संस्कृत विसर्ग संधि

Learn and Practice Visarga Sandhi Rules in Sanskrit

Understanding Visarga Sandhi

In Sanskrit, visarga (ः) is a sound represented by two dots placed one above the other after a vowel. Visarga sandhi refers to the transformations that occur when a visarga meets another sound.

Rule 1: Visarga before Voiceless Consonants (क्, च्, ट्, त्, प्)

When visarga is followed by a voiceless consonant (क्, ख्, च्, छ्, ट्, ठ्, त्, थ्, प्, फ्), the visarga remains unchanged.

रामः करोति → रामः करोति rāmaḥ karoti → rāmaḥ karoti (Rāma does)
नरः चलति → नरः चलति naraḥ calati → naraḥ calati (The man walks)

Rule 2: Visarga before Voiced Consonants

When visarga is followed by a voiced consonant (ग्, घ्, ज्, झ्, ड्, ढ्, द्, ध्, ब्, भ्, य्, र्, ल्, व्), the visarga is replaced by 'o' (ओ) if the preceding vowel is 'a' (अ) or 'ā' (आ).

रामः गच्छति → रामो गच्छति rāmaḥ gacchati → rāmo gacchati (Rāma goes)
नरः भवति → नरो भवति naraḥ bhavati → naro bhavati (The man becomes)

Rule 3: Visarga before र् (r)

When visarga is followed by र् (r), the visarga is dropped and the preceding vowel is lengthened if it is short.

नरः रचयति → नरा रचयति naraḥ racayati → narā racayati (The man composes)
मुनिः रमते → मुनी रमते muniḥ ramate → munī ramate (The sage enjoys)

Rule 4: Visarga at the End of a Sentence or Before a Pause

When visarga is at the end of a sentence or before a pause, it remains unchanged.

रामः। → रामः। rāmaḥ. → rāmaḥ. (Rāma.)
नरः, देवः च → नरः, देवः च naraḥ, devaḥ ca → naraḥ, devaḥ ca (The man and the god)

Rule 5: Visarga followed by a sibilant (श्, ष्, स्)

When visarga is followed by a sibilant (श्, ष्, स्), the visarga is replaced by the same sibilant.

रामः शृणोति → रामश्शृणोति rāmaḥ śṛṇoti → rāmaśśṛṇoti (Rāma hears)
नरः सीदति → नरस्सीदति naraḥ sīdati → narassīdati (The man sits)

Practice Visarga Sandhi Rules

Apply the rules you've learned to solve these exercises.

Question 1

Apply the correct sandhi rule: नरः गच्छति

नरो गच्छति
नरः गच्छति
नरा गच्छति
नरस्गच्छति

Here's how I approach this problem:

  1. First, I identify the two words: "नरः" and "गच्छति"
  2. I notice there's a visarga (ः) at the end of "नरः" followed by "ग्" (g)
  3. I recall that when visarga is followed by a voiced consonant like "ग्", and the preceding vowel is "अ" (a), the visarga changes to "o" (ओ)
  4. So "नरः" + "गच्छति" becomes "नरो गच्छति"

Question 2

Apply the correct sandhi rule: रामः चलति

रामो चलति
रामः चलति
रामा चलति
रामश्चलति

Here's how I approach this problem:

  1. First, I identify the two words: "रामः" and "चलति"
  2. I notice there's a visarga (ः) at the end of "रामः" followed by "च्" (c)
  3. I recall that when visarga is followed by a voiceless consonant like "च्", the visarga remains unchanged
  4. So "रामः" + "चलति" remains "रामः चलति"

Question 3

Apply the correct sandhi rule: मुनिः रमते

मुनिः रमते
मुनि रमते
मुनी रमते
मुनिर्रमते

Here's how I approach this problem:

  1. First, I identify the two words: "मुनिः" and "रमते"
  2. I notice there's a visarga (ः) at the end of "मुनिः" followed by "र्" (r)
  3. I recall that when visarga is followed by "र्", the visarga is dropped and the preceding vowel is lengthened if it's short
  4. The vowel "इ" (i) is short, so it becomes "ई" (ī)
  5. So "मुनिः" + "रमते" becomes "मुनी रमते"

Question 4

Apply the correct sandhi rule: देवः सीदति

देवः सीदति
देवो सीदति
देवा सीदति
देवस्सीदति

Here's how I approach this problem:

  1. First, I identify the two words: "देवः" and "सीदति"
  2. I notice there's a visarga (ः) at the end of "देवः" followed by "स्" (s)
  3. I recall that when visarga is followed by a sibilant like "स्", the visarga is replaced by the same sibilant
  4. So "देवः" + "सीदति" becomes "देवस्सीदति"

Question 5

Apply the correct sandhi rule: नरः। देवः।

नरः। देवः।
नरो। देवो।
नरा। देवा।
नर। देव।

Here's how I approach this problem:

  1. I notice there are two separate words: "नरः" and "देवः"
  2. Both words end with visarga (ः) followed by a full stop (।)
  3. I recall that when visarga is at the end of a sentence or before a pause, it remains unchanged
  4. So both "नरः।" and "देवः।" remain unchanged