[Advaita-l] 'khsha' kAra in yajurveda saMhita maNtra-s

[Srirudra]

Dear
When there are different unique letters are available to pronounce the words why one should go for combination of two letters to create one letter even though phonetically they create the required effect of pronounciation is not understandable.Will any one write station as stashun?I think we should give respect to the tradition of a language and should not dabble with the words and their pronounciation.R.Krishnamoorthy.

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On 30-Aug-2013, at 1:03 PM, V Subrahmanian <v.subrahmanian at gmail.com> wrote:

> Thank you Sri Anand ji, for a very informative post.  Considering your
> final part, is it then improper to write मीनाक्षी while the correct form,
> going by the pronunciation, will have to be मीनाख्षी ? Do we see such forms
> in popular literature, leaving alone the veda-print forms?  साक्षी will be
> साख्षी and पक्षः will be पख्षः ?
> 
> regards
> subrahmanian.v
> 
> 
> 
> 
> On Fri, Aug 30, 2013 at 12:35 PM, Anand Hudli <anandhudli at hotmail.com>wrote:
> 
>> There seems to be a basic pronunciation problem relating to the
>> pronunciation of "sha"  and "Sha" at the root of Shri Bhaskar's question.
>> Let me explain. The first 25 consonants ka through ma are called sparsha.
>> These 25 consonants are further divided into 5 groups of 5 each based on
>> the the mouth position, namely the guttarals (kaNThya), palatals (tAlavya),
>> cerebrals (mUrdhanya), dentals (dantya), and labials (oShThya). For
>> example, the ka-varga (of 5 consonants consisting of ka, kha, etc.) is
>> called kaNthya because it is governed by the taittirIya prAtishAkhya rule
>> -  hanUmUlena jihvAmUlena kavarge sparshayati (2.35). In producing the
>> ka-varga sounds, one causes the contact between the root of the jaw and the
>> root of the tongue. This place where the sounds are generated corresponds
>> to the back of mouth where it meets the throat. The ca-varga is called
>> tAlavya because of the rule- tAlau jihvAmadhyena cavarge (2.36). In this
>> case, the middle of the tongue makes contact with the palate. The Ta-varga
>> is called mUrdhanya because of the rule - jihvAgreNa pariveShTya mUrdhani
>> Tavarge (2.37). Here, the sound is produced in the cerebrum while the
>> tongue is rolled back and turning upwards. The next rule jihvAgreNa tavarge
>> dantamUleShu (2.38) specifies that the ta-varga sounds are produced by the
>> tip of the tongue in contact with the base of the teeth, and hence the name
>> dentals (dantya). Finally, the rule oShThAbhyAM pavarge (2.39) shows that
>> the pa-varga sounds are produced by the lips, and hence the name labials
>> (oShThya).
>> 
>> What about the semivowels (ya, ra, la, va) and sibilants, sha, Sha, sa, and
>> the aspirate h? The semivowels, ya, ra, la and va (antasthAH) have special
>> rules in the taittirIya prAtishAkhya although they are usually classified
>> respectively under the palatals, cerebrals, dentals, and labials. The
>> sibilants sha, Sha, sa, and the aspirate ha, as well as two other letters
>> called the jihvAmUlIya and upadhmAnIya are together called UShmANaH. The
>> taittirIya prAtishAkhya does not give special rules for the production of
>> sounds of these letters but specifies that the same rules as for the five
>> classes above apply.
>> 
>> The relevant rules are sparshasthAneShUShmANa AnupUrvyeNa (2.44) and the
>> following rule 2.45 karaNamadhyaM tu vivRtam. The sounds for the UShmANa
>> letters are, in order, produced using the respective rule for the sparsha
>> letters but the organs of production of sound are open (vivRta). . This
>> means "sha" is produced in a manner similar to the palatals (cha-varga)
>> while "Sha" is produced in a manner similar to the cerebrals (Ta-varga).
>> However, in producing the "sha" and "Sha" sounds the mouth is more open.
>> Both "sha" and "Sha" are hissing sounds, caused by the vocal stream of
>> breath passing through the teeth. If correctly pronounced "sha" sounds like
>> the sh sound in "sure" or "sugar, whereas "Sha" sounds like the sh sound in
>> "dish". Clearly, "sha" and "Sha" sounds are produced in different parts of
>> the mouth. Finally, the "ha" sound is produced in the throat by the rule
>> kaNThasthAnau hakAravisarjanIyau (2.46).
>> 
>> What is important to note is that "sha" and "Sha" sounds are different,
>> since the originating places of their sounds are different. "sha" and "Sha"
>> have to be pronounced differently. However, the unfortunate situation is
>> that "Sha" is incorrectly pronounced by many as "sha" while chanting Vedic
>> and other mantras and in spoken Sanskrit, as well as in other Indian
>> languages. For example, it is common to hear "dosha" instead of the correct
>> form "doSha", "ushA" instead of the correct form "uShA", "shaShTi" instead
>> of the correct form "ShaShTi", etc.
>> 
>> As far as the pronounciation of "kSha" is concerned, we must note that it
>> can be correctly pronounced if the "Sha" sound is correctly produced! If
>> that is the case, "kSha" will sound only like "khSha". There is no other
>> way to pronounce it. Since the sibilant "Sha" is a aspirated, i.e a
>> mahAprANa sound and also open, it combines with the preceding "k" sound,
>> producing the aspirated "kh" rather than "k".
>> 
>> Anand
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