Rational Approach To Hindi Literacy

as in paper, by as in support. [b] is represented by as in boy, by as in rubber. [m] is represented by <m> as in mother, by <mm> as in comment. [y] is represented by as in you, by as in cute. [r] is represented by as in run, by as in barren. [s] is represented by <s> as in son, by as in rice, by <ss> as in> assess. [f] is represented by as in father, by as in rough. [sh] is represented by <14 different symbols: nation, shoe, sugar, issue, mansion, mission, suspicion, ocean, nauseous, conscious, chaperon, schist, fuchsia, pshaw (Defrancis: 204).

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[z] is represented by as in zoo, by <s> as in is. Some consonants in English language are written but not pronounced. before [t] in right, fight and before [n] as in know, knight etc. are examples. This is not an exhaustive account of irregularities in English and more could be added to these examples. In view of such state of affairs of the use of vowels and consonants, any attempt to Romanize any language like English is bound to fail.

Phonetic English Some linguists have however, defended English spelling and tried to discover complicated explanations to rationalize relationship between spelling and the sound pattern. These relationships, however, have not been accepted by other linguists. "Some of the hypothetical relationships, which are often not obvious even to trained linguists, much less ordinary mortals, are complex to the point of absurdity. The defense of English orthography is arid and of no value outside the rarefied world of a peculiar school of linguistics" (DeFrancis: 205-206). Changes have been made in the spelling of some words in the United States to simplify and rationalize the spellings (such as PROGRAM for PROGRAMME, COLOR for COLOUR, CENTER for CENTRE etc.). However, this does not go very far in making the script phonetic. In view of the complications due to the non-phonetic use of both vowels and consonants in English, it will not be helpful to use its irregular system for writing any language including Hindi. It would also not be possible to make any computer program for voice recognition of languages which are phoneme based. Romanaagarii would be a more appropriate and accurate way of Romanization. In Romanaagarii, there is only one way to spell “चौधयी” as “coodharii”. No sound has more than one symbol and no symbol has more than one sound. The phonetic principles of Romanaagarii could be applied to learning English also. Those who find the irregular spelling system of English difficult, simple and systematic alphabet of Romanaagarii would provide a simpler method of learning spoken English. Since all letters and symbols are based on sound-

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shape correspondence, there would be no need to cram spellings. If someone wants to learn the normal non-phonetic English words, it could be done easily with the help of an English-Romanaagarii dictionary. The text can be entered into the computer in Romanaagarii format which will be automatically transliterated into commonly spelled English. Romanaagarii compared to the prevailing English spelling system would appear simple and systematic like decimal numbers compared to the Roman numbering system.

Romanaagarii and the IPA The International Phonetic Association (IPA) is an organization for standardization of written symbols for sounds of different languages of the world. The International Phonetic Alphabet (also called IPA) as revised in 1989, gives a total number of 171 symbols. They comprise 74 consonants, 25 vowels, 31 diacritical marks, 18 other symbols and 23 suprasegmentals (Crystal: xiv). It could be suggested that the IPA may be adopted as basis for transliteration of various languages of the world including Hindi. It may be true that the IPA is accurate in establishing sound-symbol correspondence and is devised for universal usage. However, the IPA would not be suitable either for promotion of literacy or for use in computers for the following reasons: 1. IPA symbols are too numerous to be learnt easily. Even literate people would find it difficult to use them and they can not be grasped by illiterate people. 26 letters and 3 diacritical marks of Romanaagarii would obviously be easier to learn and more suitable for promotion of literacy. 2. It is generally believed that too many diacritical marks are not conducive to popularization of any language. Only phonetics experts who prescribe them are enamoured of them. People are bound to be confused by seeing so many strange diacritical marks and other symbols in the IPA. 3. Typing and printing facilities generally available in offices are not compatible with the IPA. The QWERTY typewriters in common use would suffice for Romanaagarii but they can not cope with the IPA. 4. ASCII code for computers does not cover the IPA. Even the extended ASCII with 256 characters would not support all the IPA symbols. IPA would, therefore, not be suitable for use in computers.

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5. Several symbols of the IPA are very similar to each other and their use will create confusion. [t], [d], [n], [r] are some of them which have other variations representing different sounds but having similar shape. 6. All symbols in the IPA are not of uniform size and may cause problem in typing and printing. Apart from these factors, the use of IPA will result in a totally new and artificial writing system and would not be a practical proposition for use by common people to meet their daily requirements. On the other hand, Romanaagarii having similarity to Roman characters currently used for many languages, would provide a familiar and better script.

Romanaagarii and Unicode Unicode is an industry standard designed to allow text and symbols from all of the writing systems of the world to be consistently represented and manipulated by computers. Developed in tandem with the Universal Character Set standard and published in book form as The Unicode Standard, Unicode consists of a character repertoire, an encoding methodology and set of standard character encodings, a set of code charts for visual reference, an enumeration of character properties such as upper and lower case, a set of reference data computer files, and rules for normalization, decomposition, collation and rendering. The Unicode Consortium, the non-profit organization that coordinates Unicode's development, has the ambitious goal of eventually replacing existing character encoding schemes with Unicode and its standard Unicode Transformation Format (UTF) schemes, as many of the existing schemes are limited in size and scope, and are incompatible with multilingual environments. Unicode's success at unifying character sets has led to its widespread and predominant use in the internationalization and localization of computer software. The standard has been implemented in many recent technologies, including XML, the Java programming language, and modern operating systems. Another suggestion for writing different scripts on the computers and Internet is to use the Unicode. Unicode provides a unique number for every character, no matter what the platform, no matter what the program, no matter what the language.

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Despite claims that the emergence of the Unicode Standard, and the availability of tools supporting it, is among the most significant software technology achievements, there are problems in its practical application. It is a solution based on high powered processing and storing capacity of the computers. It requires minimum 32 bits processor and special text operating system. All computers and operating systems would not be able to use the facilities of Unicode. In the Unicode system, the fonts used are combination of the fonts proposed to be used for all the languages and the font file becomes very bulky. The Unicode font file is as big as 23 megabyte (22700 kilobyte) while the normal ASCII font file is only 40 kilobyte capacity. It may be noticed that about one hundred characters are suggested to be used to write Hindi in Unicode. It is not clear how the half letters are going to be formed in Unicode. If several keys are used for writing a letter in the Unicode, it will lose its alphabetic character and become partly pictorial script. The Unicode is not a unique suggestion for Hindi alone and it is being projected as solution for writing numerous other scripts of the world. It is still not a complete project and has no practical use for common user. The Hindi characters used in Unicode and the Romanaagarii alternative are shown in Appendix-4. In 2005, the 100,000th character to be entered into the pipeline for standardization was the MALAYALAM PRASLESHAM. Detailed comments on Unicode for Indian scripts and multilingual computing with Indian languages are available on the internet link http://acharya.iitm.ac.in/sdi.html .The summary of issues that confront us in this respect are as follows: · Rendering text in a manner that is uniform across applications is quite difficult. Windowing applications with cut, copy/paste features suffer due to problems in correctly identifying the width of each syllable on the screen. Also, applications have to worry about specific rendering issues when modifier codes are present. How applications run into difficulties in rendering even simple strings is illustrated with examples in a separate page.

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· Interpreting the syllabic content involves context dependent processing, that too with a variable number of codes for each syllable. · A complete set of symbols used in standard printed text has not been included in Unicode for almost all the Indian scripts. · Displaying text in scripts other that what Unicode supports is not possible. For instance, many of the scripts used in the past such as the Grantha Script, Modi, Sharada etc., cannot be used to display Sanskrit text. This will be a fairly serious limitation in practice when thousands of manuscripts written over the centuries have to be preserved and interpreted. · Transliteration across Indian scripts will not be easy to implement since appropriate symbols currently recommended for transliteration are not part of the Unicode set. In the Indian context, transliteration very much a requirement. · The Unicode assignments bear little resemblance to the linguistic base on which the aksharas of Indian scripts are founded. While this is not a critical issue, it is desirable to have codes whose values are based on some linguistic properties assigned to the vowels and consonants, as has been the practice in India.

Some other transliteration methods for Hindi: IAST The International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration (IAST) is the most popular academic standard for the Romanization of Sanskrit. IAST is the defacto standard used in printed publications, like books and magazines, and with the wider availability of Unicode fonts, it is also increasingly used for electronic texts. It is based on a standard established by the Congress of Orientalists at Athens in 1912. The National Library at Kolkata Romanization, intended for the Romanization of all Indic scripts, is an extension of IAST.

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ISO 15919 A standard transliteration convention was codified in the ISO 15919 standard of 2001. It uses diacritics to map the much larger set of Brahmi graphemes to the Latin script. See also Transliteration of Indic scripts: how to use ISO 15919. The Devanagari-specific portion is nearly identical to the academic standard, IAST: "International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration", and to the United States Library of Congress standard, ALA-LC: [1]

Harvard-Kyoto Compared to IAST, Harvard-Kyoto looks much simpler. It does not contain all the diacritic marks that IAST contains. This makes typing in Harvard-Kyoto much easier than IAST. Harvard-Kyoto uses capital letters that can be difficult to read in the middle of words.

ITRANS scheme ITRANS is an extension of Harvard-Kyoto. Many web pages are written in ITRANS. Many forums are also written in ITRANS. ITRANS is not only used as transliteration, it is also a pre-processor for typing in Indic scripts. The user inputs in roman letters and the ITRANS preprocessor displays the roman letters into Devanāgarī (or other Indic languages).

ISCII Indian Script Code for Information Interchange (ISCII) is a coding scheme for representing various writing systems of India. It encodes the main Indic scripts and a Roman transliteration. The supported scripts are: Assamese, Bengali, Devanagari, Gujarati, Gurmukhi, Kannada, Malayalam, Oriya, Tamil, and Telugu. ISCII does not encode the writing systems of India based on Arabic, but its writing system switching codes nonetheless provide for Kashmiri, Sindhi, Urdu, Persian, Pashto and Arabic. The Arabic-based writing systems have subsequently been encoded in the PASCII encoding. (From Wikipedia)

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PASCII Perso-Arabic Script Code for Information Interchange (PASCII) is the Indian government standard for encoding languages using writing systems based on that of Arabic, in particular Kashmiri, Persian, Sindhi, and Urdu. The ISCII encoding was originally intended to cover both the Brahmi-derived writing systems of India and the Arabic-based systems, but this approach was subsequently abandoned. (From Wikipedia)

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Chapter 5 ROMANAAGARII SCRIPT Scientific script The famous scholar of Hindi language and script, Dr. Bhola Nath Tiwari, in his book "Hindi Bhaashaa" (page 210) has prescribed the following qualities of a scientific script: 1- The script should be alphabetical and not syllabic. 2- The script should have symbols for each sound of a particular language. 3- One symbol should represent only one sound and no more. 4- One sound should have only one symbol and no more. 5- In writing, the symbols should come in the same order in which they are pronounced. 6- The script should not be ambiguous in reading the symbols. 7- The script should facilitate easy typing and printing. In addition, the following two more qualities are desirable: 1. The script should be easily processed on computer. 2. The script should be usable for communications on Internet. Evidently, the existing Devanagari script does not have these qualities. There have been suggestions for reforms and modification of Devanagari script for writing Hindi.

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Romanaagarii Script Romanaagarii is based on English (Roman) script, Devanagari script and ASCII of computers. Roman script: English language is written in Roman script and has the following letters: Small letters: a, b, c, d, e, f, g, h, i, j, k, l, m, n, o, p, q, r, s, t, u, v, w, x, y, z Capital letters: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, H, I, J, K, L, M, N, O, P, Q, R, S, T, U, V, W, X, Y, Z One more symbol [„] called apostrophe, is used in writing English text. In addition, various symbols for numbers, punctuation, arithmetic etc. are used. Romanaagarii follows the alphabetic principles of Roman script. However, to make it simple, only the small letters are used. Devanagari script: Devanagari (also called Naagarii) has several merits. Separate study of vowels in Devanagari is correct and scientific. The names of letters in Devanagari are in accordance with their sounds, and one symbol represents only one sound. It has enough symbols for all sounds and its reading is comparatively easy. However, Devanagari has some weaknesses and improvements are necessary. Its vowels have several base symbols that create confusion. To write Devanagari, one has to learn over 200 symbols. Devanagari has more than one symbol for some sounds which should be avoided. Its vowel symbols are different from vowel letters and they are placed before, after, above and under a letter. In Devanagari, the letters change their shape when writing and make the script somewhat pictorial and non-alphabetic. There are several rules for writing the half letters in Devanagari, which make the script complicated. It also has the complex rules for combining half letters with other letters. It is also not easy to type Devanagari script and use it in the computers. Devanagari has, however, undergone changes. The currently commonly used Hindi (Devanagari) phonemes (Akshar) are 54 in number and represent symbols for most sounds of Hindi and Urdu languages. ASCII of Computers: ASCII (American Standard Code for Information Interchange), is a character encoding based on the English writing system. All the symbols used for writing English are represented in 95 characters of ASCII in the computers as given below:

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0 @ P ` p

¡ 1 A Q a t‟

“ 2 B R b r

# 3 C S c s

$ 4 D T d t

% 5 E U e u

& 6 F V f v

„ 7 G W g d‟

( 8 H X h x

) 9 I Y i y

* : J Z j z

+ ; K [ k m‟

, < L ] l v‟

= M \ m m‟

. > N * n ~

/ ? O o

These characters, except the capital letters, are also used for Romanaagarii. We can write Roman characters (small) like Devanaagari as follows: a e i o u bcdfghjklmnpqrstvwxyz These letters do not cover all the sounds of Hindi and Urdu languages. We will, therefore, use more than one letter (grapheme) for writing all the phonemes of Hindi. Long vowel will be written by repeating the short vowel. For expressing the aspirated sounds, [h] is added to some letters such as bh, ch, dh etc. This is common in English language. For other sounds still not covered, the diacritical mark [„] would be used. Romanaagarii symbols for the table of 54 basic Hindi phonemes (Akshar maalaa) would be as follows: a aa i ii u uu e ee o oo m‟ h‟ ka kha ga gha m‟a ca cha ja jha m‟a t‟a t‟ha d‟a d‟ha n‟a ta tha da dha na pa pha ba bha ma ya ra la va sha s‟a sa ha ‟a k‟a k‟ha g‟a r‟a r‟ha za fa v‟a

A close view of Romanaagarii Script which combines the advantages of Devanagari and Roman scripts would confirm its scientific character and practical utility. We may examine each of the qualities indicated above for a scientific and practical script as follows:

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1) It is purely alphabetic. There are distinct alphabets for vowels as well as consonants and they are written differently according to the sounds represented by them. 2) In Romanaagarii there is unique symbol for every sound and no sound has more than one symbol. 3)

Each symbol in Romanaagarii represents one sound only.

4)

There are not more than one symbol for any sound in Romanaagarii.

5) The vowels follow consonants uniformly in the sequence in which they are pronounced. 6) All symbols have different shapes and there is no confusion in their visual perception. 7)

It is practicable for typing and printing on machines.

8) All Romanaagarii characters are incorporated in ascii code of the computers and can be easily processed. 9) Romanaagarii Script is the most convenient and practicable script for modern communication technology via internet. This script can be programmed like any text in other Roman script. Romanaagarii script has been developed by combining the merits of Roman and Devanagari scripts. The form of letters and the sequence of writing vowels after consonants is similar to English. The relationship between the letters and sounds represented by them, however, does not follow the irregular English phonetic system. Learning Romanaagarii script would, therefore, be different from learning English. The sequence of vowels and consonants follows the Devanagari pattern. To learn Romanaagarii Script, one has to learn the following:1. Learn 5 letters for short vowels. 2. Learn 19 symbols for single letter consonants. 3. Learn long vowels and compound consonants by joining aspirated [h] and diacritical [„] symbols to single consonants.

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4. Learn to make phonemes by combining vowels after the consonants; and 5. Learn to make words by combining phonemes.

Vowels [a] as in amiir, piital, mitra [aa] as in aag, kaam, lataa [i] as in imlii, din, kavi [ii] as in iikh, jhiil, bhaaii [u] as in ujaalaa, kul, madhu [uu] as in uupar, puut, vadhuu [e] as in ek, tek, lar‟ake [ee] as in eenak, beel, hee [o] as in okhalii, golaa, aao [oo] as in oorat, boonaa [m‟] as in aam‟kh, maam‟ [h‟] as in duh‟kh, punah‟

Nasalized vowels: [am‟] am‟gaar [aam‟] aam‟kh [im‟] sim‟gaar [iim‟] iim‟t', kahiim‟

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[um‟] um‟galii [uum‟] uum‟caa [em‟] gem‟d [eem‟] eem‟t'h [om‟] gom‟d [oom‟] coom‟k

Consonants: [k] as in kamal, nakal, naak [kh] as in kharbuuj, akhrot', bhuukh [g] as in garmii, saagar, aag [gh] as in ghantaa, laghu, baagha [m‟] (not in common use in Hindi) [c] as in cakkii, macal, soca [ch] as in chajjaa, bachar‟aa, riicha [j] as in jangal, ajgar, raaj [jh] as in jhandaa, uljhan, bojh [m‟] (not in common use in Hindi) [t'] as in t'amaat'ar, gut'a [th'] as in t'hat'heraa, gat'han, aat'h [d'] as in d'amruu, nid'ar ['h] as in d'hakkan, nid'haal

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[n‟] as in kripaan‟a, gan‟anaa [t] as in totaa, piital, sapuut [th] as in thaalii, haathii, saath [d] as in davaa, meedaan, had [dh] as in dhanush, iim‟dhan, aam‟dhii [n] as in namak, candan, gyaanii [p] as in paanii, uupar, aap [ph] as in phal, phaam‟sii [b] as in bakarii, rabar‟ii, sharaab [bh] as in bhut't'aa, abhii, aabhaa [m] as in makaan, namak, raam [y] as in yagya, raayataa, vis'aya [r] as in rassii, garmii, magar [l] as in liilaa, baalt'ii, vishaal [v] as in vaayu, maveshii, caav [sh] as in shariir, mashiin, aakaash [s'] as in manus'ya, s'at'akon‟a [s] as in samaaj, baseraa, paas [h] as in hinsaa, mahiinaa, caaha

Symbols for sounds not found in Devanagari script. [f] as in farishtaa, aafat, sirfa

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[z] as in zamaanaa, mazhab [r‟] as in bad‟aa, lar‟naa [r‟h] as in barh‟aii, daar‟hii [„] as in „‟aksa‟ (The vowel base, as in other vowels, is not visible.) [k‟] as in k‟avvaalii [kh‟] as in kh‟raab, aakh‟ir [g‟] as in g‟ariib, mag‟ruur [v‟] (not in common use in Hindi but may be used to represent the sound of English [w])

Some clarifications The basic single vowels of Romanaagarii script are close to English vowels, but phonetically, each one of them represents only one sound. The pronunciation of Romanaagarii vowels is close to the vowels in Spanish language. The doubled form of these vowels is used to represent the long form of the five vowels. Use of more than one letter for a vowel is quite common in English, for example, meet, meat, fool, etc. Some times English language uses even more than two letters for a vowel as in beauty, queue etc. Sounds not represented by Roman letters have been indicated in Romanaagarii script by combining two letters. Even in English it is common to add [h] to indicate aspirated sounds such as shop, ghost, think etc. Main sounds represented this way are those of aspirated and glottal letters of Hindi language such as [kh], [gh], [sh], [n‟], [r‟], [r‟h], [k‟] etc. To facilitate writing and printing through computer as well as indicate special sounds not found in Roman script, the diacritical mark ['] has been added to some letters. These letters are [t‟] and [d'] and their aspirated formations. When alterations are made to substitute [q] and [w] and single letters are introduced to represent [t‟] and [d'] respectively, there will be no need to use [']. In [s'], ['] is used to distinguish it from [sh]. The difference between the two is not recognized in commonly spoken Hindi.

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Most consonants of Romanaagarii are the same as in English and have corresponding sounds. However, sounds of some consonants of Romanaagarii differ from the sound represented by letters in English. This may be noted specially by those who are familiar with English use of these letters. Following are the few variations of such consonants: [g] is used only to represent the sound of g and not the sound of [j]. [c] is used to represent the sound of [ch] as in choke of English. [ch] is used only to represent the sound of chh as in chot‟aa. [t'h] is used only to represent one sound as in t'hand'aa and not the sounds of english words the and throw respectively. [v] is used to represent the sound of both [v] and [w] since Hindi does not recognize difference between them. In case a different letter to represent [w] is needed, [v‟] could be used. [„] is used only to represent the glottal sound. By adding it to another consonant, we get glottal consonants such as [k‟], [kh‟] [g‟] etc. [y] is used only as a consonant to represent the sound as in "yagya". It is never used as a vowel. The symbol of Halant [् शररत] is used in Hindi to indicate that a letter is to be pronounced without vowel. In Romanaagarii, all phonemes without vowel are to be pronounced half. Therefore there is no symbol for Halant in Romanaagarii. All punctuation marks in Romanaagarii script are similar to standard international punctuation marks. However, ['] which is used for special sounds, should not be used as single quote. Only double quote ("....") is to be used for quotation mark. International digits (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9) are used for numbers in Romanaagarii script. People are familiar with them and they would be easy to learn. In fact almost all electronic calculators and other number crunching machines in India use the international form of digits. Romanaagarii and phonemes

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Although the structure of Romanaagarii is similar to Devanagari, it is not phoneme based. Phonemes in Romanaagarii are made by combining two or more graphemes. That is how we make the table of 54 basic Hindi phonemes (Akshar maalaa). Devanagari is not truly alphabetic and follows a writing system called abiguda. This abiguda system is composed of signs (graphemes) denoting consonants with an inherent following vowel. For example, there is no basic sign representing the consonant [k]; rather the unmodified letter represents the syllable [ka]; the a is not marked on the symbol, and thus is the so-called inherent vowel. To make Devanagari alphabetic, we have to exclude the inherent vowel. In Roman script, some sounds of Devanagari, not covered by single letters, are expressed by using two letters and the apostrophe symbol. The long vowels of Devanagari are represented by repeating the short vowel as /aa/ /ii/ etc. To cover the 54 basic characters of Devanagari (Varn'a maalaa), the Roman characters (small) are rearranged. They are separated in groups of vowels and consonants. The letters and the apostrophe symbol are used to make phonemes. To facilitate integration of Roman script with Devanagari, we make graphemes as follows: [x], [a], [e], [i], [o], [u] [k], [c], [t‟], [t], [p], [y], [s], [n] [g], [j], [d‟], [d], [b], [m], [r], [l], [v], [h] [f], [z] [aa], [ee], [ii], [oo], [uu], [m‟], [h‟] [kh], [gh], [ch], [jh], [t‟h], [d‟h], [ph], [bh] [sh], [s‟], [n‟] [r‟], [r‟h], [x‟], [k‟], [k‟h], [g‟], [v‟]

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[x] is the vowel base that is not used in Roman scripts. Its importance will be known when transliterating Roman into SARAL scripts. By rearranging the Roman characters on Devanagari pattern, we get the following Romanaagarii alphabet : [x] (not used) [a] [aa] [i] [ii] [u] [uu] [e] [ee] [o] [oo] [m‟] [h‟] [k] [kh] [g] [gh] [m‟] [c] [ch] [j] [jh] [m‟] [t‟] [t‟h] [d‟] [d‟h] [n‟] [t] [th] [d] [dh] [n] [p] [ph] [b] [bh] [m] [y] [r] [l] [v] [s] [sh] [s‟] [h] [„] [k‟] [k‟h] [g‟] [r‟] [r‟h] [z] [f] [v‟] To make consonant phonemes, vowel [a] is added to the basic grapheme. Devanagari phonemes (Akshar maalaa) based on the Roman characters (small) are as follows: /a/ /aa/ /i/ /ii/ /u/ /uu/ /e/ /ee/ /o/ /oo/ /m‟/ /h‟/

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/ka/ /kha/ /ga/ /gha/ /m‟a/ /ca/ /cha/ /ja/ /jha/ /m‟a/ /t‟a/ /t‟ha/ /d‟a/ /d‟ha/ /n‟a/ /ta/ /tha/ /da/ /dha/ /na/ /pa/ /pha/ /ba/ /bha/ /ma/ /ya/ /ra/ /la/ /va/ /sha/ /s‟a/ /sa/ /ha/ /„a/ /k‟a/ /k‟ha/ /g‟a/ /r‟a/ /r‟ha/ /za/ /fa/ /v‟a/

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Chapter 6 ROMANAAGARII TO SARAL SCRIPTS ASCII and Romanaagarii To use ASCII for all phonemes of Romanaagarii, the capital letters are substituted by phonemes made of more than one Roman character. The inherent vowel [a] is excluded. The phonemes in place of the capital letters in the ASCII of the computers used for Romanaagarii would be as follows: A=aa; B=bh; C=ch; D=dh; E=ee; F=s‟; G=gh; H=h‟; I=ii; J=jh; K=kh; L=r‟; M=m‟; N=n‟; O=oo; P=ph; Q=t‟h; R=r‟h; S=sh; T=th; U=uu; V=v‟; W=d‟h; X=„; Y=k‟h; Z=z‟ As mentioned earlier, [x] as vowel base is not used in languages written in Roman script. The use of vowel base is required in all Indic scripts including Devanagari. Scripts based on Arabic script also use the vowel base and vowel modifiers. [x] of ASCII is used in SARAL scripts for vowel base. ASCII for Romanaagarii phonemes would be different from the ASCII for English. In the ASCII for Romanaagarii, the phoneme made of more than one character, is considered one single symbol and the fonts are made accordingly. For example, [kh] in Romanaagarii requires two strokes on keyboard but in SARAL Roman, it will require only one stroke. We call the new Romanaagarii fonts as SARAL Roman fonts and the script as SARAL Roman script. Romanaagarii uses the fonts commonly used in English, but SARAL Roman uses the fonts specially made for it. It may be noted that there is no difference in the appearance of Romanaagarii and SARAL Roman except the use of [x]. In SARAL Roman, [x] is there but almost invisible. SARAL Roman fonts are as follows: ¡ 0 1 @ A P Q

“ 2 B R

# 3 C S

$ 4 D T

% 5 E U

& 6 F V

‘ 7 G W

( 8 H X

) 9 I Y

* : J Z

+ ; K [

, < L ]

= M \

. > N *

/ ? O -

43

` p

a t’

b r

c s

d t

e u

f v

g d’

h x

i y

j z

k l m’ v’

m n m’ ~

o

A variation of SARAL Roman is SARAL Ingles (phonetic spelling of English in Romanaagarii like ingles in Spanish) in which the text is written as suggested by the International Alphabet of Sanskrit Transliteration (IAST). It is based on a standard established by the Congress of Orientalists at Athens in 1912. Those who are familiar with Sanskrit and Urdu texts with dots below the letters may like this format. SARAL Ingles ASCII/fonts are as follows: ¡ 0 1 @ A P Q ` a p t’

“ 2 B R b r

# 3 C S c s

$ 4 D T d t

% 5 E U e u

& 6 F V f v

‘ 7 G W g d’

( 8 H X h x

) 9 I Y i y

* : J Z j z

+ ; K [ k m’

, < L ] l v’

= M \ m m’

. > N * n ~

/ ? O o

To use the SARAL Roman ASCII format for Devanagari will be easy because all the phoneme bases and vowel modifiers are included in it. However, we have to alphabetize the Devanagari writing symbols and convert phonemes (Akshar) into graphemes (Varn‟a). To make Devanagari script alphabetic like Roman script, we do the following: -Use only one vowel base and twelve vowel modifiers; -Make the vowel modifier [i] to follow the base like other vowel modifiers; and -Remove the line over consonants to make them alphabetic graphemes from phonemic graphemes. These measures are based on the suggestions of Hindi scholars and linguists. The set of Hindi alphabet symbols will have 55 characters or graphemes and would be as follows:

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We arrange these symbols in the ASCII to construct SARAL Hindi fonts on the pattern of SARAL Roman. Hindi characters in this format of ASCII will be as follows:

To make phoneme (Akshar) from ASCII characters for Hindi, we add vowel modifiers to the vowel base and add vowel modifier [a] to the consonant bases. The set of 54 Hindi phonemes (Akshar maalaa) will be as follows:

45

These SARAL phonemes may be compared to Hindi that is usually written in Devanagari script and has 54 basic phonemes (Akshar maalaa) as shown earlier. SARAL Roman and SARAL Hindi fonts are two different visual representations of one phonemic sound system. This implies that they are interchangeable. The text written in one SARAL font system can be transcribed into other SARAL font system. This is the magic of the Romanaagarii based SARAL scripts! The technique of SARAL Hindi can be applied to any script provided it is alphabetized, made phonetic, based on phonemes and set in ASCII like SARAL Roman. What has been done for Hindi, can be done for Gujarati, Panjabi, Urdu etc. In case of Urdu, however, the difference will be that the text will be written from right to left instead of left to right and the consonant phonemes will br pronounced with the vowel modifier [e]. Following is the table of phonemes (Akshar maalaa) of SARAL Urdu:

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SARAL Urdu characters in ASCII format will be as follows:

¡ 0 1 @ A P Q ` A p T’ TOP

“ 2 B R b r

# 3 C S c s

$ 4 D T d t

% 5 E U e u

& 6 F V f v

‘ 7 G W g d’

( 8 H X h x

) 9 I Y i y

* : J Z j z

+ ; K [ k m’

, < L ] l v’

= M \ m m’

. > N * n ~

/ ? O o

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Chapter 7 SIMPLIFICATION OF THE NUMBERING SYSTEM Counting numbers Numbers are essential for accurate communication and constitute an important element of any language. No language can be complete without words for numbers. Easiness in counting is indicative of simplicity of the language. The system of counting numbers up to 10 could be related to 10 fingers of both hands. That suggests the rationale behind universal usage of base 10 system also known as decimal system. The concept of zero (0) and increased powers of digits on the left side are directly related to decimal system and positional notation. It is well known that these concepts originated in India. While the digital notation of numbers is simple and systematic, their text representation in different languages is not always so simple. Although only 10 symbols are used for writing any number in digits (0, 1 to 9), there are numerous words to express them in text form in different languages. For example, in Hindi and most other languages of India, every number up to 100 has a single and unique word. One has to learn 100 words to count up to 100. Knowing every number from 1 to 98 would still not be enough to tell the word for 99. Chinese language, on the other hand, is systematic and has distinct words for the numbers from 1 to 10, and combinations of these 10 words are used all the way up to 100(Burling: 52). In the English language, although compound words are used to express most numbers of more than one digit, there are complications due to use of single words for numbers of more than one digit from 10 to 19 and differently spelled words for 20, 30, 40 and 50. The positional factor of digital system suggests that the digits and the powers in numbers should be indicated explicitly for accurate counting. There is no problem in counting single digit numbers in any language since they are expressed in single words which can be written and remembered correctly and accurately. More than one digit numbers, however, imply

48

presence of powers of 10, 100, 1000 or more. In text forms of most languages, higher positional powers of 100, 1000 and more are expressed distinctly but lower power of 10 is not given proper recognition and implied in the word for the digit with which it is associated producing numerous words in different languages.The recognition of the positional power of 10 and its explicit indication in numbering system would simplify counting numbers in any language.

Counting in English We look at the English language first in which the distortion is minimal and correction would be the simpler. There are three irregularities in English language which may be described as follows: 1- The power of 10 is distinctly recognized in all numbers from 20 to 99 through suffix of -ty (as in six-ty, nine-ty etc.), but not given the status of a separate word along lines of other powers such as hundred, thousand, million etc. WE always say nine hundred (900), five thousand (5000) and eight million (8000000). 2- Four digits, namely, two, three, four and five get distorted when they are associated with the positional power of 10. Thus two becomes twen(-ty), three becomes thir(-ty), four becomes for(-ty) and five becomes fif(-ty). Interestingly, there is no change in six, seven, eight and nine. 3- The numbers from 10 to 19 are represented by single words although they incorporate the positional power of 10. They do not follow the logic of the -ty suffix which is started from 20.

Correction of these distortions is easy. "ty" could be treated a separate word. "twen", "thir", "for" and "fif" could be replaced by "two", "three", "four" and "five" respectively. Logic of numbering from 20 to 99 could be applied to numbers from 10 to 19 also. Thus, counting of numbers after nine would follow the system of identification of digits and powers distinctly. This way, one has to use only 10 words(9 digits and ty) to count up to 99. Moreover, numbers of up to 15 digits can be counted by using only 15 words! Additional 5 words would be: hundred, thousand, million, billion, and trillion. Thus 10 could be expressed as "one ty" followed by "one ty one", "one ty two", "one ty

49

three" etc. up to "one ty nine". Twenty, thirty, forty and fifty would become two ty, three ty, four ty, and five ty for considerations of uniformity. Six ty, seven ty eigh ty and nine ty will remain as they are. Writing "ty" or "tii" or "ti" as separate word is required in view of its representation of the power of 10 which is similar to "hundred" and "thousand" used as separate words to indicate the power of 100 and 1000 respectively. The number 123456789012345 will be read as "one hundred two ty three trillion four hundred five ty six billion seven hundred eight ty nine million one ty two thousand three hundred four ty five". For other languages also, the same logic could be applied for text representation of numbers. Single digits would have one word but numbers with more than one digit should be expressed in combination of words representing digits and positional powers.

Counting in Romanaagarii For languages of India, this suggestion should not be considered too awkward or strange. Sanskrit language uses compound words for numbers with more than one digit. It also incorporates the concept of suffix "tii" to some extent. Shash(6) becomes shashti (60), sapta(7) becomes saptati(70), asht'a(8) becomes asht'i(80) and nava(9) becomes navati (Ballantyne: 10, 14,16). In the most ancient and sacred scripture of India, Rig Veda (1.53.9), there is reference to “Shasti Sahastra Navati Nava” (60099). This is not only the proof of advanced counting system of high numbers known in the Vedic era, but also an indication of a very simple and systematic expression of positional power of digits for counting up to 99 (Navati Nava). Both Shasti and Navati use "ti" as suffix to convey the positional power and imply that 6 and 9 have the values of 60 and 90 respectively. The expression 'navati nava' also implies that counting after each segment of 10 is done through repetition of numbers from 1 to 9 in the same way as it is done in English language counting from 20 onwards. The English language counting is, interestingly, close to the notation of positional power found in the Rig Veda! It is not clear why the Indian languages did not follow the logic and simplicity of decimal system originated in India long before its use in the western world. "Hindu mathematicians invented zero more than 2,000 years ago. Their discovery led them to positional numbers, simpler arithmetic calculations, negative numbers, algebra with a symbolic notation, as well as the notions of infinitesimals, infinity, fractions, and irrational numbers" (Logan: 152). If the

50

Indian mind could produce such abstract and rational concepts of mathematics, there should be no hesitation in simplifying and rationalizing the numbering system through Romanaagarii not only for Hindi but for other languages also. While simplifying the numbering system for Hindi, the existing words for digits up to 9, a separate word for positional power of 10(tii), and existing words for powers of 100(soo), 1000(hazaar) may be used. Hindi usage of powers of laakh, karorx etc. is, however, computationally problematic because their progression is based on sequence of groups of two digits which is different from three digit positional power of 1000 which comes before them on the right side. Dividing all the number into groups of three digits would be more logical and systematic. For example, 123456789 would require separate indication of first six digits in groups of two (12 karorx, 34 laakh, 56 hazaar) and then last three digits will be counted as one group. A computer program in this situation will be too complicated. Equal division in groups of three (123 million, 456 hazaar etc.) is simple and systematic. It is, therefore, suggested that million, billion and trillion should be used for higher powered numbers. The systematic and logical method of writing (and speaking) numbers in text form as suggested here for Romanaagarii will simplify the learning of numbers. Learning 15 words for counting numbers up to trillions may be compared to the existing system of counting in Hindi by learning one hundred words to count up to one hundred only. The table in Appendix-5 incorporates the existing Hindi and suggested Romanaagarii and English versions of text representation of numbers from 0 to 100. This suggestion may appear to be new but it is not unprecedented. It may be mentioned that modern Welsh has abandoned the vigesimal (reckoning by twenties) system and adopted a wholly decimal system on lines exactly as indicated above (Hurford: 84). It uses the existing words for 1-10 and repeats them after indicating the power of 10. It looks as follows:

1 un

10 un deg 11 un deg un

20 dau deg 21 dau deg un

2 dau

12 un deg dau

22 dau deg dau

.......... .......... ..........

......................... ......................... .........................

.......................... .......................... ..........................

90 nau deg 91 nau deg un 92 naw deg nau ...................... ...................... ......................

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8 wyth

18 un deg wyth

28 dau deg wyth

9 naw

19 un deg naw

29 dau deg nau

98 nau deg wyth 99 nau deg nau

Apart from easy method of counting numbers, other justification for accepting the simplified numbering system is its computer compatibility. No program based on the existing text representation of numbers in Hindi can properly transform digits into text or vice-versa. By adopting Romanaagarii's numbering system, this task will be made very easy. Before giving an algorithm or program for this purpose, we should clarify some conventions to be followed in counting numbers and their text and digit representation. We should also mark distinction between small powers (10 and 100) and big powers (1,000, 1,000,000, 1,000,000,000 and beyond).Correct indication of powers and uniformity in expression is essential for accurate manipulation of any number system. The following rules and conventions are to be followed in this simplified numbering system.

Conventions regarding numbers and digits: a. There are only 10 digits and a digit is represented by one word, namely, zero, one, two, three, etc. up to nine. b. In a number of more then one digit, power of the digit is always implied and expressed. 11 is expressed as “one ti one”. c.

First digit of a number cannot be zero(0).

d. In numbers of 3 digits, only small powers of ti (10) and hundred (100) are recognized. 999 is read as “nine hundred nine ti nine”. e. Numbers of more than 3 digits are to be divided into groups of 3 starting from the right hand side. Groups are to be counted from left side. 1234567890 will have four groups: first group of 1, second group of 234, third group of 567, and fourth group of 890.

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f. Leftmost group (first group) may have one, two or three digits. In 123456789 the first group will have 123. In 23456789, the first group will have 23 and in 3456789, the first group will have 3. g. Digits are read in group from left to right and converted into text accordingly. h.

Zero (0) is counted for grouping but not converted into text.

i.No conjuction is to be used in text. It will not be correct to say “nine hundred and nine ty nine”. It should be “nine hundred nine ty nine”. j. Powers are mentioned only after non-zero digit. In 203 (two hundred three), no power of 0 is indicated. k.

Power of 100 is expressed after first non-zero digit of 3 digit group.

l.Power of 10 is expressed after second non-zero digit of 3 digit group or first digit of 2 digit number or group (group one only) m. Small powers may come in any group of the number. In first group, however, if there are three digits, both powers of hundred (100) and ty(10) will be present while in group of two digits, only the power of ty(10) will be present and in group of one digit, no power will be present. n. Big powers come only when there are more than 3 digits. In a number up to 999, there are only hundreds but in 1000, there is the power of thousand. o. Big power after group one (in more than 3 digit number) is always implied and expressed. p. Power after first group is expressed if there is a non-zero digit in the group. In number 1,000,000,000, we say one billion and do not refer to any other power because all digits are zeros. q. Big powers come sequentially starting from the biggest power. In a number of 13, 14 or 15 digits, the first power will be trillion, then billion, then million and then thousand.

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r. A big power cannot be repeated in a number. In number 1,000,000,000,000 we should not say one million million but we should say one trillion. s. Big power of a group is expressed immediately after last digit (non-zero) of the group or small power of previous non-zero digit in the group but not after a big power. We can say so many hundred million or so many ty thousand but we should not say so many thousand billion or so many million thousand.

Number processing programs Following the above mentioned conventions, we may develop a program for converting text into digit. The algorithm for such a program will be as follows: -initialize number to 0. -identify word and convert into digit or power. First word will always be a non-zero digit. -if the word is for digit, add it to number. -if the word is for power, multiply it to number. -follow conventions for correct transformation and indicate errors, if any. -exit after reading the last word. -print digit version of text.

The algorithm for converting number from digit to text form will be as follows: -count total number of digits and divide them into groups of 3. -convert group one (left side) into text. -identify power after group one and indicate it in the text. -identify digits of subsequent groups and transform them into text.

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-indicate big powers after each group as appropriate according to conventions. -exit after last digit of last group is identified. -print text version of number. Based on these algorithms and conventions, it would be easy to make a computer program to convert numbers from digit form to text form and vice versa, in any language written in Romanaagarii. In fact the proposed numbering system is language and script independent. By using the Romanized version of proposed notations of 16 words, the computer program for converting text into digits and vice-versa would be made equally valid for all languages. On the other hand, any program on basis of existing textual notation of numbers in Hindi would be too complicated and long.

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Chapter 8 TEACHING ROMANAAGARII Main principles and steps Laubach, in his book "India shall be literate" (Mission Press, Jubbulpore; 1940) suggested some principles for teaching adult illiterates. These principles are: 1. Learnability: the lesson will be absorbingly interesting, easy and swift 2. Teachability: the lesson can be taught by anybody, taught as soon as learned, partly self-taught and without a teacher present. Keeping in mind the above mentioned steps, elaborate lessons can be prepared to cover them in accordance with the grasping power of people being taught to read and write. Most important elements in lessons would be the recognition of letters on the basis of sound-symbol correspondence. Vocabulary and language used should be familiar to the students. Illustrations and pictorial representation of words would help in quick learning. The teaching methods should be reviewed so as to make improvements in light of suggestions and progress in the process of learning. On basis of these guidelines, instruction books, video cassettes and interactive computer programs can be prepared to teach the Romanaagarii script.

Mandala approach to rational alphabetic script (MATRAS) Mandala or Yantra is a symbolic depiction of the manifest and non-manifest realities in the universe. People in India and elsewhere have been practicing different techniques of meditations for thousands of years on the Shri Yantra (Shri Vidya Mandala). It is also considered to be the abode of the Divine Mother or the Goddess of Supreme Knowledge (Shri Vidya). Shri Yantra‟s beauty, complex design and geometry has always amazed and puzzled the artists and scientists.

56

Shri Yantra also contains the mysteries of the origin and evolution of language and knowledge. It is the abode of the Supreme Intelligence and incorporates the code of phonetic alphabet. The inner part of Shri Yantra has four triangles with apexes upwards and five triangles with apexes downwards. Intersection of lines of the nine triangles are called Chakras (circles) although they appear as hexagons. These hexagons constitute the base of 42 blue triangles called Shiva or consciousness areas. There is one more blue triangle inside the smallest hexagon. Other 46 areas are called Shakti or energy areas and are colored pink. When hexagons are converted into circles, the total number of blue and pink areas remains 89 (43 blue and 46 pink). The inner part of Shri Yantra may be depicted as a Mandala or Yantra as follows:

We may consider this mandala as a flower of writing symbols or script. Learning to read and write the writing symbols would be to arrange the petals of the flower in a tray (tray=yellow; blue petals=43; pink petals=46; rows of petals=9 including the central circle‟s petals). Each petal is assigned a writing symbol and the 9 rows are arranged in 9 steps or 9 lessons for teaching the script. We will call the circular petals as chakras and the full form of flower in a tray like frame as Alphabet Yantra.

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The 9 lessons (paat'ha) or steps for learning Romanaagarii or SARAL Roman script are as follows:

Step-1 (Basic vowels) Writing symbols: a aa i ii

There is no vowel base in Romanaagarii

Step-2 (Basic consonants) Writing symbols: k c t‟ t p y s n Phonemes: ka ca t‟a ta pa ya sa na

Step-3 (Other vowels) Writing symbols: u uu e ee o oo m' h' All vowels: a aa i ii u uu e ee o oo m' h'

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Step-4 (Associate consonants) Writing symbols: g j d‟ d b m r l v h Phonemes: ga ja d‟a da ba ma ra la va ha baaraha khar‟ii: ka kaa ki kii ku kuu ke kee ko koo kam' kah'

Step-5 ( Numbers and counting) Writing symbols: 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 In words: shuunya eka do tiin caara paam'ca chah' saat aat‟ha noo

Step-6 (Aspirated consonants) Writing symbols: kh gh ch jh t‟h d‟h th dh ph bh Phonemes:

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kha gha cha jha t‟ha d‟ha tha dha pha bha

Step-7 (Text punctuation and arithmetic symbols) Writing symbols: . , ; ? ! + - * / =

Step-8 (Other consonants) Writing symbols: sh s‟ n‟ m‟ ñ r‟ r‟h ‟ k‟ k‟h g‟ z f v‟ Phonemes: sha s‟a n‟a m‟a ña r‟a r‟ha ‟a k‟a k‟ha g‟a za fa v‟a

Step-9 Writing symbols: ( ) / \ < > : * @ & ' " # %

SARAL and conventional Hindi

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If anyone wants to learn the current script for Hindi (conventional Hindi) or wants to learn only that script, he may refer to appendix-5 which shows both SARAL and conventional Hindi writing symbols through a comparative table. Careful study of this table will not only facilitate learning conventional Hindi, but also help in comprehending its complexities. In this way, SARAL Hindi will become a ladder for climbing up to the level of conventional Hindi.

SARAL Method for learning other languages It may be mentioned that the suggestions for Hindi language would be equally relevant and valid for Urdu and Panjabi languages. Hindi, Urdu and Panjabi languages have the common alphabet, same grammar and mostly similar vocabulary. People speaking these languages can generally understand each other orally, but find difficulty in communicating in writing due to different scripts. A common script for these languages will go a long way in promoting better communications and mutual understanding among people who speak these three languages. As regards other languages of India, very few and minor adjustments would be required in Romanaagarii format to write those languages. The fact that all Indian languages are phoneme based and have similar sound characteristics makes the Romanaagarii and SARAL scripts an ideal instrument to promote literacy, communications and computerization.

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Chapter 9 LITERACY PROBLEM IN INDIA Languages and literacy in India India has numerous languages and dialects and the problem of illiteracy is widespread and serious. According to 2001 census, 34.62 per cent of Indians cannot read or write. That means about 350 million illiterate people, assuming the country's population to be in excess of 1 billion. Accordingly, almost onethird of the world's non-literate people aged 15 and above are in India. Hindi is the national language of India and spoken by the largest number of people in the country. Interestingly, the four Hindi speaking states of India (Bihar, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan and Uttar Pradesh (BIMARU)) account for nearly half of India's illiterates. This suggests that special efforts are required for promotion of literacy in Hindi speaking areas.

Scripts in India There are three well defined systems of writing in India namely 1) the native Indian system, 2) the Perso-Arabic system and 3) the Roman and Latin system. While English is written in Roman system, Urdu, Sindhi and Kashmiri are written in Perso-Arabic system. All other languages of India follow the native Indian system. The main feature of Indian system is the clear demarcation of vowels from consonants.After anlysing the problem of Indian scripts, Dr. Suniti Kumar Chatterji, an eminenent linguist of India, concluded that Roman script should appeal to anyone who wants to spread literacy among the masses. “The problem of the Babel of scripts in India presents itself to me asbeing capable of final solution only through an Indo-Roman Script, i.e. a Roman Script modified and extended for Indian languages” (Chatterji: 272). Many other leaders and thinkers of India such as Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Pandit Jawahar Lal Nehru, Maulana Abdul Kalam Azad, Raghupati Sahaya Firaq, have spoken in favour of Roman script for India. According to Firaq, millions of people in India feel that the Roman script is more suitable

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than any other for office and other work. “No other script can compete with it for ease of writing and printing” (Shauq: 50).

Problems in promotion of literacy in India In the past, some efforts have been made to promote literacy in India but results have not been very successful. Reasons for this failure in eradicating illiteracy from the country could be the following: 1. Time required for learning has been too long and usually demands occupational sacrifices. 2. Teaching has been based on existing complicated and irregular writing systems. The technique of writing has demanded learning of numerous rules and exceptions and calligraphy skills. 3. There has been no technical support to teaching. Everything depends on the manual skill of teachers who have to be taught before they can teach the students. There has been lack of any "teach yourself" material for promotion of literacy. 4. Teaching has been conducted in so called "high-brow" style of urban elite which causes feeling of inferiority and resistance among common people living mostly in rural areas. The teachers have generally had feeling of superiority and aversion towards illiterates. People usually resist being taught to learn a language different from what they speak and consider to be their mother tongue. 5. Teaching has been confined to schools or school type classes where special arrangements for teaching a language and appropriate facilities are to be provided. If a person can learn spoken language at home in family atmosphere, it should be possible to learn to read and write also at home. 6. Lack of support by mass media and cultural factors responsible for lack of awareness of masses to have their right to learn read and write have dampened the enthusiasm of people. 7. Reading materials have been prepared without consideration of its relevance to the functional requirements of the people. There has been

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concentration of efforts to educate people in political, religious and other areas rather than make them functionally literate. 8. Lack of uniformity in scripts of languages commonly spoken by different people in same area has also hampered learning to read and write leaving people illiterate. While people pick up spoken language of their neighbors, script causes problems. Since literacy requires capability to write as well as speak, difficulty in writing the language becomes a major problem in areas where some minorities speak different language. 9. There has been no technical support to teaching through use of electronic gadgets which can be effective in learning languages. Interactive programme on computers for learning languages could be effective instrument for acquiring skills to read and write.

Literacy among Indians abroad Indians who live outside India face different problem pertaining to literacy. While living among people speaking language different from their native language, they have to learn and mostly use the language of that country. For cultural and emotional reasons, they are attached to their heritage language and want to preserve it. Younger people who are educated and brought up in foreign environment, find it even more difficult to preserve the language of their native land. Some interesting facts have come out in this respect through a study of National Indo-Canadian Council (NIIC) on Indo-Canadian youth issues on parenting and adaptation compiled by Prof. John Curien of McGill University, Montreal. It has been revealed that 75 to 80 % of young adults have not acquired reading and writing skills in their ancestral language. In another generation, the proportion of ethnic Indo-Canadians who would have retained their language would have declined precipitously (Kurien: 15). Romantic attachment to the idea of retaining the heritage language by Indians is not peculiar to Canada and would be valid in all parts of the world. There is strong commitment among all Indian anywhere to learn and use the heritage language, but there is no easy and practical way to translate the aspirations into reality. One major factor in this predicament would be the script used for writing the Indian languages. The relevance and efficacy of Romanaagarii in this situation is obvious.

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Official languages in India The constitution of India recognizes 15 languages and there are an additional 3 languages recognized as administrative languages. The languages and percentage of people who speak them is as follows: main languages and the percentage of population 1 Hindi 39.8% 2 Bengali8.2% 3 Telugu7.8% 4 Marathi

7.3%

5 Tamil 6.2% 6 Urdu 5.13% 7 Gujarati

4.81%

8 Kannada

3.87%

9 Malayalam 3.59% 10 Oriya 3.32% 11 Punjabi

2.76%

12 Assamese 1.55% 13 Sindhi 0.25% 14 Sanskrit

0.01%

15 Kashmiri

...

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Additional administrative languages: 16 Konkani 0.3 17 Manipuri 0.14 18 English (1.9 million) Source: Census of India, 1991, "Paper 1 of 1997 (Language), Table C-7".

Romanaagarii and SARAL scripts for India India's problem of illiteracy, difficulties in communications in a multi-lingual society and lack of progress in introducing computers on a large scale can be appropriately tackled through Romanaagarii and SARAL scripts. The learning of Romanaagarii and SARAL scripts by common people should cause no serious problems if a decision is taken by the authorities in this respect. Since the worst problem of illiteracy is in the Hindi speaking parts of the country, suggestions in this book would be most practical and pertinent. Romanaagarii and SARAL scripts are geared to avoid the problems which have hindered the promotion of literacy in India.

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Chapter 10 SARAL SCRIPTS, COMPUTERS AND THE INTERNET Languages and machines The importance of machines for writing language has been increasing ever since the introduction of typewriters and printers. Writing any language with the help of a machine is faster and makes its reading easy. The machines are responsible for clear and cheaper production of printed material in different languages for wide circulation throughout the world. The ordinary machines used for typing and printing can be easily manipulated to accept any shape or sequence of symbols used for writing a script on a surface. Computers have introduced new elements of handling symbols for languages through electronic processing. All symbols which are fed into computers for processing get converted into binary code. After processing, they are re-converted into different shapes for output. The processing inside the computer is based on rational principles. It would be difficult to process scripts or languages that are not compatible with the code for characters commonly used in the central processing unit of the computer. The processing in most computers at present is based on ASCII code which has the Roman alphabet as the main units for text manipulation. It is, therefore, easier to process languages which are written in Roman script compared to those written in other scripts. Word processing programs for Roman characters are in abundance in the market. Romanaagarii can utilize any word processing program valid for English. The increase in the processing speed of computers and their capacity to handle very large quantity of information has created the possibility and desirability of faster input of languages. This can be done either through the scanning process or oral input. While scanning process is now common for texts written in Roman characters, technology for voice input has not yet fully developed. Romanaagarii script being based on rational principle of sound-symbol correspondence, and its characters being in Roman script, has the possibility of accepting input through scanning and may also facilitate oral input through voice recognition.

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Computers and writing systems Recent researches in the field of cognitive psychology have revealed that there has been a shift of emphasis even in educational practice as far as writing is concerned. "In the 1920s the emphasis was on handwriting skills, in the 1950s it was on the grammatical quality of the written products, and in the 1990s it is on the process of writing -- how writers arrive at their end products" (Hartley: 18). The computer has introduced significant changes in the process of writing. A computer does not require the conventional method or instrument to make a mark on a surface. It needs only the skill to recognize symbols on a keyboard so as to produce similar symbols on the screen. If some voice recognition device is added to the computer, the keyboard may also be dispensed with. The transformation of writing after the advent of computers could be compared to the transformations that took place in different societies after introduction of script to convert the spoken words into writing. Basically, microchips are merely a technical improvement over clay tablets (Wellish: 9). However, in some ways the changes brought about by computers during the past fifty years are more startling than the changes brought about by written languages during the past five thousand years. Computers have introduced a qualitative change in the technique and art of writing. This technique can be utilized for the promotion of literacy.

Computers and literacy Although promotion of literacy is not dependent upon computers, they can be of great assistance in this task. The following points highlight the beneficial impact of computers on promotion of literacy: 1. Through interactive programs on computers, learning can be facilitated even for those who are slow. Computers have infinite patience and learning through them would be friendlier and less fearful. 2. They are accessible to people in remote areas in which human beings may not easily reach and stay for long to teach reading and writing. Battery operated computers may be used at places where electricity supply is not available or is precarious. Computers also reduce dependency on schools.

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3. With their increased memory, computers can teach a variety of subjects and cover more areas than a human teacher. The capacity, speed and accuracy of computers enable a person to achieve many things in a short time which would be difficult through human efforts. Along with the teaching of languages, computers could also be used to produce reading material for learning the languages. 4. With the help of uniform script and suitable programs, computers can promote communication among different parts of the world. They can be helpful in sending reading material for promotion of literacy from one place to another on global basis. 5. As an aid to intellectual pursuits, computers support and promote creativity. By doing the routine, dull and repetitive jobs, computers release the mind for other useful things. They also accelerate the learning process. 6. Computers can be helpful in teaching handicapped people. There are possibilities of computers being operated by blind or dumb people through special programs.

Computer literacy Apart from being an aid to promote literacy, computers themselves deserve to be known, understood and used. Computer literacy in modern times is becoming as important as language literacy. It is being realized that in the 21st century, a person who is ignorant about computers would be considered illiterate. Although computer literacy is ambiguous and has not been explained as precisely as language literacy, its general goals are considered to be: some knowledge of computers and their technology; the ability to use a few standard types of software; some knowledge of computer applications and their use in a variety of contexts; some knowledge or understanding of the current and future impact of computers on society; and the ability to write some simple computer programs. (Eraut: 27) A conference for a national literacy program in the United States found some key components for achieving computer literacy. (Seidel: 5) They are as follows:

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1. The recognition that the concept of computer literacy is multi-faceted. "Diversity of opinion and even fervent advocacy is a characteristic of any rapidly advancing field and should be viewed as an opportunity. It should not be used as an excuse for lack of action. Ideas should be advanced, developed and disseminated for users to judge their worth and value" (Seidel: 5). 2. The identification and development of a significant number of knowledgeable people both to create new tools and materials and effectively use them. People are the most important resources. 3. The involvement of the home, the workplace and the community as well as school in creating literate society. 4. The presence of computers for instruction in all schools for all students. 5. The availability of high quality curricula and courses. 6. Continued innovation, research and development to identify new opportunities for the use of computers. Most of these components would be relevant and applicable to language literacy also. The goals of computer literacy would differ from country to country and depend upon the existing resources and interest. What is needed is the recognition of computers as an important factor in the living and working environment of the modern times and awareness of their impact on technology, culture and thinking.

Computer literacy in India Despite widespread illiteracy in India, there is awareness of modern science and technology developments in academic, official and business circles. Due to lack of resources, however, computers have had limited impact in the country. Their use is now on the increase. There are concerted efforts in some places even to compete with other countries in hardware and software production. An organized approach to the introduction of micro computers into schools began in 1984, which marked the beginning of a program of introducing computers into the schools in a limited way with an approach which was

70

conditioned by limited resources, non-availability of trained teachers and wide disparities in the social strata of the children who live in modern towns or in backward villages (Nag/Howie: 126).

Importance of Computers in India In his address to the nation on the eve of 58th Independence Day (14 August, 2004), The President of India highlighted the concept of Education for Dignity of Human life and emphasized Technology Enhanced Education in the country. He stated: “Constraints of time and space together with the rapid obsolescence of knowledge in some areas of science and technology, have created a huge demand for different courses from different institutions in the distance mode. There is a need for a working digital library system that alone can, in the long run, provide the kind of access required for a Knowledge Society. Technology Enhanced Learning is a solution. It attempts to exploit the rapid developments in Information and Communication Technology. As the communications band-width continues to increase and the cost of computer power continues to drop, Technology Enhanced Learning will become an economically viable solution. Virtual classrooms of the future will have students from many locations taught by a team of geographically distributed Instructors through tele-education delivery system.”

Internet and its impact Internet began in the nineteen sixties as a Defense Department project of the United States. It was designed to link researchers around the country. The designers linked together a network of networks, with no point of central control over the system. That way, messages could get through even if one or more links were lost. It was built sort of like a spider's web. The Internet came into popular use in the nineteen nineties. Internet is the system of communications organized with the help of computers and telephones. A network is created by connecting several computers in order to facilitate communication and exchange information. Several networks of this type have been connected into a vast global net which is called Internet. In reality, Internet is a net of computer networks through which information can be exchanged from one place to another at very fast speed. It is being used extensively in offices, educational institutions,

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and commercial organizations as well as by individuals. It is estimated that the number of people using Internet all over the world are several millions and it is increasing rapidly. The electronic revolution has introduced new machines and new technologies. In the worlds of Bill Gates: "We stand at the brink of another revolution. This one will involve unprecedentedly inexpensive communication; all computers will join together to communicate with us and for us. Interconnected globally, they will form a network, which is being called the information highway. A direct precursor is the present Internet, which is a group of computers joined and exchanging information using current technology." It is not necessary to give any further arguments in favor of the use of Internet for international communications.

Hindi on the Internet Presently, the Internet in the world (except China, Japan and Korea) is mainly used for languages written in Roman scripts. The reason for this is the use of Roman characters in ASCII for text processing in computers. The word processing in standard ASCII facilitates text transmission and text manipulation in computers. The vast reservoir of information stored in standard ASCII computers connected to Internet, makes it possible to access it anywhere in the world. Notably absent from the table above is Hindi, one of the most commonly spoken languages of the world, as well as the national language of India, the second most populated country in the world. This is due to factors such as the lack of access to the Internet by the large majority of the Indian population, and a preference for English among those users who have Internet access. The Indian population online is also increasing at a high rate; this is also expected to have a great impact on the Internet in the near future. (From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia on Internet) It may be asked why we cannot use Internet for communication in other non-Roman scripts such as Devanagari. We have the technology for writing Hindi in Devanagari Script through graphic processing but this technique is possible through special programs which are not easily available everywhere. These programs are very complicated and cannot do scanning and text processing as easily as programs for Roman script. Moreover, the knowledge

72

of Roman letters is essential for writing addresses and understanding the vocabulary of computers and Internet. Acronyms such as FTP., WWW, BBS, HTML etc. are commonly used in Internet. It is not possible to translate or transliterate them in any other non-Roman Script. Hindi speaking people living in all parts of the world would like to communicate with each other through Internet. Due to the constraints of script, it has not been possible to use Hindi for international communications through computers. Now we have the possibility of communicating in Hindi on Internet by using the Romanaagarii Script. This suggestion is very scientific, logical and practical. This will help in propagating Hindi all over the world and popularizing it on a wider scale. The suggestion of using Romanaagarii for writing Hindi may appear revolutionary but it is essential under present circumstances.

Romanaagarii and SARAL scripts on the Internet Through Romanaagarii and SARAL scripts, reading and study skills can be delivered over the Internet as easily as in Roman script. The resourceassisted reading connects a reader‟s chosen text, at his or her interest and proficiency level. Some infrastructure and technology issues will have to be tackled for which there are plenty of resources available at present. We have to understand this electronic miracle and adjust ourselves to it. The suggestion to use Romanaagarii for writing Hindi has been made with this perspective in view. Hindi Speaking world cannot ignore the fast progress being made by others using modern technology and lag behind in the use of electronic communication. Internet has brought a new dimension to the dissemination of knowledge. Through Internet, knowledge can be available from one single source at a very low cost almost instantly! Internet can integrate literacy and self-study training. The potential advantages of the Internet in education are well known. Online learning reaches the learner more successfully than ever before. Through Romanaagarii, reading and study skills can be delivered over the Internet easily in the remotest areas. The resource-assisted reading connects a reader's chosen text, at his or her interest and proficiency level.

73

Some infrastructure and technology issues will have to be tackled for which there are plenty of resources available at present. An Internet and Romanaagarii based solution to India's illiteracy problem. Internet can also pave the way to addressing other societal issues. Internet can be used in educating children. On Internet, we can make material available for healthcare or agriculture. We could take people through the basics of fertilizers, or the entire vaccination program. All that is needed is the material, through Internet.

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74

Appendix 1

Hindi Phonemes (Akshar Maalaa)

75

Hindi Fonts-Nai Dunia

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76

Appendix 2 ASCII Number (AN), ASCII Character (AC), Nai Dunia (ND), SARAL Hindi (SH) and SARAL Roman (SR) characters

77

78

79

80

81

82

83

84

85

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86

Appendix 3

87

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88

Appendix 4 Unicode, SARAL Roman (SR) and SARAL Hindi (SH) Sl.No.: Unicode = SR = SH

1: ्ाँ = M = M 2: ् = M = M 3: ् = : =: 4: अ = xa = xa 5: आ = xA = xA 6: इ = xi = xi 7: ई = xI = xI 8: उ = xu = xu 9: ऊ = xU = xU 10: ऋ = ri = ri 11: ऌ = lri = lri 12: ऍ = x’ = x’

89

13: ऎ = xe’ = xe’ 14: ए = xe = xe 15: ऐ = xE = xE 16: ऑ = xA’ = xA’ 17: ऒ = xo’ = xo’ 18: ओ = xo = xo 19: औ = xO = xO 20: क = ka = ka 21: ख = Ka = Ka 22: ग = ga = ga 23: घ = Ga = Ga 24: ङ = {a = {a 25: च = ca = ca 26: छ = Ca = Ca 27: ज = ja = ja 28: झ = Ja = Ja

90

29: ञ = }a = }a 30: ट = qa = qa 31: ठ = Qa = Qa 32: ड = wa = wa 33: ढ = Wa = Wa 34: ण = Na = Na 35: त = ta = ta 36: थ = Ta = Ta 37: द = da = da 38: ध = Da = Da 39: न = na = na 40: ऩ = ‘na = ‘na 41: ऩ = pa = pa 42: प = Pa = Pa 43: फ = ba = ba 44: ब = Ba = Ba

91

45: भ = ma = ma 46: म = ya = ya 47: य = ra = ra 48: ऱ = ‘ra = ‘ra 49: र = la = la 50: ऱ = La = La 51: ऴ = Ra = Ra 52: ल = va = va 53: ळ = Sa = Sa 54: ऴ = Fa = Fa 55: व = sa = sa 56: ्श = ha = ha 57: ््् = ` = ` 58: ॱ = x = x 59: ् = A = A 60: न्द्् = i = i

92

61: ् = I = I 62: ् = u = u 63: ् = U = U 64: ् = ri = ri 65: ् = rri = rri 66: ् = ` = ` 67: ् = e’ = e’ 68: ् = e = e 69: ् = E = E 70: ् = A’ = A’ 71: ् = o’ = o’ 72: ् = o = o 73: ्ौ = O = O 74: ् = = 75: ॲ = xo~ = xo~ 76: ् = ‘ = ‘

93

77: ् = - = 78: ् = ‘ = ‘ 79: ् = ‘ = ‘ 80: क़ = V = V 81: ख़ = Ya = Ya 82: ग़ = Za = Za 83: ज़ = za = za 84: ड़ = La = La 85: ढ़ = Ra = Ra 86: फ़ = fa = fa 87: य़ = ‘ya = ‘ya 88: क = rri = rri 89: ख = lrra = lrra 90: ् = lr = lr 91: ् = lrr = lrr 92: । = . = .

94

93: ॥ = .. = .. 94: ० = 0 = 0 95: १ = 1 = 1 96: २ = 2 = 2 97: ३ = 3 = 3 98: ४ = 4 = 4 99: ५ = 5 = 5 100: ६ = 6 = 6 101: ७ = 7 = 7 102: ८ = 8 = 8 103: ९ = 9 = 9 104: ॰ = 0 = 0

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95

Appendix 5

SARAL Numbering System 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20

zIro Xek Do tIn cAr pAMc Ca: sAt xAQ nO xek tI xek tI xek tI xek tI xek tI xek tI xek tI xek tI xek tI xek tI do tI

62 63

Ca: tI do Ca: tI tIn

xek do tIn cAr pAMc Ca: sAt xAQ nO

20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40

do tI do tI xek do tI do do tI tIn do tI cAr do tI pAMc do tI Ca: do tI sAt do tI xAQ do tI nO tIn tI tIn tI xek tIn tI do tIn tI tIn tIntI cAr tIn tI pAMc tIn tI Ca: tIn tI sAt tIn tI xAQ tIn tI nO cAr tI

76 sAt tI Ca: 77 sAt tI sAt

41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50 51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60 61

90 91

cAr tI xek cAr tI do cAr tI tIn cAr tI cAr cArtI pAMc cAr tI Ca: cAr tI sAt cAr tI xAQ cAr tI nO pAMc tI pAMc tI xek pAMc ti do pAMc tI tIn pAMc tI cAr pAMc tI pAMc pAMc tI Ca: pAMc tI sAt pAMc tI xAQ pAMc tI nO Ca: tI Ca: tI xek

nO tI nO tI xek

96

64 65 66 67 68 69 70 71 72 73 74 75

Ca: tI cAr Ca: tI pAMc Ca: tI Ca: Ca: tI sAt Ca: tI xAQ Ca: tI nO sAt tI sAt tI xek sAt tI do sAt tI tIn sAt tI cAr sAt tI pAMc

78 79 80 81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89

sAt tI xAQ sAt tI nO xAQ tI xAQ tI xek xAQ tI do xAQ tI tIn xAQ tI cAr xAQ tI pAMc xAQ tI Ca: xAQ tI sAt xAQ tI xAQ xAQ tI nO

92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100 101 102 109

nO tI do nO tI tIn nO tI cAr nO tI pAMc nO tI Ca: nO tI sAt nO tI xAQ nO tI nO xek sO xek sO xek xek sO do xek sO nO

1000 xek hazAr 1099 xek hazAr nO tI nO 9999 nO hazAr nO sO nO tI nO 999000 nO so nO tI nO hazAr 100099 xek sO hazAr nO tI nO 200099 do sO hazAr nO tI nO 222000 do sO do tI do hazAr 999009 nO sO nO tI nO hazAr nO 1100000 xek miliyan xek sO hazAr 9000000 nO miliyan 999000000999 nO sO nO tI nO biliyan nO sO nO tI nO. TOP

97

Appendix 6

Table of Hindi Phonemes (baaraakhar‟ii) x k c q t p y s n g j w d b m r l v h K G C J

a xa ka ca qa ta pa ya sa na ga ja wa da ba ma ra la va ha Ka Ga Ca Ja

A xA kA cA qA tA pA yA sA nA gA jA wA dA bA mA rA lA vA hA KA GA CA JA

i xi ki ci qi ti pi yi si ni gi ji wi di bi mi ri li vi hi Ki Gi Ci Ji

I xI kI cI qI tI pI yI sI nI gI jI wI dI bI mI rI lI vI hI KI GI CI JI

u xu ku cu qu tu pu yu su nu gu ju wu du bu mu ru lu vu hu Ku Gu Cu Ju

U xU kU cU qU tU pU yU sU nU gU jU wU dU bU mU rU lU vU hU KU GU CU JU

e xe ke ce qe te pe ye se ne ge je we de be me re le ve he Ke Ge Ce Je

E xE kE cE qE tE pE yE sE nE gE jE wE dE bE mE rE lE vE hE KE GE CE JE

o xo ko co qo to po yo so no go jo wo do bo mo ro lo vo ho Ko Go Co Jo

O xO kO cO qO tO pO yO sO nO gO jO wO dO bO mO rO lO vO hO KO GO CO JO

M xM kM cM qM tM pM yM sM nM gM jM wM dM bM mM rM lM vM hM KM GM CM JM

H xH kH cH qH tH pH yH sH nH gH jH wH dH bH mH rH lH vH hH KH GH CH JH

98

Q W T D P B S F N { } L R X V Y Z z f | TOP

Qa Wa Ta Da Pa Ba Sa Fa Na {a }a La Ra Xa Va Ya Za za fa |a

QA WA TA DA PA BA SA FA NA {A }A LA RA XA VA YA ZA zA fA |A

Qi Wi Ti Di Pi Bi Si Fi Ni {i }i Li Ri Xi Vi Yi Zi zi fi |i

QI WI TI DI PI BI SI FI NI {I }I LI RI XI VI YI ZI zI fI |I

Qu Wu Tu Du Pu Bu Su Fu Nu {u }u Lu Ru Xu Vu Yu Zu zu fu |u

QU WU TU DU PU BU SU FU NU {U }U LU RU XU VU YU ZU zU fU |U

Qe We Te De Pe Be Se Fe Ne {e }e Le Re Xe Ve Ye Ze ze fe |e

QE WE TE DE PE BE SE FE NE {E }E LE RE XE VE YE ZE zE fE |E

Qo Wo To Do Po Bo So Fo No {o }o Lo Ro Xo Vo Yo Zo zo fo |o

QO WO TO DO PO BO SO FO NO {O }O LO RO XO VO YO ZO zO fO |O

QM WM TM DM PM BM SM FM NM {M }M LM RM XM VM YM ZM zM fM |M

QH WH TH DH PH BH SH FH NH {H }H LH RH XH VH YH ZH zH fH |H

99

Appendix 7

Alphabet, lessons and Mandala/Yantra for SARAL scripts SARAL Hindi

100

SARAL Hindi and Mandala/Yantra

101

SARAL Gujarati

102

SARAL Gujarati and Mandala/Yantra

103

SARAL Panjabi

104

SARAL Panjabi and Mandala/Yantra

105

SARAL Marathi

106

SARAL Marathi and Mandala/Yantra

107

SARAL Urdu

108

SARAL Urdu and Mandala/Yantra

109

SARAL Roman

110

SARAL Roman and Mandala/Yantra

111

SARAL Ingles

112

SARAL Ingles and Mandala/Yantra

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113

Appendix 8 Global picture of Internet users ALPHABETICAL LIST OF COUNTRIES Including the latest (July 2009) Internet Usage, Penetration Rates, Gross National Income per capita, Country size and ISO 3316 Symbol (Source:http://www.internetworldstats.com/list2.htm) Country or Region Name Afghanistan Africa

Sym -bol AF -

Size (sq. km.)

Population (2009 est.)

Internet Users

Internet Penetration

GDP p.c. in US$

645,807

28,395,716

500,000

1.8 %

$800

30,221,532

991,002,342

65,903,900

6.7 %

--

Albania

AL

28,748

3,639,453

580,000

15.9 %

$6,000

Algeria

DZ

2,381,741

34,178,188

3,500,000

10.2 %

$7,000

n/a

$8,000('07)

American Samoa Andorra

AS

197

65,628

n/a

AD

464

83,888

70,040

Angola

AO

1,246,700

12,799,293

550,000

4.3 %

$8,800

Anguilla

AI

96

14,436

4,200

29.1 %

$8,800('04)

Antarctica

AQ

13,209,000

1,169

n/a

n/a

AG

442

85,632

65,000

75.9 %

AN

800

227,049

2,000

SA

2,149,690

28,686,633

7,200,000

25.1 %

$20,700

Argentina

AR

2,777,409

40,913,584

20,000,000

48.9 %

$14,200

Armenia

AM

29,743

2,967,004

172,800

5.8 %

$6,400

Aruba

AW

193

103,065

24,000

39,365,000 3,808,070,503

704,213,930

18.5 %

Antigua & Barbuda Antilles, Netherlands Arabia, Saudi

Asia

-

83.5 % $42,500('07)

-$19,000

0.9 % $16,000('04)

23.3 % $21,800('04) --

Australia

AU

7,682,557

21,262,641

16,926,015

79.6 %

$38,100

Austria

AT

83,858

8,210,281

5,601,700

68.2 %

$39,200

Azerbaijan

AZ

86,530

8,238,672

1,500,000

18.2 %

$9,000

Bahamas, The

BS

13,962

307,552

142,000

46.2 %

$28,600

Bahrain

BH

694

728,709

250,000

34.3 %

$37,200

Bangladesh

BD

142,615

156,050,883

500,000

0.3 %

$1,500

Barbados

BB

431

284,589

188,000

66.1 %

$19,300

Belarus

BY

207,600

9,648,533

2,809,800

29.1 %

$11,800

114 Belgium

BE

30,518

10,414,336

7,006,400

67.3 %

$37,500

Belize

BZ

22,966

307,899

32,000

10.4 %

$8,600

Benin

BJ

112,622

8,791,832

160,000

1.8 %

$1,500

Bermuda

BM

53

67,837

48,000

Bhutan

BT

46,650

691,141

40,000

5.8 %

$5,600

Bolivia

BO

1,098,581

9,775,246

1,000,000

10.2 %

$4,500

70.8 % $69,900('04)

Bosnia and Herzegovina Botswana

BA

51,129

4,613,414

1,441,000

31.2 %

$6,500

BW

581,730

1,990,876

100,000

5.0 %

$13,300

Bouvet Island

BV

49

0

0

n/a

n/a

Brazil

BR

8,544,418

198,739,269

67,510,400

34.0 %

$10,100

IO

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

VG

151

24,491

4,000

BN

5,765

388,190

187,900

48.4 %

$53,100

BG

110,994

7,204,687

2,368,000

32.9 %

$12,900

Burkina Faso

BF

267,950

15,746,232

140,000

0.9 %

$1,200

Burundi

BI

27,834

9,511,330

65,000

0.7 %

$400

Cambodia

KH

181,035

14,494,293

70,000

0.5 %

$2,000

Cameroon

CM

475,442

18,879,301

547,600

2.9 %

$2,300

Canada

CA

9,976,137

33,487,208

23,999,500

71.7 %

$39,300

Cape Verde

CV

4,033

429,474

102,800

23.9 %

$3,800

-

n/a

40,744,383

9,140,700

22.4 %

KY

259

49,035

22,000

CF

622,436

4,511,488

19,000

0.4 %

n/a

153,320,699

32,607,300

21.3 %

British Indian Ocean T. British Virgin Islands Brunei Darussalam Bulgaria

Caribbean, the

16.3 % $38,500('04)

--

Cayman Islands Central African Republic Central America Chad

TD

1,284,000

10,329,208

130,000

1.3 %

$1,600

Chile

CL

755,482

16,601,707

8,368,719

50.4 %

$14,900

China

CN

9,806,391 1,338,612,968

338,000,000

25.3 %

$6,000

Christmas Island Cocos (Keeling) Islands Colombia

-

44.9 % $43,800('04) $700 --

CX

135

1,402

464

33.1 %

n/a

CC

14

596

n/a

n/a

n/a

CO

1,141,748

43,677,372

18,234,822

41.7 %

$8,900

115 Comoros

KM

1,862

752,438

22,100

2.9 %

$1,000

Congo

CG

342,000

4,012,809

155,000

3.9 %

$4,000

CD

2,344,798

68,692,542

290,000

0.4 %

$300

CK

237

11,870

5,000

42.1 %

$9,100('05)

Costa Rica

CR

51,090

4,253,877

1,500,000

35.3 %

$11,600

Cote D'Ivoire

CI

322,461

20,617,068

660,000

3.2 %

$1,700

Croatia

HR

56,542

4,489,409

2,244,400

50.0 %

$16,100

Cuba

CU

114,525

11,451,652

1,450,000

12.7 %

$9,500

Cyprus

CY

9,251

1,084,748

324,880

29.9 %

$28,600

Congo, Dem. Rep. of the Cook Islands

Czech Republic Denmark

CZ

78,866

10,211,904

4,991,300

48.9 %

$26,100

DK

43,093

5,500,510

4,629,600

84.2 %

$37,400

Djibouti

DJ

23,200

724,622

11,000

1.5 %

$3,700

Dominica

DM

751

72,660

26,500

36.5 %

$9,900

DO

48,734

9,650,054

3,000,000

31.1 %

$8,100

TP

14,604

1,131,612

1,500

0.1 %

$2,400

EC

272,046

14,573,101

1,634,828

11.2 %

$7,500

Egypt

EG

1,001,450

78,866,635

12,568,900

15.9 %

$5,400

El Salvador

SV

21,041

7,185,218

763,000

10.6 %

$6,200

GQ

28,051

633,441

12,000

1.9 %

$31,400

ER

121,100

5,647,168

150,000

2.7 %

$700

Estonia

EE

45,226

1,299,371

854,600

65.8 %

$21,200

Ethiopia

ET

1,127,127

85,237,338

360,000

0.4 %

$800

Europe

-

n/a

803,850,858

402,380,474

50.1 %

EU

4,324,782

489,601,562

308,967,801

63.1 %

$33,400

FK

16,076

2,483

2,400

96.7 %

$35,400

FO

1,414

48,856

37,500

Fiji

FJ

18,274

944,720

91,400

9.7 %

$3,900

Finland

FI

338,145

5,250,275

4,353,142

82.9 %

$37,200

France

FR

547,030

62,150,775

42,050,465

67.7 %

$32,700

French Guiana

GF

83,534

228,604

42,000

18.4 %

$8,836('05)

French

PF

3,894

287,032

90,000

31.4 % $18,000('04)

Dominican Republic East Timor (Timor-Leste) Ecuador

Equatorial Guinea Eritrea

European Union Falkland Islands (Malvinas) Faroe Islands

--

76.8 % $31,000('01)

116 Polynesia French TF Southern Terr. Gabon GA

7,781

120

n/a

n/a

n/a

267,667

1,514,993

90,000

5.9 %

$14,400

Gambia, the

GM

10,689

1,778,081

114,200

6.4 %

$1,300

Georgia

GE

69,700

4,615,807

360,000

7.8 %

$4,700

Germany

DE

357,021

82,329,758

55,221,183

67.1 %

$34,800

Ghana

GH

238,538

23,887,812

997,000

4.2 %

$1,500

Gibraltar

GI

7

28,796

9,853

Greece

GR

131,957

10,737,428

4,932,495

Greenland

GL

2,175,600

57,600

52,000

90.3 % $20,000('01)

Grenada

GD

345

90,739

23,000

25.3 %

$13,400

Guadeloupe

GP

1,780

441,838

85,000

19.2 %

n/a

Guam

GU

545

178,430

80,000

44.8 % $15,000('05)

Guatemala

GT

108,894

13,276,517

1,320,000

GG

91

65,484

36,000

55.0 % $44,600('05)

GF

83,534

228,604

42,000

18.4 %

$8,836('05)

GN

245,857

10,057,975

90,000

0.9 %

$1,100

Guinea-Bissau GW

36,123

1,533,964

37,100

2.4 %

$600

GP

28,051

633,441

12,000

1.9 %

$12,860

GY

215,083

752,940

190,000

25.2 %

$3,900

HT

27,748

9,035,536

1,000,000

11.1 %

$1,300

HM

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

VA

<1

545

93

17.1 %

n/a

HN

112,088

7,833,696

658,500

8.4 %

$4,400

Guernsey and Alderney Guiana, French Guinea Guinea, Equatorial Guyana Haiti Heard & McDonald Is.(AU) Holy See (Vatican) Honduras

34.2 % $38,200('05) 45.9 %

9.9 %

$32,000

$5,200

Hong Kong, (China) Hungary

HK

1,085

7,055,071

4,878,713

69.2 %

$43,800

HU

92,966

9,905,596

5,500,000

55.5 %

$19,800

Iceland

IS

102,928

306,694

273,930

89.3 %

$39,900

India

IN

3,166,944 1,156,897,766

81,000,000

7.0 %

$2,800

Indonesia

ID

1,904,443

240,271,522

25,000,000

10.4 %

$3,900

IR

1,648,195

66,429,284

23,000,000

34.6 %

$12,800

IQ

434,128

28,945,569

275,000

1.0 %

$4,000

Iran, Islamic Republic of Iraq

117 Ireland

IE

70,273

4,203,200

2,830,100

67.3 %

$46,200

Israel

IL

20,991

7,233,701

5,263,146

72.8 %

$28,200

Italy

IT

301,323

58,126,212

29,140,144

50.1 %

$31,000

322,461

20,617,068

660,000

3.2 %

$1,700

10,991

2,825,928

1,540,000

54.5 %

$7,400

74.0 %

$34,200

Ivory Coast CI (Cote d'Ivoire) Jamaica JM Japan

JP

377,812

127,078,679

94,000,000

Jersey

JE

116

91,626

28,500

Jordan

JO

89,342

6,269,285

1,500,500

23.9 %

$5,000

Kazakhstan

KZ

2,715,900

15,399,437

1,900,600

12.3 %

$11,500

Kenya

KE

581,787

39,002,772

3,359,600

8.6 %

$1,600

Kiribati

KI

832

112,850

2,000

1.8 %

$3,200

KP

122,762

22,665,345

n/a

n/a

$1,700

KR

99,268

48,508,972

37,475,800

77.3 %

$26,000

KV

10,908

1,804,838

377,000

20.9 %

$2,300

Kuwait

KW

17,818

2,692,526

900,000

33.4 %

$57,400

Kyrgyzstan

KG

199,900

5,431,747

750,000

13.8 %

$2,100

LA

236,800

6,834,345

100,000

1.5 %

$2,100

LV

64,598

2,231,503

1,324,800

59.4 %

$17,800

Lebanon

LB

10,201

4,017,095

1,570,000

39.1 %

$11,100

Lesotho

LS

30,355

2,130,819

73,300

3.4 %

$1,600

Liberia

LR

99,065

3,441,790

20,000

0.6 %

$500

LY

1,777,060

6,324,357

291,300

4.6 %

$14,400

LI

160

34,761

23,000

Lithuania

LT

65,300

3,555,179

2,103,471

59.2 %

$17,700

Luxembourg

LU

2,586

491,775

363,900

74.0 %

$81,100

MO

25

559,846

238,000

42.5 % $30,000('07)

MK

25,433

2,066,718

906,979

43.9 %

$9,000

MG

587,041

20,653,556

316,100

1.5 %

$1,000

Malawi

MW

118,480

15,028,757

139,500

0.9 %

$800

Malaysia

MY

329,758

25,715,819

16,902,600

65.7 %

$15,300

Maldives

MV

298

396,334

71,700

18.1 %

$5,000

Mali

ML

1,240,198

13,443,225

125,000

0.9 %

$1,200

Korea Dem. People's Rep. Korea, (South) Republic of Kosovo

Lao People's Democ. Rep. Latvia

Libyan Arab Jamahiriya Liechtenstein

Macao, (China) Macedonia, TFYR Madagascar

31.1 % $57,000('05)

66.2 % 118,000('07)

118 Malta

MT

315

405,165

200,200

Man, Isle of

IM

572

76,512

n/a

MH

181

64,522

2,200

3.4 %

$2,500

MQ

1,128

403,857

130,000

32.2 %

n/a

MR

1,035,000

3,129,486

45,000

1.4 %

$2,100

Mauritius

MU

2,040

1,284,264

380,000

29.6 %

$12,100

Mayotte (FR)

YT

373

223,765

n/a

n/a

$4,900('05)

Mexico

MX

1,967,138

111,211,789

27,400,000

24.9 %

$14,200

FM

721

107,434

15,000

14.0 %

$2,200

5,214,000

202,687,005

47,964,146

23.7 %

MD

33,843

4,320,748

700,000

16.2 %

MC

2

32,965

20,000

Mongolia

MN

1,564,160

3,041,142

320,000

10.5 %

$3,200

Montenegro

CS

14,026

672,180

280,000

41.7 %

$9,700

Montserrat

MS

102

5,097

1,200

23.5 %

$3,400('02)

Morocco

MA

6,600,000

31,285,174

10,300,000

32.9 %

$4,000

Mozambique

MZ

799,380

21,669,278

350,000

1.6 %

$900

676,577

48,137,741

40,000

0.1 %

$1,200

825,112

2,108,665

113,500

5.4 %

$5,400

21

14,019

300

2.1 %

$5,000('05)

Marshall Islands Martinique (FR) Mauritania

Micronesia, Fed. States of Middle East Moldova, Republic of Monaco

-

Myanmar (exMM Burma) Namibia NA Nauru NR

49.4 %

$24,200

n/a $35,000('05)

-$2,500

60.7 % $30,000('06)

Nepal

NP

147,181

28,563,377

397,500

1.4 %

$1,100

Netherlands

NL

41,526

16,715,999

14,272,700

85.4 %

$40,300

800

227,049

2,000

0.9 % $16,000('04) 37.4 % $15,000('03)

Netherlands AN Antilles New Caledonia NC New Zealand NZ

18,736

227,436

85,000

270,534

4,213,418

3,360,000

79.7 %

$27,900

Nicaragua

NI

129,454

5,891,199

155,000

2.6 %

$2,900

Niger

NE

1,186,408

15,306,252

80,000

0.5 %

$700

Nigeria

NG

923,768

149,229,090

11,000,000

7.4 %

$2,300

Niue

NU

259

1,598

900

56.3 %

$5,800

Norfolk Island

NF

35

2,554

700

27.4 %

n/a

North America

-

24,256,000

340,831,831

251,735,500

73.9 %

--

477

51,484

10,000

19.4 %

Northern Mariana Islands

MP

$2,000('00)

119 Norway

NO

Oceania

-

323,759

4,660,539

3,993,400

85.7 %

7,687,000

34,700,201

20,838,019

60.1 %

$55,200 --

Oman

OM

309,500

3,418,085

469,000

13.7 %

$20,200

Pakistan

PK

880,254

174,578,558

18,500,000

10.6 %

$2,600

Palau

PW

491

20,796

5,400

26.0 %

$8,100

PS

6,242

2,461,267

355,500

14.4 %

$2,900

PA

77,082

3,360,474

778,800

23.2 %

$11,600

PG

462,840

5,940,775

115,000

1.9 %

$2,200

PY

406,752

6,995,655

530,300

7.6 %

$4,200

Peru

PE

1,285,216

29,546,963

7,636,400

25.8 %

$8,400

Philippines

PH

300,000

97,976,603

24,000,000

24.5 %

$3,300

Pitcairn Island

PN

n/a

48

n/a

n/a

n/a

Poland

PL

312,685

38,482,919

20,020,362

52.0 %

$17,300

Portugal

PT

92,391

10,707,924

4,450,800

41.6 %

$22,000

Puerto Rico

PR

9,104

3,966,213

1,000,000

25.2 %

$17,800

Qatar

QA

11,521

833,285

436,000

52.3 %

$103,500

Reunion (FR)

RE

2,547

812,813

220,000

27.1 %

n/a

Romania

RO

238,391

22,215,421

7,430,000

33.4 %

$12,200

16,894,741

140,041,247

38,000,000

27.1 %

$15,800

26,338

10,746,311

300,000

2.8 %

$900

266,000

405,210

n/a

n/a $2,5000('07)

21

7,448

n/a

n/a

7,600

410

7,637

1,000

13.1 %

$2,500('98)

267

40,131

15,000

37.4 %

$19,700

616

160,267

110,000

68.6 %

$11,300

MF

37

29,820

n/a

n/a

n/a

PM

242

7,063

n/a

n/a

$7,000('01)

Palestinian Territory Panama Papua New Guinea Paraguay

Russia RU (Russian Fed.) Rwanda RW Sahara, EH Western Saint Barthelemy BL (FR) Saint Helena SH (UK) Saint Kitts and KN Nevis Saint Lucia LC Saint Martin (FR) S Pierre & Miquelon (FR) S Vincent & Grenadines Samoa

VC

392

104,574

66,000

63.1 %

$10,500

WS

2,785

219,998

8,500

3.9 %

$4,900

San Marino

SM

61

30,164

16,000

53.0 % $41,900('07)

120 Sao Tome and Principe Saudi Arabia

ST

1,001

212,679

24,800

11.7 %

$1,300

SA

2,149,690

28,686,633

7,200,000

25.1 %

$20,700

Senegal

SN

196,722

13,711,597

1,020,000

7.4 %

$1,600

Serbia

RS

77,474

7,379,339

2,602,478

35.3 %

$10,900

Seychelles

SC

455

87,476

32,000

36.6 %

$17,000

Sierra Leone

SL

71,740

5,132,138

13,900

0.3 %

$700

Singapore

SG

683

4,657,542

3,104,900

66.7 %

$52,000

Slovakia

SK

49,034

5,463,046

3,018,400

55.3 %

$21,900

Slovenia

SI

20,273

2,005,692

1,300,000

64.8 %

$29,500

Solomon Islands Somalia

SB

28,400

595,613

9,000

1.5 %

$1,900

SO

637,657

9,832,017

98,000

1.0 %

$600

South Africa

ZA

1,219,090

49,052,489

4,590,000

9.4 %

$10,000

17,819,000

392,597,416

134,086,439

34.2 %

GS

3,903

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

ES

504,842

40,525,002

28,628,959

70.6 %

$34,600

South America S.George & S.Sandwich Spain

-

--

Sri Lanka (exCeilan) Sudan

LK

65,610

21,324,791

1,148,000

5.4 %

$4,300

SD

2,505,810

41,087,825

3,800,000

9.2 %

$2,200

Suriname

SR

163,820

481,261

44,000

9.1 %

$8,900

Svalbard & Jan Mayen Is. Swaziland

SJ

61,606

2,198

n/a

n/a

n/a

SZ

17,363

1,337,186

48,200

3.6 %

$5,100

Sweden

SE

449,965

9,059,651

7,295,200

80.5 %

$38,500

Switzerland

CH

41,285

41,285

7,604,467

75.8 %

$40,900

Syrian Arab Republic Taiwan

SY

185,180

21,762,978

3,565,000

16.4 %

$4,800

TW

36,175

22,974,347

15,143,000

65.9 %

$31,900

Tajikistan

TJ

143,100

7,349,145

484,200

6.6 %

$2,100

TZ

945,088

41,048,532

520,000

1.3 %

$1,300

TH

513,115

65,998,436

13,416,000

20.3 %

$8,500

Tanzania, United Rep. of Thailand Timor-Leste (East Timor) Togo

TL

14,604

1,131,612

1,500

0.1 %

$2,400

TG

56,785

6,031,808

350,000

5.8 %

$900

Tokelau

TK

10

1,371

540

39.4 %

$1,000('93)

Tonga

TO

651

120,898

8,400

6.9 %

$4,600

Trinidad &

TT

5,128

1,229,953

212,800

17.3 %

$18,600

121 Tobago Tunisia

TN

163,610

10,486,339

2,800,000

26.7 %

$7,900

Turkey

TR

773,473

76,805,524

26,500,000

34.5 %

$12,000

Turkmenistan

TM

488,100

4,884,887

70,000

1.4 %

$6,100

TC

497

22,942

n/a

TV

26

12,373

4,000

32.3 %

$1,600('02)

Uganda

UG

242,554

32,369,558

2,500,000

7.7 %

$1,100

Ukraine

UA

603,628

45,700,395

6,700,000

14.7 %

$6,900

AE

77,700

4,798,491

2,860,000

59.6 %

$40,000

UK

244,140

61,113,205

48,755,000

79.8 %

$36,600

US

9,629,047

307,212,123

227,636,000

74.1 %

$47,000

UM

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

n/a

UY

175,016

3,494,382

1,340,000

38.3 %

$12,200

Uzbekistan

UZ

447,400

27,606,007

2,416,000

8.8 %

$2,600

Vanuatu

VU

12,190

218,519

17,000

7.8 %

$4,600

VA

1

545

93

17.1 %

n/a

VE

916,445

26,814,843

7,552,570

28.2 %

$13,500

VN

332,378

88,576,758

21,524,417

24.3 %

$2,800

151

24,491

4,000

16.3 % $38,500('04)

352

109,825

30,000

27.3 % $14,500('04)

274

15,289

1,200

7.8 %

$3,800('04)

266,000

405,210

n/a

n/a

$2,500('07)

528,076

22,858,238

320,000

1.4 %

$2,400

Turks and Caicos Islands Tuvalu

United Arab Emirates United Kingdom United States US Minor Outlying Isl. Uruguay

Vatican (Holy See) Venezuela Viet Nam

Virgin Islands, VG British Virgin Islands, VI U.S. Wallis and WF Futuna Western EH Sahara Yemen YE

n/a $11,500('02)

Zambia

ZM

752,614

11,862,740

700,000

5.9 %

$1,500

Zimbabwe

ZW

390,784

11,392,629

1,421,000

12.5 %

$200

World Total

-

148,429,000 6,767,805,208 1,668,870,408

24.7 %

$10,400

122 NOTES(*): (1) The above list correspondes to the Country Codes according to ISO-3166, for countries listed in alphabetical order. (2) Country or region size corresponds to total area in square kilometers. (3) Population figures displayed come from the U.S. Census Bureau for 2009 total estimated population in each country or region. (4) Internet users are from Internet World Stats for June 30/2009. (5) GDP (Gross Domestic Product) per capita are in US dollars 2008 estimate figures from the World Bank and the CIA World Factbook. (6) Click on any country name to see more details. (7) For methology and sources, please visit the site guide at Site Surfing Guide. Copyright © 2000 - 2009, Miniwatts Marketing Group. All rights reserved.

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123

Appendix 9

SARAL scripts and Shri Yantra Shri Yantra

Shri Yantra is a beautiful figure to depict and symbolize the secrets of the entire universe. It is regarded as the abode of the Supreme Wisdom or the Mother Goddess of Wisdom That created all the elements of the universe, sustains them, and finally absorbs them. The Supreme Power has been given 1000 names such as Shri Vidya, Lalita, Saraswati, Shri Mata, etc. Shri Yantra is a symbolic representation of the mysteries of all the elements, energies, and consciousness levels of the universe. It is also a pictorial design that contains the mysteries of the origin and evolution of the language, script and knowledge in the universe. Shri Yantra has a point (bindu) in the center that is surrounded by triangles, circles, and other geometrical formations. The outer line of the Yantra, called

124

“Bhupur”, takes 36 right angle turns. From Bhupur to Bindu, Shri Yantra has 9 Chakras (circular formations). Their names are usually given as follows: 1. Bhupur Chakra; 2. Trilok Vrit Chakra; 3. Shodash-dal Chakra; 4. Ashta-dal Chakra; 5. Chaturdashar Chakra; 6. Bahirdashar Chakra; 7. Antardashar Chakra; 8. Ashtar Chakra; and 9. Trikon Bindu Chakra or cetanaa-energy Chakra These Chakras can also be counted in the reverse order. Accordingly, the Trikon Bindu Chakra or cetanaa-energy Chakra would come first and the Bhupur Chakra would come last. Creation of the universe starts from the Bindu, the abode of the Supreme Power (or Sadaa Shiva-energy), symbolizing the truth, the consciousness and the bliss (Sat, Chit, Anand). The Bindu also symbolizes the origin of the Cosmic Consciousness. Through vibrations, Bindu grows into a triangle and the consciousness and power or energy elements can be identified distinctly. The three sides or corners of the triangle are symbolic of the three Powers, namely: 1. The power of will, (Icchaa energy), 2. The power of knowledge (Gyaan energy), and 3. The power of action (Kriyaa energy). From the knowledge point of view, the Bindu symbolizes the ultimate source of language (Para Vak energy) and the three sides or corners of the triangle are the three symbolic of the creative (Pashyanti), cognitive (madhyama), and articulate (Vaikhari) powers of the word or language. Modern psychologists have identified the Pashyanti, Madhyama, and Vaikhari powers as the creative or thinking power of the mind, the language processing power of the brain, and the articulate speaking power of the tongue respectively. The union of Bindu (symbol of energy or energy) and the triangle (symbol of Shiva or consciousness) forms the first syllable (xa), which is also called the seed

125

syllable, or “Biij Akshat”. After creation of the seed syllable, there is creation of other writing symbols. Bindu is also called the sound point of the cosmos (Naad Bindu), and from there all the sounds as well as all the lights originate and produce the word (mantra), and form (yantra). The inner circle of Shri Yantra has four cetanaa triangles and five energy triangles. The apexes of the cetanaa triangles are upwards and the apexes of the energy triangles are downwards as shown below:

126

The diagrams or formations made through the intersection of the lines of these triangles are also called Chakras, and their number is 9. The are, however, not circular but horzontal as shown below:

These cetanaa and skakti triangles, when converted into circular form, would appear as below:

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A Yantra based on the circular form of triangles may be called Alphabet Yantra and will look as below:

The first Chakra in the inner circle of the Shri Yantra, or the Alphabet Yantra, is Trikon-Bindu or consciousness-energy Chakra. Thereafter, there are four consciousness Chakras and four energy Chakras. The triangles of consciousness Chakras are depicted blue and called the abodes of Shiva (consciousness). The other areas of the Alphabet Yantra are depicted pink and may be called the abodes of Shakti (energy). The 9 Chakras inside the inner circle of Alphabet Yantra have 89 abodes or places of which 43 are consciousness places and 46 are energy places. The names of these 9 Chakras, their type and the number of places inside them, are given below: Name of Chakra No. Of Places 1. consciousness-energy Chakra 5 (1 consciousness + 4 energy) 2. Ashtar consciousness Chakra 8 3. Ashtar energy Chakra 8 4. Antardashar consciousness Chakra 10 5. Antardashar energy Chakra 10

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6. Bahirdashar consciousness Chakra 10 7. Bahirdashar energy Chakra 10 8. Chaturdashar consciousness Chakra 14 9. Chaturdashar energy Chakra; 14 The inner circle of the Shri Yantra after inserting romanaagarii /SARAL Roman characters would be as follows:

The relationship between the places in Chakras of the inner circle of Shri Yantra and the writing symbols of romanaagarii is a remarkable feature! In the field of knowledge, this is an important element which can be a great blessing for the promotion of alphabetic literacy. It will not only facilitate the simplified learning of all the symbols of romanaagarii, but also help in understanding the mysteries of word, language and knowledge hidden in the Shri Yantra. In accordance with the formation of the triangles of the Alphabet Yantra, romanaagarii can be learnt in 9 very simple lessons. Each lesson shows clearly the relationship between the writing symbols being learnt and the characteristics of different Chakras of the Yantra. (Please see details in Romanaagarii and 9 lessons). It may, however, be clarified that the learning of the Shri Yantra is not essential for the learning of Romanaagarii.

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