A manuscript called
Ezourvedam was given to
Voltaire in 1760 by
Louis Laurent de Féderbe, Count of Modave. The text was in French, and said to be a French translation of a
Sanskrit original. Voltaire was enthusiastic about the work, had it copied and brought it to the attention of others. However, by 1761, Voltaire regarded the text to be a mere commentary on the Vedas. It was first published in 1778 (Voltaire died that same year). The genuineness of the
Ezourvedam was questioned in 1782; the doubts were confirmed in 1822. Rather than an original Sanskrit work, the
Ezourvedam turned out to be a French text that was written by French Jesuits and meant to be translated into Sanskrit. ==Title==