Kerala +2 Sanskrit Sahitya cheat sheet

Kadambari by Banabhatta: prose romance in ornate (alankara) style; includes the story of Kadambari, Chandrapida, and Vaishampayana; notable for long compounds and description.

Harshacharita by Banabhatta: biography of King Harsha; first two chapters (ucchvasas) describe ancestry and early life; uses poetic prose with historical narrative.

Panchatantra: frame narrative of Vishnu Sharma teaching three princes; five tantras (Mitrabheda, Mitrapraspti, Kakolukiyam, Labdhapranasham, Aparikshitakaraka) with animal fables; simple prose with embedded verses.

Hitopadesha by Narayana: four sections (Mitralabha, Suhridbheda, Vigraha, Sandhi); based on Panchatantra; uses prose and verse; moral lessons on friendship and statecraft.

Shukanasopadesha in Kadambari: parrot's advice to King Sudarshana; illustrates political wisdom and renunciation; noted for rhetorical prose.

Gadya style: distinction between simple narrative prose (like Panchatantra) and ornate prose (like Kadambari); features include samasa (compounds), alankara (figures), and long descriptive passages.

Vetala Panchavimshati: collection of 25 tales told by vetala to King Vikramaditya; prose frame with riddles; tests king's judgment; part of Kathasaritsagara tradition.

Brihatkatha by Gunadhya (lost): source for Kathasaritsagara and other prose collections; written in Paisachi dialect; known through later adaptations.

Raghuvamsha by Kalidasa: 19 cantos on solar dynasty; includes episodes of Dilipa, Raghu, Aja, Dasharatha, Rama; known for similes and epic grandeur.

Kumarasambhava by Kalidasa: 17 cantos on birth of Kartikeya; describes Parvati's penance and Shiva's marriage; Cantos 1-8 considered authentic.

Meghaduta by Kalidasa: mandakranta meter; 111 verses; yaksha sends message to wife via cloud; pioneer of sandesha kavya (messenger poem).

Shishupalavadha by Magha: 20 cantos; based on Mahabharata episode of Shishupala's slaying; known for intricate alankaras and grammar; called 'Magha's three excellences' (upama, artha-gaurava, sabdha-gaurava).

Kiratarjuniya by Bharavi: 18 cantos; Arjuna's penance and fight with Shiva as Kirata; celebrated for forceful style and dhvani.

Naishadhiyacharita by Shriharsha: 22 cantos; story of Nala and Damayanti; known for grammatical intricacies and erudition.

Bhattikavya by Bhatti: illustrates Paninian grammar rules through epic narrative (Rama's story); each canto demonstrates specific sutras; also called Ravanavadha.

Sandesa kavya: messenger poems like Meghaduta; features description of route, recipient, and message; uses mandakranta or other meters.

Natyashastra by Bharata: foundational treatise on drama, dance, music; 36 chapters; defines natya as imitation of life; covers rasa, bhava, abhinaya, and theatre architecture.

Abhijnanashakuntala by Kalidasa: 7 acts; Shakuntala and Dushyanta; ring recognition motif; famous for rasa and natural characterization; includes vidushaka.

Mrichchhakatika by Shudraka: 10 acts; love of Charudatta and Vasantasena; depicts court intrigue and social realism; called 'little clay cart'.

Mudrarakshasa by Vishakhadatta: 7 acts; political drama on Chandragupta Maurya and Chanakya; no female characters; uses artha (statecraft) as dominant rasa.

Uttararamacharita by Bhavabhuti: 7 acts; later life of Rama; pathos of Sita's abandonment; known for karuna rasa.

Rasa theory: eight rasas (shringara, hasya, karuna, raudra, vira, bhayanaka, bibhatsa, adbhuta); ninth shanta added later; rasa arises from combination of vibhava, anubhava, and vyabhichari bhava.

Rupaka (drama) types: nataka (heroic), prakarana (social), bhana, vyayoga, samavakara, dima, ihamriga, anka, vithi, prahasana; distinguished by plot, hero, and rasa.

Sutradhara: stage manager and narrator; opens play with nandi (benediction) and prastavana (introduction); interacts with vidushaka and actors.

Sandhi rules: savarna-dirgha (similar vowels combine to long), guna (a/ā + i/u -> e/o), vriddhi (a/ā + e/o -> ai/au), yan (i/u -> y/v), ayava (e/o -> ay/av), and visarga sandhi (visarga -> o before voiced, r before voiced, etc.).

Samasa types: tatpurusha (determinative), karmadharaya (appositional), dvigu (numeral), bahuvrihi (possessive), dvandva (copulative), avyayibhava (adverbial); each has specific rules for gender and compound formation.

Declension: eight cases (vibhakti) with three numbers; nominal endings vary by gender and stem; examples: a-stem masculine (deva), a-stem neuter (phala), ā-stem feminine (latā), i/u stems, etc.

Conjugation: ten classes (gana) of verbs; parasmaipada and atmanepada; six tenses/moods (lat, lit, lut, lrit, lot, lan); primary and secondary endings; example: bhu (to be) -> bhavati, babhuva, bhavishyati, etc.

Karaka: six karakas (karta, karma, karana, sampradana, apadana, adhikarana); vibhaktis assigned based on karaka; e.g., karta -> prathama, karma -> dvitiya, karana -> tritiya.

Panini's Ashtadhyayi: 8 chapters, ~4000 sutras; describes Sanskrit grammar; includes Shiva Sutras, pratyahara, and meta-rules; foundational for vyakarana.

Sandhi of visarga: visarga becomes o before voiced consonants and vowels (except a), becomes r before voiced consonants; before a, visarga becomes o and a combines (e.g., rāmaḥ + api -> rāmo'pi).

Samasa decision: compound is formed when a single idea is expressed; tatpurusha has case relation; bahuvrihi denotes possessor; dvandva denotes collection; avyayibhava is indeclinable.

Alankara (figures of speech): upama (simile), rupaka (metaphor), utpreksha (poetic fancy), shlesha (pun), yamaka (alliteration), anuprasa (alliteration), arthantaranyasa (corroboration), etc.

Upama: comparison between two dissimilar objects using words like iva, yatha; four types: purna, lupta, etc.; requires sadharmya (similarity) and vaidharmya (difference).

Rupaka: identification of two objects without comparison words; e.g., 'the moon is a lamp'; subtypes: sarvanga, ekadesha, etc.

Chandas (meter): based on syllable count and pattern; types: akshara (syllabic), matra (moraic); examples: anushtubh (8 syllables per quarter), indravajra (11), upendravajra (11), vasantatilaka (14), mandakranta (17), shardulavikridita (19), sragdhara (21).

Rasa theory: rasa is aesthetic experience; eight rasas with corresponding bhavas; shringara (love) from rati, karuna (compassion) from shoka, etc.; rasa is brahmananda (bliss).

Dhvani theory: Anandavardhana's Dhvanyaloka; suggests dhvani (suggestion) as soul of poetry; three types: vastu, alankara, rasa; rasa-dhvani is highest.

Vakrokti: Kuntaka's Vakroktijivita; poetic language is characterized by vakrokti (oblique expression); six types: varna, padapurvardha, pada, pada, vakya, prakarana.

Guna and dosha: qualities (guna) like madhurya, ojas, prasada; defects (dosha) like aprayukta, etc.; poetic excellence depends on balance.

Vedic period: Rigveda (oldest), Samaveda, Yajurveda, Atharvaveda; Brahmanas, Aranyakas, Upanishads; composed roughly 1500-500 BCE.

Epic period: Ramayana by Valmiki (24,000 verses), Mahabharata by Vyasa (100,000 verses); called itihasa; include Bhagavad Gita.

Classical period: Kalidasa (4th-5th c. CE), Banabhatta (7th c.), Bhavabhuti (8th c.), Magha (7th-8th c.), Bharavi (6th c.), etc.; six mahakavyas.

Literary criticism: Bharata's Natyashastra (rasa), Anandavardhana's Dhvanyaloka (dhvani), Abhinavagupta's Abhinavabharati (commentary), Kuntaka's Vakroktijivita, Mammata's Kavyaprakasha.

Kavya types: mahakavya (epic), khandakavya (minor), gadya (prose), padya (verse), champu (mixed); rupaka (drama) and uparupaka (minor drama).

Major poets: Kalidasa (Shakuntala, Meghaduta), Ashvaghosha (Buddhacharita), Bhasa (13 plays), Shudraka (Mrichchhakatika), Vishakhadatta (Mudrarakshasa).

Prose writers: Banabhatta (Kadambari, Harshacharita), Dandin (Dashakumaracharita), Subandhu (Vasavadatta), Narayana (Hitopadesha).

Modern Sanskrit: 19th-20th c. revival; writers like Shrijiva Nyayatirtha, etc.; Sanskrit as official language of Uttarakhand; All India Sanskrit Literature Conference.

Translation types: literal (word-for-word), idiomatic (sense-for-sense), free (adaptation); for Sanskrit, idiomatic is preferred to convey meaning.

Common Sanskrit terms: 'dharma' -> righteousness/duty, 'karma' -> action, 'yoga' -> union/discipline, 'moksha' -> liberation; context determines translation.

Sandhi and samasa in translation: compounds may need expansion; e.g., 'rājaputra' -> 'son of a king' or 'prince'.

Technical terms: 'alankara' -> figure of speech, 'rasa' -> aesthetic sentiment, 'chandas' -> meter; keep Sanskrit terms when no exact English equivalent.

Translation of verses: preserve meter if possible, but prioritize meaning; use footnotes for cultural references.

Translation of prose: maintain sentence flow; Sanskrit long compounds may be split into shorter English sentences.

Translation of drama: include stage directions; translate nandi and prastavana; keep character names in Sanskrit.

Translation of grammar texts: use standard English grammatical terminology; e.g., 'vibhakti' -> case, 'samasa' -> compound.

Comprehension passage: read carefully, identify main idea, and answer in own words; Sanskrit passages often from prescribed texts.

Composition: write short essays (nibandha) on topics like 'Importance of Sanskrit', 'My favourite character', etc.; use simple sentences and correct grammar.

Letter writing: formal and informal letters in Sanskrit; use appropriate salutations and closing; format: sender, date, recipient, subject, body, signature.

Prarthana patra (application): format includes sender's address, date, recipient, subject, salutation, body, closing.

Dialogue writing: use direct speech; include polite forms; practice common conversational phrases.

Summary writing: condense passage to one-third; retain key points; use own words.

Grammar in composition: apply sandhi, samasa, and correct vibhakti; avoid long compounds in simple prose.

Vocabulary building: learn common synonyms and antonyms; use dictionary; practice word formation.

Sanskrit is one of the 22 scheduled languages of India; written in Devanagari script; also in other scripts like Grantha, Sharada.

Vedas: four Vedas; Rigveda oldest; each has Samhita, Brahmana, Aranyaka, Upanishad; oral tradition with precise recitation.

Upanishads: 108 principal; Chandogya, Brihadaranyaka, Katha, etc.; philosophy of Brahman and Atman; 'Tat tvam asi' (Chandogya).

Bhagavad Gita: 700 verses; part of Mahabharata; Krishna's advice to Arjuna; three yogas: karma, jnana, bhakti.

Ramayana: 7 kandas; Valmiki; story of Rama; ideal characters; Ramrajya concept.

Mahabharata: 18 parvas; Vyasa; includes Bhagavad Gita; longest epic; war of Kurukshetra.

Puranas: 18 Mahapuranas; Vishnu, Shiva, Brahma, etc.; contain cosmology, genealogy, and legends.

Sanskrit theatre: Natyashastra; kutiyattam (Kerala) is UNESCO heritage; koodiyattam, kathakali use Sanskrit.

Cultural heritage: Sanskrit inscriptions (Ashoka, Rudradaman), temples, manuscripts; Sanskrit universities and institutions.