There are various types of sounds in the world, but not all sounds are Swara or notes. According to the Saṁgītaratnākara, "the sound that has a vibrating quality (Anuraṇanātmaka) of a pleasant nature (Snigdha) and that has preceding Ṥrutīs, which gives pleasure to the mind of the listener independently of any other factor, is called Swara."

The statement "that has preceding Ṥrutīs" emphasizes that there are other sounds separated by microtones, and a sound that refers to the presence of Ṥrutīs can only belong to a musical scale.

So, if there are other sounds separated by microtones between a musical sound and one that is double in frequency, gradually increasing in frequency following a specific law, then the sound can be called a note or Swara. All these notes or Swara together form a so-called scale.

Notes in the Indian system do not have a fixed connotation, and any sound can be considered the tonic. Therefore, a sound outside the scale in Indian classical music cannot be considered a note, where the relationship with the tonic is crucial to defining it as Swara, which, taken otherwise alone, is just a 'pleasant sound.'

Anuraṇanātmaka means 'with permanent vibrations'; a dull sound cannot be defined as Anuraṇanātmaka.

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The gradual increase in the frequency of sounds within the scale can be measured in two ways:

1. through the units of Ṥrutīs

2. through frequency measurement

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The notes are usually indicated either by the letter or the initial syllable.

| Sa स | Ṣaḍjā (षड्जं)
| Re र | Ṛṣabha (ऋषभ) 
| Ga ग | Gāndhāra (गान्धारं)
| Ma म | Madhyama (मध्यमं) 
| Pa प | Pañcama (पंचमं) 
| Dha ध | Dhaivata (धैवतं) 
| Ni नि | Niṣāda (निषादं)

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S and P are the only ones that cannot be altered.