Read the following sentence:
राक्षसेभ्योSपि भवन्तः एव क्रुरतराः ।
(You are even more cruel than the demons.)
The sign 'S' that comes after राक्षसेभ्यो is called अवग्रह. This sign is used many times in Sanskrit and it is necessary to know about its pronunciation.
There is no separate pronunciation of this sign. In the above sentence originally there were two words राक्षसेभ्यः and अपि. The sign अवग्रह indicates that the letter अ has been merged into the preceding letter ओ. So while reading a little stress has to be put on the letter ओ.
The two dots after क्रूरतराः are the sign of विसर्ग which is pronounced slightly like ह. Now two the following sentences:
1. अधुना अस्माभिः किं (अस्माभिः किं) कर्तव्यम् ।
2. युधिष्ठिरादयश्च (युधिष्ठिरादयः च) भवन्तमभिवादयन्ति ।
3. भवता श्रोतव्यो जनार्दनस्य (श्रोतव्यः जनार्दनस्य) सन्देशः ।
4. भवन्त एव (भवन्तः एव) क्रूरतराः ।
5. शत्रोरपि (शत्रोः अपि) गुणाः ग्राह्याः ।
In all the five sentences given above the words in the brackets show the original from of विर्सग before the rule of विसर्गसंधि is applied. In the first sentence, the letter विसर्ग has remained as it is. In the second sentence, the letter श् has taken the place of विसर्ग. In the third sentence, विसर्ग is replaced by ओ. In the fourth, विसर्ग is dropped. In the fifth sentence, विसर्ग is replaced by र्.
Let us study the rules to understand the changes that विसर्ग undergoes.
(1) When विसर्ग is followed by च् or छ्, विसर्ग is replaced by श् and च् or छ् is added to it. e.g.,
युधिष्ठिरादयः + च = युधिष्ठिरादयश्च, बालाः + च = बालाश्च
(2) When there is the letter अ before विसर्ग and it is followed by घोषवर्ण (the third, fourth and fifth letter of क वर्ग, च वर्ग, ट वर्ग and त वर्ग), विसर्ग is replaced by the letter ओ and it is mixed with the letter preceding विसर्ग; e.g.,
श्रोतव्यः + जनार्दनस्य - here अ before विसर्ग becomes ओ because it is followed by ज (the third letter of च वर्ग), त्रयः + मत्स्याः = त्रयो मत्स्याः, सेवितव्यः + महावृक्षः = सेवितव्यो महावृक्षः, etc.
(3) (A) When there is the letter आ before विसर्ग and विसर्ग is followed by a vowel or घोषवर्ण or य्, र्, ल् and व् विसर्ग is dropped; e.g.,
विघ्ननिहताः + विरमन्ति = विघ्नविहता विरमन्ति
(B) When there is अ before विसर्ग and विसर्ग is followed by any other vowel than अ, विसर्ग gets dropped. भवन्तः + एव = भवन्त एव
(4) When विसर्ग is preceded by any vowel except अ or आ and followed by any vowel or soft consonant, विसर्ग becomes र्. e.g.,
शत्रो + अपि = शत्रोरपि (there is ओ before विसर्ग and विसर्ग is followed by अ so विसर्ग is replaced by र् and it merges with अ.)
Remember : According to rule no. 2 when विसर्ग is replaced by ओ and it is followed by अ, अ is dropped and in its place अवग्रह sign comes; e.g.,
राक्षसेभ्यः + अपि > राक्षसेभ्यो + अपि > राक्षसेभ्योSपि
Thanks a lot.
