Sanskrit Literature (साहित्यम्)

About this unit

This unit introduces the three main forms of Sanskrit literature — गद्यम् (prose), पद्यम् (verse) and नाट्यम् (drama) — through selections read in Class 12, together with an outline of the history of Sanskrit literature and the basics of metre (छन्दः) and figures of speech (अलङ्कारः). You learn to read a passage or verse, explain its meaning (भावार्थः), give the prose order of a verse (अन्वयः), and identify the author, work and literary features. The official syllabus PDF is a scanned document, so check it for the exact prescribed texts.

Key ideas

• Prose kinds: कथा (invented story, e.g. कादम्बरी) and आख्यायिका (based on real events, e.g. हर्षचरितम्); fables such as पञ्चतन्त्रम् and हितोपदेशः.
• Verse: महाकाव्यम्, खण्डकाव्यम्, सुभाषितानि, Vedic and Upanishadic mantras.
• Drama: रूपकम्, नान्दी, सूत्रधारः, प्रस्तावना, विदूषकः, भरतवाक्यम्, stage directions.
• History: Vedas, Vedāngas, Upanishads, Rāmāyaṇa, Mahābhārata, Purāṇas, classical poets.
• छन्दः: laghu–guru, the eight gaṇas, common metres such as अनुष्टुप्, इन्द्रवज्रा, वसन्ततिलका, मन्दाक्रान्ता.
• अलङ्कारः: शब्दालङ्कार (अनुप्रास, यमक, श्लेष) and अर्थालङ्कार (उपमा, रूपक, उत्प्रेक्षा, अर्थान्तरन्यास).

How to prepare

Make a chart of authors and their works and revise it often. For each prescribed lesson, note the source text, author, main characters and two or three key lines. Learn the definition with one example for every metre and alankara in your syllabus.