As a flute pours forth melodious music so the mouth pours forth melodious sounds and as a flute manipulates air in the chambers of its body so air is manipulated through the anatomy of the mouth to produce language.

 

A simultaneous trapping and releasing of air is the rhythm producing the sounds we recognise as language and the places which trap and release are seen within Sanskrit as natural points of pronunciation known as 'vargas'.

 

'Varga' means 'group' and expresses a group of sounds belonging to a point of pronunciation and the first point is known as the 'gutturals' so named as they express sounds beginning from the throat ( guttur ).

 

 

As pictured 'gutturals' are one of five points of pronunciation progressing as holes in a flute and descending from a lowest point of pronunciation to 'palatals' to 'cerebrals' to 'dentals' to 'labials' as they travel along the roof of the mouth.

 

As the first point of pronunciation 'gutturals' produce 'ka' the first consonant of the alphabet formed as the back of the tongue contacts the back of the throat trapping air which when released produces 'ka' the first consonant of Sanskrit.

 

Nature choses 'ka' as its first consonant as its impossible to trap air and produce a consonant below this point and along with 'ka' is 'kha' 'ga' 'gha' 'na' and 'A' all proceeding from a first point of pronunciation known as 'gutturals'.

 

 

As an unambiguous language Sanskrit defines consonants as 'sparsas' sounds produced from contact ( sprsa ) while vowels are 'asparsa' sounds without ( a ) contact ( sprsa ) a free flowing movement which finds no impediment.

 

Language rests upon vowels as even consonants cannot be pronounced without a vowel and attempting to do so is like pressing the lips together without parting them, hence 5000 years ago Sri Krsna mentioned their importance in his Gita.

 

"Of letters I am the letter A, and among compounds I am the dual word. I am also inexhaustable time, and of creators I am Brahma, whose manifold faces turn everywhere." Gita 10.33.

 

 

 

As we progress from 'gutturals' our next point of pronunciation is 'palatals' so named as the front part of the tongue contacts the upper palate and this produces the consonants 'ca' 'cha' 'ja' 'jha' the nasal 'na' and the long and short vowel 'I'.

 

Observing this science of language spare a thought for the language of the English whose alphabet is as scientifically arranged as the big bang free from any form of logic as lamented by the Sanskrit scholar Arthur A Macdonell.

 

“We Europeans, still employ an alphabet inadequate to represent sounds of our language, but even preserve the random order in which vowels and consonants are jumbled up, as in the the primitive Semitic arrangement of 3000 years ago“.

 

 

As we reach the third point of pronunciation 'cerebrals' whose point of pronunciation a hard palate at the back of the teeth and as the tongue curves to make contact it produces the consonants 'ta' 'tha' 'da' 'dha' nasal 'na' vowel 'R'.

 

Sanskrit begins at the lowest point of pronunciation known as 'gutturals' and like the holes of a flute it progresses to its next point known as 'palatals' and the next hole known as 'cerebrals' and now we arrive at the teeth known as 'dentals'.

 

As the tip of tongue touches behind the upper teeth 'dentals' are a subtle difference from 'cerebrals' naturally producing the consonants 'ta' 'tha' 'da' 'dha' the nasal 'na' though 'dentals' are pronounced slightly different from 'cerebrals'.

 

 

These natural points of pronunciation express the alignment between the tongue and the roof of the mouth as language begins from 'gutturals' and descends naturally to 'palatals' to 'cerebrals' to 'dentals' and culminates at the 'labials'.

 

Labials are produced either at or with the lips and the only consonants in which the tongue is not used and this produces the consonants which are known as 'pa' 'pha' 'ba' 'bha' and 'ma' as well as forming the long and short vowel 'U'.

 

There is more to the Sanskrit alphabet such as sibilants, semi vowels and mixed vowels but the purpose is not an in depth explanation but simply to show how language is a science and offer a glimpse of what an authentic alphabet looks like.

 

 

"One of Indias great achievements is a remarkable alphabet, starting with vowels, followed by consonants, all classified scientifically according to mode of production, in contrast to haphazard, inadequate Roman alphabet." A. Basham.

 

'If i was asked what is the greatest treasure which India possesses and what is her finest heritage, i would answer unhesitatingly that it is the Sanskrit language and all that it contains." Jawaharlal Nehru.

 

'The Panini grammar reflects the wondrous capacity of the human brain, which till today no other country has been able to produce except India'. ( Sir Monier Williams ).