Vyākaraṇa

Learning the language

Reference pages for the grammar you meet in the text. Every grammatical label on a shloka page links back here.

The sounds

Sanskrit orders its alphabet by where in the mouth each sound is made, moving from the back of the throat forward to the lips. Tap any letter to hear it — clips from learnsanskrit.org.

Vowels

Consonants, by place of articulation

kaṇṭhyathroat
tālavyahard palate
mūrdhanyaroof of the mouth
dantyateeth
oṣṭhyalips

Semivowels & sibilants

The eight cases

Sanskrit marks a noun’s role with an ending rather than word order. Almost every name in this text is in the first case, the nominative, because each one simply names her.

1
nominative prathamā
the subject; who or what something is
2
accusative dvitīyā
the object; what is acted upon
3
instrumental tṛtīyā
by, with, or through something
4
dative caturthī
to or for someone — the case of offering
5
ablative pañcamī
from, out of, because of
6
genitive ṣaṣṭhī
of, belonging to
7
locative saptamī
in, on, or among
8
vocative sambodhana
direct address — calling to her

Compounds

Most of the thousand names are compounds — several words fused into one. Sanskrit classifies them by how the pieces relate, and knowing the type tells you how to unpack the meaning.

tatpuruṣa
The first member stands in a case relation to the second: “the lord of the mountain.”
e.g. rāja-putra, a king’s son
karmadhāraya
Both members describe the same thing, one qualifying the other: “the blue lotus.”
e.g. mahā-devī, the great goddess
bahuvrīhi
The compound points outside itself to describe a possessor: “she who has X.” Very common in this text, since each name describes her.
e.g. candra-śekhara, one who wears the moon in his hair
dvandva
A pairing of equals, joined as if by “and.”
e.g. śiva-śakti, Śiva and Śakti
dvigu
A numeral compound naming a set.
e.g. tri-loka, the three worlds
avyayībhāva
An adverbial compound; it does not decline.
e.g. yathā-śakti, according to one’s power

Ready to apply it? Go to the shlokas.