Siddham Letter Kha

It represents Sanskrit kha: a k released with a puff of breath. In Siddham, consonants normally carry an unwritten a, so 𑖏 represents kha. An attached vowel mark changes that vowel; a virama (a mark that removes the vowel) leaves the bare consonant or lets it join another consonant.

In a transliteration input tool, kh selects this consonant; add the vowel marks separately. For example, 𑖏𑖯 is khā, with a long a, while 𑖏𑖿 leaves the consonant without a vowel. On its own, the letter identifies a syllable; its specific mantra or ritual meaning depends on the surrounding text and tradition.

Why does Siddham kha look different in old sources?

Regional and calligraphic Siddham styles can change the letter’s outline. Siddham developed from Late Gupta writing in northern India around the late sixth century. Early examples include the Bodh-Gaya inscription of Mahānāman and the Lakkha Mandal praśasti, a commemorative inscription. It remained in use into the tenth century, then gradually gave way to Nāgarī, a later North Indian script.

Siddham was used to write Sanskrit in manuscripts and inscriptions. Buddhist transmission carried it to China, Korea, and Japan; Chinese scholars valued its sound-by-sound representation of Sanskrit. In Japan, Shingon and Tendai Buddhist traditions gave Siddham ritual roles in copying sutras (Buddhist discourses), writing mantras and seed syllables, and decorating amulets and religious images. Siddham is most closely related to Sharada, another Brahmi-based script from Kashmir, and structurally similar to Devanagari; it also belongs to the northern Indian script tradition from which Nagari developed.