Rajaram's "answer"

[Michael Witzel]

Yesterday I copied Iravatham's letter to the editor of FRONTLINE showing
that he had the photo of Mackay 453 in hand in 1977;
http://www.frontlineonline.com/fl1721/17211220.htm

As is well known by now, he published his computer 'enhanced' one, in 2000
turning a half-bull into a full horse.

Here is Rajaram's answer, sent via a surrogate to the  -- how shall I say
-- very vociferous Indic Traditions list:

-----------------------------------------------------------
Message: 22
   Date: Sun, 15 Oct 2000 05:09:24 -0400
   From: "Ram Narayanan" <ramn at adelphia.net>
Subject: Rajaram responds

Friends:

Since Rajaram is not  a member of this list, and serious charges have been
made by Farmer against Rajaram in his posting wherein he had provided a
link to Mahadevan's letter in Frontline, I sought Rajaram's views on the
subject. This is what he says:

QUOTE:
I am a little saddened by Mahadevan's response, assuming that he really
did write that letter. The copy I sent him in 1997 was exactly the same one
that went into the book. He should also read our book and comment on it since
he is one of our major sources.

In any event none of this has any bearing on the decipherment, but part of
the diversionary tactic to avoid facing the decipherment and its
consequences.
UNQUOTE.

Ram Narayanan

------------------------------------------------------------

Now, he calls Iravatham Mahadevan a liar?

Mahadevan, however, has written to Steve Farmer, several weeks BEFORE
Rajaram's "reply", on Oct.1, 2000:

"I confirm that Rajaram sent me only a copy of the published photograph (of
the impression ) of Mackay Seal 453.  He did not send me the computer
enhancement which he must have done later. I have the book by Jha and
Rajaram with me and I have checked it again."

In other words, Rajaram's statement in the letter to R.Narayanan is *untrue*.

I should like to add that in a semi-private letter (25 Jul 2000 17:34:46
PDT) Rajaram said that he looked at a copy of Mackay 453 in a reprint of
Mackay's Volume (reprinted in 1978, by Indological Book Corporation, 2/7
Ansari Road, Daryaganj, New Delhi – 110 002)   in the Library of the Mythic
Society at Bangalore, his home town.

We have asked for a photocopy of that reprinted page from India: It is a
scrisp and clear as Mackay's original, again none of the 'enhanced'
fuzziness of Rajaram's picture.

QED...

Who is fudging, nay: lying here ? -- I may scan this page today or tomorrow
and put it in the update section of my Rajaram file  (scroll down to the
end):

http://www.people.fas.harvard.edu/~witzel/R&J.htm


And, I like his 'diversionary tactic" :

Clearly, the inscription of his "horse seal" mentioning "arko ha azva"
correlates to a half-BULL!

In short: his decipherments amount to some many 'hundred noisy crows' ...

============

========================================================
Michael Witzel
Department of Sanskrit & Indian Studies, Harvard University
2 Divinity Avenue, Cambridge MA 02138, USA

ph. 1- 617-496 2990 (also messages)
home page:  http://www.fas.harvard.edu/~witzel/mwpage.htm

Elect. Journ. of Vedic Studies:  http://www1.shore.net/~india/ejvs