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Digitalization of the Asha Archives of Kathmandu
Min Bahadur Shakya
Nagarjuna Institute
Nepal
The Asha Archives is a public library of Nepalese Manuscripts, named
after the late Mr. Asha Man Singh Kansakar, father of the late Mr. Prem
Bahadur Kansakar (1917-1991). Mr. Kansakar was a prominent activist, social
worker, educationist and Newar writer who had founded several social,cultural
literary and educational institutions.The nucleus of this collection was
donated by Prem Bdr.Kansakar to Cwasa Pasa, a premier literary association
of Newar writers on August 16,1985.
The Archives was inaugurated by Prof.Yujiro Hayashi, the executive director
of the Toyota Foundation, Japan on December 7,1987.It was made accessible
for the public since that day. The Toyota Foundation had made a grant
to purchase, innovate and furnish the house where it is now located.The
Foundation had also supported the documentation of manuscripts and the
initial operation of the Archives with a fund deposited as seed money
and endowment.
Objectives
After decades of personal and singular efforts to stop the export of
Nepalese manuscripts abroad, the Asha Archives was founded with the noble
objective of collecting Nepalese manuscripts and making them available
for scholars and researchers in Nepal.The main objectives of the Archives
are:
1. To collect valuable Nepalese manuscripts in Nepal through public efforts;
2. To preserve such manuscripts as are of value and relevance for studies
on Nepal's heritage;
3. To document such manuscripts in the form of accessible catalogues,
and
4. To make them available to researchers and scholars for study, research
and publication through various forms of reproduction.
In collaboration with the Buddhist Library of Japan, Nagoya, the Asha
Archives is completing the digitalization of its entire collection of
manuscripts. Since the project is complete this year all the manuscripts
including their paintings and illuminations are available on CD-ROM (125
cd's)
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