Listen, O seeker, to the subtle science of sound as taught in the ancient tradition. Among the notes that pervade all creation, it is said that those who are blind from birth, as well as the ancestors, are sustained by the fourth note. All beings, whether they move or remain still, exist in resonance with a note that is excessively low. Yet, among these notes, there are those that shine with brightness, extend far, and are touched with compassion—these, too, are found among the soft and the medium notes. Brightness itself dwells in the lower register, in the second note, and likewise in the fourth. The intervals within the second note are remembered as being soft, medium, and extended. Extension is found in the low note, while softness is present in its opposite. Those who are restrained express themselves in the second note, and from there, the highest note follows. In this realm, those who are restrained continue on with the fourth note. One should not attempt to produce an excessively high interval, nor should one linger between the notes. The movement of sound is twofold: it occurs at the junction at the end of a word, and also together with aspiration. The restrained intervals that fall between notes are of three types—short, long, and abrupt. In the raised tone, one should recognize brightness, and brightness is also present in the svarita, as the wise understand. There are three types of notes: those that are raised, those that are unraised, and those that are combined with svarita. Now, let the three tones of accent in recitation be explained. The accent known as udātta is always immediately followed by svarita. When the accent of a syllable has passed beyond, it becomes svarita, and this svarita is said to be of two kinds. This svara, or accent, should be understood as sevenfold, depending on the context. The seven tones should be applied in accordance with the hearing of the right ear. There is nothing higher than the high note, nor lower than the low. That which lies between the high and the low is called 'neutral' by tradition. Within the udātta accent are included the notes niṣāda and gāndhāra; within the anudātta, the notes ṛṣabha and dhaivata. Where guttural sounds, sibilants, and those pronounced from the root of the tongue are found, these are born by nature, spoken swiftly, distinctly, and with stable consonants. Now, let the characteristics of these tones be described separately. Any syllable, whether it contains 'ka' or 'va', may become svarita. Wherever the vowel 'i' becomes udātta, sometimes in 'pa' and 'va', and wherever 'e' or 'o' arise from the union of two udātta vowels, or where 'a' is pronounced with clarity, the syllable that follows an udātta in metre becomes svarita. Wherever svarita comes immediately after an avagraha, or whenever the vowel 'i' is joined with another 'i', or wherever svarita appears in a tone, whether open or in conjunction, that note, by its nature, is called the primary accent at the beginning of the chant and is pronounced swiftly. A suppressed pause occurs when the sound is elided, and a blended note is known as hīīgovarṇa. If, before a single syllable that is raised in pitch, there is any other syllable present, there are four initial accents, known as kaṃṣa, puṃ, and sphuti, according to the treatises. When a word ends with 'i' and is followed by a word beginning with 'u', or when a word ending with 'i' is followed by two 'u's in the next word, three long vowels are to be recognized, as well as those that occur at the junction of syllables. If, among many raised syllables, there is an unraised syllable that follows, or wherever there are two or more raised syllables together, these too are to be understood in the science of accent and sound. Thus, the wisdom of sound, its notes, intervals, and accents, is revealed for the seeker to hear and understand, as preserved in the sacred tradition.