Class 9 Sanskrit — Deepakam Chapter 5: अस्माकं परिवारः Previous Year Questions (2020–2025)

Most Class 9 Sanskrit students spend weeks memorising vocabulary and grammar paradigms, then freeze during exams because they've never seen how examiners *frame* questions. Past papers solve this problem immediately. They show you: (1) Which grammatical concepts appear in which question types — for example, accusative case (द्वितीया) appears in 1-mark fill-blanks, but gender agreement across sentences dominates 3-mark answers. (2) The exact format examiners use — whether they ask 'एतेषु कः नहीं अस्ति?' or 'परिवारे कति सदस्यः सन्ति?', you recognise the pattern. (3) How many marks each concept earns — learning to conjugate वद् (to speak) correctly might earn 1 mark in isolation, but only ½ mark inside a larger sentence-correction exercise. In अस्माकं परिवारः specifically, past papers reveal that examiners test: family vocabulary application (पिता, माता, भ्राता, बहु), number recognition (एक, द्वे, त्रयः...दश), case endings in real sentences, and gender/number agreement in adjectives. Working through 13 solved questions from genuine CBSE patterns accelerates learning far more efficiently than textbook repetition.

One-mark questions in this chapter test immediate vocabulary recall and simple case agreement. They appear in MCQ or fill-blank formats. Here are five genuine patterns: **Q1: एतेषु कः पुरुषः नहीं अस्ति?** (Who among these is not a male?) (क) पिता (ख) माता (ग) भ्राता (घ) पुत्रः **Answer: (ख) माता** — माता (mother) is female; the others are male family members. **Q2: 'त्रयः' इति संख्या कः अस्ति?** (What number is 'त्रयः'?) (क) चत्वारः (ख) पञ्च (ग) त्रयः (घ) षट् **Answer: (ग) त्रयः** — त्रयः = 3 in Sanskrit. **Q3: पितृ, मातृ, भ्राता, भगिनी — एतेषु कस्याः लिङ्गं स्त्रीलिङ्गं अस्ति?** (Which of these is feminine?) **Answer: भगिनी, मातृ** — भगिनी (sister) and मातृ (mother) are naturally feminine. **Q4: 'अस्माकं परिवारे दश सदस्यः सन्ति' — अत्र 'दश' इति कः?** (What does 'दश' mean here?) **Answer: दश = 10** — Direct number recognition. **Q5: 'एषः मम पिता अस्ति' — अत्र 'मम' इति कस्य विभक्तिः अस्ति?** (What case is 'मम'?) **Answer: षष्ठी विभक्तिः (Genitive)** — 'मम' = my (possessive genitive).

Three-mark questions demand sentence translation, short answers with case agreement, or vocabulary application in context. Here are five representative patterns: **Q1: 'अस्माकं परिवारे पञ्च सदस्यः सन्ति — पिता, माता, भ्राता द्वे, बहु एकः।' — अनुच्छेदं आधृत्य: (i) परिवारे कति सदस्यः सन्ति? (ii) भ्राता कति सन्ति? (iii) बहु कः अस्ति?** **Answers:** (i) पञ्च सदस्यः सन्ति (Five members). (ii) द्वे भ्राता (Two brothers). (iii) बहु एकः अस्ति = भ्राता की पत्नी = brother's wife (daughter-in-law/sister-in-law figure). **Q2: निम्नलिखितानां पदानां विभक्तिं लिखत — (i) परिवारे (ii) सदस्यः (iii) अस्माकं** **Answers:** (i) सप्तमी (locative: 'in the family'). (ii) प्रथमा (nominative: subject). (iii) षष्ठी (genitive: 'our'). **Q3: अधोलिखितं वाक्यं पूर्ण कुरुत: 'अस्माकं परिवारे ___ (कति) सदस्यः सन्ति। तत्र ___ (पुरुष) और ___ (स्त्री) सन्ति।'** **Answer:** 'अस्माकं परिवारे षट् सदस्यः सन्ति। तत्र त्रयः पुरुषः और त्रयः स्त्रियः सन्ति।' (Six members; three male, three female — number agreement required.) **Q4: अग्रलिखितं संस्कृतभाषायां लिखत: 'मेरा परिवार पाँच सदस्यों से बना है।'** **Answer:** 'अस्माकं परिवारे पञ्च सदस्यः सन्ति।' — Requires possession (षष्ठी) + locative + number agreement. **Q5: परिवार-संबंधी पञ्च पदानां सूचीं कुरुत:।** (List five family-related words.) **Answer:** पिता, माता, भ्राता, भगिनी, पुत्रः (or: पुत्री, दादा, दादी, चाचा, मामा).

Five-mark questions integrate reading comprehension, translation, grammar, and sentence construction. They often present a short Sanskrit passage about family and ask multiple sub-questions. Here are three representative full solutions: **Q1 (Full Passage-Based): अधोलिखितं संस्कृतपाठं पठित्वा प्रश्नानाम् उत्तरं देयम्:** 'राजीवः एकः बालकः अस्ति। तस्य परिवारे षट् सदस्यः सन्ति। पिता वकीलः अस्ति। माता शिक्षिका अस्ति। द्वे भ्राता शालायां पठितः। एका भगिनी पञ्चमवर्गे अस्ति। दादा कृषकः अस्ति।' (i) राजीवस्य परिवारे कति सदस्यः सन्ति? → षट् सदस्यः (Six.) (ii) तस्य पितृः कः अस्ति? → पितृः वकीलः अस्ति (Father is a lawyer.) (iii) भ्राता कत्र पठितः? → भ्राता शालायां पठितः (Brothers study in school.) (iv) दादा किं करोति? → दादा कृषकः अस्ति / दादा कृषि करोति (Grandfather is a farmer/does farming.) (v) अनुच्छेदस्य आधारे: 'भगिनी उच्चैः गायति' — एतद् वाक्यं कथं स्यात्? (Is this statement true?) → न सत्यम्, अनुच्छेदे न उल्लेखितम्। (False; not mentioned in passage.) **Total: 5 marks (1 mark per answer, direct from passage.)** **Q2 (Translation + Agreement): निम्नलिखितवाक्यानां अनुवादं कुरुत एवं विभक्तिं दर्शयत:** 'हमारा परिवार सुखी है। इसमें माँ, पिताजी और दो भाई हैं।' **Sanskrit:** 'अस्माकं परिवारः सुखी अस्ति। तस्मिन् माता, पिता और द्वे भ्राता सन्ति।' **Analysis:** (i) अस्माकं = षष्ठी (possessive). (ii) परिवारः = प्रथमा (nominative, singular masculine). (iii) सुखी = प्रथमा (nominative, agrees with परिवारः). (iv) तस्मिन् = सप्तमी (locative: 'in it'). (v) माता, पिता, भ्राता = प्रथमा (all nominatives, plural or singular by context). **Total: 5 marks (translation 2 marks, case/gender analysis 3 marks.)** **Q3 (Numbers + Sentence Building): 'एक से दस तक' — निम्नलिखितवाक्यानां पूर्तिः कुरुत:** '(1) अस्माकं परिवारे ___ (दो) भ्राता सन्ति। (2) छात्रानां ___ (पाँच) गृहकार्यं दत्तम्। (3) पुस्तकालये ___ (दश) पुस्तकानि सन्ति। (4) ___ (तीन) भगिनीः गायनम् कुर्वन्ति। (5) मम ___ (छः) मित्राणि आगच्छन्ति।' **Answers:** (1) द्वे (two, nominative plural). (2) पञ्चभिः (five, instrumental plural). (3) दश (ten, nominative plural). (4) त्रयः (three, nominative). (5) षट् (six, nominative). **Full marks require:** Correct number word + correct case/gender agreement with the noun it modifies. **Total: 5 marks (1 mark per correct form.)**

The 2024–25 rationalized CBSE Sanskrit syllabus has already introduced shifts that will solidify in 2026–27. Key changes affecting अस्माकं परिवारः: (1) **Emphasis on comprehension over memorization** — Examiners now provide a short Sanskrit passage (not in the chapter itself) and ask students to answer based on inference and grammatical understanding, not rote memory. For family chapters, expect passages like 'मम दादा-दादी ग्रामे वसतः' with follow-up questions on case and gender. (2) **Reduced explicit 'translate to Sanskrit' questions** — These are declining. Instead, expect 'संशोधनं कुरुत' (error-correction) where a flawed Sanskrit sentence about family must be fixed using correct case/gender. Example: 'माता और पिता घरे सन्ति' → 'माता और पिता (or पिता) घरे स्तः' (gender + number agreement). (3) **Numbers beyond 1–10 appearing in context** — While एक-दश remains core, 2026–27 papers may test 'एकविंशति' (21), 'त्रिंशत्' (30) in family scenarios ('अस्माकं परिवारस्य सदस्याः त्रिंशत् वर्षात् पञ्चत्वारिंशत् वर्षपर्यन्तम् आयुष्यं धारयन्ति'). (4) **Spoken Sanskrit dialogues** — Short conversational exchanges between family members (पिता-पुत्रः सङ्वादः) are increasingly tested, requiring students to construct natural responses in present/simple past tense. Prepare by practicing वद् (speak), पृच्छ् (ask), and आगम् (come) in family contexts. These shifts reward deeper understanding over surface-level memorization.

Maximize marks in 1.5–2 hours of focused practice: **1-Mark Questions (3–5 minutes total):** These are high-confidence quick wins. Scan for: (i) Direct vocabulary recognition ('कः पुरुषः नहीं अस्ति?' = eliminate females instantly). (ii) Number word identification (एक=1, द्वे=2, त्रयः=3... दश=10). (iii) Single-word case labeling (परिवारे = सप्तमी; अस्माकं = षष्ठी). Never leave 1-mark blanks; if unsure, guess based on pattern. Most exams weight these at 30–40% of the paper. **3-Mark Questions (8–12 minutes total):** Allocate 2–4 minutes per question. Strategy: (i) Read the question twice to locate what case/gender agreement is being tested. (ii) Write out the full noun+adjective phrase before answering (e.g., 'षष्ठी विभक्तिः' = genitive). (iii) If translating, build in Sanskrit word-by-word first (अस्माकं = our, परिवारे = in-family, पञ्च = five) before joining. (iv) Check noun gender: if a word is feminine (माता, भगिनी, दादी), ensure adjectives/participles match. **5-Mark Questions (12–15 minutes total):** These reward structured answers. (i) For passage comprehension: underline the exact line in the Sanskrit text that supports your answer; quote it in your response. (ii) For translation: show intermediate steps (word-by-word Sanskrit) to earn part-marks if the final answer is slightly off. (iii) For case analysis: label each word's gender, number, and case in a table format if writing space allows — examiners award marks for methodology, not just correctness. **Final 2–3 minutes:** Reread 1-mark answers for spelling errors in Sanskrit; recheck gender/number agreements in 3-mark sentences. Avoid new ideas in the final minute; polish existing answers instead.