Forms of Verb (क्रिया रूप)

We have already learned the forms of noun and pronoun. To make a complete sentence, we also need a verb. Verb forms are classified into 5 main लकारs or Tenses (present, past, future) and Moods (command, wish, etc.). These are:

लकार Tense or MoodExample Verb (पठ्)Usage
लट् (Lat)Present tenseपठति सा पठति – She reads
लङ्ग् (Lang)Past tenseअपठत सा अपठत – She read
लृट् (Lrt)Future tenseपठिष्यति सा पठिष्यति – She will read
लोट् (Lot)Imperative mood
(command or request)
पठतु सा पठतु – Let her read
विधिलिङ्ग् (Vidhiling) Potential mood
(should do)
पठेतसा पठेत – She should read
Table 1: Tenses and Moods of Verb

Form of the verb also changes based on person (पुरुष) and number (वचन). Person (पुरुष) of a verb tells who is doing the activity. Following table shows the subjects for which you should use the corresponding verb-form.

Person (पुरुष) Singular (एकवचन) Dual (द्विवचन) Plural (बहुवचन)
प्रथम पुरुष
(Third person)
सः (He), सा (She), रामः (Ram), गीता (Geeta)तौ (Both of them),
गीता सुधा च (Geeta and Sudha)
ते (All of them), गीता, सुधा, सरला च (Geeta, Sudha and Sarala)
मध्यम पुरुष
(Second person)
त्वम् (You)युवाम् (Both of you)यूयम् (All of you)
उत्तम पुरुष
(First person)
अहम् (I)आवाम् (Both of us)वयम् (We)
Table 2: Verb form to be used as per the subject

The root word of a verb (e.g., पठ्) is called धातु. Most of the times the verb forms are similar to the root word, like this one – root word पठ् and forms are like पठति , पठतः , पठन्ति , etc. But sometimes it is not similar, and can create confusion, for example root word गम् (धातु) means जाना (to go) but its forms are not गमति, गमतः, गमन्ति but the correct forms are गच्छति, गच्छतः, गच्छन्ति. Mark the verbs in Table 7 for which the root word and forms are different.

The following table has all the forms of verb पठ् in लट् लकार (present tense).

Person (पुरुष) Singular (एकवचन) Dual (द्विवचन) Plural (बहुवचन)
प्रथम पुरुष
(Third person)
पठति
She reads
पठतः
Both of them read
पठन्ति
They read
मध्यम पुरुष
(Second person)
पठसि
You read
पठथः
Both of you read
पठथ
All of you read
उत्तम पुरुष
(First person)
पठामि
I read
पठावः
Two of us read
पठामः
We read
Table 2: पठ् धातु रूप – लट् लकार

The following table has all the forms of verb (धातु) पठ् in लङ्ग् लकार (past tense).

Person (पुरुष) Singular (एकवचन) Dual (द्विवचन) Plural (बहुवचन)
प्रथम पुरुष
(Third person)
अपठत्
She read
अपठताम्
Both of them read
अपठन्
They read
मध्यम पुरुष
(Second person)
अपठः
You read
अपठतम्
Both of you read
अपठत
All of you read
उत्तम पुरुष
(First person)
अपठम्
I read
अपठाव
Two of us read
अपठाम
We read
Table 3: पठ् धातु रूप – लङ्ग् लकार

The following table has all the forms of verb (धातु) पठ् in लृट् लकार (future tense).

Person (पुरुष) Singular (एकवचन) Dual (द्विवचन) Plural (बहुवचन)
प्रथम पुरुष
(Third person)
पठिष्यति
She will read
पठिष्यतः
Both of them will read
पठिष्यन्ति
They will read
मध्यम पुरुष
(Second person)
पठिष्यसि
You will read
पठिष्यथः
Both of you will read
पठिष्यथ
All of you will read
उत्तम पुरुष
(First person)
पठिष्यामि
I shall read
पठिष्यावः
Two of us shall read
पठिष्यामः
We shall read
Table 4: पठ् धातु रूप – लृट् लकार

The following table has all the forms of verb (धातु) पठ् in लोट् लकार (imperative mood).

Person (पुरुष) Singular (एकवचन) Dual (द्विवचन) Plural (बहुवचन)
प्रथम पुरुष
(Third person)
पठतु
Let her read
पठताम्
Let both of them read
पठन्तु
Let them read
मध्यम पुरुष
(Second person)
पठ
You read
पठतम्
Both of you read
पठत
All of you read
उत्तम पुरुष
(First person)
पठानि
Let me read
पठाव
Let the two of us read
पठाम
Let us read
Table 5: पठ् धातु रूप – लोट् लकार

The following table has all the forms of verb (धातु) पठ् in विधिलिङ्ग् लकार (potential mood).

Person (पुरुष) Singular (एकवचन) Dual (द्विवचन) Plural (बहुवचन)
प्रथम पुरुष
(Third person)
पठेत
She should read
पठेताम्
Both of them should read
पठेयुः
They should read
मध्यम पुरुष
(Second person)
पठेः
You should read
पठेतम्
Both of you should read
पठेत
All of you should read
उत्तम पुरुष
(First person)
पठेयम्
I should read
पठेव
Two of us should read
पठेम
We should read
Table 6: पठ् धातु रूप – विधिलिङ्ग् लकार

Other verb forms would be similar. Here are a few commonly used verbs and their root words (धातु):

Root word (धातु) Meaning (अर्थ) लट् लकार – प्रथम एकवचन
लिख् लिखना – to writeलिखति
भू होना – to be भवति
वद् बोलना वदति
अस् है अस्ति
जन् उत्पन्न होना जायति
कृ करना करोति
ज्ञा जानना जानाति
दृश् देखना पश्यति
गम् जाना गच्छति
पा पीना पिबति
खाद् खाना खादति
क्रीड् खेलना क्रीडति
भ्रम घूमना भ्रमति
नृत् नाचना नृत्यति
गै गाना गायति
चर् चरना चरति
धाव् दौड़ना धावति
पृ पूरा करना पूरयति
चल् चलाना चालयति
पत् गिरना पतति
रच् बनाना रचयति
वृत् है वर्तति
स्मृ याद करना स्मरति
नम् नमन करना नमति
भज् भजन करना भजति
धृ धारण करना धरति
पा रक्षा करना पाति
गण्गिनना गणति
युज् जोड़नायोजति
मील् मिलाना मेलयति
मन्त् मथना मन्थयति
उत् + स्था उठना उत्तिष्ठति
स्था बैठना तिष्ठति
Table 7: Commonly used verbs (क्रिया )

Next, let us look at how the notes for each chapter are organized.

>> Chapter Notes Structure

Forms of Pronoun (सर्वनाम रूप)

Having learned the forms of commonly used nouns, it is now time to look into commonly used pronouns – I, we, you, he, she, it, this, that, what, who.

Pronouns can be categorized into four groups based on gender:

Used for which genderPronounSanskrit translationप्रथमा एकवचन
UniversalI (मैं)अस्मद्अहम्
You (तुम) युष्मद् त्वम्
MasculineHe (वह) तद्सः
Who (कौन)कःकः
Who/Which/What (जो)यद्यः
This (यह)इदम्अयम्
This (right here)
(यह – पास में)
एतद्एषः
FeminineShe (वह)तद्सा
Who (कौन)का का
Who/Which/What (जो)यद्या
This (यह)इदम्इयम्
This (right here)
(यह – पास में)
एतद्एषा
NeuterIt (वह)तद् तत्
What (क्या)किम्किम्
Who/Which/What (जो)यद्यत्
This (यह)इदम्इदम्
This (right here)
(यह – पास में)
एतद्एतत्
Table: Pronouns by gender

Note that Sanskrit has two words for ‘this’ – इदम् and एतत्.

एतत् is used for objects that are directly in front of the speaker. For example, a book in hand. एतत् पुस्तकं मम हस्ते अस्ति.

इदम् is used for things in the same rom or general “present” space. for example, a house we are standing in or looking at. इदं गृहं सुन्दरं अस्ति.

Also, note that यद् or Who/Which/What (जो) is not the usual question word. It is a relative pronoun, translating to “who”, “which” or “what”. It is almost always paired with तद् or He/She/It (वह) to create a “If [this], then [that] or “The one who [does this], [does that]” structure. For example:

Who studies, he knows. यः पठति सः जानाति.

She who is coming, is my sister. या आगच्छति सा मम भगिनी.

That which is truth, that is good. यत् सत्यम् तत् शिवम्.

Forms of the above mentioned pronouns are given in tables below:

Universal Pronouns

विभक्ति (Case)एकवचन (Singular)द्विवचन (Dual) बहुवचन (Plural)
प्रथमा (First)अहम् आवाम् वयम्
द्वितीया (Second)माम् आवाम् अस्मान्
तृतीया (Third)मया आवाभ्याम् अस्माभिः
चतुर्थी (Fourth)मह्यम् आवाभ्याम् अस्मभ्यम्
पञ्चमी (Fifth)मत् आवाभ्याम् अस्मत्
षष्ठी (Sixth)मम आवयोः अस्माकम्
सप्तमी (Seventh)मयि आवयोः अस्मासु
Table1 : Forms of I (अस्मद्)

विभक्ति (Case)एकवचन (Singular)द्विवचन (Dual) बहुवचन (Plural)
प्रथमा (First)त्वम् युवाम् यूयम्
द्वितीया (Second)त्वाम् युवाम् युष्मान्
तृतीया (Third)त्वया युवाभ्याम् युष्माभिः
चतुर्थी (Fourth)तुभ्यम् युवाभ्याम् युष्मभ्यम्
पञ्चमी (Fifth)त्वत्युवाभ्याम् युष्मत्
षष्ठी (Sixth)तवयुवयोः युष्माकम्
सप्तमी (Seventh)त्वयि युवयोः युष्मासु
Table 2: Forms of You (युष्मद्)

Masculine Pronouns

विभक्ति (Case)एकवचन (Singular)द्विवचन (Dual) बहुवचन (Plural)
प्रथमा (First)सःतौ ते
द्वितीया (Second)तम् तौ तान्
तृतीया (Third)तेन ताभ्याम् तैः
चतुर्थी (Fourth)तस्मै ताभ्याम् तेभ्यः
पञ्चमी (Fifth)तस्मात् ताभ्याम् तेभ्यः
षष्ठी (Sixth)तस्य तयोः तेषाम्
सप्तमी (Seventh)तस्मिन् तयोः तेषु
Table 3: Forms of He (तद्) – वह

विभक्ति (Case)एकवचन (Singular)द्विवचन (Dual) बहुवचन (Plural)
प्रथमा (First)कः कौ के
द्वितीया (Second)कम् कौ कान्
तृतीया (Third)केन काभ्याम् कैः
चतुर्थी (Fourth)कस्मै काभ्याम् केभ्यः
पञ्चमी (Fifth)कस्मात् काभ्याम् केभ्यः
षष्ठी (Sixth)कस्य कयोः केषाम्
सप्तमी (Seventh)कस्मिन् कयोः केषु
Table 4: Forms of Who – Masculine (कः) – कौन

Memorization tip: All forms are similar to He (तद् – पुल्लिङ्ग) , first letter is always क (स or त is replaced by क)

विभक्ति (Case)एकवचन (Singular)द्विवचन (Dual) बहुवचन (Plural)
प्रथमा (First)यः यौ ये
द्वितीया (Second)यम् यौ यान्
तृतीया (Third)येन याभ्याम् यैः
चतुर्थी (Fourth)यस्मै याभ्याम्येभ्यः
पञ्चमी (Fifth)यस्मात् याभ्याम्येभ्यः
षष्ठी (Sixth)यस्य ययोः येषाम्
सप्तमी (Seventh)यस्मिन् ययोः येषु
Table 5: Forms of Who/Which/What – Masculine (यद्) – जो

Memorization tip: All forms are similar to He (तद् – पुल्लिङ्ग), first letter is always य (स or त is replaced by य)

विभक्ति (Case)एकवचन (Singular)द्विवचन (Dual) बहुवचन (Plural)
प्रथमा (First)अयम् इमौ इमे
द्वितीया (Second)इमम् इमौ इमान्
तृतीया (Third)अनेन आभ्याम् एभिः
चतुर्थी (Fourth)अस्मै आभ्याम् एभ्यः
पञ्चमी (Fifth)अस्मात् आभ्याम् एभ्यः
षष्ठी (Sixth)अस्यअनयोः एषाम्
सप्तमी (Seventh)अस्मिन् अनयोः एषु
Table 6: Forms of This – Masculine (इदम्) – यह

विभक्ति (Case)एकवचन (Singular)द्विवचन (Dual) बहुवचन (Plural)
प्रथमा (First)एषःएतौएते
द्वितीया (Second)एतम् एतौ एतान्
तृतीया (Third)एतेन एताभ्याम् एतैः
चतुर्थी (Fourth)एतस्मै एताभ्याम् एतेभ्यः
पञ्चमी (Fifth)एतस्मात् एताभ्याम् एतेभ्यः
षष्ठी (Sixth)एतस्यअनयोः एतेषाम्
सप्तमी (Seventh)एतस्मिन् अनयोः एतेषु
Table 7: Forms of This (right here) – Masculine (एतत्)यह (पास में)

Feminine Pronouns

विभक्ति (Case)एकवचन (Singular)द्विवचन (Dual) बहुवचन (Plural)
प्रथमा (First)सा ते ताः
द्वितीया (Second)ताम् तेताः
तृतीया (Third)तया ताभ्याम् ताभिः
चतुर्थी (Fourth)तस्यै ताभ्याम् ताभ्यः
पञ्चमी (Fifth)तस्याः ताभ्याम् ताभ्यः
षष्ठी (Sixth)तस्याः तयोः तासाम्
सप्तमी (Seventh)तस्याम् तयोः तासु
Table 8: Forms of She (तद्) – वह

विभक्ति (Case)एकवचन (Singular)द्विवचन (Dual) बहुवचन (Plural)
प्रथमा (First)का केकाः
द्वितीया (Second)काम्के काः
तृतीया (Third)कया काभ्याम् काभिः
चतुर्थी (Fourth)कस्यै काभ्याम् काभ्यः
पञ्चमी (Fifth)कस्याः काभ्याम् काभ्यः
षष्ठी (Sixth)कस्याः कयोः कसाम्
सप्तमी (Seventh)कस्याम् कयोः कासु
Table 9: Forms of Who – Feminine (कः) – कौन

Memorization tip: All forms are similar to She (तद् – स्त्रीलिङ्ग), first letter is always क (स or त is replaced by क)

विभक्ति (Case)एकवचन (Singular)द्विवचन (Dual) बहुवचन (Plural)
प्रथमा (First)या ये याः
द्वितीया (Second)याम् ये याः
तृतीया (Third)यया याभ्याम् याभिः
चतुर्थी (Fourth)यस्यै याभ्याम्याभ्यः
पञ्चमी (Fifth)यस्याः याभ्याम्याभ्यः
षष्ठी (Sixth)यस्याः ययोः यासाम्
सप्तमी (Seventh)यस्याम्ययोः यासु
Table 10: Forms of Who/Which/What – Feminine (यद्) – जो

Memorization tip: All forms are similar to She (तद् – स्त्रीलिङ्ग), first letter is always य (स or त is replaced by य)

विभक्ति (Case)एकवचन (Singular)द्विवचन (Dual) बहुवचन (Plural)
प्रथमा (First)इयम् इमे इमाः
द्वितीया (Second)इमाम् इमे इमाः
तृतीया (Third)अनया आभ्याम् आभिः
चतुर्थी (Fourth)अस्यै आभ्याम् आभ्यः
पञ्चमी (Fifth)अस्याः आभ्याम् आभ्यः
षष्ठी (Sixth)अस्याः अनयोः आसाम्
सप्तमी (Seventh)अस्याम् अनयोः आसु
Table 11: Forms of This – Feminine (इदम्) – यह

विभक्ति (Case)एकवचन (Singular)द्विवचन (Dual) बहुवचन (Plural)
प्रथमा (First)एषा एते एताः
द्वितीया (Second)एताम् एते एताः
तृतीया (Third)एतया एताभ्याम् एताभिः
चतुर्थी (Fourth)एतस्यै एताभ्याम् एताभ्यः
पञ्चमी (Fifth)एतस्याः एताभ्याम् एताभ्यः
षष्ठी (Sixth)एतस्याः एतयोः एतासाम्
सप्तमी (Seventh)एतस्याम् एतयोः एतासु
Table 12: Forms of This (right here) – Feminine (एतद्) – यह (पास में)

Neuter Pronouns

विभक्ति (Case)एकवचन (Singular)द्विवचन (Dual) बहुवचन (Plural)
प्रथमा (First)तत् ते तानि
द्वितीया (Second)तत् ते तानि
तृतीया (Third)तेन ताभ्याम् तैः
चतुर्थी (Fourth)तस्मै ताभ्याम् तेभ्यः
पञ्चमी (Fifth)तस्मात् ताभ्याम् तेभ्यः
षष्ठी (Sixth)तस्य तयोः तेषाम्
सप्तमी (Seventh)तस्मिन् तयोः तेषु
Table 13: Forms of It (तद्) – वह

Memorization tip: Remember only the First and Second row. The rest are similar to He (तद् – पुल्लिङ्ग) .

विभक्ति (Case)एकवचन (Singular)द्विवचन (Dual) बहुवचन (Plural)
प्रथमा (First)किम् के कानि
द्वितीया (Second)किम् के कानि
तृतीया (Third)केन काभ्याम् कैः
चतुर्थी (Fourth)कस्मै काभ्याम् केभ्यः
पञ्चमी (Fifth)कस्मात् काभ्याम् केभ्यः
षष्ठी (Sixth)कस्य कयोः केषाम्
सप्तमी (Seventh)कस्मिन् कयोः केषु
Table 14: Forms of What – Neuter (किम्) – क्या

Memorization tip: Remember only the First and Second row. The rest are similar to Who (कः).

विभक्ति (Case)एकवचन (Singular)द्विवचन (Dual) बहुवचन (Plural)
प्रथमा (First)यत् ये यानि
द्वितीया (Second)यत् ये यानि
तृतीया (Third)येन याभ्याम् यैः
चतुर्थी (Fourth)यस्मै याभ्याम्येभ्यः
पञ्चमी (Fifth)यस्मात् याभ्याम्येभ्यः
षष्ठी (Sixth)यस्य ययोः येषाम्
सप्तमी (Seventh)यस्मिन् ययोः येषु
Table 15: Forms of Who/Which/What – Neuter (यद्) – जो

Memorization tip: Remember only the First and Second row. The rest are similar to Who/Which/What (यद् – पुल्लिङ्ग).

विभक्ति (Case)एकवचन (Singular)द्विवचन (Dual) बहुवचन (Plural)
प्रथमा (First)इदम् इमे इमानि
द्वितीया (Second)इदम् इमे इमानि
तृतीया (Third)अनेन आभ्याम् एभिः
चतुर्थी (Fourth)अस्मै आभ्याम् एभ्यः
पञ्चमी (Fifth)अस्मात् आभ्याम् एभ्यः
षष्ठी (Sixth)अस्यअनयोः एषाम्
सप्तमी (Seventh)अस्मिन् अनयोः एषु
Table 16: Forms of This – Neuter (इदम्) – यह

Memorization tip: Remember only the First and Second row. The rest are similar to This (इदम् – पुल्लिङ्ग).

विभक्ति (Case)एकवचन (Singular)द्विवचन (Dual) बहुवचन (Plural)
प्रथमा (First)एतत् एते एतानि
द्वितीया (Second)एतत् एते एतानि
तृतीया (Third)एतेन एताभ्याम् एतैः
चतुर्थी (Fourth)एतस्मै एताभ्याम् एतेभ्यः
पञ्चमी (Fifth)एतस्मात् एताभ्याम् एतेभ्यः
षष्ठी (Sixth)एतस्यअनयोः एतेषाम्
सप्तमी (Seventh)एतस्मिन् अनयोः एतेषु
Table 17: Forms of This (right here) – Neuter (एतत्)यह (पास में)

Memorization tip: Remember only the First and Second row. The rest are similar to This (right here) (एतत् – पुल्लिङ्ग).

This completes the forms of commonly used Pronouns. Next we will learn about the component that completes the sentence – verbs or क्रिया.

>> Forms of Verb (क्रिया रूप)

Forms of Noun (संज्ञा रूप)

We saw in the previous article how the behaviour of a noun in a sentence is uniquely determined by the corresponding vibhakti or form.

English and Hindi have the vachan or ‘number’ as either singular or plural. Sanskrit has three vachans – singular (एकवचन), dual (द्विवचन) and plural (बहुवचन). You may think of ‘dual’ as unnecessary. However, you may be surprised to know that dual numbers were a standard feature of many Indo-European languages. It has a deeper meaning as well – it signifies the natural pairings like eyes, ears or partners!

Duality

In the Indian culture this duality is represented by divine masculine (Shiva – stillness, consciousness) and feminine (Shakti – energy, dynamism).

In the ancient Chinese philosophy Yin (dark, passive, cool, feminine) and yang (light, active, warm, masculine) exist in dynamic balance, with each containing the seed of the other, illustrating that opposing forces are interdependent and harmonious.

Eight vibhaktis and three vachans make a 8 x 3 grid of different forms (रूप). An example is given below for all forms of the noun – बालक (boy):

Case (विभक्ति) Singular (एकवचन) Dual (द्विवचन)Plural (बहुवचन) Meaning
Prathama – प्रथमा बालकःबालकौबालकाःBoy [Subject]
Dwitiya – द्वितीया बालकम्बालकौबालकान्To the boy
Tritiya – तृतीया बालकेनबालकाभ्याम्बालकैःBy/With the boy
Chaturthi – चतुर्थी बालकायबालकाभ्याम्बालकेभ्यःFor the boy
Panchami – पञ्चमी बालकात्बालकाभ्याम्बालकेभ्यःFrom the boy
Shasthi – षष्ठी बालकस्यबालकयोःबालकानाम्Boy’s / Of the boy
Saptami – सप्तमी बालकेबालकयोःबालकेषुIn/On the boy
Sambodhan – संबोधन हे बालक!हे बालकौ!हे बालकाः!O Boy!

To know the correct form you need to know three things: Ending letter (अन्त्यक्षर), Gender (लिङ्ग) and Number (वचन). Here are the most commonly used ending letters for each gender, along with specimen word. If you know the forms of the specimen word, then you know the forms of all similar words. For example, if you know the forms of बालक, then you know forms of all अकारान्त पुल्लिङ्ग् words, e.g., राम, नृप, जनक, अश्व, पुत्र. You can view form tables for all specimen words by clicking the ‘view’ link below the table.

Masculine (पुल्लिङ्ग्)
Ending LetterCalled as Specimen word
अकारान्त बालक (boy)
आकारान्त दाता (giver)
इकारान्त मुनि (sage)
उकारान्त गुरु (teacher)
ऋकारान्त पितृ (father)
न् नकारान्त राजन् (king)
स् सकारान्त विद्वस् (intellectual)
त् तकारान्त भूत् (past)
द् दकारान्त सुहृद् (friend)
View forms table for Masculine words

Feminine (स्त्रीलिङ्ग)
Ending LetterCalled as Specimen word
आकारान्त रमा (beautiful)
ईकारान्त नदी (sage)
ऊकारान्त वधू (father)
क् ककारान्त वाक् (speech)
श् शकारान्त दिश् (direction)
त् तकारान्त सरित् (river)
त्र्त्रकारान्त रात्र् (night)
View forms table for Feminine words

Neuter (नपुन्सकलिङ्ग)
Ending LetterCalled as Specimen word
अकारान्त फल (fruit)
इकारान्त वारि (water)
उकारान्त मधु (honey)
न्नकारान्त नामन् (name)
त् तकारान्त जगत् (world)
View forms table for Neuter words

Next, we will look at forms of Pronoun in the next article.

>> Forms of Pronoun (सर्वनाम रूप)

Grammatical Case (कारक)

Karak or “Grammatical Case” is the most important concept in Sanskrit and one should understand this before learning anything else. It represents the functional relationship between nouns/pronouns and the verb or other words within a sentence. There are 8 Karaks. We will learn each of these in greater detail later, but for now, here is a quick description and memorization tip for each.

First – The one who does an activity (noun or pronoun) – who does

Second – Effect of the activity falls on this (noun or pronoun) – to whom / to what (two and to sound similar!)

Third – The activity is performed with help of this (noun or pronoun) – with help of what (Three trees help us all)

Fourth – The activity is performed for this (noun or pronoun) – for whom/ for what (four and for sound similar)

Fifth – During separation what stays at its place (noun or pronoun) – from whom/from what (imagine a diver jumping from fifth floor into the pool)

Sixth – One who possess (noun or pronoun) – of whom/ of what (Six magic sticks of a magician)

Seventh – Tells the location relative to this (noun or pronoun) – in what / on what (in-on-en I am in seventh heaven)

Exclamation – Calling out someone or something (noun) using this exclamation

Given below is a complete table to show different Karaks, also called Vibhaktis (1 to 7 and Exclamation).

Karaka (कारक)Meaning (English)Vibhakti (Case)Key QuestionExample (Sanskrit)Explanation
कर्तृ (Kartṛ)Doer / Subjectप्रथमाWho?रामः पठतिRama reads
कर्म (Karma)Object / Receiver of actionद्वितीयाWhat?रामः पुस्तकं पठतिRama reads a book
करण (Karaṇa)InstrumentतृतीयाBy what?रामः हस्तेन लिखतिRama writes with hand
सम्प्रदान (Sampradāna)Recipientचतुर्थीTo whom?रामः गुरवे नमतिRama bows to teacher
अपादान (Apādāna)Source / Separationपञ्चमीFrom where?वृक्षात् फलम् पततिFruit falls from tree
सम्बन्ध (Sambandha)Possession / Relationषष्ठीWhose?रामस्य पुस्तकम्Rama’s book
अधिकरण (Adhikaraṇa)Locationसप्तमीWhere?गृहे रामः अस्तिRama is in house
सम्बोधन (Sambodhana)Addressing / CallingसंबोधनO!हे रामO Ram

Note that unlike English or Hindi, the form of the noun itself changes according to its relationship with verbs or other words in a sentence. Loosely speaking, the prepositions are embedded with the nouns to make a ‘more complete’ word, for example, with-the-hand is हस्तेन, and from-the-tree is वृक्षात् .

You might have heard that the order of words in a sentence does not matter in Sanskrit. What we saw above is exactly the reason this is possible. For example, in the sentence वृक्षात् फलम् पतति there are 3 words – from-the-tree, fruit, and falls. Changing the order of words like पतति फलम् वृक्षात् – falls, fruit, from-the-tree does not change the meaning of the sentence. Clever!

Next, we will learn about different forms (रूप) of noun and pronouns in different vibhaktis.

>> Forms of Noun (संज्ञा रूप)

Sanskrit 101

Learning Sanskrit for the first time? Want to have a guide who can make the learning journey enjoyable? You have come to the right place! Here we will pick up learning Sanskrit from grounds-up.

Learning a new language can be a deeply enriching experience as language is an inseparable part of the culture and tradition. It has the timeless wisdom of sages, thinkers and writers who distilled their life experiences for future generations to reflect upon and benefit from.

First things first – we will use a publicly available resource in India – NCERT text books as our primary source. Sanskrit is introduced first time in Class VI via text book named Deepakam meaning ‘lamp’ or a ‘light source’.

Second, a few necessary assumptions – that you have a good understanding of English – this will be our primary language of conversation. And you can read and understand basic Hindi – this is because Sanskrit is written in Devanagari script that is the same as for Hindi.

There is one more reason of bringing Hindi into picture, that is because the sentence construction of Sanskrit is mostly similar to Hindi, and slightly different from English. See below:

रमा पुस्तक पढ़ती है. Subject-Object-Verb

रमा पुस्तकं पठति. Subject-Object-Verb

Ramaa reads a book. Subject-Verb-Object

Here is how the course is structured. We will start with the basic building blocks of a sentence – grammatical case, forms of noun, pronoun, and verb. Then we will dive into Class 6 textbook, and go through the chapters in the order of appearance. Here is a glimpse of what to expect.

Usage tip: We will be using a lot of tables to view contents in this course, so it is preferred, to use a tablet or laptop computer for this course.

TopicKey learnings
Grammatical case (कारक)Karakas define the relationship between nouns and verbs to provide the essential structural foundation of Sanskrit sentences
Forms of noun (संज्ञा रूप) Noun forms in Sanskrit, known as शब्दरुप्, are declined across eight cases (विभक्ति) and three numbers to reflect their specific grammatical role within a sentence
Forms of pronoun (सर्वनाम रूप)Sanskrit pronoun forms, or सर्वनाम रूप, are declined across seven grammatical cases and three numbers to indicate their relationship to the verb
Forms of verb (क्रिया रूप)Sanskrit verb forms, or धातुरूप , are created from a root through 5 different moods/tenses (लकार) to precisely indicate the time, voice, and person of an action
Chapter Notes StructureHow each chapter notes are organized
Chapter 1: वयं वर्णमालां पठामःTypes of vowels and consonants, and grouping of alphabets based on place of articulation
Chapter 2: संयुक्त-व्यञ्जनानिConjunct consonants, letter combination and decomposition
Chapter 3: एषः कः? एषा का? एतत् किम्?Basic sentence construction using noun, pronoun and verbs
Chapter 4: अहं च त्वं चBasic sentence construction using pronouns – I and we
Chapter 5: संख्यागणना ननु सरलाLearning to count and numbers from 1 – 50
Chapter 6: अहं प्रातः उत्तिष्ठामिLearning to see and tell time
Chapter 7: शूराः वयं धीराः वयम्Forms of He / She / It and I / You
Chapter 8: सः एव महान् चित्रकारःLearning about colors, flowers, birds
Chapter 9: अतिथिदेवो भवUse of unchangeable (अव्यय ) related to location – here, there, near, far, etc.
Chapter 10: बुद्धिः सर्वार्थसाधिकाForms of verb and root word
Chapter 11: यः जानाति सः पण्डितःInteresting riddles, and use of षष्ठी विभक्ति for relation or possession
Chapter 12: त्वम् आपणं गच्छUse of लोट् लकार form of verbs for imperative mood (command or wish)
Chapter 13: पृथिव्यां त्रीणि रत्नानिWise verses (सुभाषितानि) and their Word division (पदच्छेदः), Prose order (अन्वयः), Essence (भावार्थः)
Chapter 14: आलस्यं हि मनुष्याणां शरीरस्थः महान् रिपुःFocus on usage of द्वितीया विभक्ति
Chapter 15: माधवस्य प्रियम् अङ्गम्Learning names of body parts
Chapter 16: वृक्षाः सत्पुरुषाः इवSome more wise verses (सुभाषितानि) and their Word division (पदच्छेदः), Prose order (अन्वयः), Essence (भावार्थः)
Table 1: Course structure of Sanskrit 101

Let us start with the most important building block for learning Sanskrit – the Grammatical case (कारक).

>> Grammatical case (कारक)