Unfinished Manuscript of A. M. A. Ayrookuzhiel (Working Document)
Unfinished Manuscript of A. M. A. Ayrookuzhiel (Working Document) documents the preparatory work towards reconstructing an unfinished manuscript by Rev. Dr. A. M. A. Ayrookuzhiel, tentatively titled Dalit and Hindu Religious Identity. The manuscript was left incomplete at the time of his death in 1996 and was intended to examine the relationship between caste identity and faith traditions in India.
This working document brings together available manuscript material, related writings, research notes, editorial observations, and a mapping of the surviving documents associated with the manuscript. It serves as a transparent record of the preparatory process, including the identification, organisation and analysis of existing material, and does not represent the final manuscript. The reconstruction project was initiated as part of the preparations for the 30th death anniversary of A. M. A. Ayrookuzhiel on 29 November 2026.
Contents
Task List
Phase 1: Source Document
- Identify the source document.
- Produce an OCR version of the source document.
- Complete the page mapping.
Phase 2: Transcription
- Verify and improve the OCR text.
- Transcribe the manuscript.
- Proofread the transcription.
Phase 3: Research and Analysis
- Compare the manuscript with published essays.
- Compare the manuscript with Essays on Dalits, Religion and Liberation (2006).
- Identify unpublished and previously undocumented material.
- Document textual variations between manuscript and published versions.
- Identify missing and duplicate pages.
Phase 4: Editorial Preparation
- Prepare editorial notes.
- Determine the structure of the reconstructed manuscript.
- Identify references requiring annotation.
Phase 5: Reconstruction
- Reconstruct the unfinished manuscript.
- Review and verify the reconstructed manuscript.
Source Document
We are beginning this work using this source document as the primary reference. We found a version of the manuscript in Sunil Abraham’s personal collection. As the founder of this project, Sunil Abraham owns the copyright to this unfinished work.
For this project, we reordered some of the pages and created an OCR version of the manuscript using the VFlat app, which embeds recognised text directly into the image layer.
The source document consists of 115 pages. Our mapping shows that it contains several essays that have already been documented on The Sunil Abraham Project and were subsequently published in the 2006 collected volume Essays on Dalits, Religion and Liberation, along with additional material that has not yet been studied. Over the coming months, we will identify, transcribe and analyse these remaining materials as part of the preparation of the unfinished manuscript.
Mapping
This mapping follows the source document described above. Page numbers mentioned in this section refer to the 115-page source document unless otherwise stated. The mapping records the current order of pages, identifies distinct documents and sections within the source document, and documents editorial observations made during the preparation of this working document.
- Pages 1–12: A Proposal For The Study Of The Religious Heritage Of The Dalits: Some Methodological Considerations. This essay has already been documented on The Sunil Abraham Project and may be accessed here.
- Pages 13–14: Chapter One, Statement of the Problem. Mapping has to be done, how is this related to other works or this manuscript.
- Pages 15–24: Chapter II, Dewaswom Board Temples.
- Pages 17–22: Devswom Board Temples in Kottara Taluk
- Pages 23–24: Committees.
- Pages 25–35: Nair Community in Kerala.
- Pages 36–44: Historical Background.
- Pages 45–49: Dalit Shrines (Kurava, Pulaya & Paraya).
- Page 50: Chapter 2, Methodology. This appears to be an important part of the manuscript, as it sets out the methodology of the study. Please read the transcription here.
- Pages 51–67: Chinna Pulayan: The Dalit Teacher of Sankaracharya. This essay has already been documented on The Sunil Abraham Project and may be accessed here.
- Pages 68–73: Introduction.
- Page 74: Dalits and Hindu Religious Identity. This page contains the index and is particularly important, as it outlines the proposed contents of the unfinished manuscript. Please find the page here.
- Pages 75–80: The Dalit Church’s Mission — A Dalit Response. This essay has already been documented on The Sunil Abraham Project and may be accessed here.
- Pages 81–84: The Role of Religion in Dalit Liberation: Some Reflections. This essay has already been documented on The Sunil Abraham Project and may be accessed here.
- Pages 84–87: Christian Dalits in Revolt. This essay has already been documented on The Sunil Abraham Project and may be accessed here.
- Pages 87–93: The Dalits, Religions and Interfaith Dialogue. This essay has already been documented on The Sunil Abraham Project and may be accessed here.
- Pages 93–100: The Religious Factor in Dalit Liberation: Some Reflections. This essay has already been documented on The Sunil Abraham Project and may be accessed here. Note: The version in the manuscript contains additional content that is not included in the version currently available on The Sunil Abraham Project (as of 10 July 2026).
- Pages 100–106: Religious Legitimation and Delegitimations of Social Relations of Power (of Caste): The Case of the Dalits in Historical Perspective. This essay may be read here.
- Pages 106–114: Chinna Pulayan: The Dalit Teacher of Sankaracharya. This is another entry for the Chinna Pulayan essay. Please see the entry for Pages 51–67 above.
- Pages 114–115: Indian Religious Heritage and Social Transformation: Change of Perspective within the CISRS. Please read here.
📄 This page was created on 10 July 2026. You can view its history on GitHub, preview the fileTip: Press Alt+Shift+G, or inspect the . Last updated on 25 July 2026.