Cambridge IGCSE Sanskrit (0499) Study Support

What to practise

Practise accurate translation, supported interpretation of prescribed literature and answers that place Epic Civilisation material in context. Bring your own translation and a line you found difficult.

Start with Sanskrit translation practice

Cambridge syllabus and final assessment notice

Paper 1 · Language

90 minutes · 90 marks · 50% of the qualification. Practise two unseen prose comprehensions, applying sandhi, and translation in both directions. Try these original short exercises before opening the worked answers.

Unseen comprehension without sandhi

एकः बालकः प्रातः उद्यानम् अगच्छत्। तत्र सः एकम् वृद्धम् अपश्यत्। वृद्धः जलम् अयाचत। बालकः कूपात् जलम् आनीय वृद्धाय अददात्।

Glossary · अयाचत means “asked for” and आनीय means “having brought”.

1. Where and when did the boy go?
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   He went to the garden in the morning. प्रातः gives the time and उद्यानम् gives the destination.

2. What did the old man ask for, and where did the boy get it?
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   The man asked for water. The boy brought it from the well. कूपात् is ablative singular, indicating the source.

3. Apply sandhi to तत्र + एव and उद्यानम् + अगच्छत्.
   Show worked answer

   तत्रैव by vowel sandhi, with a + e becoming ai. उद्यानमगच्छत् retains the final m sound before a vowel and joins it in Devanagari.

Unseen comprehension with sandhi

कश्चिद् दूतः सायं नगरमागच्छत्। नगरस्य द्वारं पिहितमासीत्। तदा स द्वारपालमाहूय पत्रमददात्। द्वारपालः पत्रं राज्ञेऽनयत्।

Glossary · पिहितम् means “closed” and आहूय means “having called”.

1. What did the messenger find when he arrived, and what did he do next?
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   He found the city gate closed. He called the gatekeeper and gave him a letter.

2. Split नगरमागच्छत् and राज्ञेऽनयत्. Who finally received the letter?
   Show worked answer

   नगरम् + आगच्छत् means “came to the city”. राज्ञे + अनयत् means “[he] took [it] to the king”. The avagraha in राज्ञेऽनयत् marks the omitted initial a. The king was the recipient.

Sanskrit to English

Identify the finite verb, then check who acts, who receives the action and how the clauses connect.

1. Translate ग्रामस्य समीपे नदी अस्ति। ग्रामस्य जनाः नद्याः जलम् आनयन्ति।
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   “There is a river near the village. The villagers bring water from the river.” ग्रामस्य is genitive after समीपे. Here नद्याः gives the source.

2. Translate यदा कृषको ग्राममागच्छति तदा स बालकेभ्यः फलानि ददाति।
   Show worked answer

   “When the farmer comes to the village, he gives fruit to the children.” Split कृषको ग्रामम् as कृषकः + ग्रामम्. बालकेभ्यः is dative plural in this sentence.

English to Sanskrit

1. The king gives a book to the boy.
   Show worked answer

   राजा बालकाय पुस्तकं ददाति।

   Use the dative for the recipient and the accusative for the thing given.

2. The girl goes to the village with her friend.
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   बालिका स्वसख्या सह ग्रामं गच्छति।

   सह takes the instrumental. स्वसख्या here refers to her own female friend. ग्रामम् gives the destination.

3. Having heard the story, the boys went home.
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   कथां श्रुत्वा बालकाः गृहम् अगच्छन्।

   श्रुत्वा gives the earlier action by the same doers. अगच्छन् is third-person plural past.

Paper 2 · Literature and Epic Civilisation

90 minutes · 90 marks · 50% of the qualification. Prepare to translate prescribed passages, explain details in context and support your interpretations. The Epic Civilisation question includes a response of about 100 words chosen from two essay titles.

Prescribed-text revision checklist

• Bhagavad Gītā verse. Check the exact verse list on page 13. For each selection, record the speaker, a literal translation and a key contrast or image.
• Mahābhārata prose adaptations. Use the appendix to match the prescribed extracts. For each, map the event, characters, decision and consequence.
• Pañcatantra prose in sandhi. Check the precise excerpt boundaries on page 14, then practise splitting unfamiliar combinations and explaining a character’s reasoning.
• Epic Civilisation. Cover the five units on page 14, including metaphysical ideas, the cosmos, major texts, divine figures and the purposes of human life. Keep a specific textual example for each theme.

Use the extract boundaries and editions listed in the 2026–2027 syllabus. The opening sentence of its Paper 2 section still mentions 2025. Check your June 2027 text list with your teacher or exam centre before revising.

Worked example · Bhagavad Gītā 12.12

How does the verse connect relinquishing the fruits of action with peace?

1. Split शान्तिरनन्तरम् and explain what अनन्तरम् adds.
   Show worked answer

   शान्तिः + अनन्तरम्. “Immediately after” shows how closely the verse links peace and relinquishment.

2. In the prescribed lion and jackal passage, what leads the jackal to suspect danger? Explain why that detail matters.
   Show worked answer

   The tracks lead into the cave, and the jackal sees no tracks leading out. This makes it reasonable to infer that something may still be inside. In your answer, point to the line in your assigned extract that describes the tracks.

3. Using Bhagavad Gītā 12.12, write about 100 words on how a person can act while loosening their attachment to the result.
   Show sample paragraph

   In Bhagavad Gītā 12.12, peace follows the relinquishment of the fruits of action. The compound कर्मफलत्यागः identifies the object of relinquishment as the result that follows what one does. One practical implication is that a person can take care over a duty while recognising that its outcome is partly outside their control. A student, for example, can prepare thoroughly and sit an examination without making a particular grade the sole measure of the effort. In that reading, relinquishment changes how we relate to success or failure. The closing reference to peace explains why this change matters.

June 2027 · Final assessment and official resources

Cambridge lists June 2027 as the final 0499 assessment. Ask your school or exam centre to confirm your entry and prescribed texts. For study support, include 0499, the exam series, your set texts and the paper you want to work on.

• Cambridge subject page and withdrawal notice
• Cambridge syllabus for 2026–2027 · version 2
• December 2025 syllabus update
• Cambridge past and specimen papers · Compare older papers with the current syllabus before choosing practice.

Try a worked example

राजा दूतं नगरं प्रेषयति।

Identify the person sent and the destination.

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