Expert: Justin Choo - 2/5/2007

Question
Is there a place I can download some audio files of how to pronounce common words and phrases like

The 5 Precepts
1 Panatipata veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
2 Adinnadana veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
3 Kamesu micchacara veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
4 Musavada veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami
5 Suramerayamajja pamadatthana veramani sikkhapadam samadiyami

4 Noble Truths
1 Dukkha Sacca
2 Samudaya Sacca
3 Nirodha Sacca
4 Magga Sacca

Sakyamuni or Shakyamuni
Siddhartha Gautama
Vajrayana
Mahayana

This prayer I found on this website. http://www.parami.org/duta/buddhist.htm

# Namo tassa, bhagavato, arahato samma sambuddhasa
# Namo tassa, bhagavato, arahato samma sambuddhasa
# Namo tassa, bhagavato, arahato, samma sambuddhasa

# Buddham saranam gacchami,
# Dhammam saranam gacchami,
# Sangham saranam gacchami.

# Dutiyampi Buddham saranam gacchami,
# Dutiyampi Dhammam saranam gacchami,
# Dutiyampi Sangham saranam gacchami.

# Tatiyampi Buddham saranam gacchami,
# Tatiyampi Dhammam saranam gacchami,
# Tatiyampi Sangham saranam gacchami.

Abhidhamma
Vipassana

And maybe more?

Answer
Hi John,

The web site http://www.parami.org/duta/buddhist.htm is hosted by one of my learned Buddhist friends.  You would have listened to the audio already.  You can also go to this "mother" of all Buddhist sites;  www.buddhanet.net  where you will find all the links you need.

As a simple guide to Pali pronunciation; take

"Namo Tassa Bhagavato Arahato Samma Sambuddhassa."

Don't read the whole word like reading English.  For example, we are used to read Namo as one word.  In Pali try break it into single sound alphabets.  In this case: "Na" and "mo". To recite the above it would be:

Na mo Tas sa Bha ga va to A ra ha to Sam ma Sam bud dha ssa.  Easy?

Please remember the last letter "m" in Buddham Saranam Gacchami is pronounced as "ng" as in "sung".  In Pali text there is a diacritical mark to denote the pronunciation with a "dot"(.) either above or below the "m".  Also some words with "nn" like panna is pronounced (with a nasal sound) as pan nya (like the "ng" in signor). This is denoted with a ~ above the "n".

Dutiyampi means "for the second time".
Tatiyampi means "for the third time".

As for "sacca"  : pronounce as "sucha"
It should be "Sakyamuni"  meaning, sage of the Sakya clan.

"Siddhartha Gautama" is in Sanskrit.
"Siddhattha Gotama" is in Pali.

Vajrayana or Tibetan Buddhism.
Vajra means diamond or indestructible weapon
Yana means vehicle.

Mahayana means great vehicle.
(By the way, Hinayana means lesser vehicle, a derogatory term used by the Mahayanas to refer to Theravada.  Hinayana is not used anymore except by still a lot of ignorant people not knowing the real meaning.)

Abhidhamma means higher doctrines.

Vipassana means insight.

Regards and happy learning.

Smile from justinchoo :-)