Alexandria Library Restoration
By Priyadarshi Dutta
In 1986, the idea of Bibliotheca Alexandrian resurged after a number of serious scientific studies by a panel of scientists. A preparatory committee consisting eminent writers, thinkers, and intellectuals was formed to chalk out a plan for reviving the library. UNESCO Director-General responded promptly and announced UNESCO was ready to assist in the project. UNESCO took up the project and in March 1987 presented Phase I of the project feasibility study.
WHILE Egypt is the flavour of the season with an ‘Ozymandias’ fighting for his survival in the Nile Valley, an event in the Gangetic plain captured some attention. The mutation papers regarding 446 acres of land meant for proposed Nalanda University were handed over by Bihar administration to Dr Gopa Sabharwal, the Vice Chancellor-designate. The adulatory tone in which some newspapers reported the event betrays a black hole of thinking. We had seen similar panegyrics in the both Houses of Parliament when the Nalanda University Bill was passed in August 2010. Unfortunately, the political class, intelligentsia and media have indulged in little analytical thinking about the project touted as the revival of India’s glorious heritage. It is ironic that the revival of India’s glory should be surrogated by a bunch of NRIs and non-Indian figures in a highly non-transparent fashion. It was never put on the website even though such a project of ‘national importance’ warranted voluntary disclosure and wide public participation. How come Dr Gopa Sabharwal, a Reader of Sociology in the Lady Shri Ram College (Delhi University), who heads a department of three teachers, and has two published books to her credit got catapulted to the position of Vice Chancellor is a secret best known to the Nalanda Mentor Group (NMG) or its head viz. Amartya Sen.
The project has indulged in misusing the brand name of Nalanda in ways more than one. In claiming itself to be a modern avatar of ancient Nalanda it has completely disregarded an already flourishing institution of Buddhist scholarship Nava Nalanda Mahavihara (estd. 1952), working under the aegis of Union Ministry of Culture in the same Nalanda district of Bihar. Its foundation stone was laid by the then President Dr Rajendra Prasad in 1951. It is a living institution whose activities and affairs one can keep abreast of at http://navanalandamahavihara.org/.
We have a strange situation where two ministries of the UPA government viz. Ministry of External Affairs and Ministry of Culture would claim guardianship of two institutions, utterly unrelated, but both claiming to be heirs of ancient Nalanda. No representative from Ministry of Culture or Nava Nalanda Mahavihara, was ever invited to the Mentors Group meeting as RTIs to both ministries confirm.
The NMG seems to have a love-hate relationship with the idea of ancient Nalanda being a centre of Buddhist scholarship. They seem to be hell-bent on proving that Buddhism was merely one of the subjects pursued at ancient Nalanda, which was also famed for science, mathematics, medicine, chemistry etc. I would be obliged if anybody could name a proper scientist or mathematician produced by ancient Nalanda; or conversely trace any known ancient Indian scientist or mathematician to Nalanda University.
Amartya Sen failed to cite the name of even one scientist in his recent speech themed ‘Nalanda and the Quest of Science’ at Indian Science Congress at Chennai. The truth is that the Nalanda University Bill envisaged Nalanda as a university in humanities, and no scientist or mathematician was ever associated with the project. The NMG wants to gloss over the fact that Ancient Nalanda was a Buddhist Mahavihara, more preciously of Mahayana doctrine and not a university for secular subjects. Its teachers and students were all Buddhist monks.
Ancient Nalanda despite its appeal throughout Asia was after all an Indian institution. Its chancellors and scholars were all from India. But why this obsession with ‘South East Asian friendship’ that the Mentors Group was composed of entirely NRIs and non-Indians. But when it came to Tibetans, they were firmly shunted out. Dalai Lama was kept away, perhaps not to offend China, who has a major stake in the University. Ancient Nalanda had become a centre of Tibetan scholarship. The overseas Tibetans have founded Nalanda Institute (Olympia, Washington State, USA), Nalanda Bodhi Halifax Study Group (Seattle) etc.
Thus Nalanda University is an instance of how one should not approach a project of national importance. We could have done it better without handling over the project to a shadowy cabal. Egypt furnishes an example of heritage revival through international cooperation in transparent and accountable manner. And we are talking about the UNESCO-backed project Bibliotheca Alexandrina or the Grand Library of Alexandria. This state-of-art futuristic library (visit it at www.bibalex.org), inaugurated in October, 2002 is a throbbing centre of activities, attracting over 1.5 million visitors every year.
The ancient library of Alexandria, apparently an integral part of ancient university, flourished during the Ptolemaic rule in Egypt. Ptolemy I ‘Soter’, a top general of Alexander, had received Egypt as part heir to Alexander’s empire. The ancient university amd library at Alexandria, metaphorically, was the true lighthouse of Alexandria. There are several politically-loaded opinions on how the library got destroyed in fire almost without trace. Julius Caesar’s invasion of Egypt, Christian fanaticism against pagan past (4th century AD), and Arab-Muslim invasions (7th century AD) have been blamed.
But Egypt under Mubarak made a concerted and successful effort to re-establish a futuristic version of the grand library. The project was overseen by first lady Mrs. Suzanne Mubarak, as the Chairman of Board of Trustees.
In 1986, the idea of Bibliotheca Alexandrian resurged after a number of serious scientific studies by a panel of scientists. A preparatory committee consisting eminent writers, thinkers, and intellectuals was formed to chalk out a plan for reviving the library. UNESCO Director-General responded promptly and announced UNESCO was ready to assist in the project. UNESCO took up the project and in March 1987 presented Phase I of the project feasibility study.
In December 1987 was a momentous hour. The Director-General of UNESCO sent a call for countries of the world to support the project of Bibliotheca Alexandrina as a beacon of culture and civilisation in the Mediterranean region. The Prime Minister of Egypt issued an ordinance to form the Supreme National Committee for Bibliotheca Alexandrina project. The foundation stone was laid by President Hosni Mubarak on June 28, 1988. The UNESCO Director General Frederico Mayor and number of Nobel laureates participated in that function. In October 1988, an International competition was announced to select the best architectural design for the library. 1400 architectural firms from 77 countries invited in this competition. The first prize was awarded to Snøhetta, Norway in association with Hamza Associates of Egypt, who would carry out the engineering designs. The jury cited Snøhetta’s design as one not only meeting all functional aspects of a modern library, but also reflecting the historical dimensions of the city of Alexandria in perspective, expressing as well the Egyptian spirit of Egypt, in terms of heritage and component.
On February 12, 1990 Aswan International Conference was held in presence of several world dignitaries. It resulted in the Aswan Declaration that attracted pledge of financial support from several countries. In Cooperation with UNESCO, a project construction agreement was signed in October 1990.
The conceptual as well as constructional work went into several phases until the inauguration of the library on October 16, 2002. Bibliotheca Alexandrina shape can hold millions of books, has six specialised libraries including digital/microfilming, four museums, a planetarium, eight academic research centres, 15 permanent exhibition, four art galleries, a huge convention centre, a dialogue forum for authors, artists, thinkers besides fast becoming a nerve centre for several Arab and international intellectual network. In 2008-09 it hosted 717 cultural programmes, 44 workshops, 89 training and educational programmes and 316 art workshops.
The librarian of Bibliotheca Alexandrina is Ismail Serageldin, known as the wisest man in Egypt alive. The library has numerous international patrons, donors and panelists but unlike proposed Nalanda it is rooted to Egypt. It is a pity that Amartya Sen, who speaks of Nalanda’s cooperation with Al Azhar, never studied the Bibliotheca Alexandrina revival model.
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