Proud moment for India: Warsaw University Library wall contains Upanishad inscriptions in Sanskrit
Social media users are sharing an image of a building wall looking like books and Sanskrit inscriptions.
By Satya Priya BN Published on 6 Aug 2021 12:52 PM GMT
Social media users are sharing an image of a building wall looking like books and Sanskrit inscriptions.
Users claim that this image shows the wall of Warsaw University Library in Poland.
Some users have shared this with a narrative: "Wall at Warsaw University, Poland, engraved with the Upanishads in Sanskrit. Can we imagine, one day, JNU also has such a wall???"
"University in Poland has inscriptions of Upanishads. Some disgusting Indians had issues with `asato mā sadgamaya, tamaso mā jyotirgamaya, mṛtyormā'mṛtaṃ gamaya' for being recited as Morning Prayer in Kendriya Vidyalayas. This shloka comes from Bṛhadāraṇyaka Upaniṣad," reads another message.
Archive links:
https://web.archive.org/web/
Fact check:
The claim that the Warsaw University Library wall contains Upanishad inscriptions in Sanskrit is TRUE.
The image was first tweeted by the Indian Embassy in Poland's Twitter handle stating: "What a pleasant sight !! This is a wall of Warsaw University's library with Upanishads engraved on it. Upanishads are late Vedic Sanskrit texts of Hindu philosophy form the foundations of Hinduism. @MEAIndia"
When searched with the keywords "Upanishads on the Warsaw University Library wall", we found several articles proving that it is TRUE.
The website of the University of Warsaw also has information on one of its sections dedicated to the library. Talking about the library building the website states: "The new building of the Warsaw University Library has won numerous prestigious awards and prizes in architectural competitions and polls among residents of the capital. The concept, which combines the functionality of a modern library, respect for the shaping of the Vistula embankment, and fascination with the intermingling of culture and nature found expression in a building of surprising diversity. The facade on the Dobra Streetside was monumental in nature thanks to the installation of eight panels (4 x7 m) topped by a frieze with the inscription Biblioteka Uniwersytecka. The panels, symbolizing pages of books, present fragments of texts: the old Polish Exposition of the virtues by Jan Kochanowski, the old Russian Novels of the Past from the beginning of the 12th century, the Greek Phaedrus of Plato, the Arabic Book of Animals by Al-Jahiz, the Hebrew Book of Ezekiel, the Sanskrit Rig Veda and two notations: mathematical-physical and musical (from the Etude b-moll by Karol Szymanowski). The whole is made of patinated copper, and its green color harmonizes with the external elements of the building – "climbing" up to the roof garden and facades, which were covered with copper networks, giving support to the creepers and panes of glass which reflect the vegetation."
https://www.buw.uw.edu.pl/en/
According to the University website, inscriptions on the library wall are taken from Rig Veda which is 1 among the 4 Vedas. Here is the street view of the Library wall clearly shows the Sanskrit inscriptions.
Several other websites have shared the images of these facades featuring the inscriptions
https://upload.wikimedia.org/
`talkitect.com' also talks about this architectural wonder in its article 'The Warsaw University Library'. "The architects didn't fail to make a bold statement with the facades of the building, to accompany the intricate design of the interior. The main facade consists of a long and gentle concave curve dominated by green copper and tinted glass. A huge inscription "Biblioteka Uniwersytecka" dominated the top of this curve while 8 large copper panels visualize excerpts from Polish Renaissance writer Jan Kochanowski, Plato, an old-Russian chronicle, Arabic and Indian classics, and from the Bible. To complete the gesture there is a score by composer Karol Szymanowski and sample mathematical formulas engraved on these tablets," it said.
Therefore, the claim that the Warsaw University Library wall contains Upanishad inscriptions in Sanskrit is TRUE.
