CDS History · Ancient India
Literature, Grammar and Science
The grammarians Panini, Katyayana and Patanjali, Shruti and Smriti, the Sanskrit plays and poems CDS matches with their authors, and the early manuscripts of mathematics and medicine.
Why this matters
Ten questions, all from 2020 onward and six of them HARD. They test who wrote what, which text came first, and what a manuscript is about. A table of authors and subjects answers almost all of them.
Concept 1 of 3: Grammarians and the order of texts
Sanskrit grammar was built in three steps: Panini wrote the rules, Katyayana added notes, and Patanjali wrote a great commentary on both. Knowing that chain tells you who came before whom.
Definition
- Panini wrote the Ashtadhyayi, a Sanskrit grammar of about the fifth or fourth century BCE. It is older than the Natyashastra, the Manusmriti and the surviving Sushruta Samhita.
- Katyayana wrote varttikas, critical notes on Panini's rules.
- Patanjali wrote the Mahabhashya, a commentary on Panini and Katyayana, in Shunga times. It is a book of grammar: people and events appear in it only as examples. It does not mention Kautilya.
- Shruti (heard) is revealed literature: the Vedas. Smriti (remembered) is human-made: the Vedangas such as the Kalpa Sutras, the epics and the Puranas.
| Text or class | Fact |
|---|---|
| Ashtadhyayi | Panini's grammar, about the 5th or 4th century BCEQ CDS 2025 (I): earlier than the Natyashastra, the Sushruta Samhita and the Manusmriti. |
| Varttikas | Katyayana's notes on Panini's rules |
| Mahabhashya | Patanjali's commentary on Panini and Katyayana; history only in passingQ |
| Shruti | Revealed texts: the Vedas |
| Smriti | Remembered texts: Vedangas such as the Kalpa Sutras, the epics, the PuranasQ |
Practice this conceptself-check · 4 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2025 · CDS (I) 2025 — General Knowledge · Q43Moderate
Example 1 · Ancient India · Literature, Grammar and Science
Which one of the following statements about the grammarian Katyayana is correct ?
Katyayana sits between Panini and Patanjali
Katyayana commented on Panini, and Patanjali commented on both of them. So Katyayana was neither Panini's nor Patanjali's contemporary.
The Vedas are Shruti
The Vedas are Shruti, revealed literature. Smriti covers the Vedangas, epics and Puranas, so an option putting the Vedas in Smriti is wrong.
Concept 2 of 3: Plays, poems and stories
CDS likes a four-pair match of Sanskrit works and authors. Learn the pairs as you would learn capitals of countries.
Definition
- Bhasa: Duta Ghatotkacha and other one-act plays from the Mahabharata.
- Shudraka: the Mrichchhakatika (The Little Clay Cart).
- Bharavi: the Kiratarjuniya.
- Bhatti: the Ravanavadha, also called the Bhattikavya, which tells Rama's story while teaching grammar.
- Ashvaghosha: the Buddhacharita, the Saundarananda and the play Sariputraprakarana.
- The Panchatantra, said to be by Vishnu Sharma, uses animal fables to show what should and should not be done in life.
Practice this conceptself-check · 3 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2022 · CDS (II) 2022 — General Knowledge · Q65Hard
Example 2 · Ancient India · Literature, Grammar and Science
Match List I with List II and select the correct answer using the code given below the Lists :
Code :
| List I (Literary Work) | List II (Author) |
|---|---|
| A. Duta Ghatotkacha | 1. Bhatti |
| B. Mrichchhakatikam | 2. Bhasa |
| C. Kiratarjuniyam | 3. Shudraka |
| D. Ravanavadha | 4. Bharavi |
Mrichchhakatika is Shudraka's
The Mrichchhakatika is by Shudraka and the Duta Ghatotkacha by Bhasa. Do not hand Bhasa's plays to Shudraka or the other way round.
The Manjushrimulakalpa is not Ashvaghosha's
Ashvaghosha wrote the Buddhacharita, Saundarananda and Sariputraprakarana. The Manjushrimulakalpa is a much later Mahayana text.
Concept 3 of 3: Manuscripts of mathematics and medicine
Two old birch-bark manuscripts carry their finders' or villages' names, and CDS asks what each is about. One is mathematics, one is medicine: keep them apart.
Definition
- The Bakshali manuscript, found near Peshawar, is in Gatha, a form of Prakrit, in the Sharada script. It deals with fractions, square roots and progressions.
- The Bower manuscript, birch-bark leaves found at Kucha in Central Asia, is a source on medicine.
- Aryabhata gave pi as 3.1416, correct to four decimal places.
- The Sushruta Samhita is on surgery; the Charaka Samhita on medicine.
- The Sharangadhara Samhita is a medieval book of Ayurveda, not a book on politics.
| Text | Subject | Key fact |
|---|---|---|
| Bakshali manuscript | Mathematics | Gatha Prakrit in Sharada script; fractions, square roots, progressionsQ CDS 2023 (II): the Sharangadhara Samhita as a political text was the false statement. |
| Bower manuscript | Medicine | Birch bark, found at Kucha in Central Asia |
| Aryabhatiya | Mathematics and astronomy | Pi as 3.1416 |
| Sushruta Samhita | Surgery | An early medical classic |
| Charaka Samhita | Medicine | An early medical classic |
| Sharangadhara Samhita | Ayurveda | A medieval medical text |
Practice this conceptself-check · 3 quick reps
The same idea in a real exam question:
CDS · 2026 · CDS (I) 2026 — General Knowledge · Q50Hard
Example 3 · Ancient India · Literature, Grammar and Science
The Bower Manuscript is known for being a valuable source on which one of the following subjects in ancient India ?
Bakshali is maths, Bower is medicine
The Bakshali manuscript deals with arithmetic; the Bower manuscript with remedies and treatment. They are both birch-bark finds, so they are easy to swap.
Summary — formulas & gotchas at a glance
A revision cheat-sheet for the formulas and gotchas above. Click any concept name to jump back to its full explanation.
Reference tables (3)
Grammarians and the order of texts5 rows
| Text or class | Fact |
|---|---|
| Ashtadhyayi | Panini's grammar, about the 5th or 4th century BCEQ CDS 2025 (I): earlier than the Natyashastra, the Sushruta Samhita and the Manusmriti. |
| Varttikas | Katyayana's notes on Panini's rules |
| Mahabhashya | Patanjali's commentary on Panini and Katyayana; history only in passingQ |
| Shruti | Revealed texts: the Vedas |
| Smriti | Remembered texts: Vedangas such as the Kalpa Sutras, the epics, the PuranasQ |
Plays, poems and stories6 rows
Manuscripts of mathematics and medicine6 rows
| Text | Subject | Key fact |
|---|---|---|
| Bakshali manuscript | Mathematics | Gatha Prakrit in Sharada script; fractions, square roots, progressionsQ CDS 2023 (II): the Sharangadhara Samhita as a political text was the false statement. |
| Bower manuscript | Medicine | Birch bark, found at Kucha in Central Asia |
| Aryabhatiya | Mathematics and astronomy | Pi as 3.1416 |
| Sushruta Samhita | Surgery | An early medical classic |
| Charaka Samhita | Medicine | An early medical classic |
| Sharangadhara Samhita | Ayurveda | A medieval medical text |
Watch out for (5)
- Katyayana sits between Panini and Patanjali→ Grammarians and the order of texts
- The Vedas are Shruti→ Grammarians and the order of texts
- Mrichchhakatika is Shudraka's→ Plays, poems and stories
- The Manjushrimulakalpa is not Ashvaghosha's→ Plays, poems and stories
- Bakshali is maths, Bower is medicine→ Manuscripts of mathematics and medicine
Test yourself on Ancient India
20 past CDS questions from this chapter, timed at 20 minutes and marked the way the exam marks it. You see your score and every answer the moment you finish. Free to start.