Literal vs Idiomatic Translation of 'पुस्तकस्था विद्या'
A 5-mark Sanskrit-to-Marathi translation question uses the subhāṣita: 'पुस्तकस्था तु या विद्या परहस्तगतं धनम्। कार्यकाले समुत्पन्ने न सा विद्या न तद्धनम्॥' The marking scheme allots 3 marks for accurate meaning and 2 for grammatical correctness. One student translates 'पुस्तकस्था विद्या' literally as 'पुस्तकात ठेवलेले ज्ञान' (knowledge kept in a book) and 'परहस्तगतं धनम्' as 'दुसऱ्याच्या हातात गेलेले धन' (wealth gone into another's hand). The teacher's key gives the idiomatic sense: 'book-learning' and 'wealth in someone else's custody'. The student's Marathi is grammatical and preserves the image, but the teacher worries that the exam tests the subhāṣita's warning about not relying on stored knowledge and deposited wealth at the time of need. The student's rendering misses the contrast between possession and availability. The class has 31 students; 9 produced similar literal translations. The teacher must decide whether to deduct meaning marks.
1. Should the literal translation receive full meaning marks? Justify with reference to the verse's argument.
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Not full meaning marks. The verse's argument is conditional: knowledge that stays in a book and wealth that has gone into another's hand are useless when need arises. पुस्तकस्था is not merely 'located in a book'; it implies knowledge not internalized. परहस्तगत implies loss of control, not just physical location. The student's Marathi preserves the image but not the consequence, so award 2/3 for meaning: credit for lexical accuracy, no credit for the contrast. Grammar is 2/2. Total 4/5. The teacher should apply this consistently to the 9 similar scripts.
2. How can the teacher give feedback that improves translation without demanding one fixed Marathi phrase?
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Ask for an ordinary-Marathi paraphrase first: 'ज्ञान पुस्तकातच राहिले तर वेळेवर उपयोगी पडत नाही; धन दुसऱ्याकडे गेले तर हातात नाही.' Then show that the translation can keep the image while adding 'आत्मसात न केलेले' or 'स्वाधीन नसलेले'. Accept any Marathi that preserves both image and consequence. This avoids demanding one fixed phrase while teaching the verse's point.
3. If the question were only 2 marks for meaning, how would the mark allocation change?
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With 2 meaning marks, give 1/2: one for surface meaning, one for implication. Do not give 0, because the student understood the words but missed the argument. The scheme should state the two components so moderation is consistent.