Introduction. >mm ar thus containing r as its first member is followed by one of the rowels i, i, e, o, āi, āu, with or without a nasal symbol, the r-. sign must stand at the extreme right; thus, a rke, af rko, oni rkāu, fairki, ant rkā, ärkań, mifh rkānsi, af rbhim. 2. If pronounced after another consonant or consonants, r is indicated by a slanting stroke below, to the left; thus, Agra, u pra,
- sra, 7 dra. And, with modifications of the preceding consonant-
sign like those noted above, 7 tra, çra. In the middle of a group, r has the same sign as at the end ; thus, z grya, a srva. 3. When Tr is to be combined with a following ?, it is the vowel which is written in full, with its initial character, and the consonant in subordination to it; thus, rr, farefa nirīti. 14. Combinations of three, four, or even five consonants (this latter excessively rare) are made according to the same rules; thus, ttva, ddhya, y drya, y drya, the psva, per tsya, çoya, 89 sthya ; q ñkşva, strya, read tsmya; Fat rtsnya. 15. Both MSS. and type-fonts differ considerably in their management of consonant-combinations, but a little practice will enable one who is thoroughly familiar with the simple signs and with the principles of combination to decipher, as well as to make for himself, all such groups. 16. A sign (5) called the aragraha, or "separator', is used in printed texts to mark the elision of initial a after final e or o (see below, $ 119, 158): thus à sa te "bruvan. But some texts, especially those printed in India, dispense with this sign. In our transliteration this sign will be represented by the inverted comma, as in the example just given. In the MSS. the s is also used as a hyphen, and sometimes as a mark of hiatus. 17. The sign • is used to mark an omission of something easily understood (whether from the context, or from previous knowledge), e ell. SUS a 01 VIO Univ Calif - Digitized by Microsoft ®
