is much appreciated.

Cheers,

Ram
Click to expand...

Hi FE,
You have not uploaded any file. Please do that so that people can offer their help to identify the subject on which it is written and the language in which it is written. Just a sample file (say images of 5 palm leafs adequately focussed as a JPG image) will do if it is voluminous.
 
Hi Vaagmi,

Sorry for the unorthodox way of attaching the document. Unfortunately, I do not have enough posts to qualify for attaching documents and URLs. This particular manuscript is written in Grantha LIPI. I have several others in Tamil, Malayalam, Oriya, Balinese, Thai, and Sinhalese.

Cheers,

Ram
 
Namaskaram,
While scanning the document increase the pixel size to the maximum,

Also there is a software which converts the images into typed text, Just need to scan in tif or pdf format and then convert into word document.
One does not need to type seeing the palm leaves or the scanned images.This saves a lots of time for doing research.

regards
thiru
 
Raji Ram said:
Dear Vaagmi Sir,

Please click on this link to get the manuscripts:

Grantha manuscript

BTW, can you read Grantha script?
Click to expand...

Dear RRji,

Reading grantha lipi is not a problem for me as I have trained myself on that because I am myself an inheritor of a fairly large number of manuscripts in Tamil and grantha lipis. But when I clicked on the link you gave it opened into a pdf file. I could not read the palm leaves that came on the screen in the pdf file and being a pdf file restrictions are too many. For instance I could not zoom a page. I would have preferred a JPG file. Now I am researching as to how to convert the file to readable form with zooming as part of accessibility. In the case of the palmleaves in my house which are mostly about Ayurvedic treatment of different diseases I have no problem because they are physical and I use a magnifying glass.
 
Dear Vaagmi Sir,

Great that you can read grantha lipis! :)

There is option for zooming. Did you check in the left corner of the file?
 
Vagmiji,
Rajiji's link when opened in PDF format comes with magnifying glass symbol with + & -.
In addition if you use Google Chrome or Safari in the view tab there is a function called Zoom in or Zoom out.
You can enlarge the pictures that way too.
 
Dear Prasad Sir,

I used Google Chrome too to enlarge; it works but of no use to me!! I can't read Grantha lipis! :(
 
financial-engineer said:
Hi,

I finally had the time to scan my large collection of palm leaf manuscripts. I started with a range of small and medium-sized bundles. I joined forces with two digital libraries in the US:

The Digital South Asia Library
The Southeast Asia Digital Library

They are providing guidance and support for me to upload my digital images for the benefit of everyone. Since I am a one-man team, progress is slow. In the meantime, I am uploading one bundle in the hopes of someone being able to identify the contents. Since the file is somewhat large, please download from the following URL:

docs.google.com/file/d/0B8hixLFBw2dfenU4YnNzNmt2NXM/edit?amp;invite=CLLpzfgE

Any help in the identification of the subject matter is much appreciated.

Cheers,

Ram
Click to expand...
hi

when i was doing Ph.D in sanskrit...i used to read palm manuscripts....my friends were working in research in chennai........

madras oriental research instititue/kuppuswami sastri research institute...a lot of palm manuscripts...our veda patasala

books were in Grantha lipi only...now i forgot many things....i used to read grantha lipi thoroughly ,,,now a lot of things

changed...
 
Usually palmleaves were prepared for use in an elaborate process.

First the palm leaves were dried and then cut to uniform size and were dipped in a solution of water mixed with turmeric powder to prevent white ants eating it up.

After writing, these leaves were smeared with charcoal paste and washed again to make the letters written stand out in the yellow brown background.

The palm leaves presented here do not appear to have gone through this treatment-at least the charcoal part of it and so reading it is difficult from the computer screen and the zooming limit becomes a bar.

I found it possible to open the file as my earlier difficulty was a glitch with the device in which I tried to open it. But I am unable to zoom the leaf sufficiently to read it.
 
My family too has a collection of palm scripts. As we are family astrologers, my guess is that it might be a astrological one.

I am attaching herewith one such..If this can be read, would be grateful scan0001.webpscan0001.webp
 
The pdf document itself is composed of jpg images. With just a little effort, one can get the pages to look like this. Page 1 of the pdf document: click on the image to get an enlarged image. Further zooming-in may help to read clearly.
grantham page 1.webp

Unless you look at the original, with magnifying glass and a very bright light source, it is tough!
 
Last edited:
I apologize for this runaround, but since I am a newbie, every post is being monitored before it gets released. This is causing a lot of delays. I will upload the 300DPI images of the manuscripts instead. I will also try to process them to bring out the letters better. The 300dpi was recommended by the digital libraries for archival purposes...

Thanks,

Ram
 
சுவடியை பற்றி தெரிந்துகொள்ள தமிழ் தாத்தா உ வெ சாமிநாதய்யரின்(1855-1942) "என் சரித்திரம்" என்ற சுய சரிதையிலிருந்து ஓர் பகுதியை கீழே கொடுத்துள்ளேன் .அன்றைய தமிழ் நாட்டில் திண்ணைப் பள்ளிக்கூடங்களில் மாணவர்கள் எவ்வளவு ச்ரத்தையுடன் படிக்க வேண்டியிருந்தது என்பதை விவரமாக எழுதியுள்ளார் தமிழ் தாத்தா . "என் சரித்திரம்" ஒவ்வொரு தமிழனும் அவசியம் படிக்க வேண்டியதாகும்.
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என் சரித்திரம்:

பிள்ளைகளுக்கு மணல்தான் சிலேட்டின் ஸ்தானத்தில் இருந்தது. பனையேடுதான் புஸ்தகம். எழுத்தாணியே பேனா. உபாத்தியாயர் எழுதித் தரும் ஏட்டுச் சுவடியிலிருந்து முதலில் நெடுங்கணக்கை (அரிச்சுவடியை)க் கற்றுக் கொள்வான் மாணாக்கன். அப்பால் எண் சுவடி முதலிய சுவடிகள் பெற்றுப் படிப்பான். ஓலை வாரவும், சுவடி சேர்க்கவும், நன்றாக எழுதவும் தெரிந்து கொள்வதற்குப் பல நாளாகும். சுவடியைப் பிரித்து ஒழுங்காகக் கட்டுவதற்குக் கூடப் பழக்கம் வேண்டும். பிள்ளைகளுக்கு எழுத்துப் பழக்கம் உண்டாக உபாத்தியாயர் ஓர் ஓலையில் எழுதித் தருவார். பிள்ளைகள் அதே மாதிரி எழுதிப் பழகுவார்கள். அந்த மூல ஓலைக்குச் சட்டம் என்று பெயர்.

ஏட்டுச் சுவடிகளில் மஞ்சள், ஊமத்தையிலைச்சாறு, வசம்புக்கரி முதலியவற்றைத் தடவிப் படிப்பது வழக்கம், எழுத்துக்கள் தெளிவாகத் தெரிவதற்கும் பூச்சிகள் வராமல் இருப்பதற்கும் அவ்வாறு செய்வார்கள். ஏட்டுச்
சுவடிகளுக்குக் குறிப்பிட்ட அளவு ஒன்றும் இல்லை. வெவ்வேறு அளவில் அவை இருக்கும். சுவடிகளில் ஒற்றைத் துவாரம் இருக்கும். ஒரு நூற் கயிற்றைக் கிளிமூக்கு என்ற ஒன்றில் முடிந்து சுவடியின் துவாரத்தின் வழியே செலுத்தி அதைக் கட்டுவார்கள். பனையோலையை நரம்போடு சேர்த்துச் சிறுசிறு துண்டுகளாக நறுக்கிக் கிளி மூக்குகளாக உபயோகப் படுத்துவார்கள். கிளிமூக்கிற்குப் பதிலாகப் பொத்தானையோ, துவாரம் பண்ணின செம்புக் காசையோ, சோழியையோ முடிவதும் உண்டு.
ஏடுகளின் ஆரம்பத்திலும் இறுதியிலும் வெற்றேடுகள் சில சேர்த்திருப்பார்கள்.

எழுத்தாணிகளில் குண்டெழுத்தாணி, வாரெழுத்தாணி, மடக் கெழுத்தாணி என வெவ்வேறு வகை உண்டு. வாரெழுத்தாணிக்குப் பனையோலையினாலே உறைசெய்து அதற்குள் செருகி வைப்பார்கள். மடக்கெழுத்தாணிக்குப் பிடி இருக்கும்; மடக்கிக் கொள்ளலாம், அந்தப்பிடி மரத்தினாலோ தந்தத்தினாலோ மாட்டுக் கொம்பினாலோ அமைக்கப்படும்.

ஒரு பையன் புதியதாக ஒரு நூலைப் படிக்கத் தொடங்குவதைச் சுவடி துவக்கல் என்பார்கள். பனையோலையில் அந்த நூலை எழுதி மஞ்சள் தடவி விநாயக பூஜை முதலியவற்றைச் செய்து பையனிடம் கொடுத்து உபாத்தியாயர் படிப்பிப்பார். அவன் வீட்டிலிருந்து வந்த காப்பரிசி நிவேதனம் செய்யப்படும்.
அது தேங்காய்த் துண்டு, எள்ளு, வெல்லம் இவைகள் சேர்க்கப் பெற்று மிகச் சுவையாக இருக்கும். அதைப் பிள்ளைகளுக்கும் பிறருக்கும் விநியோகம் செய்வார்கள். அன்றைத் தினம் பள்ளிக்கூடத்திற்கு விடுமுறை நாளாகும்.

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ப்ரஹ்மண்யன்
பெங்களூரு
 
Last edited:
Guys,

I am attaching two leaves from the manuscript for make it easier to read the contents. Note that the leaf is a bit dark and hence I will spend some time to enhance the image. In regards to Brahmanyan's wonderful post, here are some images of the various styluses that are discussed. All of them are in my personal collection:


குண்டெழுத்தாணி (Kuṇṭeḻuttāṇi)​
PalmLeafStylus.webp



மடக்கெழுத்தாணி


​
PalmManuscriptStylus.webp



A Kid's version of the above
TinyStylus.webp



வாரெழுத்தாணி (Vāreḻuttāṇi),

Stylus.webp




​
 
A very good example of usage of palm leaf manuscripts, which are stored in Vaitheeswaran Koil
Near Mayiladuthurai used by Astrologers to predict the history (future) of every individual is very
prominent.

Balasubramanian
 
Dear Madam,
Some years ago ( I have not visited this forum for a very long time !), there was a thread on Granhta libis. It is not difficult to learn. Some words are almost similar to tamil. I am also looking for some palm leaves left behind by Swami Gnanananda giri of Thapovnam. I amy get it if I am lucky. Thanks and regards,
N.R.Ranganathan
 
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