Manuscripts of Bhagavad Gita and Bharat Muni’s Natyashastra are among 74 new documentary heritage collections that have been added to the UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in a social media post on Friday, described the inscriptions as “a proud moment for every Indian across the world”.
“The inclusion of the Gita and Natyashastra in UNESCO’s Memory of the World Register is a global recognition of our timeless wisdom and rich culture. The Gita and Natyashastra have nurtured the (human) civilisation and consciousness for centuries. Their insights continue to inspire the world,” he said.
Entries on scientific revolution, women’s contribution to history and major milestones of multilateralism from 72 countries and four international organisations are included in the Register, according to United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO).
The Register consists of books, manuscripts, maps, photographs, sound or video recordings as a documentary heritage of humanity. The development comes on World Heritage Day on April 18.
Preserved at the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute and codified around the 2nd century BC, the Natyashastra is “an epitome of Natyaveda, an oral body of knowledge of performing art containing 36,000 verses known as the Gandharvaveda,” the UNESCO said in its citation list about the new inscriptions.
Bharat Muni makes a “groundbreaking statement in Natyashastra, asserting that ‘no meaning can blossom forth without rasa’, a profound contribution to world literature,” it said.
The Natyashastra embodies a comprehensive set of rules that define natya (drama), abhinaya (performance), rasa (aesthetic experience), bhava (emotion), sangita (music), among others, thus articulating the character of Indian theatre, poetics, aesthetics, dance and music.
The Manuscript collection of Bhagavad Gita: Ancient samgraha grantha of Indian thought with worldwide readership and influence also now finds a place in the coveted UNESCO register.
“The Bhagavadgita, containing 700 verses in 18 Chapters, is embedded within the Bhismaparva of the epic Mahabharata. It takes the form of a dialogue between Krishna and Arjuna with armies lined up for the great war intended to free Arjuna of dejection (visada),” the citation read.
Bhagavad Gita is a central text in the continuous, cumulative ancient intellectual Indian tradition, synthesising various thought movements such as Vedic, Buddhist, Jain and Carvaka, it said.
“Due to its philosophical breadth and depth, the Bhagavad Gita has been read for centuries across the globe and translated into many languages,” the UNESCO citation added. Union Home Minister Amit Shah hailed the development, and said that under Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Bharat has made incessant efforts to enshrine its cultural wisdom at the centre of global welfare. Shah also said that the world treasures Bharat’s wisdom.
“Congratulations to every Indian on the grand occasion of the Gita and Natyashastra getting included in the UNESCO Register,” he said in a social media post.
The Home Minister said the scriptures depict the ancient wisdom of Bharat that has showed light to humanity to make the world better and lives more beautiful since time immemorial.
“Under the leadership of PM Shri @narendramodi Ji, Bharat has made incessant efforts to enshrine our cultural wisdom at the centre of global welfare. This is a great recognition of these efforts,” he said. Union Culture Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat also took to the social media, saying this was a “historic moment for Bharat’s civilisational heritage”. This global honour celebrates India’s “eternal wisdom and artistic genius”, the Minister said.
“These timeless works are more than literary treasures - they are philosophical and aesthetic foundations that have shaped Bharat’s worldview and the way we think, feel, live, and express. With this, we now have 14 inscriptions from our country on this international register,” he posted and shared some images of the two texts.
On Thursday, UNESCO added 74 new documentary heritage collections to its Memory of the World Register, bringing the total number of inscribed collections to 570, the world body said.
Collections are added to the register by a decision of UNESCO Executive Board, following the evaluation of nominations by an independent international advisory committee. Among the newly inscribed collections, 14 pertain to scientific documentary heritage.
Ithaf Al-Mahbub, submitted by Egypt, documents the Arab world’s contributions to astronomy, planetary movement, celestial bodies, and astrological analysis during the first millennium of our era, UNESCO said.
The archives of Charles Darwin (United Kingdom), Friedrich Nietzsche (Germany), Wilhelm Conrad Roentgen (Germany) - which contain the very first recorded X-ray photographs - and Carlos Chagas (Brazil), a pioneer in disease research, have also been included.
Several collections document key moments in international cooperation, including the Geneva Conventions (1864-1949) and their protocols (1977-2005) (Switzerland), the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (United Nations), and the 1991 Windhoek Declaration (Namibia), a global reference for press freedom, the UNESCO said in the statement.
“Documentary heritage is an essential yet fragile element of the memory of the world. This is why UNESCO invests in safeguarding - such as the libraries of Chinguetti in Mauritania or the archives of Amadou Hampate Ba in Cote d’Ivoire - shares best practices and maintains this Register that records the broadest threads of human history,” UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay said.