Veda chanting essentials
The oldest known Indian scriptures are the vast corpus of Sanskrit poetry termed as the Vedas. Considered to be a divine revelation to the Ṛṣi-s (Seers) of ancient India, Vedic Chanting is bound by strict adherence to six rules – Varṇa (pronunciation), Svara (chanting notes), Mātrā (duration) Balam (force), Sāma (continuity) and Santāna (conjugation, punctuation). Adhyayanam or the process of study that involves repeating exactly as the teacher recites has preserved these rules for thousands of years.
In this course, you will learn the very essentials of Veda recitation to get you started. This course is a recommended pre-requisite to all our courses.
Course objectives
-
Have a basic introduction to 3 of the 6 rules of Veda recitation.
-
Learn the rule of Svara – the notes used in Veda chanting that distinguish it from other chanting or music
-
Learn about aspirated sounds.
-
Learn about conjugation – how some sounds in Sanskrit change based on a set of rules. Therefore, your text may look different from how you recite it and you will understand why.
-
Understand the method used in these courses to explain Vedic phonetics.
- Learn the famous Gāyatrī mantra with meaning.
- Have some tips to build your practice.
Course Curriculum
-
Download your course workbook
-
Welcome!
-
The Vedas
-
Recitation or singing?
-
The rules
-
The oral tradition
-
Notes of veda chanting
-
Exercise 1
-
Exercise 2
-
Exercise 3
-
Aspirated sounds
-
Exercise 1
-
Exercise 2
-
Exercise 3
-
The rules of conjunction
-
Anusvāra exercise 1 – āyurmantraḥ excerpt
-
Anusvāra exercise 2 – saha nāvavatu excerpt
-
Visarga exercise 1 – śāntiḥ śāntiḥ śāntiḥ
-
Visarga exercise 2 – pūrṇamadaḥ
-
The Veda Studies system
-
Exercise – saha nāvavatu – full sentence practice
-
Exercise – saha nāvavatu – full mantra practice
-
Introduction
-
Repeat after Shantala – half sentence
-
Vedic phonetics – Gāyatrī
-
Repeat after Shantala – full sentences
-
Full mantra practice
-
Meaning
-
Gāyatrī Japa – 108 times repetition with Shantala
-
Why recite the Vedas?
-
How to practice?
-
What next?
-
Using a Tanpura
-
Test your knowledge
-
Thank you, closing mantra & discussion area
-
What this class is about
-
Clearing all doubts about your practice
-
What this class is about
-
Ṛṣikā-s, Brahmavādini-s & women in chanting
Your Course Includes
Audio & video resources
There are audio resources to practice simple beginner exercises with. Videos are available for some explanations.
A workbook
A workbook you can download and have the texts for the chanting available, some exercises for you and space to write your notes.
Quiz
A short quiz to test your understanding at the end of the course.
Frequently asked Questions
When does the course start and finish?
This is a self paced learning course of about 3 hours of study. You are free to take longer or finish the course sooner depending on your progress. For complete beginners, we recommend going through all the lessons and spreading your study over 2-3 days, repeating the exercises several times.
How long do I have access to the course?
You have unlimited access to this course.
Can I have face to face interaction with Instructor
No, this is an online self paced course with audio, video and text lessons. However, you are free to contact the instructor via our direct messaging system from the member’s area. You may also post your questions in the discussion area in the course and interact with the teacher and other students.
Does this course have any certificates?
No, this is just a basic introductory course on Veda chanting. We are working on certificate courses! This course however offers a short quiz to test your basic understanding. Have fun doing it!