
| ॐ नमस्तथागताय । ஓம்ʼ நமஸ்ததா²க³தாய |


As of now, in the consonant series, we had covered, three Vargas – Varga,
Varga &
Varga. We will be seeing another two Vargas with the Ayogavāha – Upadhmānīya.
ta-varga
The ta-varga is known as dantya दन्त्य த³ந்த்ய i.e Dental
ta த त
tha த² थ

dha த⁴ ध
na ந न
pa-varga
The pa-varga is known as oṣṭhya ओष्ठ्य ஓஷ்ட்²ய i.e Labial
pa ப प
pha ப² फ
ba ப³ ब
bha ப⁴ भ
ma ம म
Upadhmānīya
In Lesson 3, we had discussed about Jihvāmūlīya (and Ardha Visarga). To recollect: When the Visarga appears before &
it becomes Jihvāmūlīya, which is symbolically shown as a Ardha-Visarga
.
In a similar way, when the Visarga appears before pa ப प &
pha ப² फ , it transforms into Upadhmānīya. In Phonetics, the sound is named as “Voiceless Bilabial Fricative”
Here too, the Upadhmaniya, is symbolically shown by the Ardha-Visarga.
The sound sample can be heard here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Voiceless_bilabial_fricative.ogg
Pronunciation
A small note on the pronunciation of the letter pha ப² फ. Some seem to erroneously pronounce it like /f/. However, being a Mahā-Prāṇa Equivalent of
, it is to be pronounced as pʰa [p<h>a ] with a puff of air, like all Mahāprāṇa-s.
Indian Languages, lack a specific symbol for the /f/ sound. Those scripts with the Nukta place the Nukta on pha to create a new letter for /f/. Those without nukta , just utilize this Mahāprāṇa letter to denote the /f/.
Same Letters as in Tamil
Thats all folks ! (Don’t expect Daffy Duck or Bugs Bunny to pop up 🙂 )
The next lesson would be covering all the left over consonants. (Semi-Vowels, Sibilants & Aspirate)