का The compound or conjunct consonants (see rule 5) may be multiplied to the extent of four or five hundred. The most common are given here; and a more complete list will be found at the end of the volume. THE MORE COMMON OF THE COMPOUND OR CONJUNCT CONSONANTS. kk, kt, or kr, kl, ☎ kv, ☎ ksh, TM khy, τ♬ gn, ♬ gr, ■nn, ■ ny, a tt, ty, tth, ☎ tn, ♬ tm, ♬ ty, ◄ or ☎ tr, ♬ tv, ☎ ts, thy, dg, ddh, dbh, ¤ dm, ☎ dy, è dr, a dv, w dhy, ∞ dhv, nt,nd, nn, any, pt, py, pr, pl, bj, bd, by, abr,bhy, bhr, ↔ mbh, ➡ mm, ♬ my, ♬ ml, ■ yy, ♣ rk, å rm, & lp, all, ■ vy, a vr, a ść, qu by, a br, a śl, ✈ śv, v shț, shth, shn, shy, sk, skh, st, sth,sn, sm, ♬ sy, ♬ sr, ♬ sv, ♬ ss, a hm, ☎ hy, ☎ hl, ♬ kty, ktr, ktv, kshy, TM gny, n gbhy, TM gry, n∙kt, nky, ndy, tsn, tmy, try, tsy, ◄ttr, TM kshn, TM kshm, attv, a ddy, a ddhy, ♬ dbhy, ♬ dry, TMnty, TM mby, ♣rdr, ✯ ryy, वे row, ष्ट्र shtr, स्पू sthn, स्त्य sty, स्त्र str, त्स्य tsny, न्य ntry, rtsy, rtsny. The letters (except r) have no names like the names, in Hebrew or Greek, but the consonants are enunciated with a; and it is usual in designating any letter to add the word kára; thus, a-kára 'the letter a,' ka-kára 'the letter ka.' The letter r, however, is called repha. Observe-In reading the following pages for the first time, it is recommended that the attention be confined to the large type. OF THE METHOD OF WRITING THE VOWELS. 2. The short vowel a is never written unless it begin a word, because it is supposed to be inherent in every consonant. Thus, ak is written, but ka is written; so that in such words as kanaka, nagara, &c., no vowel has to be written. The the usage mark under the k of, called Viráma (see rule 9), indicates a consonantal stop, that is, the absence of any vowel, inherent or otherwise, after the consonant. a. The other vowels, if written after a consonant, take the place of the inherent a. They assume two forms, according as they are initial or not initial. Thus, ik is written, but ki is written fa. b. Observe here, that the short vowel fi, when initial, is written in its right place, but when not initial, is always written before the letter after which it is pronounced. Hence, in order to write such a word as iti, the letters would have to be arranged in Sanskrit thus, zit इति. c. It is difficult to assign a reason for this peculiarity. The top of the noninitial fi, if written in its right place, might occasionally interfere with a subsequent compound letter, but this tells both ways; as in the word af tarhi, where the i would come more conveniently in its right position. Possibly the peculiarity may be intended to denote a slight drawing back of the breath, in the pronunciation of short i; or it may be merely a method of marking more decidedly the difference between the short and the long vowel. In the Bengálí character this artifice for distinguishing more forcibly between the length of vowel sounds is not confined to i. 3. The long vowels ↑ á and ↑ í, not initial, take their proper place after a consonant. The vowels u, ú, ri, rí, lri, not initial, are written under the consonants after which they are pronounced; as,ku, ☎ kú, ♣ kṛi, a kṛí, klri; except when u or ú follows ₹r, in which case the method of writing is peculiar; thus, ru, ☎ rú. कृ a. The vowels ri, rí, lri and lṛí are peculiar to Sanskrit. See rule 11. c. lri only occurs in the root qq, 'to make,' and its derivatives. b. The long rí is not found except in technical grammatical phraseology; strictly it has no existence, and is useless except as contributing to the completeness of the alphabetical system. c. The vowels e and ai, not initial, are written above the consonants after which they are pronounced; thus, ke, kai. The vowels o and au (which are formed by placing and over 1 á), like ↑ á, take their proper place after their consonants; thus, ko, kau. OF THE METHOD OF WRITING THE CONSONANTS. 4. The consonants have only one form, whether initial or not initial. And here note this peculiarity in the form of the Devanágarí letters. In every consonant, except those of the cerebral class, and in some of the initial vowels, there is a perpendicular stroke; and in all the consonants without exception, as well as in all the initial vowels, there is a horizontal line at the top of the letter. In two of the letters, dh and bh, this horizontal line is broken; and in writing rapidly, the student should form the perpendicular line first, then the other parts of the letter, and lastly the horizontal line. The natives, however, sometimes form the horizontal line first. OF THE COMPOUND CONSONANTS. 5. Every consonant is supposed to have the vowel a inherent in it, so that it is never necessary to write this vowel, excepting at the beginning of a word. Hence when any simple consonants stand alone in any word, the short vowel a must always be pronounced after them; but when they appear in conjunction with any other vowel, this other vowel of course takes the place of short a. Thus such a word as would be pronounced kalánatayá, where long á being written after 7 and y takes the place of the inherent vowel. But supposing that instead of kalánatayá the word had to be pronounced klántyá, how are we to know that kl and nty have to be uttered without the intervention of any vowel? This occasions the necessity for compound consonants. Kl and nty must then be combined together thus, क्ल, न्य, and the word is written क्लान्या. And here we have illustrated the two methods of compounding consonants; viz. Ist, by writing them one above the other; 2dly, by placing them side by side, omitting in all, except the last, the perpendicular line which lies to the right. Observe, however, that some letters change their form entirely when combined with other consonants. Thus, when it is the first letter of a compound consonant, is written above the compound in the form of a semicircle, as in the word kúrma; and when the last, is written below in the form of a small stroke, as in the word and †jna the simple elements kramena. So again in * ksha are hardly traceable.. In some compounds the simple letters slightly change their form; * Sometimes formed thus, and pronounced ky in Bengálí. In Greek and Latin it often passes into and a compare ¿fau, dexter, değiós. But not always: compare KTEív, kshanomi; xwv, ksham (kshmá); oculus, akshi. + This compound is sometimes pronounced gya or nya, though it will be more convenient to represent it by its proper equivalent jua. as, sa becomes inśća;d with y becomes dya; z d with dh becomes ddha;d with bh becomes dbha; at with a. Observe, that when r comes in the middle of a conjunct consonant, it takes the same form as at the end; thus, gry, gr: and that in one or two words, where it precedes the vowel ri, it is written above the initial form of that vowel in the crescent shape; thus, ffa nirriti,' the goddess of destruction.' When conjunct consonants commencing with are followed by the vowels i, í, e, ai, o, au, or by a nasal symbol (see 6), then is properly written on the right of all; thus, fi rni, frní, rke, irkau, rkam. b. In a few words initial vowels follow other vowels; e. g. nwy, usu, fans. THE SYMBOLS ANUSVÁRA, ANUNÁSIKA, AND VISARGA. 6. Anusvára (•m), i. e. ‘after-sound,' always belongs to a preceding vowel, and can never be used like a nasal consonant to begin a syllable. It is denoted by a simple dot, which ought to come either over the vowel after which the nasalization is sounded, or on the right of the vowel-mark; thus, kam, kum, f kim, kím. It properly denotes a weaker and less distinct nasal sound than that of the five nasal consonants. These latter are actual and full consonants, which may be followed by vowels, whereas Anusvára is rather the symbol of the nasalization of the vowel which precedes it. It should be noted, however, that it partakes of the nature of a consonant, inasmuch as in conjunction with a following consonant it imparts prosodial length to a preceding short vowel. a. Observe, that Anusvára must take the place of a final m when the three sibilants, sh, 8, and the aspirate h (see f. and 7. b. next page) follow; and also generally when follows (except sam-ráj, ' a sovereign;' and see e. next page), being then expressible by m; thus, tam satrum, ♬ ai tam rájánam. b. Anusvára is also sometimes used as a short substitute for any of the five nasal consonants n., ą ǹ, mn, a n, ♬ m, when no vowel intervenes between these and a following consonant in the middle of the same word (thus the syllables ink, iné, and, int, imp are correctly written इक्क, इच्च्, अराइ, इन्त, इम्प्; and sometimes more shortly,, 3, 7, 1); but Anusvára is more usually substituted for these nasals when final and resulting from the euphonic adaptation of the final m of accus. cases sing., nom. cases neut., some adverbs and persons of the verb to a following word; see 59. c. Anusvára is even used, though less correctly, for the final m of such words when they stand in a pause (i. e. are not followed by another word); and has often been so used in this grammar for the convenience of typography. d. But Anusvára is not admitted as a substitute for the original final n of a pada or inflected word (as in accus. cases plur., loc. cases of pronominals, the 3d pers. plur. and pres. part. of verbs, &c., see 54), unless the next word begin with é, ț, t, or their aspirates, when, by 53, a sibilant is interposed before the initial letter. e. And in the case of roots ending in norm, these final nasals, if not dropped, pass into Anusvára before terminations or affixes beginning with a sibilant or h, but are not changed before semivowels; thus 7 + &d=ded, मन् + ये = मन्ये (617), यम् + स्थति = यंस्यति, गम् + य = गम्य (602), नम् + र = नम्र. f. Hence it appears that Anusvára is peculiarly the nasal of the three sibilants ś, sh, As, and the aspirate h; and that the true Anusvára always occurs before these letters. When it so occurs in the middle of simple words, as in ЯN, ef, it would be better to represent it in English type by n; thus, anśa, anhati, not amsa, amhati. In order, however, not to multiply perplexing distinctions we have preferred in the grammar to make m the equivalent for Anusvára both in the middle and end of words (except only in the word Sanskrit, which is now Anglicised). or 7. That Anusvára is less peculiarly the nasal of the semivowels is evident from e. above. Hence, before y, l, and v, m final in a word (not a root) may either pass into Anusvára or assimilate itself to these letters; thus सम् + यम = संयम सय्यम, यम् + लोकं = यं लोकं or यलोकं; but in the latter case the nasal origin of the first member of the double letter is denoted by another nasal symbol called Anunásika (i. e. ‘through the nose,' sometimes called Candra-vindu, ‘the dot in the crescent'), which is also applied to mark the nasality of a final from a final n when followed by initial ☎l, see 56. deduced a. And this Anunásika is not only the sign of the nasality of y,☎l, and v, in the preceding cases, but also marks the nasality of vowels, though in a less degree than Anusvára, see 11. g. b. Observe—A finalm before hm, I hn, I hy, ☎ hl, ☎ hv, may either be changed to Anusvára or undergo assimilation with the second letter of the initial compound; thus किं झलयति or किम् अलयति, किं हुते किम् अलयति, किं हुते or किन् हुते, किं ह्यः or कियूँ , &c. (see 7, above). 8. The symbol Visarga, 'rejection,' (called so as symbolising the rejection or suppression of a letter in pronunciation,) usually written thus, but more properly in the form of two small circles, is used to represent a weaker aspiration than the letter h, and that generally, but not always, at the end of a word*. It expresses an euphonic transition of final ₹ s and r into a kind of breathing. This symbol Visarga is never the * Visarga is, of course, liable to appear in the middle of compound words. Nor can it be called final in the loc. plur. of nouns in s; as, 4. See p. 95. |