View source for Avagraha (nya log)

The Sanskrit symbol ''avagraha'' is transliterated as an apostrophe using the western alphabet, and as a ''nya'' character with a reversed tail (''nya log'') using the Tibetan alphabet.

According to the [http://sanskritdocuments.org/learning_tutorial_wikner/P077.html the rules of sandhi] - which govern the harmonious sounding of adjacent words in Sanskrit - when a word ending in either of the vowels "e" or "o" are followed by a word beginning with the short (''hrasva'') vowel "a", the "a" is elided (i.e. omitted) and replaced with the silent ''avagraha''. Thus e + a = written e' pronounced e; and o + a = written o' pronounced o. 

For example, the [[Emptiness Mantra | mantra of emptiness]] ends with the words ''śuddho ‘haṃ''. The word ''‘haṃ'' is actually the Sanskrit word ''ahaṃ'' (meaning the nominative singular pronoun "I") with the short vowel ''a'' elided and replaced with the ''avagraha''.


==External Links==
*[http://sanskritdocuments.org/learning_tutorial_wikner/index.html A Practical Sanskrit Introductory by Charles Wikner]
*[http://sanskritdocuments.org/learning_tutorial_wikner/P063.html The Meaning of the Avagraha Symbol]
*[http://sanskritdocuments.org/learning_tutorial_wikner/P080.html The Use of the Avagraha Symbol]
*[http://sanskritdocuments.org/learning_tutorial_wikner/P077.html The Rules of Sandhi]

[[Category:Pronunciation]]
[[Category:Sanskrit]]