RV-Prātiśākhya

Ṛgveda-Prātiśākhya Chapter 1 (Prathamaṁ paṭalam) (1.1-103)

Alphabeth

1. The alphabet of the Vedic language according to Ṛgveda-Prātiśākhya has 14 vowels, 25 stop-consonants, 4 semi-vowels, 8 ūṣmans. The alphabet begins with ‘a’ and ends with anusvāra, the bindu.

2. The sounds of the alphabet are classified according to the places of articulation (sthāna): guttural, root of the tongue, palatal, retroflex, dental and labial.

The alphabet (varṇa-rāśi) of the Vedic language of Ṛgveda as given in Ṛgveda-Prātiśākhya (Verses 9-10 of the Introduction and Sūtras 1-10 of Chapter 1) is as follows:

1. Vowels (svara):

a, ā, ṛ, ṝ, i, ī, u, ū,

e, o, ai, au

2. Stop-consonants (sparśa):

ka, kha, ga, gha, ṅa,

ca, cha, ja, jha, ña,

ṭa, ṭha, ḍa, ḍha, ṇa,

ta, tha, da, dha, na,

pa, pha, ba, bha, ma

3. Semi-vowels (antastha):

ya, ra, la, va

4. Ūṣmans:

ha, śa, ṣa, sa,

aḥ (Visarjanīya), xka (Jihvāmūlīya), xpa (Upadhmānīya),

aṁ (Anusvāra)

Notes:

(1) At the beginning of the alphabet are eight simple vowels (samānākṣara) beginning with a. The short vowel ḷ, which never appears at the beginning and the end of a word, is not included in the sequence of vowels, but it is mentioned in the Ṛgveda-Prātiśākhya. Another vowel, mentioned but not included in the alphabet is the prolated (pluta) ī3. It appears thrice in RV and it is written like the long ī followed by the number 3 (asī3t).

After the eight simple vowels the four diphthongs (sandhyākṣara) follow.

Including the vowel ḷ and the prolated ī3 the total number of different vowels in Ṛgveda is fourteen. If we do not count the short and long vowels separately, then the number of vowels is nine, as given in the Śiva-Sūtras of Vyākaraṇa (a, i, u, ṛ, ḷ, e, o, ai, au).

(2) All other letters of the alphabet - the 25 stop-consonants, the 4 semivowels and the 8 ūṣmans are consonants (vyañjana). The last letter of the alphabet, the anusvāra is said to be either a vowel or a consonant.

In sūtra 1.52 of the Ṛgveda-Prātiśākhya two more consonants are mentioned: the retroflex ḻ and ḻh, which replace the retroflex ḍ and ḍh when these letters occur between two vowels. Examples: īḻe for īḍe (RV 1.1.1), voḻhā for voḍhā (RV 7.71.4).

Places of Articulation (sthāna) (sūtras 1.38-49):

Kanthya (guttural):

a, ā, ha, aḥ

Jihvāmūlīya (root of the tongue):

ṛ, ṝ, ḷ, jihvāmūlīya, ka, kha, ga, gha, ṅa

Tālavya (palatal):

i, ī, e, ai, ca, cha, ja jha, ña, ya, śa

Mūrdhanya (cerebral, retroflex):

ṭa, ṭha, ḍa, ḍha, ṇa, ṣa

Dantamūlīya (root of the teeth):

ta, tha, da, dha, na, ra, la, sa

Oṣṭya (labial):

u, ū, o, au, pa, pha, ba, bha, ma, va, upadhmānīya

Definition of a syllable (akṣara)

1.19. Both the short and the long vowels (svara) are syllables (akṣara).

Examples: a, ā, ṛ, rī, i, ī, u, ū, e, o, ai, au

1.22. Anusvāra and a consonant are parts (aṅga) of a syllable (akṣara).

Examples: vāk, pra, ṛk, tam.

1.23. Consonants between two vowels (svara) belong to the following one.

Examples: ve-da, ī- ḻe, pu-ro-hi-tam, de-vam, ho-tā-ram, dī-di-vim

1.24. Anusvāra and Visarjanīya belong to the preceding vowel.

Examples: haṁ-sa, saṁ-hi-tā, duḥ-kha

1.25. The first (letter) of a conjunct consonant (saṁyoga) (between two vowels) optionally (belongs to the preceding or the following vowel).

Examples: ag-nim or a-gnim, rat-na or ra-tna

Definition of Pragṛhya in Sūtras 1.68-75

1.68 Vokativs ending in o.

PP indo iti | ā | bhara > SP indav ā bhara // RV_9,57.4 //

(diese Vokativs sind nur pragṛhya im PP, aber nicht im SP) (warum? vielleicht waren sie früher einmal pragṛhya im SP)

PP sumnasya | adhrigo ity adhri-go > SP sumnasyādhrigo // RV_9,98.5 //

1.69-70 Andere Worte ending in o. (Worte wie atho, uto, pro und mo, die durch Verschmelzen mit u entstanden sind)

PP atho iti | arvāvataḥ > SP atho arvāvataḥ // RV_9,39.5 //

1.71 Die drei langen Vokale ī, ū, e am Ende eines dualen Wortes.

PP jāte iti | arocayat > SP jāte arocayat // RV_9,9.3 //

PP svarpatī iti svaḥ-patī | indraḥ | ca > SP svarpatī indraś ca // RV_9,19.2 //

1.72 ī and ū am Ende eines Lokativs.

PP gaurī iti | adhi | śritaḥ > gaurī adhi śritaḥ // RV_9,12.3 //

PP camū iti | sutāḥ > SP camū sutāḥ // RV_9,46.3 //

1.73 asme, yuṣme, tve, amī

PP asme iti | indo iti | su-ābhuvam > SP asme indo svābhuvam // RV_9,12.9 //

PP tve iti | naḥ > SP tve naḥ // RV_9,1.5 //

1.75 u ist Pragṛhya, wenn es nicht mit einem Konsonanten verbunden ist. u vor iti erscheint als langer nasalierter Vokal (ūm̐ iti, aber hier im GRETIL PP oṁ iti).

PP go-sāḥ | oṁ iti | aśva-sāḥ | asi > SP goṣā u aśvasā asi // RV_9,61.20 //

Definition of Rephin in Sūtras 1.76-103

1.77 Nach a und ā ist derVisarga am Ende eines Wortes Rephin in den folgenden Worten.

1.78 antaḥ, wenn der letzte Vokal den Udātta Akzent hat.

PP antar iti | rodasī iti | harṣate > SP antā rodasī harṣate // RV_9,70.5 //

1.79 akṣāḥ, wenn der letzte Vokal nicht den Udātta Akzent hat.

PP akṣāḥ | ati > SP akṣār ati // RV_9,43.5 //

(hier fehlt im PP das iti; auch in Max Müllers PP)

PP akṣār iti | induḥ | avye > SP akṣā indur avye // RV_9,98.3 //

(hier hätte man im SP akṣār indur avye erwartet. Aber RVPr 4.40 sagt, dass in akṣā induḥ der Visarga nicht den Regeln folgt.

PP akṣār iti | somaḥ | dugdhābhiḥ | akṣār iti > SP akṣāḥ somo dugdhābhir akṣāḥ // RV_9,107.9 //

1.81 prātaḥ

PP prātar iti | tān | apra-cetasaḥ > SP prātas tām̐ apracetasaḥ // RV_9,98.11 //

1.93 svaḥ mit Svarita Akzent

PP svar iti svaḥ | sisāsan > SP svaḥ siṣāsan // RV_9,76.2 //

1.99 vaḥ, avaḥ und āvaḥ, wenn im selben Pāda vi oder apa vorausgeht und sie nicht Glieder eines Samāsa (Compositum) sind.

PP vi | saḥ | āvar ity āvaḥ > SP vi ṣa āvaḥ // RV_9,97.38 //

1.103 (The 19 words) dīdhaḥ,...,spaḥ,…sabaḥ, asvāḥ

PP spar iti spaḥ > SP spaḥ // RV_9,70.10 //

PP sabaḥ-dughaḥ > SP sabardughaḥ // RV_9,12.7 //

(im PP fehlt iti)

Notes

a ā i ï ī ī3 u ü ū ṛ ṝ ḷ e ai o au ṁ ḥ m̐ ' |

k kh g gh ṅ c ch j jh ñ ṭ ṭh ḍ ḍh ṇ t th d dh n p ph b bh m

y r l v ś ṣ s h ḻ ḻh