GUNTUR: Manuscripts found in Guntur district during the five-day survey taken up by the Central Government has brought to light details about an ayurvedic medicine for measles.

The team headed by Chief Planning Officer V. Mahipal came across 28 manuscripts on palm leaves that are more than 75 years old. Two of them collected from S. Hariprasada Rao, a librarian in Narsaraopet, were on the verge of disintegration due to lack of proper care. A Telugu professor P.V. Subba Rao from C.R. College in Chilakaluripet on Wednesday tried to decipher contents of both the manuscripts though their age could not be determined.

Poetic form

One of the voluminous manuscripts gave a detailed method of worshipping Lord Krishna and goddess Saraswati in poetic form. It was written in Telugu using some sharp tool and `myrobalan' (Karakkai in Telugu) ink. The edges, however, darkened making it difficult to decipher anything.

Another smaller manuscript detailed the method of preparing an ayurvedic medicine (`lehyam') for treating measles. The manuscript on `Boorja Patram' also had Sanskrit inscription. It also detailed what material had to be used for preparation of some `choornams' (powders) for treating some other diseases.

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