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Chandas

World Religion
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

The metrical structure of Vedic hymns, governing rhythm and sound patterns essential to their sacred power and efficacy.

Detailed Definition
Chandas in poetry is the invisible architecture of sacred utterance—the rhythm that makes words more than meaning, turning language into vibration. Poets honor it as the breath of the divine, where meter is not artifice but alignment. In Sanskrit verse, each syllable’s weight becomes a mantra’s pulse, binding sound to spirit, making recitation a ritual of cosmic resonance.
Example
Example in poetry:
A Vedic hymn: "Gayatri’s feet—24 steps / of Chandas, rhythm of sun, / order in sound"; A classical verse: "Chandas binds word to breath—/ meter as mantra, / sound as sacrifice"; A modern lyric: "Free verse rebels—/ but Chandas whispers: ‘Even / chaos needs pulse’"; A haiku: "Syllables counted—/ Chandas: the skeleton / of sacred song"; Another: "In Chandas, every beat / is a bow to the gods—/ structure as devotion"; A minimalist verse: "Long. Short. Long. / Chandas: cosmic / heartbeat."
Additional Notes
Chandas governs Vedic hymn power: meter is not poetic choice but cosmic law; mispronounced meter nullifies ritual—this makes Vedic poetry inseparable from phonetic precision, demanding that students approach it as sonic ritual, not literary art; its influence persists in modern Sanskrit verse, where rhythm carries sacred weight, making meter a form of prayer.
Also Known As
Vedic Meter Meter of the Vedas Prosody
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