Review
Every set of chapters ends in a review page that contains a summary of the information covered within it. If you ever forget about the material you've studied, you can open the correspending review page for a refresher.
You can also find some links supplemental lessons near the bottom of each review page. These supplemental lessons are here for a simple reason. Sanskrit grammar will help you to understand the structure and basic meaning of a text, but it's a different thing altogether to understand its deeper significance. Many texts exist within particular traditions, too, and these traditions usually have specialized terms and styles. For that reason, a basic familiarity with many parts of the ancient Indian world will greatly help you understand what a text actually says.
Additionally, I recommend reading these supplements to give yourself a break from Sanskrit itself. A lot of grammar at once isn't always a bad thing, but you'll be able to remember more parts of Sanskrit if you give your current knowledge some time to sink in.
Review
Organizing sounds
| Voiced | Unvoiced | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vowel | Consonant | ||||||||||
| Pure | Compound | Semivowel | Aspirate | Nasal | Stop | "S"-sound | |||||
| Short | Long | Medium | Strong | ||||||||
| a | ā | h | ṅ | g | gh | k | kh | ||||
| i | ī | e | ai | y | ñ | j | jh | c | ch | ś | |
| ṛ | ṝ | ar | ār | r | ṇ | ḍ | ḍh | ṭ | ṭh | ṣ | |
| l | n | d | dh | t | th | s | |||||
| u | ū | o | au | v | m | b | bh | p | ph | ||
| Anusvāra | Visarga |
|---|---|
| ṃ | ḥ |
- Varga
- Letters
- kavarga
- ka kha ga gha ṅa
- cavarga
- ca cha ja jha ña
- ṭavarga
- ṭa ṭha ḍa ḍha ṇa
- tavarga
- ta tha da dha na
- pavarga
- pa pha ba bha ma
- yavarga
- ya ra la va
- śavarga
- śa ṣa sa ha
| Weak | Medium | Strong |
|---|---|---|
| a, ā | ā | |
| i, ī | e | ai |
| ṛ, ṝ | ar | ār |
| u, ū | o | au |
Rules for syllables
A syllable is a sound that has exactly one vowel.
A syllable can start with a vowel only when:
The syllable is at the beginning of a line.
The syllable follows a consonant that is removed due to a special rule. (Ignore this for the time being.)
A syllable can end in any number of consonants; but when a stop appears, it ends the syllable.
Syllables that end in short vowels are light. All other syllables are heavy.
As we read a line, we should make each syllable as large as possible. But we cannot break the rules above.
Supplements
Panini's grammatical system describes the whole of classical Sanskrit. Textual commentary, especially for poems and dramas, often quotes Panini to support a particular reading or interpretation. But even if you don't plan to read commentaries on poems and dramas, it's worthwhile to know a bit about the methods that Sanskrit scholars have used for thousands of years. You can start with some supplementary lessons on Panini. At this point, you should know enough to read lesson 2.1.2 ("The Shiva Sutras") and everything that comes before it.
It's also worthwhile to start studying Sanskrit meter. Again, you can start with some supplementary lessons on Sanskrit meter. At this point, you should know enough to read lesson 2.2.2 ("Gaṇas") and everything that comes before it.
Onward!
You're all done with Sounds, the first unit of this guide!
Now that you have a thorough understanding of Sanskrit pronunciation, we are ready to start reading some actual Sanskrit sentences. Click next → on the bar below to move on to the next unit.