Maharashtra SSC Sanskrit (MSBSHSE) cheat sheet

Maharashtra SSC Sanskrit (Subject Paper)

• Sandhi: savarṇa-dīrgha (a/ā + a/ā → ā; i/ī + i/ī → ī; u/ū + u/ū → ū), guṇa (a + i/ī → e; a + u/ū → o; a + ṛ → ar), vṛddhi (a + e/ai → ai; a + o/au → au), and visarga sandhi (aḥ + voiced → o before sonorants, r before vowels except a).

• Declensions to memorise: rāma (a-stem masc.), phala (a-stem neut.), latā (ā-stem fem.), muni (i-stem), nadī (ī-stem), guru (u-stem), pitṛ (ṛ-stem), and the pronominal paradigms tad, etad, kim, aham, tvam, vayam, yūyam.

• Ten lakāras: present (laṭ), imperfect (laṅ), optative (liṅ), imperative (loṭ), periphrastic future (luṭ), simple future (lṛṭ), conditional (lṛṅ), perfect (liṭ), aorist (luṅ), benedictive (liṅ/āśīrliṅ). SSC paper concentrates on laṭ, lṛṭ, loṭ, liṅ, and the passive (karmani prayoga).

• Ātmanepada endings: -e, -se, -te, -vahe, -āthe, -ete (singular/dual/plural for first, second, third persons); parasmaipada: -mi, -si, -ti, -vaḥ, -thaḥ, -anti (present).

• Kāraka vibhaktis: prathamā (nominative, kartā/karma), dvitīyā (accusative, karman; also gati and kāla), tṛtīyā (instrumental, karaṇa/sahārtha), caturthī (dative, sampradāna), pañcamī (ablative, apādāna), ṣaṣṭhī (genitive, sambandha), saptamī (locative, adhikaraṇa).

• Samāsa types tested: tatpuruṣa (case-relation determines the meaning), dvigu (numeral first member), dvandva (both members coordinate), bahuvrīhi (compound denotes an outside referent), avyayībhāva (indeclinable first member, neuter singular ending).

• Kṛt and taddhita pratyayas: kṛt - -ktvā (absolutive), -ya (gerundive), -tavya, -anīya, -aka, -in, -tṛ; taddhita - -mat/-vant (possessive), -tva/-tā (abstract), -ya (relational), -ka (diminutive), -vat (comparative).

• Prosody: anuṣṭubh (8 syllables per quarter, 4 quarters), indravajrā (11 syllables, pattern ta-ta-ja-ga-ga), upendravajrā (11 syllables, ja-ta-ja-ga-ga), vasantatilakā (14 syllables, ta-bha-ja-ja-ga-ga), śārdūlavikrīḍita (19 syllables, ma-sa-ja-sa-ta-ta-ga). Identify gaṇas by triplets of laghu (U) and guru (-).

• Alaṅkāra (figures of speech): upamā (explicit comparison with iva/vat/yathā), rūpaka (metaphor), utprekṣā (poetic fancy with iva), anuprāsa (alliteration of consonants), yamaka (repetition of identical syllable groups), śleṣa (double meaning), atiśayokti (hyperbole).