The closed book exam will include short questions, essay questions & verses (with translation).
General Guidelines:
1. The closed book exam for the nectar of instruction will consist of the following: 45 short answer questions, knowledge of the Sanskrit transliteration and English meaning of 4 Sanskrit verses. There will be no essay questions. Each will question will carry 4 marks. Each shloka will carry will carry 5 marks. The exam will be for a total of 200 marks.
2. The closed book exam for all the other modules will consist of the following : 40 short questions, 2 essay questions and knowledge of the Sanskrit transliteration and English meaning of 4 Sanskrit verses.Each short answer question will carry 5 marks. Each essay question will carry 40 marks. Each shloka will carry 5 marks. The exam will be for a total of 300 marks.
4. Examinations should be completed within a three hour session.
5. For nectar of devotion, only the first 19 chapters are considered for the exam.
Short Answer Questions:
1. An individual should be able to write his/her answer to a short answer question within 1-2 minutes. This means an answer should not require more than three sentences.
2. Short answer questions should cover, in a balanced fashion, all sections of the required books.
3. Short answer questions should be balanced between essential facts, key concepts, and analogies.
Essential Facts:
Sastra inform us of essential facts, such as those related to the Lord’s activities, the activities of His devotees, the organization of the universe, the different yoga systems, the structure of Vedic society, qualifications for an individual to become spiritually advanced, etc. Devotees should know these essential facts.
Key Concepts:
Devotees should know the philosophical concepts which form the basis of Krishna consciousness, such as the transcendental nature of the soul, the law of karma, the influence of the modes of nature, the process and development of bhakti, the purpose of creation, the qualities and opulences of the Supreme Lord, etc.
Analogies:
Srila Prabhupada and our great acaryas have taught via analogies, which help us understand new concepts indirectly. We should know and be able to explain these analogies. Some examples are the analogy of the man lost in the middle of the ocean, of the sun rising on the horizon, of the mailbox, of the eggs of the scorpion, of the green bird in the green tree, etc.
Essay Questions:
An individual should be able to write his/her answer to each essay question within 20- 25 minutes. This means an essay question should not require an answer of more than 150 words.
Required Verses:
1. Centers should require candidates to learn a minimum of 47 verses. The list of verses are provided in the miscellaneous course material.
2. Candidates will be required to write the transliterated Sanskrit of all required verses. Correct use of diacritic marks is not mandatory. Candidates shall also be required to write a translation that contains each main concept of the verse. An exact, literal, “book translation” is not required.