Prose (Gadyam): Prescribed Text Comprehension and Explanation
Prose (Gadyam) in the WBCHSE HS Sanskrit paper tests whether you can read a prescribed Sanskrit passage as connected discourse, not as a word list. Questions typically ask for anvaya, padaccheda, translation into Bengali or English, short explanations, character or theme notes, and occasional grammar spotting. The passage may be narrative or descriptive, so track who does what, where, and why before translating.
Core reading moves
- Read the whole passage once for sequence; mark finite verbs, because they identify clauses.
- Resolve sandhi at word boundaries before using a dictionary.
- Identify cases from endings and context: kartā in prathama, karma in dvitīya, instrument in tṛtīyā.
- Keep negatives and particles (na, mā, eva, api, tu) attached to the right word.
- For explanation answers, state the situation first, then quote only the key phrase.
Worked example
Passage sentence: “राजा स्वसेनां समादिशत् - ‘दुर्गं रक्षत’ इति।” Anvaya: राजा (subject, prathama singular) स्वसेनाम् (object, dvitīyā singular) समादिशत् (finite past verb) - इति marks the quoted order. Translation: “The king ordered his own army: ‘Protect the fort.’” The imperative रक्षत is plural, agreeing with the implied soldiers, not with the king.
Traps
Do not translate a compound as a sentence; do not ignore इति, which closes quoted speech; do not turn a passive construction into active without noting the agent; do not answer “who?” with a pronoun whose referent is unclear. In explanation questions, a full retelling loses marks for not isolating the asked idea.