Tulsidas’ rare manuscript stolen from Varanasi temple

An Awadhi manuscript of the Ramcharitmanas by Tulsidas, believed to be dating back to the 16th century, has gone missing from Varanasi’s Hanuman temple since Thursday afternoon.

Tulsidas had written Ramcharitmanas, one of the most read magnum opus in the world, at the same temple in late 1500 AD. The manuscript, written in the Awadhi dialect which is part of the eastern Hindi language family, has been in the temple since 1701 after being discovered in 1623.

"It appears to be the handiwork of someone who knew the temple very well. They broke open the temple locks and stole the manuscript. They have also taken away a silver crown and a silver gada (mace). We have registered an FIR against unidentified miscreants," Veerbhadra Mishra, the chief priest and trustee of the Sankatmochan temple, said.

The rare artefacts were kept at the Hanuman temple at Tulsi Ghat within the premises where Mishra lives. The complex was built by Goswami Tulsidas sometime between 1570 AD and 1590 AD.

The thieves didn’t take away the wood from a boat in which Tulsidas used to cross the Ganga. His khadaun (wooden slippers) were also left untouched by the intruders.

"The temple remains closed from 12 noon to 3pm. When Durga Tiwari, a priest, opened the temple’s main gate on Thursday afternoon, he saw a side door open. Upon entering it, he realised that the manuscript – wrapped in a red cloth – and some other items were missing. But I believe that the thieves were basically after the manuscript," Mishra, a Magsaysay awardee, added.

His son Vishwambharnath said: "It seems someone familiar with the temple has stolen the manuscript. We used to show it to the public only during the Ramlila. "

Varanasi DIG Ram Kumar said the police hoped to arrest the culprits and recover the manuscript soon.

Source : India Today