Sapta svaras

 Sapta svaras form the fundamentals of music. As the name suggest they are seven in number, namely:

1.    Shadja        -    sa

2.    Rishabha    -    ri

3.    Gandhara    -   ga

4.    Madhyama  -   ma

5.    Panchama    -   pa

6.    Dhaivata      -   dha

7.    Nishada       -    ni  

The tabulation of the sapta svaras and their svara syllables in Indian and Western nomenclature is given below:

Indian		Western
Name of the sapta svara	Svara mnemonic	Name of the note	Solfa
Shadja	Sa	Doh	C
Rishabha	Ri	Rey	D
Gandhara	Ga	Me	E
Madhyama	Ma	Fa	F
Panchama	Pa	Soh	G
Dhaivata	Dha	La	A
Nishada	Ni	Ti	B

Sapta svaras are set in Mayamalavagaula raga and in Adi tala, reckoned by a beat followed by finger counts starting with the little finger and the ring finger and the middle finger, a beat and a wave, again a beat and a wave. (8 units per cycle)