Chanting – Rules for correct pronunciation in chanting

Significance of marks above/below syllables/letters

In Taittiriya Upanishad we find:
ॐ शी ां या या यामः । वणः वरः । मा ा बलम ् । साम स तानः । इ यु ः शी ा यायः ॥
oṃ śīkṣāṃ vyākhyāsyāmaḥ | varṇaḥ svaraḥ | mātrā balam | sāma santānaḥ | ityuktaḥ śīkṣādhyāyaḥ ||

‘Om, Let us explain śīkṣā, the doctrine of pronunciation (orthography) such as letter, varṇa; accent,
svara; quantity, mātrā; effort, bala; modulation, sāma; and union of letters, santāna or sandhi. This is the
lecture on śīkṣā, pronunciation’.

This is the first verse following the opening Invocation and it is interesting to note that the Rishi ends the
verse with ‘ityuktaḥ śīkṣādhyāyaḥ, This is the lecture on pronunciation’; there was no other discourse in
this Upanishad on śīkṣā!!. Can you imagine this is the entire lecture, how would we as ‘modern day
students’ react if our Guru/teacher left us with the above as the entire lecture/course on pronunciation,
yes, we can all imagine?!!!

Our ancient Rishis imparted knowledge in ‘seed form’ and the first imparted knowledge are in what we
now call Vedas, which were imparted to four Rishis by the Highest of all Rishis, God, during their state of
deep meditation, shruti knowledge.

"Mananaat traayate iti mantra". That which protects (traayate) by constant repetition is a Mantra.
Mantras are revelations in the most ancient language - sanskrit. They were heard by the ancient
Masters or Rishis in their meditation (as direct revelations from God).

Dictionary.com defines a mantra as “a word or formula, as from the veda, chanted or sung as an
incantation or prayer”. One must understand the difference between a mantra/sloka, a devotional
chant or kirtan (singing, such as bhajanas, etc.) and japa (repetition). Mantras are from
Vedas/Upanishads- impersonal and abstract like Soham, while Shlokas are puranic (post vedic period,
such as Bhagavad Gita), may or may not involve a personal deity, like Om Namo Narayana. There are
also bija or seed mantras like Om Hrim Dum Durga Devyai Namaha. All mantras have a bija, which is the
heart of the mantra- it may or may not be revealed in the chant. Kirtan is singing praises of God and japa
is repetition of a mantra (with or without telling beads). All mantra, kirtan or japa invoke different
aspects of the One Infinite Reality.

Every science has its own laws and the abuse of these laws can create adverse effects. Mantras are
powerful sound vibrations which are capable of transforming energy at all levels of creation. They affect
the mental and subtle planes of consciousness and reach the subconscious level where our karmic
patterns are stored. The practice/chanting, with pointed focus and thought, of mantra increases
concentration, memory, purifies our heart and helps erase the effects of past karma. Proper recitation
of mantras and chants helps invoke the latent power within us and can bless us in every facet of our life.

The most important thing to know, whether it is a mantra we are repeating or a chant we are singing, is
– proper pronunciation is the key. Yes, we all have different accents – that is not a problem – however
mispronunciation, at times, changes the meaning and nullifies the very effect we wish to produce.
Therefore, we must strive for proper pronunciation (and understanding of the Mantra, which is not the
focus in this compilation)!!!

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The technical jargon or names of those ‘marks’ above or below a syllable/letter in mantras or slokas,
which are used to provide proper notes/pitch in chanting are as follows:
1) Dīrgha Svarita (a.k.a Double Daṇḍa or Double vertical bars): pitch is raised AND dragged here two
tones higher than normal pitch

2) (Hrasva) Svarita (a.k.a Single Daṇḍa or Single Vertical bar): pitch is raised here one tone higher than
normal

3) Unmarked syllables, no change in the pitch = Udātta.

4) Horizontal line beneath a letter, here the pitch is dropped one level; this is = Anudātta

Whenever we have just bindu and no anuswara we must pronounce as "ng" and not "m"....only when
we have bindu with anuswara we pronounce as "m". Ex: Purushang (with just bindu) and not Purusham.

As previously stated, Taittiriya Upanishad clearly points out 6 elements of pronunciation with regard to
vedic mantras.

1. Varna or alphabet (or in general syllable)

2. Svara or intonation of each syllable
3. Mātrā or duration of uttering each syllable
4. Balam or stress/effort on each syllable
5. Sāma or the balance of chanting (the tune of entire mantra)
6. Santāna or the continuity in pronouncing

The five most common mistakes are:

1. Improper pronunciation
2. Improper stress on syllables
3. Incorrect meter
4. Not following rules specific to a particular mantra
5. Chanting certain mantras in random tunes

The oral tradition of the Vedas (Śrauta) consists of several pathas, "recitations" or ways of chanting the
Vedic mantras. The various pathas or recitation styles are designed to allow the complete and perfect
memorization of the text and its pronunciation, including the Vedic Pitch Accent. Eleven such ways of
reciting the Vedas were designed - Samhita, Pada, Krama, Jata, Maalaa, Sikha, Rekha, Dhwaja, Danda,
Rathaa, Ghana, of which Ghana is usually considered the most difficult.

The words of a mantra are strung together in different patterns like "vakya", "pada", "karma", "jata",
"mala", "sikha", "rekha", "dhvaja", "danda", "ratha", "ghana". We call some Vedic scholars
"ghanapathins", don't we? It means they have learnt the chanting of the scripture up to the advanced
stage called "ghana". "Pathin" means one who has learnt the "patha".

In "vakyapatha" and "samhitapatha" the mantras are chanted in the original (natural) order, with no
special pattern adopted. However, in the vakyapatha some words of the mantras are joined together in
what is called "sandhi".

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In padapatha each word in a mantra is clearly separated from the next. It comes next to samhitapatha
and after it is kramapatha. In this the first word of a mantra is joined to the second, the second to the
third, the third to the fourth, and so on, until we come to the final word.
In jata patha, the first word of the mantra is chanted with the second, then the order is reversed-the
second is chanted with the first. Then, again, the first word is chanted with the second, then the second
with the third, and so on. In this way the entire mantra is chanted, going back and forth. In sikhapatha
the pattern consists of three words of a mantra, instead of the two of jata.
Ghanapatha is more difficult than these. There are four types in this method. Here also the words of a
mantra are chanted back and forth and there is a system of permutation and combination in the
chanting.

Samhitapatha and padapatha are called "prakrtipatha" (natural way of chanting) since the words are
recited only once and in their natural order. The other methods belong to the "vikrtipatha" (artificial
way of chanting) category. (In krama, though the words do not go in the strict natural order of one-two-
three, etc, there is no reversal of the words-the first after the second, the second after the third, and so
on. So it cannot be described fully as vikrtipatha).

Leaving out krama, there are eight vikrti patterns and they are recounted in the following verse which
may be easily remembered.

Jatā mālā sikhā rekhā dhvaja dando ratho ghānaḥ

Ityastau-vikrtayaḥ proktaḥ kramapurva maharṣibhiḥ

All these different methods of chanting are meant to ensure the tonal and verbal purity of the Vedas for
all time. In pada the words in their natural order, in krama two words together, in jata the words going
back and forth. The words tally in all these methods of chanting and there is the assurance that the
original form will not be altered.

Today, some sampradayams seem to place great emphasis on ghān pārāynam, घण-पारायणम ्.
Public Rudra Ghana parayanam is fairly common these days and recitation of ghanam in weddings, and
other ceremonies is almost a given in various parts of India if there is a Ghanapadi or two present!!

The benefits to be derived from the different ways of chanting are given in this verse.

Samhitapathamatrena yatphalam procyate budhaih

Padu tu dvigunam vidyat krame tu ca caturgunam

Varnakrame satagunam jatayantu sahasrakam

Further, some other Schools of Vedic Chanting Kaundiniya-Siksha (sloka 20 -27) seems to extol the
manifold merits of reciting and hearing the more complex forms of vikrithi pathas over the samhita-
patham, see Kaundiniya-Siksha (sloka 20 -27).

In summary, some of the forms of recitation are —

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 The jaṭā-pāṭha (literally "mesh recitation") in which every two adjacent words in the text were
first recited in their original order, then repeated in the reverse order, and finally repeated again
in the original order. The recitation thus proceeded as:

word1word2, word2word1, word1word2; word2word3, word3word2, word2word3; ...

 In another form of recitation, dhvaja-pāṭha (literally "flag recitation") a sequence of N words

were recited (and memorized) by pairing the first two and last two words and then proceeding
as:

word1word2, word(N-1)wordN; word2word3, word(N-3)word(N-2); …...;

word(N-1)wordN, word1word2;

 The most complex form of recitation, ghana-pāṭha (literally "dense recitation"), according to
Filliozat 2004, p. 139), took the form:

word1word2, word2word1, word1word2word3, word3word2word1, word1word2word3;

word2word3, word3word2, word2word3word4, word4word3word2, word2word3word4; ...

These methods of chanting have proven extremely effective as is evident by the preservation of the
Vedas, particularly the Ṛg Veda, and works on science and mathematics over generations!!!

Note: This article was prepared to assist the compiler with his development in understanding the proper
chanting of Mantras. The reason for this pursuit was his exposure to various individuals and groups and
the diversity of how Mantras were chanted. On being exposed to the Taittiriya Upanishad in the mid-
1980s he started collecting information on the proper chanting of Ved Mantras. Errors in this
article are his own, due to his lack of proper knowledge on the subject. The purpose of sharing it is
to spark similar interest in others and assist other English-speaking individuals with limited knowledge in
Sanskrit as himself, develop their ability to memorize and chant Mantras, to assist in their Spiritual
Journey. The compiler acknowledges that he is not a scholar and welcomes criticisms, which will help
him in his own journey.

ॐ, सह नौ यशः । सह नौ वचसम ्
saha nau yaśaḥ | saha nau brahmavarcasam

May we achieve God’s glory together! May the light of Brahman, God, shine alike through all of
us!

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