Nuns read The Old Testament written in “mirror language” by Uttam Das at Don Bosco Church on Sunday. Picture by Eastern Projections

Dec. 18: He does it with mirrors ? even writing the Bible.

The most widely read book in the world, The Holy Bible, has seen 2,233 translated versions till now in the various languages used all over the world. But this Christmas, Pope Benedict XVI ? along with many others ? will have the opportunity to read the text in a new language and that, too, laterally inverted.

This is one art form in which you need a mirror to read the script.

The “mirror language” version of the Bible has been given shape by city-based expert Uttam Das. Das, who claims to be the sole practitioner of the art, today formally handed over six volumes of The Old Testament to Thomas Menamparampil, archbishop of Guwahati, at Don Bosco Church.

The archbishop will gift the series to the Pope as well as to Harvard University in the US.

“I wish to congratulate Das for conceiving the idea and writing page after page of the series in his unique style, displaying his expertise and tenacity in devoting himself whole-heartedly to the art form,” said the archbishop while unveiling the book after Sunday mass.

“Das has elevated the everyday business of writing to an art form. Through his art form, he has tried to give a new look to the Bible. This makes the coming Christmas special,” he added.

Das’s latest creation will be displayed at the church on Christmas Day for public reading.

Das sums up his creativity as a “reverse mode of language”, a unique technique of reading and writing language inversely. In short, the written alphabet can be read only with the help of a mirror.

Das has taken this art form to new heights and explains what the various utilities of mirror writing can be.

“Interested persons can use the language at one level of encryption as the language can be used as the simplest way to keep secret information,” explained 29-year-old Das. “Repeated practice develops the intelligence quotient by improving attentiveness and sharpens the intellect.”

So far, Das has successfully demonstrated his expertise in mirror writing in English, Assamese, Bengali and Hindi. Devoting almost 12 hours each day to his vocation, Das last year left his regular job in a government department to pursue his art full-time.

Till now, he has written five books in mirror languages, including six volumes of the Bible. The other four are Meditation and Its Preparation (English), Naam Ghokha (Assamese), Aaso Manush Hao (Bengali) and Geeta (Hindi).

“After finishing widely read books, I will deal with some popular works of fiction in different languages,” he said. Das said he had started experimenting with the art form since his childhood.

“I had always wanted to do something new. I developed the art form on my own, then gradually it became a hobby. And now its my sole passion,” he said.

In the future, he aspires to write the Quran in Urdu.

“At present, I am working on a book teaching the very basics of mirror writing,” said Das. “My aim is to establish the language at a global level. For that to materialise, I seek help from all sources.”