ANCIENT LIBRARY LOCATED IN TIBET NOW CREATING DIGITAL ARCHIVES FOR OVER 84 THOUSAND BOOKS

The Sakya Monastery in Tibet is full of marvels. Founded in 1073, the collection houses 84,000 old manuscripts and books along with some of the oldest Tibetan artwork. International scholars may find the contents of this library inaccessible due to its remote location. Thank goodness, the Sakya Monastery Library started digitising its holdings in 2011 and is making great progress toward its goal of preserving these historic records.

The majority of the books in the library's collection are Buddhist texts. This is related to the fact that the Sakya school of Tibetan Buddhism has its primary seat at the monastery. But the library also has books on history, philosophy, astronomy, mathematics, agriculture, and the arts in addition to literary works. Volumes of palm-leaf manuscripts that have endured through the ages due to the region's dry climate and the world's heaviest scripture—weighing 1,100 pounds—are two of its most captivating possessions.

The team notes, "In order to ensure an authentic and comprehensive transmission of the Dharma to future generations, the Ven. Khenchen Appey Rinpoche (1927–2010), following the advice of His Holiness, the 41st Sakya Trizin, stressed the importance of collecting, digitising and publishing important texts." "Rinpoche has made an immeasurable contribution to the Sakya tradition in particular and the Dharma in general by recovering and publishing numerous volumes of important scriptures from the Sakya tradition."

Considering the magnitude of the project, all books weren't indexed until 2022. Just 20% of them are currently fully digitised and accessible in Tibetan original. The texts are accessible for academic and instructional use under a Creative Commons license, in keeping with the goal of conserving them for future generations.