Glossary · glossary · 1 min read
Achal swara
अचल स्वर; a fixed note
Achal swara means an immovable note in Indian music: Sa and Pa each have only one form, never lowered or raised. You hear both in the tanpura drone, the continuing sound of Sa and Pa together.
By John, Music lover from Bangalore · Reviewed by BRR · Last reviewed 29 Sept 2026
Achal swara
Sa and Pa are the two achal swaras, meaning immovable notes, in Indian music. Each has only one form: neither is flattened (lowered) or raised. The word achal describes this lack of a second form.
Sa is fixed because it provides the reference for all the other notes. Pa has a fixed relationship to Sa. The other five notes, Re, Ga, Ma, Dha and Ni, are called vikrit swaras, each with a second form.
Some ragas, or melodic frameworks, leave Pa out altogether. That does not give Pa a different form. When Pa appears, it remains the same note relative to Sa. Leaving a note out is different from lowering or raising it.
Where you will hear it
Listen to the tanpura, a drone instrument sounding Sa and Pa together. Here you hear both achal swaras, the notes whose forms do not change. Sa is the reference note for everything else. Pa sits a fifth above it, keeping its position relative to Sa.
You will also meet Sa and Pa in sargam, the practice of singing or writing melodies with note syllables. The seven basic notes are Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha and Ni. Among these, Sa and Pa have only one form.
Keep going
- Sa Re Ga Ma: sargam explained for beginners · Sa, Re, Ga, Ma, Pa, Dha and Ni are Indian music’s seven basic notes; sargam means singing or writing melodies with these syllables. To read and sing sargam, choose your home Sa, follow the note names and octave marks, and recognise the natural, lowered and raised forms.