First Published : 08 Jul 2010
J Sreekumar had been clueless about the value of the 162-year-old ‘Book of Psalms’. Neither did he know that the fragile shelf at his home in Vanchiyoor held a key to history. However, he has now decided to put one of the greatest possessions of his father for sale in the belief that it would bring him a fortune.
Printed in 1848 by the Church Mission Press in ‘Cottayam’ for the Madras Auxiliary Bible Society (as printed on the book), the book is the ‘Malayalim’ translation of the Book of Psalms. Though there was no response to his page in the eBay site, he received many calls asking details of the book.
A shelf of wonders awaited the Expresso team which went to see the 162-year-old Book of Psalms. There were more rare and interesting books. ‘Vrikshayurvedam’, which prescribes methods to change the characteristics of a tree is one among them. “I have heard that using the methods in the book, one can change the shape of a leaf or can get the desired colour of cotton from a cotton plant,” Sreekumar said.
It was during a discussion with eminent scientist N Gopalakrishnan that he realized the value of this rare book. Amazed by the content of the book, a Japanese academician had requested him a photocopy, which he later sent to her.
Another interesting book is ‘Kakshapudam’ which is all about black magic. “It has almost all black magic methods, including ‘Uchchadanam’, both in Sanskrit and its translation. One can easily perform black magic using this. However, I never tried,” he quips.
Showing a copy of ‘Manusmruti’ he said, “I don’t have an idea about most of the other books. I believe that there are almost 500 old books.”
Being an avid reader, Sreekumar took interest in preserving his father’s collection of books. He was just six when his father Subedar Major M K Janardhanan died in 1965. He left a bundle of books, which still remain unlisted. “I try to keep them away from dirt and insects. Still, I lost many of them,” Sreekumar said.
“Once, I saw an article by Malayinkeezhu Gopalakrishnan, which refers to a souvenir released during the ‘shashtipoorthi’ of Sir C P Ramaswamy Iyer. It said there were only 100 copies of it. I had a faint memory of seeing one of its kind. When I checked, it was all damaged in moisture. It was disheartening,” he said.
Sreekumar is running a DTP - photostat shop near his home in Vanchiyoor. If his Book of Psalms indeed gets sold, Sreekumar plans to use a part of the money to preserve his father’s collection.
jisha@expressbuzz.com
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