Mumbai, 30 August (H.S.): A restoration initiative at the century-old Karimi Library in Mumbai is seeking to preserve rare Persian and Urdu translations of Hindu scriptures that offer a glimpse into India's shared cultural and literary heritage.

The library, housed within the 152-year-old Anjuman-I-Islam institute in south Mumbai, has begun restoration work on more than 32 Hindu religious texts, including the Mahabharat, Ramayan, Bhagavad Gita and Shiv Puran. The books were printed between 1867 and 1896 and are among the older works preserved in the library's collection.

Located near Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus, the library houses a wide-ranging collection of books, newspapers and manuscripts in Sanskrit, English, Urdu, Persian, Marathi, Pashto and Arabic. Its holdings cover subjects including history, philosophy, theology, literature and geography, with some publications dating back more than 150 years.

The restoration effort is aimed at protecting these fragile volumes from further deterioration and preserving them for future generations. The Persian and Urdu translations of Hindu scriptures are particularly significant for their historical and literary value, reflecting a period when Indian religious and cultural texts were also being translated and circulated across linguistic traditions.

Among the works being preserved are translations and editions of some of India's best-known religious texts. Their survival provides researchers and readers with material to study the interaction between languages, literature and religious traditions in the country.

The Karimi Library's collection also reflects the diverse intellectual environment in which the books were produced and preserved. Its holdings span multiple Indian and foreign languages and cover a broad range of subjects, making the library a valuable repository of historical material.

The restoration drive comes as institutions holding old books and manuscripts face the challenge of preserving paper-based collections that are vulnerable to age and environmental damage. Careful conservation can help ensure that rare editions remain accessible to scholars and the public.

The initiative at the Karimi Library therefore goes beyond preserving individual books. By safeguarding rare translations of Hindu scriptures in Persian and Urdu, the effort also protects an important part of India's multilingual literary record and the history of cultural exchange reflected in its libraries and archives.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Indrani Sarkar