Sanskrit Pronunciation Guide
Vowels
अ a आ ā इ i ई î उ u ऊ ū ऋ ṛ ऋ ṛ
ल l ए e ऐ ai ओ o औ au
— m (anusvāra)
♦ ḥ (visarga)
Consonants
Gutturals:  क ka  ख kha  ग ga  घ gha  ह ṅa    Palatals:  च ca  छ cha  ज ja  झ jha  ञ nā    Cerebrals:  ट ṭa  ठ ṭha  ढ ḍa  ढ ḍha  ण ṇa    Dentals:  त ta  थ tha  द da  ध dha  न na    Labials:  प pa  फ pha  ब ba  भ bha  म ma    Semivowels:  य ya  र ra  ल la  व va      Sibilants:  श śa  ष ṣa  स sa        Aspirate:  ह ha  ऽ = ' (avagraha) - the apostrophe
The vowels above should be pronounced as follows:
a – like the  a  in organ or the  u  in but  ā – 'like the  ā  in far but held twice as long as  a .  i – like the  i  in pin.  ī – like the  ī  in pique but held twice as long as  i .  u – like the  u  in push.  ū – like the  ū  in rule but held twice as long as  u .
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