Learn to Read

Sanskrit
A beginners resource to reading Sanskrit


Compiled by Devotees of
Sri Rajarajeswari Peetham,
Rush, NY, USA
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Table of Contents
0.0 An offering at his lotus feet ................................................................................................. 3
1.0 Introduction ......................................................................................................................... 4
2.0 Sanskrit Writing System ....................................................................................................... 5
2.1 Sanskrit Aksharas (Alphabets) .......................................................................................... 5
2.2 Sanskrit Alphabet Chart ................................................................................................... 6
2.3 Writing Sanskrit Alphabets ............................................................................................... 7
3 Reading Sanskrit .................................................................................................................... 10
3.1 Vowels ............................................................................................................................ 10
3.1.1 The short vowels ......................................................................................................... 10
3.1.2 Long Vowels ................................................................................................................ 11
3.1.3 Support Vowels ........................................................................................................... 12
3.2 Consonant ...................................................................................................................... 13
3.2.1 Generic form of a consonant ...................................................................................... 13
3.2.2 Consonant Group-1: Gutturals ................................................................................... 15
3.2.3 Consonant Group-2: Palatals ...................................................................................... 15
3.2.4 Consonant Group-3: Cerebrals ................................................................................... 16
3.2.5 Consonant Group-4: Dentals ...................................................................................... 16
3.2.6 Consonant Group-5: Labials ....................................................................................... 17
3.2.7 Consonant Group-6: Semivowels, Sibilants etc. ......................................................... 17
3.3 Consonant Vowel combinations Swarayukta Vyanjana .............................................. 18
3.4 Conjuncts (Samyuktakshar) ............................................................................................ 22
3.5 Writing methods for Conjuncts ...................................................................................... 22
3.6 Samyuktakshar and vowel combinations....................................................................... 25
3.7 Conjuncts with "ra" ........................................................................................................ 25
3.8 List of Conjuncts ............................................................................................................. 27
3.9 Aksharas that look very similar ...................................................................................... 37
3.10 Vedic Symbols ................................................................................................................ 38
3.11 Rarely used Aksharas ..................................................................................................... 39
3.12 Numerals (B=4l- - sakhy: ) ................................................................................... 40
3.13 Practice Akshara Recognition ...................................................................................... 41
3.14 Practice - Aksharas ......................................................................................................... 44
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3.15 Practice - Words ............................................................................................................. 45
3.15.1 Short Words ................................................................................................................ 45
3.15.2 Long Words ................................................................................................................ 46
3.16 Common words in Vedas ............................................................................................... 47
4 Simple words and phrases ..................................................................................................... 49
4.1 Gods names .................................................................................................................... 49
4.2 Grahas ............................................................................................................................ 50
4.3 Directions ....................................................................................................................... 50
4.4 Gaurdians of directions (-dikpla ) .................................................................... 51
4.5 Fruits ( Tl|+ - phalni) ................................................................................................ 51
4.6 9!9l|T - pupi (Flowers) .......................................................................................... 52
4.7 Body parts ( HlF4 l- arrasya bhga: ) ................................................................ 52
4.8 4lBl- Days ................................................................................................................ 54
4.10 Simple phrases ............................................................................................................... 55
5 Slokas - Small ......................................................................................................................... 56
6 Shanti Mantras ( Hl|-6Pl- - ................................................................. 57
7 Slokas, Suktams and Sahasranamam .................................................................................... 62


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0.0 An offering at his lotus feet

Sri Gurubhyo Namah!






The root of meditation is the gurus form. The root of worship are the gurus feet. The
root of mantra are the gurus words. The root of liberation is the gurus grace.
- Sri Guru Gita

We offer this work at his Lotus Feet, our guru Sri Chitanyananda Natha Saraswati of Sri
Rajarajeswari Peetham, Rush, NY, USA.

This guide, Learn to Read Sanskrit, is mostly a compilation of resources from various
Sanskrit Literature and works from the world-wide-web. Although we used several
resources, major credit goes to the Learn Sanskrit through self-study guide at the
following web site:

http://acharya.iitm.ac.in/sanskrit/tutor.php

Following are other resources that we extensively used in this work:

http://www.avashy.com/hindiscripttutor.htm
http://www.arshakulam.org/index.html
http://www.omniglot.com

(Ager, Simon. "Omniglot - writing systems and languages of the
world". Omniglot was first published on the web in November 1998)

We are not Sanskrit scholars; however we have some exposure to Sanskrit. Inspired by our
Guru, we have a strong desire to do something for younger generation. This life time is not
enough to read all the Vedic scriptures, but we believe that learning to read Vedas is in its
original form can definitely be achieved. This work attempts to aid in reading Sanskrit and
vedas. With Gurus grace, it is our sincere hope that this work will achieve its goal.

Devotees of Sri Rajarajeswari Peetham,
Rush, NY, USA

Sri Gurubhyo Namah!

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1.0 Introduction


Sanskrit is the language of Vedas. A meaningful study of Vedas will not be complete without
the knowledge its script - Devanagari. Although Vedas can be learnt using English diacritics,
it will be almost impossible to master the correct pronunciation. It is our firm belief that
Sanskrit can be learnt by anyone. In order to enjoy the nectar of Vedas, it is essential that
we learn to read Sanskrit.

There are many resources available on the web that will help you to learn read, write and
speak in Sanskrit. The main aim of this guide is to teach you reading Sanskrit. Not writing or
speaking. However, while learning to read Sanskrit you will also learn to write in Devanagari
script - at least we hope. You may realize that it is easy to remember the letters when you
practice writing. We encourage that you print the alphabets from this guide and practice
writing.

This guide starts with an introduction to Devanagari Script and writing in Sankrit. It then
introduces the Swaras, the sounds of Sanskrit and reading methodology. In later sections
you will learn how to pronounce Sanskrit sounds. It then gradually takes you to reading
simple words to complex words. In the final sections you will learn to read simple slokas,
complex slokas and Suktams. We have already published reading modules for Suktams and
Lalitha Sahasra Nama and they are available on our web site for download. We hope you
will use all the resources and learn to read Vedic scriptures.

We pray that the Gurus Grace and Devis blessings be always with you. Have a happy
reading!


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2.0 Sanskrit Writing System
The writing system used for Sanskrit is known as Devanagari. Indian languages are
phonetic in nature and the written shapes represent unique sounds.

In Sanskrit and other Indian languages, unlike in English, there is no specific name given
to the letters. The sound the letter stands for is actually the name for the letter. In a
phonetic language, like Indian languages, you need to read out the words by uttering
the sound, the Swara associated with each Akshara (the letter).







Notable Features in Sanskrit Alphabets:
Consonant letters carry an inherent vowel which can be altered or muted by
means of diacritics or matra.
Vowels can be written as independent letters, or by using a variety of diacritical
marks which are written above, below, before or after the consonant they
belong to. This feature is common to most of the alphabets of South and South
East Asia.
When consonants occur together in clusters, special conjunct letters are used.
The order of the letters is based on articulatory phonetics.
2.1 Sanskrit Aksharas (Alphabets)
Sanskrit alphabet is called Varnamala, literally means garland of letters. Sanskrit
alphabets are classified into four groups. Here is the list. We will cover each of these in
detail in later sections:
F4l- ( svar: ) Vowels
~4V+l|+ ( vyajanni ) Consonants
F44-~4V+l|+ (svarayukta-vyajanni) Consonants with vowels
B4-~4V+l|+ (sayukta-vyajanni) Conjunct consonants
Note on Reading Devanagari using Diacritics: There are many methods being adopted to
read Sanskrit. One of such method is through special notation on Roman letters called
diacritics. The diacritics, which consist of marks written above or below a letter of the
alphabet, indicate variations in the sound associated with the letter. Dictionaries also
follow this method to help the reader identify the manner in which the word should be
pronounced. Following example illustrate diacritics notation scheme:
TPl G T9|6 H+l 6
kamal khalu gaapati anagh caturaga

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2.2 Sanskrit Alphabet Chart
BFT64TPll - sanskritvarnamala
Short Vowels H 7 +
a i u
Long Vowels Hl 7 + 9 9 Hl H|
ai au
Support Vowels H H-
a a
Consonant Group-1: Gutturals T G =
ka kha ga gha a
Consonant Group-2: Palatals 7 = H
ca cha ja jha a
Consonant Group-3: Cerebrals 7 7 T
a ha a ha a
Consonant Group-4: Dentals 6 ( +
ta tha da dha na
Consonant Group-5: Labials 9 T 4 P
pa pha ba bha ma
Group 6: consists of three subgroups.



Semivowels
4 4
ya ra la va

Sibilants
H 9 B
a a sa

Aspirate
(
ha
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2.3 Writing Sanskrit Alphabets
As we mentioned in the beginning of this book it is not necessary to learn to write Sanskrit in
order to learn reading. However, if you learn to write, it will be easier to read. You can use
following as a guide to practice writing Sanskrit.

Sanskrit Writing Vowels





8

Sanskrit Writing Consonants, Semivowels and Sibilants








9









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3 Reading Sanskrit

As we discussed in the beginning of this book, main focus here is reading Sanskrit. In the
following sections we will provide Sanskrit alphabets and reading method. Along with Sanskrit
alphabets we also have provided the Roman letters with diacritic notations to aid in reading. In
the beginning use the Roman diacritics as a guide to read Sanskrit. Eventually you should be
reading Sanskrit letters without the help of Roman diacritics.
3.1 Vowels
Vowels form an independent group from the consonants. The vowels are called
"swaras" in Sanskrit. Swara, means sound and each vowels represent a certain
sound. There are fifteen vowels which comprise of five short ones, eight long ones
and two support vowels. Among these fifteen, only thirteen are in normal use these
days.

There are two types of vowels:
Short Vowels
Long Vowels
3.1.1 The short vowels

The short ones are referred to as "hraswa" swaras. .
H 7 +
a i u

H is pronounced as in cup, bus etc.
is pronounced as in inform, init etc.
7 is pronounced as in look, book etc.

+ has no direct equivalent and is pronounced
somewhere in between ri and ru, like crystal.

is also like + and is pronounced somewhere
in between li and lu similar to glycerene.
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3.1.2 Long Vowels

There are eight long vowels.
These are pronounced for a duration typically twice that of the short ones.
The long vowels also include two vowels that are treated as diphthongs.
However as far as Sanskrit is concerned they are not strictly diphthongs.

Hl 7 + 9 9 Hl H|
ai au
The first four are the long forms of the
corresponding short vowels.

9 and Hl are long vowels which do not have
short forms in Sanskrit.

9 and H| are often likened to diphthongs though
they are not strictly combinations of two vowels.

Hl is pronounced as in far, bar, fall etc.
is pronounced as in easy, eagle etc.
7 is pronounced as in rooster, fool etc.
+ is the long form of +
9 is pronounced as in fable, gray etc.
9 is pronounced as in my, fly etc.
Hl is pronounced as in road, goat etc.
H| is pronounced as in down, noun etc.
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3.1.3 Support Vowels

The support vowel concept is somewhat unique to Indian languages.
A support vowel adds a specific sound to the normal vowel in a syllable. Hence the resulting
syllable will sound a little different. Interestingly, the sound added by the support vowel is almost
equivalent to the sound of a consonant. Yet, a subtle difference will be heard.

The visarga is seen typically at the end of most masculine names.
The two support vowels are known as "ubhayakshara" and are mostly appended to syllables.
They are not used independently like other vowels.

They add specific sounds to the syllables they are appended to. These two support vowels are
represented using the first vowel

H H-
a a

The first is known as the "anuswara" and the second "visarga" The anuswara adds a sound
similar to the sound of m in "sum" to the syllable. The visarga adds a sound similar to "ha" to the
syllable.

The "ha" will change depending on the vowel ending the syllable. The visarga more or less
extends the vowel in the syllable with h+the same vowel as in the syllable.

Example: if the syllable ends in vowel i then the visarga would add a sound like "hi".

There may be differences in the manner in which these two are introduced in conventional
Sanskrit Primers. When reading Sanskrit, it will be necessary to render the visarga in a way that
will distinguish it from the syllables ha, hi, hu etc. This may be accomplished by shortening the
vowel in the visarga.



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3.2 Consonant
3.2.1 Generic form of a consonant

The consonants in Sanskrit are known as "vyanjanani" and there are total thirty three in number.

The consonants are grouped into six groups. The first five have five consonants each and the last
one has eight. The grouping is based on the natural ordering of sounds such as gutturals,
palatals etc., depending on the anatomical region involved in the generation of the sound
associated with the consonants.

The letters of Sanskrit are given names exactly matching the sound they represent. A consonant
derives its name from the sound when the basic vowel "a" is sounded with the consonant.
In Sanskrit and in other Indian languages, each consonant has a generic form in which its
pronounciation will not have any vowel sound associated with it.

Consonants are pronounced in following way:

1. Guttural (Velar) - Using the back of the tongue against the soft palate.
2. Palatal - Using the flat of the tongue against the back of the hard palate.
3. Cerebral (Retroflex) - Using the tip of the tongue against the top of the hard
palate.
4. Dental - Using the tip of the tongue against the top front teeth.
5. Labial - Using the lips.



The generic form applies when more than one consonant is used in forming syllables and there
are many such combinations in Sanskrit.

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The writing system in Devanagari has a representation for the generic form of a consonant
through the use of a special mark written at the bottom of the consonant's familiar
representation. This mark is known as the "nether stroke" or the "halanth".

T (ka)

The generic form of T is T . The nether stroke is attached below the letter
T. Now, the familiar form of a consonant in Sanskrit is the form when it is sounded
with the first vowel i.e., H . Thus T + H = T
Pronouncing a consonant in its generic form requires that no vowel sound be added
to the consonant's generic sound. The generic sound is quite similar to the sound
associated with a basic phoneme corresponding to a consonant in English.
For the consonant T the associated generic sound will be like the ending syllable
of the words "lake", "bake" etc..

A pure consonant is linguistically defined to be one without any vowel attached to
it. Consonants can be meaningful in practice only when uttered along with a vowel.
Ancient linguistic scholars referred to the vowels as "life giving" aksharas while
the consonants were likened to the body.

It is common practice to introduce the consonants to the student, in the form where
the first vowel H forms the syllable with the generic sound of the consonant. Thus
the student learns that T is is pronounced like the first syllable of "cup". In India,
children are often taught the aksharas in this manner.




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3.2.2 Consonant Group-1: Gutturals

The gutturals consist of five sounds.
The last one is a nasal consonant.
The second and the fourth are aspirated versions of the first and third respectively.
Typically, when a consonant is aspirated, a short "ha" gets added to the consonant.

T G =
ka kha ga gha a
T sounds like the first syllable in cup
G is the aspirated form of T
sounds like the g in gum
is the aspirated form of
= sounds like the ng in finger
3.2.3 Consonant Group-2: Palatals

The second group consists of the Palatals.

7 = H
ca cha ja jha a
sounds as in chair
7 is the aspirated form of
= sounds as in jar, just
H is the aspirated form of =
sounds similar to the last syllable of the
spanish word espana where the n has the
combination sound of the English n and y


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3.2.4 Consonant Group-3: Cerebrals

The third group of consonants are the cerebrals.

7 7 T
a ha a ha a
sounds similar to the t in taylor
is the aspirated form of
7 sounds similar to the d in day, differ etc.
7 is the aspirated form of 7
T sounds similar to the n in fund.
3.2.5 Consonant Group-4: Dentals

The fourth group is made up of the dentals.

6 ( +
ta tha da dha na
6 sounds like the first syllable of thirty
is the aspirated form of 6
( sounds like the first syllable of thus
is the aspirated form of (
+ sounds like the n in null, name etc..


17

3.2.6 Consonant Group-5: Labials
The fifth group of consonants are the Labials.

9 T 4 P
pa pha ba bha ma
9 sounds like p in pun
T is the aspirated form of 9
4 sounds like the b in butter
is the aspirated form of 4
P sounds like the m in man
3.2.7 Consonant Group-6: Semivowels, Sibilants etc.

Group six consists of three subgroups.

Semivowels
4 4
ya ra la va
Sibilants
H 9 B
a a sa
Aspirate
(
ha
4 sounds like the y in young
sounds like the r in real, similar to the Scottish
pronounciation.
sounds like the l in laugh
4 sounds like the v in vast
18

H has no direct equivalent in English. It is like
the "g" a German would pronounce while
speaking English and saying Germany !
9 sounds like the first syllable in shall
B similar to the s in same
( sounds like the h in harmony.
3.3 Consonant Vowel combinations Swarayukta
Vyanjana

Sanskrit is a phonetic language.
Any of the consonants can form a syllable with any of the vowels.
Such combinations are written using special ligatures (specific shapes different from
those of normal vowels).
The Devanagari script follows fairly consistent rules to write consonant vowel
combinations.

Each vowel has a special shape associated with it for use with a combining consonant.
This is known as a "matra" or simply vowel extension. A matra, when added to the basic
shape of a consonant, results in a syllable consisting of the consonant and the vowel.

Some matras are added to the right of the consonant, some above or below the consonant
and one specific matra in Sanskrit is added to the left of the con-sonant i.e., before
drawing the consonant.

The matras associated with the vowels are shown below.

Vowel: H Hl 7 7
a i u
matra : l | l
Ex. : T Tl |T Tl T T
ka k ki k ku k
Vowel: + 9 9 Hl H|
ai au
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matra : l |
Ex. : T T T Tl T|
k k kai k kau
No matra is used for the combination with H since this is considered the
basic syllable for a consonant.

In consonants having a vertical stroke in their shapes, the matras that get
added above or below are drawn coinciding the vertical stroke. For
consonants not having a vertical stroke, the matras are usually added
centered with respect to the horizontal span of the consonant. Take ( for
example.

( (l |( (l
da d di d du d
c ( ( (l (|
d d dai d dau

All the thirty three consonants strictly follow the above convention with
very few exceptions. The consonant has an exception for combinations
with 7 and 7 .

The forms for with 7 and 7 are 6 and - respectively.
The combination of ( and + is written as . As seen above ( and + will
be c .

Following tables list all the combinations.



20



21



22

3.4 Conjuncts (Samyuktakshar)

Samyuktakshar or a conjunct character represents a syllable made up of two or more
consonants from the basic set.
In forming syllables, the Samyuktakshar will combine with one of the vowels.

In respect of Sanskrit, the term conjunct refers to a syllable formed with two or
more consonants and a vowel. Let us look at an example of a conjunct.

The name Krishna is familiar to one and all. In Devanagari it is written as T!Tl
and the word is made up of the two syllables T and !Tl . The first syllable
has the consonant T combining with the vowel + and the second syllable is
a combination of 9 , T and Hl .
In Sanskrit, we reckon T!Tl as being made up of two aksharas.

Here are some examples of two consonant conjuncts.

= + +
9 = P + 9
F6 = B + 6
Note that in the first conjunct a half form of + is attached to the vertical stroke
of the first consonant. In the second and third case, the first consonant has lost
its vertical stroke while the second consonant is written in full.

Over the centuries, different conventions have been adopted for writing
conjuncts. We will see some variations in the next section.
3.5 Writing methods for Conjuncts

Traditionally, Sanskrit verses were composed to conform to specific metre comprising a
fixed number of aksharas.
Hence the writing systems also provided some mechanism to form conjuncts from the
consonants. The use of the "half form" introduced earlier is a practice allowed for many
conjuncts particularly those which include a vertical stroke in their shapes.
23

Since the half form is not clearly defined for all the consonants, special shapes were
introduced for some of the conjuncts. Thus the actual shapes for many conjuncts were
altered but in a way allowing enough clues to identify the individual consonants.

In many cases, the individual consonants were written one below the other vertically
but with reduced sizes to accommodate writing the conjunct within a vertical span.
In some cases, a combination of "half form" and writing one below the other was
adopted.
It must be pointed out that considerable flexibility exists in writing the conjuncts,
though by convention, some shapes have become the standard.

As a general rule, consonants in a conjunct are written in their half form except for the final
consonant which is written in its full form. There are exceptions to this rule when the
consonants do not have a clear half form. The consonants which do not have the vertical
stroke in their shape come under this category.

The following 22 consonants have a vertical stroke in them.

G = H
kha ga gha ca ja jha a
T 6 + 9 4
a ta tha dha na pa ba
P 4 4 H 9 B
bha ma ya la va a a sa

The following do not have a vertical stroke in them.

= 7 7
a cha a ha a
7 ( (
ha da ra ha

T and T have a stroke in the middle.
24


For the twenty two shown first, the half form is obtained by simply
removing the vertical stroke.
For T , the half form is 1 (not to be confused with 4 ). The half form for T
is very close to that of 9 itself.

For the nine in the middle row above, a clear half form is not standardized.
Often the letters are just reduced in size and placed before the succeeding
consonant in the conjunct. Considerable flexibility exists in writing
conjuncts with these consonants.



25

3.6 Samyuktakshar and vowel combinations

The rules for writing syllables with samyuktakshar and vowels are the same as the ones for
writing consonant-vowel combinations. The matras are used exactly the same way as before
and will apply to the last consonant in the syllable except for "i" where the matra will appear
before all the half-forms when half-forms are used. When the shape of the conjunct is very
different, its shape may be viewed as that of a consonant itself and the matras added
appropriately.
3.7 Conjuncts with "ra"
Samyuktakshars involving the consonant "ra" get special shapes. Unlike the other
consonants which retain part of their shapes in samyuktakshars, Samyuktakshars with
"ra" are written with special ligatures depending on the position occupied by "ra" within
the conjunct. When "ra" occurs as the first consonant, it is given a shape called a
"Repham", a hook like ligature written above the succeeding consonant. When "ra"
occurs as the last consonant in a conjunct, the ligature can vary considerably depending
on the consonant involved, if it has a vertical stroke in it etc.

Among the Samyuktakshars, the ones with "ra" in them are quite many in number
(typically exceeding 80). Next to "ra", "ya" occurs in many conjuncts.
Conjuncts with as the first consonant.
The consonant is special in that conjuncts where occurs as the first
consonant, are written using a special ligature. In these conjuncts, the
presence of is indicated by a shape resembling a hook above the last
consonant of the conjunct.

Let us look at a few examples.

+ T = T
+ 6 = 6
+ T + 4 = 14
+ 6 + 4 = 4
combines with almost every other consonant and one finds several words
in Sanskrit with as well as 4 in a conjunct.
26


Earlier, we had mentioned about a conjunct with five consonants. Here is
the word with the conjunct.

TlF-4l Just two syllables in the word!
Let us now look at some conjuncts in which appears as the second or
third consonant. We have already seen that belongs to the group of
semivowels. Most consonants will combine with with and the resulting
conjunct will usually end with and an appropriate vowel. The presence of
in the conjunct will be seen through a special stroke added to the first
consonant. Please observe the following carefully and remember the writing
method for the consonant.

4 -' 9 P
kra cra ra tra pra mra

Sanskrit books printed during the early part of the twentieth century may
show variations from the above.





27

3.8 List of Conjuncts

Following is the list of conjuncts (Samyuktakshar) most frequently seen in Sanskrit
texts. Conjuncts from languages which also use the Devanagari script are also
included in the list. The list is by no means complete.

Each generic consonant is indicated by an equi-valent Roman string so that the
reader may quickly identify it. The list does not include conjuncts with four or
more consonants which are also seen in occasional use.

----------Conjuncts with "ka"----------
T 1G 1 1= 1 1 1T
kka kkha kca kja ka kra ka kta
4 1-' 14 1 1 14 1(
ktya ktra ktva ktha kthna kthya kda
1-4 19 14 1P 14 14 4
kna knya kpa kba kma kmya kya kra
] 14 1H 1B 1F6 1F4 17
kla kva ka ksa ksta ksva ka

----------Conjuncts with "kha"----------
G 6 G P 4 H 4
khkha khta khna khma khya khra khla khva
H 9 7
kha kha khka kha

----------Conjuncts with "ga"----------
7 =
gga ggha gca gcha gja ga gha
28

7 T 6 ( -4 9
ga ga gta gda gdha gna gnya gpa
4 P 4 4
gba gbha gma gya gra grya gla
4 ~4 9 B 7
gva gvya ga gsa ga

----------Conjuncts with "gha"----------
T -4 P 4
ghgha gha ghna ghnya ghma ghya ghra ghla
4 H 9 B 7
ghva gha gha ghsa gha

-----------Conjuncts with "nga"-----------
4 =4 =G =4
ka kta kya kra ka kha khya ga
4 = = = =4 =
gya gra gla gha ghya ghra
== =6 =4 1 =4
a ta tva ma ya ka

----------Conjuncts with "cha"----------
7 7 7 74
cga cca ccha cchca cchra cchva ca
+ 9 T P 4
29

cna cpa cpha cbha cma cya cra cla
4 H 9 B 7
cva ca ca csa ca

----------Conjuncts with "chha"-----------
7 77 7+ 7P 74 7 7 74
chca chcha chna chma chya chra chla chva
7B
chsa

-----------Conjuncts with "ja"----------
7 7 7= 774 7H ;' ;4 76
jga jca jja jjva jjha ja jya jta
7( 7 7+ 79 7T 74 7 7P
jda jdha jna jpa jpha jba jbha jma
74 = 7 74 7H 79 7B
jya jra jla jva ja ja jsa

----------Conjuncts with "jha"----------
H + P 4 H 4 9
jhjha jhna jhma jhya jhra jhla jhva jha
B
jhsa

----------Conjuncts with "nja"----------
30

77 V 77 774 774 7H 7
ca cha ja jca jya jva jha a
774 79 74 74
ya pa ba ya

-----------Conjuncts with "ta"----------
G 4 4
ka kha gha ca a ya ha hya
6 -' 9 4 P 4
ta tra pa ba ma ya ra
4 B F6 7
la va sa sta a

----------Conjuncts with "tta"----------
4 4 7
hka hha hya hra hva ha

----------Conjuncts with "dda"----------
" " 7 7 7= " " 76
ga gha ghra ca ja a ha ta
"1 "4 7 7 77
ma ya ra la a

----------Conjuncts with "ddha"----------
4 7 77
hha hya hra ha
31


----------Conjuncts with "nna"----------
'T ' ' '4 ' '4 '7 '7
ka ga a ya ha hya a ha
'T '9 '4 'P '4 '4 '7
a pa ba ma ya va a

----------Conjuncts with "tha"----------
T 4 = v' vT v4 -'
tka tkra tca tja tta ttpha ttya ttra
+ -4 9 P 4 4
ttha tna tnya tpa tbha tma tmya tya
-' -4 4 H 9 B Fl
tra trya tla tva ta ta tsa tsna
F4 F4 7
tsya tsva tka ta

----------Conjuncts with "ttha"----------
4 9 -4 P 4
ththa ththya thna thpa thbha thbhya thma thya
4 H B 7
thra thla thva tha thsa tha

----------Conjuncts with "da"----------
J & ( (= & &4
dga dgha dca dja dda ddha ddhya
32

J J J4 T H (
dbra dbha dbhya dma dya dra
( 4 (7
dla dva dvya da


----------Conjuncts with "dha"----------
\ \-4 \P \4 \4 \7
dhdha dhna dhnya dhma dhya dhra dhva dha
\7
----------Conjuncts with "na"----------
-T - - -= - -6 -4 --'
nka nga nca nja na nta ntya ntra
-4 - -4 -( -( - -\4 -
ntva ntha nthya nda ndra ndha ndhya ndhra
-9 -9 - -P -4
nna npa npra nbha nma nya
+ - -4 -H -9 -B -(
nra nla nva na na nsa nha

----------Conjuncts with "pa"----------
-T |' |4 |4 - -\4 9 -9
pka pta ptya ptva pdha pdhva pna ppa
-P -4 9 - -4 -B -F4 -7
pma pya pra pla pva psa psva pa
33


----------Conjuncts with "pha"----------
TT T6 T4 TT T4 T T7
phka phta phtva phpha phya phra pha

----------Conjuncts with "ba"----------
-T -= -6 -( - -\4 4 -4
bka bja bta bda bdha bdhva bna bba
- -P -4 4 -4 -7
bbha bma bya bra bva ba

----------Conjuncts with "bha"----------
-T - -4 -4
bhka bhna bhbha bhya bhra bhva

----------Conjuncts with "ma"----------
T 7 = P 9 9
mka mca mcha mja mna mpa mpra
T 4 -4 P 4 P P4
mpha mba mbya mbha mma mya mra mrya
4 H B O 7
mla mva ma msa mha ma

----------Conjuncts with "ya"-----------
T T = 6 ( +
yka ykka yga ya yca yta yda yna
34

9 4 4 B
ypa yya yra yla yva ysa

----------Conjuncts with "ra"----------
T 14 G 4 4 =
rka rka rkha rga rgya rgha rghya ra
== 4 7 = 74 H
rja rca rcya rcha rja rjya rjha ra
T '4 6 P 4 4 ( H
ra rha ra rya rta rtma rtya rtha rthya rda rdra
\4 \4 + 9 T 4
rdha rdhna rdhya rdhva rna rpa rpha rba
P 4 4 4 ~4
rbha rma rmya rya rra rla rva rvya
H *4 H 9 !T 7 !T !4
ra rya rva ra rka ra ra rya
B ( 4 4
rsa rha rka rkya rkva

----------Conjuncts with "la"-----------
~T ~ ~ ~ ~6 ~ ~( ~+
lka lga la lha lta ltha lda lna
~9 ~-4 ~4 ~ ~-4 ~ ~P
lpa lpya lba lbha lbhya lbhra lma
~4 ~4 ~ ~4 ~(
35

lmya lya lla lva lha

----------Conjuncts with "va"----------
~T ~6 4 ~4 4 ~4 ~7
vka vta vna vya vra vva va

----------Conjuncts with "ca"----------
*T *G *4 *7 * *6 ~
ka kha ca cya cha a ta na
*P *4 ~ ~4 * H *~4 *H
ma ya ra rya la va vya a
**9 **4 *7
pa ba a

----------Conjuncts with "sha"----------
!T !4 7 74 7 74 U U4
ka kra a ya ra va ha hya
U U4 !T !'4 !9 !9 !P !4
hra hva a ya pa pra ma mya
!4 9 !4 !9 !7
ya ra va a a

----------Conjuncts with "sa"----------
FT FG F= F F F6 F4
ska skha sja sa sha sta stya
36

F-' F4 F F4 Fl F-4 F9 F9
stra stva stha sthya sna snya spa spra
FT FP Fl F F4 FB FF FF4
sphya sma sra sla sva ssa sstha ssya
FF4 F7
ssva sa

----------Conjuncts with "ha"----------
(T q @ @4 O O @
hka ha hna hnya hma hya hla hva
(( (7
hha ha

----------Conjuncts with "ksha"----------
T 6 + 9 P 4 4
ka kta kna kpa kma kya kla kva

kka


37

3.9 Aksharas that look very similar

Letters which look similar and thus might confuse the
student initially are shown below..

7 (
i a ha
4, P, ,
tha ya, bha ma, gha dha,
7 (, 6 +, 9 9,
ha da, ta na, pa a,
4 4
ba va
G may be confused with followed by a 4 i.e., 4.
The first part of G will in general be more curved
than but in in the case of the gutteral G , the bottom
stroke will overlap with the round of the 4 . The
comparison will be effected by writing the two aksharas
one below the other.

G
4
The student is urged to keep these similar looking shapes
in mind when learning the script.

38

3.10 Vedic Symbols

The Vedas constitute the oldest literature known to man. It has not been possible to determine
exactly when the Vedas were written. In India, the view held is that they were not the creation of
any human being but divine sounds heard by the seers who understood them, interpreted them
and gave them to this world. From the beginning, Vedas have been learnt following the oral
tradition and never was the need felt to have a written form. With the western scholars developing
deeper interests in the scriptures of India and the advanced made in printing techniques, specific
notations were proposed to indicate the swaras to be applied when chanting the mantras.

There has been very little standardization in the notations but in respect of the first two Vedas
(Rig and Yajur), three swaras have specific diacritics associated with them. The figure below
explains the notation.

Swaras
Anudatam H+(l6P k)
Swaritam F4|6P k(
Deergha Swaritham (l F4|6P k+

In the above, the swaras are indicated on T.

Special Anuswara is also seen in Vedic Texts.
One of these is known as Jihvamulya and is
usually seen as, .



39

3.11 Rarely used Aksharas

Among + + and only + is normally used as a vowel with consonants. The
other two are mostly used as independent vowels and in cases where they do
combine with consonants, the following consonants are the ones which figure
most.

6 ( + B combine with +
is seen mostly with T
When combines with + , it is generally shown as
+ and not .

Note on timing:

The short vowels are pronounced for one unit of time and the long ones two units.
The unit of time is not an absolute value by itself.


40

3.12 Numerals (B=4l- - sakhy: )


H-4 - 0 nya
{ 9TP - 1 ekam
- - 2 dve
( |-'|T - 3 trii
? 4l| - 4 catvri
- 9 - 5 paca
\ 9 - 6 a
B|' - 7 sapta
< H7 - 8 aa
+4 - 9 nava
{ (H - 10 daa

{{ 9Tl(H - 11 kdaa
{- (4l(H - 12 davdaa
{( -'4l(H - 13 traydaa
{? 6(H - 14 caturdaa
{- 9(H - 15 pacadaa
-\ 9l7H - 16 aa
{ B|'(H - 17 saptadaa
{< H7(H - 18 aadaa
{ +4(H - 19 navadaa
/ 4Tl+|4H|6 / yeknaviati
- |4H|6 - 20 viati


Note that the number nineteen can be represented as: nvdz and @kaeniv<zit> ^n means less. @k - ^n
- iv<zit> means, 1 less than 20.
41

3.13 Practice Akshara Recognition

Practice reading until you recognizes all the aksharas.




42





43




44

3.14 Practice - Aksharas

Now that you have learnt the basic writing system used in Sanskrit, you might
want to see for yourself how well you can identify and read the Devanagari script.

1. Identify the following aksharas and speak them. You might also wish to
distinguish vowels from the consonants.
9 T (
Hl 4 ( G 6
7 7
2. Speak out the folowing aksharas.

Bl (l 4l +| (
4l Pl 6 7l
3. Speak out the following conjuncts.
4l | 9 F
4. Figure out what the words are. We have put spaces between
the letters for you to identify the aksharas easily.
= | 9
l T
l | +
(l 4
H 4 B 6l
=l 9 +l B
H P | T +
Hl P l7
|(B B +l
7 91BBB
45

3.15 Practice - Words
3.15.1 Short Words
H+-6 HlTlH- |6(lB- Hl 7Pl
ananta ka itihsa var um
7+ +|9- 9T(H- 9l46- HlU- H|9
na i: kada: airvata: ha: auadha
TPl G T9|6 H+l 6
kamal khalu gaapati anagh caturaga
6- 7(+ =l+Tl H9- l
catura: chdana jnak jhampa: la
- 9l- 9|'76- 7|- H6Tl
aka pha: paita haula aru
BP6l 4l (-6- HP +4+l
sumat yath danta adharma nayan
l|9Tl T9 4l|Tl l6l P7
gpik phalu blik bhrat magaa
44l|6 4l T 49l Hl(l 79l
yayti ramy lakaa var rad u
BFT6 B|B=+l (|Tl H(l-
saskta sarasijanbha hari ahakra

46

3.15.2 Long Words
9|-'lTl4Bl+l |4+lHl4!T6l
paritryasdhn vinyacadukt
PBFl9+ll4 B4l|P44 +
dharmasasthpanrthya sambhavmiyugyug +
4(l4(l|(PF4 l|+4|6l6
yadyadhidharmasya glnirbhavatibhrata
H-4v'l+PPF4 6(lP+B=l4(P +
abhyuttnamadharmasya tadtmanasjmyaham +
4-'4lH-T!Tl 4-'9ll+-
yatraygvarak yatraprthdhanurdhara
6-'~l|4=4l|64l+l|6P|6PP +
tatrarrvijaybhtirdhruvntirmatirmama +



47

3.16 Common words in Vedas

These words are commonly used in Vedantic texts.



48




49

4 Simple words and phrases
4.1 Gods names

~l l=l=H| r rjarjvari
(|4 dvi
|6 lalita
TlPl| kmki
|P lakmi
BF4|6 sarasvati
TH gaa
T9|6 gaapati
B4O'4 subrahmaya
P(l(4 mahdva
P(H mahvara
+l= naarja
4Ol brahm
|4!T viu
T!T ka
lP rma
(v'l-'4 datttrya
6-4l+( caitanynada
50

4.2 Grahas
B4 srya
( cadra
P7 magaa
4 budha
4(F9|6 (6) brahaspati (guru)
H4 ukra
H|+ ani
l( rhu
T6 ktu
4.3 Directions
94 prva - East
9|P pacima - West
(|T dakia - South
7v' uttara - North
Hl-4 nya - North East
Hl4 gnya - South East
4l4~4 vyavya - North West
++|6 naiti - South West
7\4 rdhva - Zenith
Hl adh - Nadir
51

4.4 Gaurdians of directions (-dikpla )

T4 kubra (North)
4P yama (South)
-( indra (East)
46T varua (West)
Hl+ na (North East)
H| agni (South East)
4l4 vyu (North West)
++|6 naiti (South West)
|4!T viu (Nadir)
4Ol brahm (Zenit)
4.5 Fruits ( Tl|+ - phalni)

+l=TP nraagaphalam - Orange
-'Tl-4(TP tra-badaraphalam - Strawberry
(llTP drkphalam - Grape
HlPTP mraphalam - Mango
+l|T nrikla - Coconut
9+BTP panasaphalam - Jack Fruit
T9(TP phalaprabhdaphalam - Apple
52

T(lTP kadalphalam - Banana
4l=9TP bjapraphalam - Citron Medica
=4lTP jambraphalam - Lemon
T|9TP kapitthaphalam - Wood Apple
=4TP jambphalam - Rose Apple
HlPTTP malakaphalam - Indian Gooseberry
4(TP badaraphalam - Red Date
(l|7PTP dimaphalam - Pomegranate
4(4l=TP bahubjaphalam - Guava

4.6 9!9l|T - pupi (Flowers)
TPP - kamalam - Lotus flower
=9lTBPP - japkusumam - Hibiscus
l49!9P - gulbapupam - Rose
P|~Tl - mallik - Jasmine
B4Tl|-6- - sryaknti: - Sunflower
4.7 Body parts ( HlF4 l- arrasya bhga: )



arra

Body
53


ira:

Head

vadana

Mouth, Face

kaa:

Neck

kara:

Hand

skandha:

Shoulder

vaka:

Chest

udara

Belly

nbhi:

Navel

ru:

Thigh

jnu:

Knee

pda:

Foot
,
aka:, netram

Eye

kara:

Ear

nsik

Nose

mukha

Mouth

jihv

Tongue

danta:

Tooth

aaguli

Finger
54


nakha:

Nail

ka:

Hair

bhuja:

Arm

4.8 4lBl- Days

|44lB- Sunday 64lB- Thursday
BlP4lB- Monday H44lB- Friday
P\4lB- Tuesday H|+4lB- Saturday
44lB- Wednesday

4.9 PlB- Month

PlHl9- November-December 74U- May-June
9l9- December-January Hl9l7- - June-July
Pl- January-February ~l4T- July-August
Tl-+- February-March l9(- August-September
- March-April Hl|H+- September-October
4HlG- April-May Tl| T- October-November



55

4.10 Simple phrases

+P- - nama:
Hl4l(4l|P - vhaymi
9=4l|P - pjaymi
9 Hll94l|P - dhpa ghrpaymi
(l9P (94l|P - dpam daraymi
HlP 9(|T +PFTl BP94l|P - tma pradakia namaskra
samarpaymi


56

5 Slokas - Small

(i) V Tl+l t4l T9|6(4lP( T|4 T4l+lP9P~4F6PP
74 Ul= OTl OTF96 Hl+-H'4|6|-FBl(Bl(+P+
V P(lT964 +P-+


(ii) V +PF6 HF6 4|-4HHl4 P(l(4l4 -44Tl4 |9l-6Tl4
|Tll|PTll4 Tll|P6l4 +lT'l4 Pt4= 4l4 B4Hl4 B(l|H4l4 ~lP-P(l(4l4
+P-+



(iii) -44T 4=lP( B|- 9|74+P
74l6 T|P4 4-+l-P t4lPl4 Pl5P6l6+

(iv) V +Pl 46 (|TlP64 PG Pl 9l 947 F4l(l

57

6 Shanti Mantras ( Hl|-6Pl- -

({) V H +l |P- H 46T- H +l 4t44Pl H + -l 4 (F9|6- H +l
|4!T664P- +Pl OT +PF6 4l4l t4P4 9t4 Ol|B t4lP4 9t4 O
4|(!4l|P +6 4|(!4l|P Bt4 4|(!4l|P 6-PlP46 6lP46 H4 6 PlP H46
4lP+ V Hl|-6- Hl|-6- Hl|-6-+



(-) V B( +l446 B( +l + B( 4l44l4(
6=|F4 +l4l6PF6 Pl |4|9l4(
V Hl|-6- Hl|-6- Hl|-6- +

(() V 477-(BlP9l |4H-9- 7-(l-4l5\4P6l6 B44 B P-l P4l F9Tl6
HP6F4 (4 l Tl 4lBP Hl P |49TP |=l P PPPl TTl-4l | |4~4P
OT- TlHl5|B P4l |9|(6- ~6 P l9l4 V Hl|-6- Hl|-6- Hl|-6- +

58



(v) V H( 4F4 |4l Tl|6- 9 U ||4 7\49|4l 4l|=+l4 F4P 6P|FP |4T
B4BP BPl HP6l5|6- |6 |Hl4 (l+4+P V Hl|-6- Hl|-6- Hl|-6- +


(-) V 9T P(- 9T |P( 9Tlt9T P(46
9T F4 9T Pl(l4 9T P4l4|H!46
V Hl|-6- Hl|-6- Hl|-6-+


(\) V Hl-4l4-6 PPl\l|+ 4l19lT- ~lPl 4|P|-4l|T B4l|T B4
Ol9|+9(P Pl( O |+lT4lP Pl Pl O |+lTl6 H|+lTTPFt4|+lTT P
HF6 6(ltP|+ |+6 4 79|+9tB PlF6 P|4 B-6 6 P|4 B-6 V Hl|-6- Hl|-6-
Hl|-6- +

59



() V 4l=P P+|B 9|6|U6l P+l P 4l| 9|6|U6P Hl|4l4lP 9| 4(F4 P
HlTlF- ~6 P Pl 9(lBl- H++ll6+ H(lll+ B-(l|P +6 4|(!4l|P Bt4
4|(!4l|P 6-PlP46 6lP46 H46 PlP H46 4lP4 6 4lP V Hl|-6-
Hl|-6- Hl|-6- +



(<) V +l H|94l64 P+- V Hl|-6- Hl|-6- Hl|-6- +



() V TT |- HT 4lP (4l- 974Pl|4=l-
60

|F\F674lBF6+|- -4HP (4|(6 4(l4- F4|F6 + -l 4&~4l- F4|F6 +- 9 9l
|4H4(l- F4 |F6 +F6l4l H|7+|P- F4|F6 +l 4 (F9|6(l6+ V Hl|-6- Hl|-6-
Hl|-6-



({) V 4l OlT |4(l|6 94 4l 4 4(l 9|(Tl|6 6FP 6 ( (4PltP4|& 9TlH
PP4 HTP( 99H V Hl|-6- Hl|-6- Hl|-6-


~|6FP |69lTl+lPl4 T6Tl4P
+Pl|P 4t9l( H lTHP +


H Hll4 TH4 4l(l4TP
61

Bl!4T6l 4-( 4-6l 9+- 9+-+



+ll4T 9T4 4|BU H|4 6t9 9lH
-4lB HT l79l( P(l-6 l|4-(4ll-PlF4 |H!4P+


~lHll4PlF4 9T9l( (F6lPT |H!4P
6 6lT 4l|TTlP-4l+FPJ-+ B-66Pl+6l5|FP+


62

7 Slokas, Suktams and Sahasranamam

We have published learning modules for following Suktams and Sahasranams on
www.atirudram.com:

Sri Lalita Sahasranamam
Purush Suktam
Narayan Suktam
Medha Suktam
Neela Suktam
Sri Suktam
Durga Suktam