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निम्नलिखित अनुच्छेद पढ़कर उस पर आधारित प्रश्नों के उत्तर लिखिए :

1) “राजा राममोहन राय बचपन से ही बड़े प्रतिभाशाली थे। उनके पिता ने उनकी पढाई का समुचित प्रबंध किया। गाँव की पाठशाला में उन्होंने बँगला सीखी। उन दिनों कचहरियों में फारसी का बोलबाला था। अतः उन्होंने घर पर ही मौलवी से फारसी पढ़ी। नौ वर्ष की उम्र में वे अरबी की उच्च शिक्षा के लिए पटना भेजे गए। वहाँ वे तीन वर्ष तक रहे। उन्होंने कुरान का मूल अरबी में अध्ययन किया। बारह वर्ष की उम्र में वे काशी गए। चार वर्ष तक वहाँ उन्होंने संस्कृत का अध्ययन किया। इस बीच उन्होंने भारतीय दर्शन का भी अध्ययन किया।”

प्रश्नः
i) राजा राममोहन राय की पढ़ाई की व्यवस्था किसने की?
ii) राजा राममोहन राय ने बँगला कहाँ सीखी?
iii) उन्होंने अरबी की शिक्षा कहाँ से प्राप्त की?
iv) बारह वर्ष की उम्र में वे कहाँ गए?
v) उन्होंने कितने वर्ष तक संस्कृत का अध्ययन किया?
उत्तरः
i) राजा राममोहन राय की पढ़ाई की व्यवस्था उनके पिता ने की।
ii) राजा राममोहन राय ने गाँव की पाठशाला में बँगला सीखी।
iii) उन्होंने अरबी की शिक्षा पटना से प्राप्त की।
iv) बारह वर्ष की उम्र में वे काशी गए।
v) उन्होंने चार वर्षों तक संस्कृत का अध्ययन किया।

2) “साहित्योन्नति के साधनों में पुस्तकालयों का स्थान अत्यन्त महत्वपूर्ण है। इनके द्वारा साहित्य के जीवन की रक्षा, पुष्टि और अभिवृद्धि होती है। पुस्तकालय सभ्यता के इतिहास का जीता-जागता गवाह हैं। इसी के बल पर वर्तमान भारत को अपने अतीत गौरव पर गर्व है। पुस्तकालय भारत के लिए कोई नई वस्तु नहीं है। लिपि के आविष्कार से आज तक लोग निरन्तर पुस्तकों का संग्रह करते रहे हैं। पहले देवालय और विद्यालय इन संग्रहों के प्रमुख स्थान होते थे। इनके अतिरिक्त विद्वज्जनों के अपने निजी पुस्तकालय भी होते थे। मुद्रणकला के आविष्कार से पूर्व पुस्तकों का संग्रह करना आजकल की तरह सरल बात न थी। आजकल साधारण स्थिति के पुस्तकालय में जितनी सम्पत्ति लगती है, उतनी कभी-कभी एक-एक पुस्तक की तैयारी में लग जाया करती थी। भारत के पुस्तकालय संसार-भर में अपनी सानी नहीं रखते थे। प्राचीन काल से मुगल सम्राटों के समय तक यही स्थिति रही। चीन, फारस प्रभृति सुदूरस्थित देशों से झुण्ड के झुण्ड विद्यानुरागी लम्बी यात्राएँ करके भारत आया करते थे।”

प्रश्नः
i) साहित्योन्नति के साधनों में किसका स्थान अत्यन्त महत्वपूर्ण है?
ii) पुस्तकालय किसका जीता-जागता गवाह है?
ii) पहले पुस्तकालय किन-किन स्थानों पर हुआ करते थे?
iv) पुराने समय में पुस्तकों पर अधिक व्यय क्यों होता था?
v) पुस्तकालयों के कारण भारत को क्या गौरव प्राप्त था?
उत्तरः
i) साहित्योन्नति के साधनों में पुस्तकालयों का स्थान अत्यंत महत्वपूर्ण है।
ii) पुस्तकालय सभ्यता का जीता-जागता गवाह है।
iii) पहले पुस्तकालय देवालय और विद्यालयों में हुआ करते थे।
iv) मुद्रणयंत्र न होने के कारण पुराने समय में पुस्तकों पर अधिक व्यय होता था।
v) पुस्तकालयों के कारण भारत को अपने अतीत गौरव पर गर्व है।

अतिरिक्त प्रश्न :

3) सुन्दर प्रतिभा, मनभावनी चाल और स्वच्छन्द प्रकृति ये ही दो-चार बातें देखकर मित्रता की जाती है। पर जीवन-संग्राम में साथ देने वाले मित्रों में इनसे कुछ अधिक बातें होनी चाहिए। मित्र केवल उसे नहीं कहते, जिसके गुणों की तो हम प्रशंसा करें, पर जिसे हम स्नेह न कर सकें। जिससे हम अपने छोटे काम को तो निकालते जाएँ, पर भीतर ही भीतर घृणा करते रहें। मित्र सच्चे पथ-प्रदर्शक के समान होना चाहिए, जिस पर हम पूरा विश्वास कर सकें। भाई के समान होना चाहिए, जिसे हम अपना प्रीतिपात्र बना सकें। हमारे और मित्र के बीच सच्ची सहानुभूति होनी चाहिए, ऐसी सहानुभूति जिससे दोनों मित्र एक दूसरे की बराबर खोय-खबरलें। ऐसी सहानुभूति, जिससे एक के हानि-लाभ को दूसरा अपना हानि-लाभ समझे। मित्रता के लिए आवश्यक नहीं है कि दो मित्र एक ही प्रकार का कार्य करते हों या एक ही रुचि के हों। दो भिन्न प्रकृति के मनुष्यों में भी बराबर की प्रीति और मित्रता देखी जाती है।

प्रश्न:
i) किन बातों को देखकर मित्रता की जाती है?
ii) मित्र किसे नहीं कहना चाहिए?
iii) सच्चा मित्र कैसा होता है?
iv) मित्र के प्रति क्या होनी चाहिए?
v) मित्रता के लिए क्या आवश्यक नहीं है?
उत्तर:
i) सुन्दर प्रतिभा, मनभावनी चाल और स्वच्छन्द प्रकृति ये ही दो-चार बातें देखकरमित्रता की जाती है।
ii) मित्र केवल उसे नहीं कहते, जिसके गुणों की तो हम प्रशंसा करें, पर जिसे हम स्नेह न कर सकें।
iii) सच्चा मित्र पथ-प्रदर्शक के समान होता है, जिस पर हम पूरा विश्वास कर सकें।
iv) मित्र के प्रति सच्ची सहानुभूति होनी चाहिए।
v) मित्रता के लिए आवश्यक नहीं है कि दो मित्र एक ही प्रकार का कार्य करते हों या एक ही रूचि के हों।

4) भारत विश्व सभ्यता का जनक है, क्योंकि इसकी सभ्यता विश्व की प्राचीनतम सभ्यता है। प्रलय के बाद सर्वप्रथम भारत भूमि पर ही मनु द्वारा सृष्टि की रचना हुई। धरती का स्वर्ग तथा अनेक ऋषि-मुनियों, देवताओं और महापुरुषों की पुण्य भूमि भारत पर स्वयं भगवान राम और कृष्ण ने अवतार लेकर इसकी मिट्टी को तिलक करने योग्य बना दिया। दुनिया की अनेक संस्कृतियाँ मिट गई परंतु भारत की संस्कृति आज भी जीवित है। अपने ऐश्वर्य और समृद्धि के कारण यह ‘सोने की चिड़िया’ कहलाया। सभी प्रकार की कलाओं और विद्याओं का शुभारंभ इसी धरती पर हुआ। तथा मोक्ष का मूलमंत्र भी सर्व प्रथम इसी धरती के लोगों के हाथ लगा जिसे संपूर्ण विश्व में फैलाकर भारत ‘विश्वगुरु’ कहलाया। आज भारत ने हर क्षेत्र में अद्भुत प्रगति की है। इसलिए हम गर्व से कहेंगे ‘मेरा भारत महान है’।

प्रश्न:
i) भारत को किसका जनक कहा जाता है?
ii) प्रलय के बाद किसकी रचना हो गई?
iii) धरती को स्वर्ग और मिट्टी को तिलक के योग्य किस-किसने बनाया?
iv) किसके कारण भारत को सोने की चिड़िया कहा जाता है?
v) किसका शुभारंभ भारत भूमि पर हुआ है?
उत्तरः
i) भारत को विश्व सभ्यता का जनक कहा जाता है।
ii) प्रलय के बाद सृष्टि की रचना हुई।
iii) स्वयं भगवान राम और कृष्ण ने अवतार लेकर धरती को स्वर्ग और मिट्टी को तिलक के योग्य बनाया।
iv) अपने ऐश्वर्य और समृद्धि के कारण भारत को सोने की चिड़िया कहा जाता है।
v) सभी प्रकार की कलाओं और विद्याओं का शुभारंभ इसी भारत भूमि पर हुआ है।

5) काशी में संगीत आयोजन की एक प्राचीन एवं अद्भुत परम्परा है। यह आयोजन पिछले कई बरसों से संकटमोचन मंदिर में होता आया है। यह मंदिर शहर के दक्षिण में लंका पर स्थित है व हनुमान जयंती के अवसर पर यहाँ पाँच दिनों तक शास्त्रीय एवं उप-शास्त्रीय गायन-वादन की उत्कृष्ट सभा होती है। इसमें बिस्मिल्ला खाँ अवश्य रहते थे। अपने मजहब के प्रति अत्यधिक समर्पित उस्ताद बिस्मिल्ला खाँ की श्रद्धा काशी विश्वनाथ जी के प्रति भी अपार थी। वे जब भी काशी से बाहर रहते तब विश्वनाथ व बालाजी मंदिर की दिशा की ओर मुँह करके बैठते, थोड़ी देर ही सही, मगर उसी ओर शहनाई का प्याला धुमा दिया जाता और भीतर की आस्था रीड़ के माध्यम से बजती थी। खाँ साहब की एक रीड 15 से 20 मिनट के अंदर गीली हो जाती थी, तब वे दूसरी रीड का इस्तेमाल कर लिया करते थे।

प्रश्नः
i) काशी की प्राचीन एवं अद्भुत परम्परा क्या है?
ii) संकटमोचन मंदिर कहाँ पर स्थित है?
iii) बिस्मिल्ला खाँ की श्रद्धा किसके प्रति अपार थी?
iv) उस्ताद बिस्मिल्ला खाँ किस वाद्य को बजाते थे?
v) खाँ साहब की एक रीड कितने समय में गीली हो जाती थी?
उत्तरः
i) संगीत आयोजन काशी की प्राचीन एवं अद्भुत परम्परा है।
ii) संकटमोचन मंदिर काशी शहर के दक्षिण में लंका पर स्थित है।
iii) बिस्मिल्ला खाँ की श्रद्धा काशी विश्वनाथ जी के प्रति अपार थी।
iv) उस्ताद बिस्मिल्ला खाँ शहनाई वाद्य को बजाते थे।
v) खाँ साहब की एक रीड 15 से 20 मिनट के अंदर गीली हो जाती थी।

6) मित्रता अनमोल धन है। इसकी तुलना किसी से भी नहीं की जा सकती है। हीरे-मोती या सोने-चाँदी से भी नहीं। मैत्री की महिमा बहुत बड़ी है। सच्चा मित्र सुख और दुख में समान भाव से मैत्री निभाता है। जो केवल सुख में साथ होता है, उसे सच्चा मित्र नहीं कहा जा सकता। साथ-साथ खाना-पीना, सैर, पिकनिक का आनंद लेना सच्ची मित्रता का लक्षण नहीं। सच्ची मित्रता की बस एक पहचान है और वह है – विचारों की एकता। विचारों की एकता ही इसे दिनोंदिन प्रगाढ़ करती है। सच्चा मित्र बड़ा महत्वपूर्ण होता है। जहाँ चाह न लगे, वही बाँह बढ़ाकर उबार लेता है। मित्रता करना तो आसान है, लेकिन निभाना बहुत ही मुश्किल। आज मित्रता का दुरुपयोग होने लगा है। लोग अपने सीमित स्वार्थों की पूर्ति के लिए मित्रता का ढोंग रचते हैं। मित्रता जीवन का सर्वश्रेष्ठ अनुभव है। यह एक ऐसा मोती है, जिसे गहरे सागर में डूबकर ही पाया जा सकता है। मित्रता की कीमत केवल मित्रता ही है। सच्ची मित्रता जीवन का वरदान है। सच्चा मित्र मनुष्य की सोई किस्मत को जगा ‘सकता है और भटके को सही राह दिखा सकता है।

प्रश्नः
i) कौन सुख और दुख में समान भाव से मैत्री निभाता है?
ii) मित्रता की क्या पहचान है?।
iii) क्या मित्रता निभाना आसान है?
iv) मित्रता की प्राप्ति किस प्रकार हो सकती है?
v) सच्चा मित्र किसको सही राह दिखा सकता है?
उत्तरः
i) सच्चा मित्र सुख और दुख में समान भाव से मैत्री निभाता है।
ii) विचारों की एकता ही मित्रता की सही पहचान है।
iii) मित्रता निभाना बहुत मुश्किल है।
iv) मित्रता एक ऐसा मोती है, जिसे गहरे सागर में डूबकर ही पाया जा सकता है।
v) सच्चा मित्र भटके को सही राह दिखा सकता है।

7) संसार का प्रत्येक धर्म दया और करुणा का पाठ पढ़ाता है। हर धर्म सिखाता है कि जीव पर दया-भाव रखो और कष्ट में फँसे इंसान की सहायता करो। परोपकार की भावना ही सबसे बड़ी मनुष्यता है। परोपकार की भावना रखने वाला न तो अपने-पराए का भेदभाव रखता है और न ही अपनी हानि की परवाह करता है। दयावान किसी को कष्ट में देखकर चुपचाप नहीं बैठ सकता। उसकी आत्मा उसे दुखी प्राणी के लिए कुछ करने को मजबूर करती है। अगर कोई किसी पर अत्याचार करे या बेकसूर को यातना दे, तो हमारा कर्त्तव्य बनता है कि हम बेकसूर का सहारा बनें। न्याय व धर्म की रक्षा करना सदा से धर्म है। दया-भाव विहीन मनुष्य भी पशु समान ही होता है। जो दूसरों की रक्षा करते हैं, वे इस सृष्टि को चलाने में भगवान की सहायता करते हैं। धर्म का मर्म ही दया है। दया-भाव से ही धर्म का दीपक सदा प्रज्वलित रहता है।

प्रश्नः
i) संसार का हर धर्म किसका पाठ पढ़ाता है?
ii) सबसे बड़ी मनुष्यता क्या है?
iii) दयावान व्यक्ति कब चुपचाप नहीं बैठ सकता?
iv) न्याय व धर्म की रक्षा करना क्या है?
v) सृष्टि को चलाने में भगवान की सहायता कौन करते हैं?
उत्तरः
i) संसार का हर धर्म दया और करूणा का पाठ पढ़ाता है।
ii) परोपकार की भावना ही सबसे बड़ी मनुष्यता है।
iii) दयावान व्यक्ति किसी को कष्ट में देखकर चुपचाप नहीं बैठ सकता।
iv) न्याय व धर्म की रक्षा करना हमारा धर्म और कर्तव्य है।
v) सृष्टि को चलाने में भगवान की सहायता वही करते है जो दूसरों की रक्षा करते हैं।

8) मदर तेरेसा द्वारा किए जा रहे सेवा-कार्यों को समस्त विश्व में प्रतिष्ठा मिली है। उन्हें सम्मानसूचक तथा आर्थिक सहयोग के रूप में जो धन मिलता था, उसे वे सामाजिक सेवा कार्यों के उपयोग में लाती थीं। अधिकतर धनराशी, झुग्गी-झोंपड़ियों के निवासियों के लिए पाठशाला खोलने पर व्यय की जाती थी। अप्रैल 1962 में तत्कालीन राष्ट्रपति जी ने उन्हें ‘पद्मश्री’ से अलंकृत किया था। इसके तत्पश्चात् फिलीपिंस सरकार की ओर से उन्हें 10,000 डालर का पुरस्कार प्रदान किया गया। इस धनराशि से उन्होंने आगरा में कुष्ठाश्रम बनवाया, जहाँ कुष्ठ रोगियों की चिकित्सा की जाती है। सन् 1964 में जब पोप भारत आए थे, तो उन्होंने अपनी कार मदर तेरेसा को भेंट कर दी थी। मदर तेरेसा ने वह कार 59,930 डालर में नीलाम कर दी थी तथा उस धनराशि से कुष्ठ रोगियों की एक बस्ती बसाई, ताकि ऐसे लोगों की चिकित्सा और सही देखभाल की जा सके।

प्रश्नः
i) मदर तेरेसा के सेवा-कार्यों को कहाँ प्रतिष्ठा मिली है?
ii) अधिकतर धनराशि मदर तेरेसा द्वारा कैसे व्यय की जाती थी?
iii) उन्हें ‘पद्मश्री’ की उपाधि से कब अलंकृत किया गया था?
iv) फिलीपिंस सरकार से प्राप्त धनराशि से उन्होंने कहाँ कुष्ठाश्रम बनवाया?
v) किसने अपनी कार मदर तेरेसा को भेंट दी?।
उत्तरः
i) मदर तेरेसा के सेवा-कार्यों को समस्त विश्व में प्रतिष्ठा मिली है।
ii) अधिकतर धनराशि मदर तेरेसा द्वारा झुग्गी-झोंपड़ियों के निवासियों के लिए पाठशाला खोलने पर व्यय की जाती थी।
iii) अप्रैल 1962 में उन्हें ‘पद्मश्री’ की उपाधि से अलंकृत किया गया था।
iv) फिलीपिंस सरकार से प्राप्त धनराशि से उन्होंने आगरा में कुष्ठाश्रम बनवाया।
v) पोप ने अपनी कार मदर तेरेसा को भेंट दी।

9) यह कहावत सत्य है कि समय बलवान है, इस पर किसी का वश नहीं चलता। आनेवाले समय में अच्छा-बुरा क्या घट जाए, कोई नहीं जानता। ऐसे अनिश्चित समय के लिए यदि उसके पास कुछ संचित धन है तो उसके काम आ सकता है। कोई भी व्यक्ति दूसरों के सहारे न तो कल रह सका है, न आज रह पा रहा है, न ही भविष्य में रह सकता है। यह कटु सत्य है। मनुष्य का आज का जीवन कई प्रकार की आकस्मिकताओं वाला बन चुका है। अतः उन आकस्मिकताओं का ठीक प्रकार से सामना करने के लिए, प्रत्येक व्यक्ति को चाहिए कि वह प्रतिदिन जितनी भी हो अधिक-से-अधिक बचत करता रहे। इसी में उसकी भलाई है। आज की गई एक-एक पैसे की बचत कल का अनंत सुख सिद्ध हो सकती हैं। धन की कमी से सुखपूर्वक तो क्या सामान्य जीवन भी जी पाना कतई संभव नहीं है। मनुष्य के जीवन में हमेशा से धन की आवश्यकता बनी रही है। उसे पूरा करने के लिए बचत करना नितांत आवश्यक है। अतः व्यक्ति अपने सभी तरह के स्रोतों से आज और कल में संतुलन बनाए रखकर ही सुख-चैन से जीवन जी सकता है।

प्रश्न:
i) कौन सी कहावत सत्य है?
ii) कटु सत्य क्या है?
iii) मनुष्य की भलाई किस में है?
iv) धन की कमी से क्या संभव नहीं है?
v) व्यक्ति सुख-चैन से कब जी सकता है?
उत्तर:
i) समय बलवान है, इस पर किसी का वश नहीं चलता।
ii) कटु सत्य यह है कि कोई भी व्यक्ति दूसरों के सहारे न तो कल रह सका है, न आज रह पा रहा है, न ही भविष्य में रह सकता है।
iii) मनुष्य की भलाई इस में है कि वह प्रतिदिन जितनी भी हो अधिक-से-अधिक बचत करता रहे।
iv) धन की कमी से सुखपूर्वक तो क्या सामान्य जीवन भी जी पाना संभव नहीं है।
v) व्यक्ति अपने सभी तरह के स्रोतों से आज और कल में संतुलन बनाए रखकर ही सुख-चैन से जीवन जी सकता है।

10) धर्म को लोगों ने धोखे की दुकान बना रखा है। वे उसकी आड़ में स्वार्थ सिद्ध करते हैं। बात यह है कि लोग धर्म को छोड़कर सम्प्रदाय के जाल में फँस रहे हैं। सम्प्रदाय बाह्य कृत्यों पर जोर देते हैं। वे चिन्हों को अपनाकर धर्म के सार-तत्व को छोड़ देते हैं। धर्म मनुष्य को अंतर्मुखी बनाता है। उसके हृदय किवाड़ों को खोलता है, उसी आत्मा को विशाल, मन को उदार तथा चरित्र को उन्नत बनाता है। सम्प्रदाय संकीर्णता सिखाते हैं, जात-पांत, रूप-रंग तथा ऊँच-नीच के भेद भावों से ऊपर नहीं उठने देते।

प्रश्नः
i) धर्म को लोगों ने किसकी दुकान बना रखी है?
ii) लोग धर्म को छोड़कर किसके जाल में फंस रहे हैं?
iii) लोग किनको अपनाकर धर्म के सार तत्व को छोड़ देते हैं?
iv) धर्म मनुष्य को क्या बनाता है?
v) सम्प्रदाय क्या सिखाता है?
उत्तरः
i) धर्म को लोगों ने धोखे की दुकान बना रखी है।
ii) लोग धर्म को छोड़कर सम्प्रदाय के जाल में फंस रहे हैं।
iii) लोग चिन्हों को अपनाकर धर्म के सार-तत्व को छोड़ देते हैं।
iv) धर्म मनुष्य को अंतर्मुखी बनाता है।
v) सम्प्रदाय संकीर्णता सिखाते हैं।

11) इस स्वतंत्र भारत देश के नागरिक होने का गर्व तभी सार्थक कर सकेंगे जब हम आपस की फूट और वैमनस्य से बचकर देश की समृद्धि, संपन्नता एवं सुरक्षा में प्राणपण से योग दें। देश की स्वतंत्रता के लिए हमें अपनी अबाधिक स्वतंत्रता पर नियंत्रण करना होगा। स्वतंत्र देश के नागरिक की भाँति इस अनुशासन में रहना सीखें, हम अपने चुने हुए नेता का आदर करे, विपक्ष की बात सावधानी से सुनने को तैय्यार रहें और देश के हित को पार्टी, जाति, सम्प्रदाय और व्यक्तियों के हित की अपेक्षा अधिक महत्व दें।

प्रश्नः
i) हमें किस देश के नागरिक होने का गर्व है?
ii) हमें किससे बचकर देश की समृद्धि पर योगदान देना है?
iii) हमें किस पर नियंत्रण रखना होगा?
iv) स्वतंत्र देश के नागरिक होने के कारण हमें क्या-क्या करना होगा?
v) स्वतंत्र देश के नागरिकों को किस पर अधिक महत्व देना होगा?
उत्तरः
i) हमें स्वतंत्र भारत देश के नागरिक होने का गर्व है।
ii) हमें आपस की फूट और वैमनस्य से बचकर देश की समृद्धि पर योगदान देना है।
iii) हमें अपनी अबाधित स्वतंत्रता पर नियंत्रण करना होगा।
iv) हमें अनुशासन में रहना, चुने हुए नेता का आदर करने एवं विपक्ष की बात सावधानी से सुनने को तैयार रहना होगा।
v) स्वतंत्र देश के नागरिकों को पार्टी, जाति, संप्रदाय हित से आगे देशहित को रखना होगा।

12) संसार के सभी नेताओं ने अपनी प्रतिज्ञा में देश की भलाई के लिए निष्ठा से सेवा करने के सिद्धांतों की सत्यता पर विश्वास करके अपने कदम को आगे बढ़ाया है। अनुयायियों के विश्वासघात के भय से उन्होंने पलायन नहीं किया न आतताइयों के भय से उन्होंने उनके सामने सर झुकाया। मेरे जीवन की अपेक्षा मेरी मृत्यु से ही सत्य का अधिक कल्याण होगा – यह कहते हुए महात्मा ईसा सूली पर चढ़ गये और महान दार्शनिक सुकरात मुस्कुराते हुए जहर का प्याला पी गये। इतिहास साक्षी है कि महात्मा ईसा के साथ उनका धर्म सूली पर नहीं चढ़ाया जा सका और न ही सुकरात के साथ उनके शाश्वत सिद्धांतों का अंत हुआ।

प्रश्न:
i) संसार के सभी नेताओं ने कैसे अपने कदम को आगे बढ़ाया है?
ii) नेताओं ने किसके विश्वासघात के भय से पलायन नहीं किया?
ii) नेताओं ने किसके सामने अपना सर नहीं झुकाया?
iv) ‘मेरे जीवन की अपेक्षा मेरी मृत्यु से ही सत्य का अधिक कल्याण होगा’ इसे किस महात्मा ने कहा?
v) किसके शाश्वत सिद्धांतों का अंत न हुआ?
उत्तर:
i) संसार के सभी नेताओं ने देश की भलाई के लिए निष्ठा से सेवा करने के सिद्धांत की सत्यता पर विश्वास करके अपने कदम को आगे बढ़ाया है।
ii) नेताओं ने अनुयायियों के विश्वासघात के भय से पलायन नहीं किया।
iii) नेताओं ने आतताइयों के भय से उसके सामने अपना सर नहीं झुकाया।
iv) ‘मेरे जीवन की अपेक्षा मेरी मृत्यु से ही सत्य का अधिक कल्याण होगा’ इसे महात्मा ईसा ने कहा।
v) सुकरात के शाश्वत सिद्धांतों का अंत नहीं हुआ।

13) मनुष्य सुखाभिलाषी प्राणी है। सुख व आनंद प्राप्त करने के लिए वह कर्म करता है। यद्यपि इस कार्य में परिश्रम और कष्ट तो करना पड़ता है, तो भी परिणति आनंद में होती है। मनुष्य धन कमाता है, उससे जरूरत की चीजों के अतिरिक्त ऐश्वर्य और विलास की वस्तुयें खरीदता हैं। किसलिए? आनंद पाने के लिए। आनंद के बिना मानव का जीवन शून्य है। किसी काम को करने का आनंद तभी मिलता है जब वह स्वेच्छा से किया गया हो। एक प्रसन्नचित्त व्यक्ति अपने आस-पास के वातावरण की कभी नीरस होने नहीं देता। मानव के स्वभाव का असर दूसरे व्यक्तियों पर पड़ें बिना नहीं रहता।

प्रश्नः
i) मनुष्य कैसा प्राणी है?
ii) मनुष्य कर्म किसलिए करता है?
iii) मनुष्य धन क्यों कमाता है?
iv) आनंद के बिना मनुष्य का जीवन कैसा है?
v) एक प्रसन्नचित्त व्यक्ति किसे नीरस होने नहीं देता?
उत्तरः
i) मनुष्य सुखाभिलाषी प्राणी है।
ii) मनुष्य सुख और आनंद प्राप्त करने के लिए कर्म करता है।
iii) मनुष्य धन, ऐश्वर्य और विलास की वस्तुयें खरीदता है।
iv) आनंद के बिना मनुष्य का जीवन शून्य है।
v) एक प्रसन्नचित्त व्यक्ति अपने आसपास के वातावरण को नीरस होने नहीं देता।

14) हमारे देश में प्राचीन काल से अच्छे स्वास्थ्य के लिए उचित आहार पर जोर दिया गया है। चिकित्सा शास्त्र के आचार्यों और ऋषि-मुनियों ने आयुर्वेद में आहार की महत्ता प्रतिपादित की है। उपनिषद् में कहा गया है – अन्न ही हमारे मन का निर्माण करता है। चरक संहिता में लिखा है – अन्न प्राणियों का प्राण है। श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता के अनुसार भोजन अथवा आहार यथायोग्य होना चाहिए। हमारा आयुर्वेद तो भोजन अथवा आहार संबंधी हिदायतों से भरा पड़ा हैं। लेकिन फिर भी यह विडम्बना ही है कि भारत में आधे से अधिक बच्चे कुपोषण से किसी न किसी रूप में ग्रस्त हैं तथा एक-तिहाई के लगभग महिलाएं कुपोषण की शिकार हैं। आयुर्वेद में पथ्य एवं कुपथ्य को भी बहुत अधिक महत्व दिया गया हैं। आयुर्वेद में शरीर और मन के लिए हितकारी आहार को पथ्य एवं शरीर को नुकसान पहुंचाने वाले भोज्य पदार्थों को कुपथ्य कहा गया है।

प्रश्नः
i) हमारे देश में प्राचीन काल से अच्छे स्वास्थ्य के लिए किस पर जोर दिया गया है?
ii) उपनिषद् में क्या कहा गया हैं?
iii) श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता के अनुसार आहार किस प्रकार का होना चाहिए?
iv) भारत में आधे से अधिक बच्चे किससे व्यस्त हैं?
v) शरीर और मन के लिए हितकारी आहार को क्या कहते हैं?
उत्तरः
i) हमारे देश में प्राचीन काल से अच्छे स्वास्थ्य के लिए उचित आहार पर जोर दिया गया है।
ii) उपनिषद् में कहा गया है कि अन्न ही हमारे मन का निर्माण करता है।
iii) श्रीमद्भगवद्गीता के अनुसार आहार यथायोग्य होना चाहिए।
iv) भारत में आधे से अधिक बच्चे कुपोषण से ग्रसित है।
v) शरीर और मन के लिए हितकारी आहार को पथ्य कहा गया है।

You can Download 2nd PUC Hindi Workbook Answers रचना पत्र-लेखन, 2nd PUC Hindi Textbook Answers, Karnataka State Board Solutions help you to revise complete Syllabus and score more marks in your examinations.

Karnataka 2nd PUC Hindi Workbook Answers रचना पत्र-लेखन

1) अपने मित्र को नववर्ष की शुभकामना देते हुए पत्र लिखिए।

सरस्वतीपुरम
मैसूर
दिनांकः 3 अप्रैल 2019

प्रिय मित्र राजेश,

सप्रेम नमस्ते।
अंग्रेजी कैलेंडर के अनुसार जनवरी की पहली तारीख को नया वर्ष मनाया जाता है। भारतीय परंपरा के अनुसार हमारे देश में प्रतिवर्ष चैत्र शुक्ल प्रतिपदा को भी नया वर्ष मनाया जाता है। इस दिन को ‘गुड़ी पड़वा’ या ‘युगादि’ भी कहते हैं। इस वर्ष यह 31 मार्च को मनाया गया। मैं अपनी तथा अपने परिवार की ओर से तुम्हें ‘नव वर्ष की शुभकामनाएँ’ भेज रहा हूँ और कामना करता हूँ कि यह नया वर्ष तुम्हारे जीवन में नई उमंग और उत्साह लाये।

तुम्हारा प्रिय मित्र,
गोकुल

सेवा में,
राजेश
नं. 121, जयनगर,
बैंगलूर।

2) चरित्र प्रमाण पत्र प्राप्त करने हेतु अपने महाविद्यालय के प्राचार्य को आवेदन – पत्र लिखिए।

राममंदिर रोड,
बिजापुर
दिनांक : 10 जून 2019

सेवा में,
प्राचार्य जी,
सरकारी महाविद्यालय,
बिजापुर।

महोदय,
विषय : ‘चरित्र प्रमाण – पत्र’ सम्बन्धी आवेदन पत्र।

सविनय निवेदन है कि मैं इसी वर्ष आपके कॉलेज में बी.ए. प्रथम श्रेणी में उत्तीर्ण हुआ हूँ और अब धारवाड़ में हिन्दी एम.ए. करना चाहता हूँ। अतः मुझे ‘चरित्र प्रमाण पत्र’ की आवश्यकता है। कृपया मुझे उक्त प्रमाण – पत्र प्रदान करेंगे, तो मैं सुविधानुसार कर्नाटक विश्वविद्यालय में प्रवेश ले पाऊँगा।

कष्ट के लिए क्षमा करें।
धन्यवाद।

आपका शिष्य,
मल्लिकार्जुन

3) अपने क्षेत्र में डेंगू के प्रकोप का वर्णन करते हुए उचित कार्यवाही के लिए क्षेत्रिय स्वास्थ्याधिकारी को पत्र लिखिए।

नं. 121, गोलठाना,
रायचूर
दिनांकः 06 जून 2019

सेवा में,
स्वास्थ्य अधिकारी,
रायचूर जिला क्षेत्र
रायचूर।

महोदय,
विषय : ‘डेंगू रोग के नियंत्रण सम्बन्धी पत्र। जैसे कि आप को ज्ञात ही हैं पिछले 15 दिनों से रायचूर जिले में डेंगू’ का प्रकोप अत्यधिक होने से लोग परेशान हैं। यद्यपि आपने रोग – नियंत्रण के लिए कुछ प्रयास जरूर किये हैं, फिर भी पूरे जिले में रोग बढ़ता जा रहा है। अतः आपसे आग्रह किया जाता है, कि ठोस कार्यवाही की जाए, ताकि आम जनता चैन से अपना कार्य करने लग जाये।

धन्यवाद।

भवदीया,
सुमित्रा

4) छात्रावास से अपने पिता को एक पत्र लिखिए।

भगवान महावीर छात्रावास,
जैन कॉलेज, बेंगलूरु – 18
21 मई 2019

पूज्य पिताजी,

सादर चरण – स्पर्श।
आपका पत्र मिला। पढ़कर प्रसन्नता हुई। आपके विशेष प्रयत्न से मुझे एक अच्छा छात्रावास मिला है। यहाँ मेरी पढ़ाई तो अच्छी होती ही है, साथ ही साथ यहाँ के अच्छे वातावरण ने तथा सहपाठियों ने मेरा मन मोह लिया है। आप विश्वास रखें कि मैं आपके पास किसी प्रकार की शिकायत नहीं आने दूंगा। हमारे छात्रावास – प्रबंधक भी बहुत अच्छे हैं। वे हमें पूरा सहयोग देते हैं।

शेष सर्व कुशल।

आपका आज्ञाकारी पुत्र,
उत्तमचंद

सेवा में,
नवीन शर्मा
515, स्वामी विवेकानंद मार्ग
मैसूर – 570 024.

5) व्यायाम के महत्व को दर्शाते हुए अपने छोटे भाई को पत्र लिखिए।

बसवेश्वरनगर,
बेंगलूरु।
25 अप्रैल 2019

प्रिय रमेश,

शुभाशीर्वाद।
कल पिताजी का पत्र मिला। पता चला कि तुम्हारा स्वास्थ्य ठीक नहीं है। तुम जानते हो कि स्वस्थ शरीर में स्वस्थ मन रहता है। लगता है, तुम देर से उठते हो और व्यायाम करना भी छोड़ दिया है। इतना आलस्य ठीक नहीं। व्यायाम करने से शरीर में स्फूर्ति आती है। व्यायाम करनेवाला विद्यार्थी कभी परीक्षा में असफल नहीं होता। अतः सुबह जल्दी उठकर, घूमने जाया करो और नियमित व्यायाम भी करो।

आशा है, मेरी बातों की ओर ध्यान दोगे और अगले पत्र में इसके परिणाम के बारे में जरूर लिखोगे।

तुम्हारा अग्रज,
उमेश

सेवा में,
रमेश
501, राजाजीनगर
मंगलौर – 575 002

अतिरिक्त प्रश्न :

6) आप किसी यात्रा का वर्णन करते हुए अपने मित्र के नाम पत्र लिखिए।

18/70, मल्लेश्वरम्
बेंगलूरू
दिनांक : 07 अप्रैल 2019

प्रिय मित्र मोहन,
पर्यटन स्थल की यात्रा पूरी करके आने पर तुम्हारा पत्र मिला। समाचार पाकर खुशी हुई। यह बताते हुए खुशी हो रही है कि हमारी आगरा की यात्रा बहुत ही मनोरंजक और ज्ञानवर्धक रही। आगरा में मुझे ताजमहल की सुन्दरता मनमोहक लगी जिसमें कि चाँदनी रात में इसकी सुन्दरता देखते ही बनती है। वह मुमताज महल की स्मृति में शहजहाँ द्वारा बनवाया गया हैं। यह संगमरमर का बना हुआ है। इसके किनारे यमुना नदी बहती है। संगमरमर के विशाल चबूतरे पर इसका निर्माण किया गया है। चबूतरे के चारों कोनों पर चार-गगनचुम्बी मीनारें हैं। इस विशाल भवन के बीचों-बीच शहजहाँ और मुमताज की कब्र हैं।

पूर्णिमा की चाँदनी रात में महल के सौंदर्य को और महल की शिल्पकारी देखकर इसके कारीगरों की प्रशंसा किए बिना नहीं रहा जाता।

मित्र, इस बार उम्मीद करता हूँ कि तुम अपने माता-पिता के साथ इसे, इसके सौंदर्य को अवश्य देखने जाओगें। तभी मेरे इस आनंद का अनुभव कर सकोंगे।

माताजी और पिताजी को प्रणाम कहना। तुम्हारा मित्र तुम्हारे अगले पत्र के इंतजार में रहेगा।

तुम्हारा दोस्त
श्याम

सेवा में,
मोहन
101, एम.जी. रोड़
मैसूर – 570 006.

7) परीक्षा में सफल होने पर बधाई देते हुए अपने छोटे भाई को एक पत्र लिखिए।

515, स्वामी विवेकानन्दा मार्ग
मैसूर
15 मई, 2019

प्रिय अरुण,

शुभाशीष।
कल पिताजी के पत्र से ज्ञात हुआ कि तुमने हिन्दी भाषा-भूषण परीक्षा प्रथम श्रेणी में उत्तीर्ण की है। मुझे यह जानकर बड़ी प्रसन्नता हुई। तुम्हें इस सफलता के लिए मेरी हार्दिक बधाई।

मेरी शुभकामना है कि तुम जीवन में इसी तरह बराबर सफल होते रहो। यहाँ पर सब कुशल है।

तुम्हारा शुभाकांक्षी भाई
शरद

सेवा में,
अरुण
श्री विद्या निकेतन
201, महात्मा गाँधी मार्ग
कोलार

8) परीक्षा शुल्क भरने के लिए 500 रुपए माँगते हुए अपने पिता के नाम पत्र लिखिए।

267, 2 मेन रोड़
गांधी नगर
बेंगलूरु।
दिनांकः 10 जनवरी 2019

आदरणीय पिता जी

सादर प्रणाम।
आपका पत्र मिला। यह जानकर प्रसन्नता हुई कि घर में सभी सदस्य स्वस्थ हैं। मैं भी यहाँ कुशलतापूर्वक हूँ। अगले महीने से हमारी वार्षिक परीक्षाएँ होने जा रही है। मुझे परीक्षा शुल्क के रूप में 500 रुपये जमा करने के लिए कहा हैं।

अतः आपसे निवेदन है कि कृपा करके 500 रुपये का इंतजाम कर, डाक द्वारा शीघ्र भिजवा दीजिए।
अब पत्र समाप्त करता हूँ। माताजी को प्रणाम एवं छोटों को प्यार। पत्र अवश्य लिखते रहिएगा।

आपका आज्ञाकारी पुत्र
रमेश

सेवा में,
श्री रामचन्द्र
28/12
आर.वी. रोड़
मैसूर।

9) अपने क्षेत्र में मच्छरों के प्रकोप का वर्णन करते हुए उचित कार्यवाही के लिए स्वास्थ्य अधिकारी को पत्र लिखिए।

डॉ. एस रवीन्द्रन
आर.के. पुरम
बेंगलूरु।
दिनांक: 25 अप्रैल 2019

सेवा में,
स्वास्थ्याधिकारी
सिटी नगरपालिका
बेंगलूरु।

विषय : स्वास्थ्य अधिकारी को मच्छरों के प्रकोप के संबंध में
उचित कार्यवाही के लिए पत्र।

महोदय,
विनम्र निवेदन है कि बेंगलूरु के आर.के. पुरम इलाके में मच्छरों का भयंकर प्रकोप छाया हुआ है। इस साल लगातार वर्षा के कारण पानी जगह-जगह इकट्ठा हो गया है। पानी की उचित निकासी नहीं होने के कारण मच्छरों का प्रकोप बढ़ गया है। डेंगू और मलेरिया से लोग परेशान हो रहे हैं; बल्कि इसके चलते कई लोगों की मृत्यु भी हो चुकी है। हमारे क्षेत्र में सफाई कर्मी भी ठीक से सफाई नहीं करते हैं, और न ही किसी प्रकार की दवाइयों का छिड़काव ही हो रहा है।

आपसे अनुरोध है कि मलेरिया के मच्छर न फैलने पाएँ, इस ओर ध्यान देकर नगर की सफाई व रोगों से रक्षा के लिए उचित प्रबंध करें।

आपकी अति कृपा होगी।
धन्यवाद।

भवदीय
रवीन्द्रन

10) अपनी छोटी बहन को अच्छे स्वास्थ्य का महत्व बताते हुए एक पत्र लिखिए।

27, जयनगर
9वाँ ब्लॉक,
बेंगलूरु।
दिनांक: 30 मार्च, 2019

प्रिय शुभेक्षा

शुभाशीर्वाद।
पिताजी का पत्र मिला। जानकर बहुत हर्ष हुआ कि तुम आजकल बड़े मनोयोग से पढ़ाई कर रही हो। पिताजी ने यह भी लिखा कि तुम्हारा स्वास्थ्य ठीक नहीं रहता।

तुम्हें यह याद रखना चाहिए कि स्वस्थ शरीर में स्वस्थ मस्तिष्क निवास करता है। अतः तुम्हें रोज व्यायाम और सुबह-सुबह टहलना चाहिए। खानपान का समुचित ध्यान रखना चाहिए। व्यायाम और खानपान में भी उसी मनोयोग से ध्यान दो जिस मनोयोग से पढ़ाई में ध्यान देती हो। मुझे उम्मीद है कि अगले पत्र में तुम्हारी दिनचर्या में परिवर्तन और स्वस्थ होने की सूचना मिलेगी।

तुम्हारा भाई
अर्णित

सेवा में,
201, जयलक्ष्मीपुरम
कालिदास रोड़
मैसूर।

11) छात्रवृत्ति के लिए अपने कालेज को आवेदन पत्र लिखिए।

मोहन भागवत्
के.आर. पुरम्
बेंगलूरु।
दिनांक: 2 अप्रैल 2019

सेवा में,
मान्य प्रधानाचार्यजी
न्यू पब्लिक पी.यू. कालेज
जयनगर VI क्रास
बेंगलूरु।

मान्य महोदय,
विषय : छात्रवृत्ति के लिए प्रार्थना पत्र।

सेवा में निवेदन है कि मैं पी.यू.सी. द्वितीय वर्ष का ‘सी’ विभाग का विद्यार्थी हूँ। पी.यू.सी. प्रथम वर्ष की अंतिम परीक्षा में भी मैने 96% अंक पाये हैं।

मेरे घर की आर्थिक परिस्थिति अच्छी नहीं है। मेरे पिताजी एक फैक्टरी में सामान्य नौकर है। वे पूरी फीस देकर पढ़ा नहीं सकते।

मैं खेल-कूद में भी अच्छा हूँ। मैंने पिछले साल राज्यस्तर के बैस्कटबाल प्रतियोगिता में, 100 मी., 200 मी. दौड़ में भी प्रथम स्थान पाया है।

अतः आप से प्रार्थना है कि मेरी पढ़ाई के लिए छात्रवृत्ति देकर, मुझे पढ़ाई में आगे बढ़ने ‘का मौका प्रदान कीजिए।

धन्यवाद।

आपका आज्ञाकारी छात्र
मोहन भागवत्

12) अपनी बहन की शादी में भाग लेने केलिए चार दिन की छुट्टी माँगते हुए अपने महाविद्यालय के प्रधानाचार्य को आवेदन-पत्र लिखिए।

रामकृष्ण आश्रम रोड़
बसवनगुड़ी
बेंगलूरु।
दिनांकः 10 जून 2019

सेवा में,
श्रीमान प्रधानाचार्य
सरकारी महाविद्यालय
बेंगलूरु।

मान्यवर महोदय,
विषय : चार दिन की छुट्टी प्रदान करने के संबंध में आवेदन पत्र। – सविनय निवेदन है कि दिनांक 20 जून को मेरी बहन की शादी है। मुझे इस महत्वपूर्ण अवसर पर शादी की तैयारियों में मदद करने एवं विवाह में उपस्थित रहने के लिए चार दिनों के अवकाश की जरूरत है। अतः महोदय आपसे अनुरोध है कि मुझे 18 जून से 21 जून तक छुट्टी प्रदान करने का कष्ट करें।

आपकी अति कृपा होगी।

आपका आज्ञाकारी
मंजुनाथ स्वामी

13) आपके मोहल्ले में आए दिन चोरियों हो रही हैं। उनकी रोकथाम के लिए थानाध्यक्ष को गश्त बढ़ाने हेतु पत्र लिखिए।

जयलक्ष्मीपुरम
मैसूरु
दिनांकः 10 अगस्त, 2018

सेवा में,
थानाध्यक्ष जयलक्ष्मीपुरम पुलिस थाना,
मैसूरु।

मान्यवर,
विषय : मोहल्ले में हो रही चोरियों के रोकथाम के संबंध में प्रार्थना पत्र। मैं इस पत्र के माध्यम से आपका ध्यान हमारे मोहल्ले में आए दिन होनेवाली चोरियों के संबंध में आकर्षित करना चाहता हूँ। महोदय पिछले दो महीने से हमारे जयलक्ष्मीपुरम मोहल्ले में चोरी की वारदाते काफी बढ़ गयी है। कार्यवाही नहीं होने से चोरों के हौसलें बुलंद है। मोहल्ले के लोग दहशत और डर के साए में जीने को विवश है। आपसे अनुरोध है कि शीघ्रताशीघ्र चोरी की वारदातों पर लगाम कस कर इलाके में शांति व्यवस्था बहाल करने का प्रयास करें।

धन्यवाद सहित।

निवेदकः
तुषार नायक
एवं समस्त मोहल्लावासी
जयलक्ष्मीपुरम
मैसूरु।

14) शैक्षणिक प्रवास में भाग लेने के लिए अपने पिताजी से १५०० रु. माँगते हुए एक पत्र लिखिए।

दि.: 12 अप्रेल 2018

पूज्य पिताजी,

सादर प्रणाम।
मैं यहाँ आपके आशीर्वाद से कुशल हूँ। आपका पत्र मिला, पढ़कर अत्यंत खुशी हुई। मेरी पढ़ाई ठीक चल रही है। आपकी आज्ञानुसार मन लगाकर दिन-रात पढ़ाई में व्यस्त रहता हूँ। खेलकूद या गपशप में ज्यादा समय गँवा नहीं रहा हूँ।

हमारे स्कूल की ओर से अगले महीने 10 से 13 तारीख तक शैक्षिक-यात्रा का आयोजन हुआ है। उसमें मेरे सारे मित्र जा रहे हैं। उनके साथ मैं भी जाना चाहता हूँ। इसलिए मनीआर्डर द्वारा मुझे तुरंत १५०० रुपये भेजने की कृपा करें। माताजी को मेरा प्रणाम, छोटी बहन प्रिया को ढेर सारा प्यार।

आपका आज्ञाकारी बेटा,
हर्ष

सेवा में,
श्री प्रभाकर बी.एम.
घर नं. 521, भरत निवास
कर्नाटक स्कूल के समीप
राजेश्वरी नगर, बीदर जिला।

15) अपने शैक्षणिक प्रवास के अनुभव का वर्णन करते हुए अपनी माँ को पत्र लिखिए।

सरस्वती विद्या मन्दिर
राजाजीनगर, बेंगलूरु
दिनांक : 7 फरवरी 2018

पूज्य माताजी

सादर प्रणाम।
उम्मीद है आप और पिता जी कुशल मंगल होंगे। इस बार हमारे विद्यालय की ओर से आयोजित शैक्षणिक भ्रमण के लिए हमें विजयनगर साम्राज्य की राजधानी हंपी ले जाया गया। यह एक ऐतिहासिक नगर है जो कभी सुख समृद्धि में पूरे विश्व में मशहूर था। अब केवल यहाँ खंडहरों के रूप में अवशेष ही बचे हैं। हम्पी का विशाल फैलाव गोल चट्टानों के टीलों में विस्तृत है। इनमें मंदिर, महल, तहखाने, जल-खंडहर, पुराने बाजार, शाही मंडप, गढ़, चबूतरे, राजकोष आदि अनेक इमारतें हैं।

हम्पी का विठ्ठल मंदिर शानदार स्मारक है। इसके मुख्य हॉल के पूर्वी हिस्से में प्रसिद्ध शिला रथ है जो वास्तव में पत्थर के पहियों से चलता था। इसके अलावा कमल महल और जनानखाना भी ऐसे आश्चर्यों में शामिल है। शहर के शाही प्रवेश-द्वार पर हजारारामा मंदिर बना है। इस प्रकार इस शैक्षणिक भ्रमण से हमें कर्नाटक राज्य के इतिहास को जानने का अवसर मिला जिसे मैं आपको बताना चाहती थी। पिताजी को प्रणाम और छोटे भैया को ढेर सारा प्यार।

आपकी सुपुत्री
शुभेक्षा

सेवा में, श्री आनंद एस.
घर नं. 284, भारत निवास
डाकघर के समीप महालक्ष्मी नगर,
मैसूरु।

16) अपने क्षेत्र में बिजली आपूर्ति की समस्या के संबंध में संबंधित अधिकारी को पत्र लिखिए।

दिनांक : 25 मार्च 2018

प्रेषक
रामचन्द्र शर्मा
चौड़ेश्वरी देवालय मार्ग
आनेकल (बेंगलूरू)

सेवा में
मुख्याधिकारी महोदय,
बिजली बोर्ड कार्यालय,
आनेकल शाखा (बेंगलूरु जिला)

महोदय,
विषय : बार-बार बिजली चले जाने पर समस्याएँ बताने हेतु। सविनय निवेदन है कि हम चौड़ेश्वरी देवालय मार्ग के निवासी हैं। यहाँ पिछले एक सप्ताह से प्रति दिन 5 घंटे बिजली चली जाती है। वार्षिक परीक्षाएँ नजदीक आ जाने से बच्चों को भी पढ़ाई करने में काफी दिक्कत आ रही है। इतना ही नहीं, घरों में आजकल बिजली चालक यंत्रों पर निर्भर होना पड़ता है। आनेकल में पावरलूम अधिक रहने के कारण, सारा उद्योग ही ठप पड़ जाता है।

अतः आपसे अनुरोध है कि आप इसके लिए कोई ठोस कदम उठाएँ। हम आपके आभारी होंगे।

धन्यवाद।

भवदीय
रामचन्द्र शर्मा

17) अपने क्षेत्र में सार्वजनिक पुस्तकालय एवं वाचनालय खोलने की प्रार्थना करते हुए संबंधित अधिकारी को पत्र लिखिए।

4/37, सुभाष नगर
बेंगलूरु
दिनांकः 3 मार्च, 2019

सेवा में,
सचिव शिक्षा विभाग
बेंगलूरु.

महोदय,
विषय : सार्वजनिक पुस्तकालय एवं वाचनालय की स्थापना निवेदन है कि हम बेंगलूरु के नव-स्थापित इलाका सुभाष नगर के निवासी हैं। हम पिछले 3 वर्षों से यहाँ रह रहे हैं। यहाँ परिवहन, सड़क, जल, बिजली, खेल का मैदान आदि सभी मूलभूत आवश्यकताओं की पूर्ति हो चुकी है, लेकिन किसी पुस्तकालय या वाचनालय खोलने की ओर ध्यान नहीं दिया गया है। पुस्तकालय से संबंधित किसी भी काम के लिए लोगों को यहाँ से तीन किलोमीटर दूर जाना पड़ता है, जिससे बहुत परेशानी होती है। खासतौर पर बूढ़े और महिलाओं को बहुत कष्ट उठाना पड़ता हैं। आपसे निवेदन है कि कृपया इस ओर ध्यान दें। हमारे इलाके में एक नियमित पुस्तकालय तथा वाचनालय खोलने की कृपा करें।

धन्यवाद।

भवदीय
समीर

You can Download Chapter 4 Ancient Period Questions and Answers, Notes, 2nd PUC History Question Bank with Answers Karnataka State Board Solutions help you to revise complete Syllabus and score more marks in your examinations.

Karnataka 2nd PUC History Question Bank Chapter 4 Ancient Period

Vedic Culture

2nd PUC History Ancient Period One Mark Questions and Answers

I. Answer the following questions in one word or a sentence each.

Question 1.
What do you mean by the term Arya?
(or)
What is the meaning of the term Arya?
Answer:
Aryan means noble or master or a person dependent on agriculture.

Question 2.
From which word is the term veda derived?
(or)
From which language is the term veda derived?
Answer:
Veda is derived from the Sanskrit word ‘Vid’ which means wisdom.

Question 3.
What is meant by veda?
Answer:
Veda means knowledge or wisdom.

Question 4.
Name the first veda. (or) Which is the earliest among the vedas?
Answer:
There are four vedas, and Rig veda was the first to be composed.

Question 5.
Who was accepted as the head of the family during the Vedic period?
Answer:
During Vedic period, the eldest male member was the head of the family. He was called KulapathiorGrihapathi.

Question 6.
What was the main occupation of the Aryans?
Answer:
Agriculture was the main occupation of the Aryans.

Question 7.
What was ‘Kshetra’?
Answer:
Aryans called the cultivated land as ‘Kshetra’

Question 8.
What was considered as wealth by the Aryans?
Answer:
Cattle (cows) was considered as wealth by the Aryans.

Question 9.
What was the ceremony performed to send a child to school?
Answer:
Upanayanam was the ceremony performed to send a child to school. Vedic education commenced with the ceremony called upanayanam.

Question 10.
Which part of India became the birthplace of Vedic culture?
Answer:
Saptha Sindhu (present Punjab) area, called as Brahmavarta or Aryavarta, which means “Country created by God for the Aryans” was the birthplace of Vedic culture.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Two marks Questions and Answers

II. Answer the following questions in two words or two sentences each.

Question 1.
Name any two vedas?
Answer:
The four vedas are

1. Rig veda
2. Yajur veda
3. Sama veda
4. Atharvana veda

Question 2.
Which two political institutions assisted the King in the administration, during the vedic period ? (or)
Which were the two representative assemblies of the vedic age?
Answer:
Sabha and Samithi were the two politcal institutions which assisted the King in the administration of the land during the vedic period.

Question 3.
Name any two varnas?
(or)
Which were the four varnas in the vedic age?
Answer:

• Brahmanas
• Kshatriyas
• Vaisyas and
• Shudras.

Question 4.
Name the ashramas of Aryans.
Answer:

• Brahmacharya (acquiring education)
• Gruhastya (house holder)
• Vanaprastha (dwelling in the forest) and
• Sanyasa (complete renunciation)

Question 5.
Mention some amusements of the vedic people.
Answer:
Gambling, chariot racing, horse racing, music, dancing etc., were the different forms of amusements.

Question 6.
Name a few learned women of the vedic period.
Answer:
Gargi, Maitreyi, Shashwati, Lopamudra, Apala, Arundhathi, Ghosha, Vishwavana were some of the famous learned women of the vedic period.

Question 7.
What were the two intoxicants consumed by the vedic people?
Answer:
Soma and sura were the intoxicants consumed by the vedic people.

Question 8.
Which coins were used by the vedic people as the medium of exchange?
Answer:
Nishka (a piece of gold) and Shatamana were the coins used.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Five mark Questions and Answers

III. Answer the following questions in 15 to 20 sentences each.

Question 1.
Give an account of the political condition of Aryans.
Answer:
Political condition: During the early vedic age, their organization was tribal in character. Some of the important tribes were the Bharatas the Purus, Yadus, Anu etc. They were called ‘Janas’. The primary unit of the administration was the village (Grama) and Gramini was the head of the grama. Next administrative unit was the ‘Vis’ headed by ‘Vispathi’. The King (Rajan) was the head of the state.

Duty of the Kings: The tribes quarrelled with each other over cattle ownership and territories. The primary duty of the King was the protection of his tribe and he received gifts from the people. King (Rajan) was assisted by the purohita, sangrahatri, senapati, vispathis and graminis in the administration. Sabha (group of elders) and Samithi (group of experts) acted as a check on the possible misuse of power by the King. Sabha and samithi were two powerful bodies, who acted on democratic lines and decisions were taken by a majority of votes. The laws were based on customs and traditions.

During the later vedic period, the Kingdoms were divided into provinces and further subdivided into gopas, vishyas and gramas. Kingship became hereditary. Kura, Panchala, Kashi, Videha, Vidharbha etc., were the important Kingdoms. Imperialism came into existence. Kings began to perform (yagas) sacrifices like Rajasuya, Ashwamedha and Vajapeya for establishing their political supremacy. The Kings were assisted bby acouncil of ministers and officers. The sabha and samithi also continued to monitor.

The military consisted of infantry, elephant riders and the cavalry. Simple weapons of the early vedic age were replaced in the later vedic age by improved war weapons like bows and arrows, swords, spears, maces, axes etc. Helmets and armours used for protection made their appearance.

Question 2.
Explain the social conditions of Aryans during the vedic period.
Answer:
Social conditions: The earlly vedic people developed a highly organised society, that was based on the principle of monogamy. Polygamy was practiced only among the royal families. The eldest male member was the head of the family and was called ‘Kulapathi ’ or ‘Grihapathi ’. There was no system of child marriage but widow remarriage prevailed. Marriage was considered a sacred bond and after marriage the bride lived in the house of the bridegroom. Usually a joint family system prevailed among the Aryans.

Social divisions: The social divisions, chaturvarnas were based on professions. They were Brahmana, Kshatriya, Vaishya and Sudra. People could change professions and hence change their varnas. Thus, there was mobility among the varnas.

Position of the women: The status of women in the family and in the society was high and they had equal rights with men. Women were educated and highly civilized for e.g., Gargi, Maithreyi, Apala, Ghosha, Vishwavara and others. Girls had considerable freedom in selecting their life partners. Women freely moved out of their houses and attended public functions. A high standard of morality was maintained.

Food and entertainment: People consumed wheat, barley, rice, fruit, vegetables, fish and meat and intoxicating drinks like soma and sura. Aryans wore clothes made of cotton and wool. Ornaments were used by both men and women, made of gold, silver and flowers. Gambling, chariot and horse racing, hunting and dance were the popular entertainments. Education on the whole was oral. It aimed at the development of character and was religions in nature.

During the later vedic period, polygamy and polyandry came into practice. Patriarchal system still continued, and the joint family system was quite common. Women were still allowed to get higher education and participate in the religious rites. But the women were now under the protection of father or husband or a son. On the whole, position of the women had considerably come down.

Varnas turned into many castes. Caste system became hereditary and very rigid. Brahmanas and Kshatriyas enjoyed a higher status compared to Vaishyas and Shudras. Life of an individual was divided into four stages called ashramas. They were Brahmacharya, Grihastha, Vanaprastha and Sanyasa. Education was imparted by learned teachers to the students. The aim of education was to develop knowledge, character, truthfulness and devotion. Gurus enjoyed great respect.

Living standard of the people was usually the same as it was in the early vedic civilization. People still lived in villages and small towns. Agriculture was the main profession of the people.

Question 3.
Enumerate the religious condition of Aryans.
Answer:
Vedic religion is also known as ancient (sanatan) Hinduism and Brahmanical religion. The early vedic Aryans worshipped nature Gods. They worshipped Indra (God of Heaven), Varuna (rain), Agni (fire), Vayu (air), Surya (sun), Pruthvi (earth), Soma (plants), and Aditi and Usha the female Goddesses. There was no idol worship. The mode of worship was in the form of prayers and sacrifices.

The vedic people believed that God was most powerful, strong and moved the universe. Cow was considered a sacred animal and slaughter of cows was forbidden. Rig veda prescribed elaborate rules and procedures for the performance of sacrifices. Hotri, Adhvasya and Udgathri were the important priests to get favours from the God. Sacrifices were performed with milk, grains, ghee, soma and juice etc.

In the later vedic period, the practice of religion became highly complex and rigid. Idol worship came into existence. The number of Gods increased, and new deities like Brahma, Vishnu, Maheshwara, Ganesha, Kartikeya, Parvati, Laxmi, Kali, Durga etc. came to the worshipped. The practice of vedic religion became costly. They believed in magic and considered that with the help of magic and sorcery, many evils befalling could be prevented. New ideas had developed about soul. Vamas, Ashramas and Purusharthas (Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha) were an integral part of the vedic religion.

The entire life of a Hindu was guided by samskaras. It also believes in the concept of the transmigration of soul. The main objective of the soul is to attain salvation (Moksha). They developed the concept of monism-Atman (the true self) and Brahman (the ultimate reality). Knowledge was the best means of salvation. Bhakti, Jnana, Karma and Yoga were prescribed as the many paths to attain salvation. They also began to believe in the Karma theory. Karma must be rewarded in the next life. So Aryans lived a very pure, simple and contented life. The sacred books of Hindus are the Vedas, Upanishads, Puranas and Smrithis. Ramayana and Mahabharata were also given much importance.

Question 4.
Write a short note on education and science during vedic age.
Answer:
There were no regular educational institutions in the present sense of the term. Education was imparted in Gurukulas, Pathashalas, Agraharas, Temples and Ghatikas. Education on the whole was oral. Education was imparted by learned teachers to the students, who stayed with the teacher throughout their educational career. The aim of education was to develop knowledge, character, truthfulness and devotion. The teacher enjoyed great respect. The Panchalaparishad was a great academy of learning.

Higher education was imparted at the universities like Kanchi andTaxila. Education commenced with a ceremony called upanayanam. Both men and women received education. Gargi, Maithreyi, Lopamudra, Shaswathi and others were important women scholars. Vedas, Puranas, philosophy, logic, mathematics, astronomy, astrology, medicine etc, were the important subjects taught. Sanskrit was the medium of instruction.

Science: Aryans achieved great progress in mathematics, geometry, medicine and metal Iurgy. Calculations like the distance between the Sun and Moon, Earth and Moon and Sun and Earth were known to them. They also had knowledge of the occurance of eclipses, movement of Comets etc. Cure of diseases was done by using herbs, roots, leaves, oils, salts and mud. They followed the lunar calendar. We can see in the manufacture of the chariots, textiles, metal goods, musical instruments, ornaments etc of these people, the progress made by them in technology.

Rise of new Religion

2nd PUC History Ancient Period One Mark Questions and Answers

I. Answer the following questions in one word or a sentence each.

Question 1.
Who was the founder of Jainism?
Answer:
Rishabhanatha was the first Thirthankara who founded Jainism. (It is popularly believed that
Mahaveera, the 24th thirthankara, was the founder of Jainism).

Question 2.
Who was the 23rd Thirthankara of Jainism?
Answer:
Parshwanatha was the 23rdThirthankara.

Question 3.
Where was Vardhamana born? ‘
Ans.
Vardhamana was bom in 599 BCE at Kundagrama near Vaishali.

Question 4.
Where did Vardhamana attain enlightenment?
Answer:
Vardhamana attained enlightenment at Jrimbhi kagrama in Bihar.

Question 5.
Where did Mahaveera attain Nirvana.
Answer:
Mahaveera attained Nirvana at Pavapuri near Rajagruha in Bihar.

Question 6.
Who was the founder of Buddhism? (or) Who founded Buddhism?
Answer:
Gautama Buddha was the founder of Buddhism.

Question 7.
Where was Buddha born?
Answer:
Gautama Buddha was born in Lumbinivana (now in Nepal)

Question 8.
What was the original name of Buddha?
Answer:
Siddhartha was the original name of Buddha.

Question 9.
What is the meaning of the term ‘Buddha’?
Answer:
Buddha means the enlightened one.

Question 10.
In which place did Siddhartha attain enlightenment?
Answer:
Siddhartha attained enlightenment under a pipal tree at Gaya.

Question 11.
Where did Buddha deliver his first speech (sermon)?
Answer:
Buddha preached his first speech in the Deer park at Saranath near Varanasi.

Question 12.
Where did Buddha attain Nirvana?
Answer:
Buddha attained Nirvana at the age of eighty in Kushinagar(U.P).

Question 13.
Which is the symbol of Jainism?
Answer:
Swastik is the symbol of Jainism. Swastik means auspiciousness. It represents the world wheel. *

Question 14.
Which is the symbol of Buddhism?
Answer:
Turning of the wheel of Dharma (Law) or Dharma Chakra Parivarathana is the symbol of Buddhism.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Two Mark Questions and Answers

II. Answer the following questions in two words or two sentences each.

Question 1.
Who were the parents of Vardhamana?
Answer:
Siddhartha and Trishala were the parents of Vardhamana.

Question 2.
Mention the Trirathnas (Jewels) of Mahaveera.
Answer:
1. Right knowledge 2. Right faith 3. Right conduct are the trirathnas of Mahaveera.

Question 3.
Where were Jain councils held?
Answer:
The first Jain Council was held at Pataliputra in 300 B.C.E. (during Chandragupta Maurya’s reign). The second Jain council was held at Vallabhi in Gujarat in 512 B.C.E.

Question 4.
Which are the two sects of Jainism?
Answer:
The Shwetambaras (who wear white clothes) and the Digambaras (who do not wear any clothes).

Question 5.
Who were the parents of Gautama Buddha?
Answer:
Shuddhodana and Mayadevi were the parents of Buddha.

Question 6.
Mention the noble truths preached by Buddha?
Answer:
Buddha preached four noble truths (Arya satyas). They are

1. The world is full of sorrow, (pain or misery)
2. Desire is the root cause for all sufferings, (sorrow)
3. Sorrowing can be ended only by the elimination of desires.
4. Desire can be overcome by following Asthangamarga or eightfold path.

Question 7.
Name any two Kings who patronized Buddhism.
Answer:
Great Emperors like Ashoka, Kanishka and Harshavardhana patronized Buddhism.

Question 8.
Mention any two of the Tripitakas.
Answer:
The teachings of Buddha are collected in Tripitakas. They are:

1. Vinaya Pitaka
2. Sutta Pitaka and
3. Abhidamma Pi taka. Tripitakas are the holy or sacred books of Buddhism.

Question 9.
Name the two sects of Buddhism.
Answer:
Hinayana and Mahayana are the two sects of Buddhism.

Question 10.
Where were the Buddhist councils held?
Answer:
1 st Buddhist council was held circa 487 BCE at Rajagriha.
2nd Buddhist council was held circa 387 BCE at Vaishali.
3rd Buddhist council was held circa 251 BCE in Pataliputra.
4th Buddhist council was held circa 100 CE in Kashmir.

Question 11.
Which are the three Jewels (Triralnas) of Buddhism?
Answer:
Buddha, Dharma and Sangha are the three Jewels of Buddhism.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Five Marks Questions and Answers

III. Answer the following questions in 15 to 20 sentence each

Question 1.
What.were the factors responsible for the rise of new religions?
Answer:
Introduction: 6th century B.C.E. was a period of religious movement in India. There were several factors which contributed to the social upheaval of that period. The irregularities (caste, injustice and rigid practices) in the existing social and religious systems were exposed and there was a growing awareness about the drawbacks if one’s own culture, and it led to the growth of new religions.

Factors responsible for the rise of new religions:

1. Complications in the Vedic religion: In the beginning, vedic religion was very simple. The Aryans worshipped nature. Religion was not costly and there were sacrifices. Later, due to the influence of priests, a number of rigidities crept into religion. People got dissatisfied and they wanted changes which they found in the new religions.

2. Supremacy of the priestly class: In the early vedic age, no priests were needed to perform Yajna, but gradually things became complicated. It became more or less impossible for the family people to perform Yajnas by themselves without the help of priests. The Brahmanas enjoyed a number of special privileges and regarded themselves as superiors to all others.

3. Costly rituals in religion: Earlier there were no rituals associated with religion. The performance of simple rituals gradually became expensive and elaborate. Moreover, the performance of meaningless rituals was regarded as a waste by rationalists of that age. People were seeking a religion which would emphasize on simple ethics and righteous code of conduct.

4. The performance of sacrifices: During the later vedic age, the practice of performing sacrifices got started. Animal sacrifices formed part of the rituals, which became very costly and meaningless. So, people became disenchanted with the existing religions. They wanted a change, which they found in the new religions.

5. Sanskrit Hymns (mantras): Vedic literature was in Sanskrit, which was mastered only by the priestly class. Common people were unable to understand Sanskrit. The popular belief was, that the recital of the hymns alone would ensure prosperity and health, but gradually people lost faith in chanting mantras (hymns) blindly and were looking out for a religion based on simple ethical principles.

6. The caste system: Social system was rigid. There was discrimination among the di fferent classes of people. Intercaste marriage and even interdining were prohibited. A person bom in a particular caste was forced to follow the profession of his caste irrespective of his interest and attitude. Brahmanas enjoyed high status, but shudras had to suffer untold miseries. People became discontented due to the inequality in the society.

7. Birth of Great personalities: When people were unhappy and discontented, there arose two great personalities, namely Mahaveera and Buddha. They preached simple principles of Life in the Language of the common people. The simple path of salvation preachead by the new religions attracted the common people towards the new faiths.

Conclusion: All the above factors led to the growth of discontentment among the common people. It led to the growth of rational outlook and the spirit of enquiry. It led to the establishment of new religions like Jainism and Buddhism.

Question 2.
Discuss the life and teachings of Mahaveera.
Answer:
Vardhaman Mahaveer : (599-527 B.C.E.) Life of Mahaveera: He was the 24th Thirthankara and the real founder of Jainism. He was born in Kundagrama near Vaishali in 599 BCE in a kshatriya family. His parents were Siddhartha and Trishala. Siddhartha was the head of a kshatriya clan called Janatrika. Vardhaman had a very comfortable early life. At the age of 18, he married Yashoda and subsequently a daughter was born. Her name was Anojja or Priyadarshini. Mahaveera was inclined towards spiritual life and renounced worldly life.

He left home and wandered naked in search of the truth and the real meaning of life. He lived the life of self-mortification (renunciation) and deep meditation. Finally one day in Vaishaka, he attained Supreme Knowledge (Enlightenment) of Kaivalya (Jnana) and became Kcvalin (omniscient) at Jrimbhikagrama in Bihar. Later he became also known as Jina, which means conqueror of all likings and dislikings. His followers came to be known as Jains. Vardhaman was hailed as Mahaveer or the Great Conqueror.

Propagation of the Religion: Mahaveera spent the rest of his life in preaching his doctrines to the people of Magadha, Anga, Mithila, Kosala and other parts of India. His religion attracted a large number of followers and also Kings like Bindusara and Ajatashatru. He accepted the teachings of Parshwanatha its the basis of Jainism. He lived till the age of 72 years and passed away at Pavapuri near Patna, in 527 BCE.

Teachings of Mahaveera: The main basis of Jainism is the belief in soul and karma. The main objective of Jainism is the attainment of salvation by freeing the soul from the earthly pleasures. Mahaveera preached five vows and three jewels for the attainment of salvation.

Three jewels or thiratnas:

1. Right Knowleage is understanding the doctrines of Jainism.
2. Right Faith is the firm belief in the omniscience of Mahaveera.
3. Right action or conduct is the fulfilment of the five great vows.

The main teaching of Mahaveera was “Ahimsa Paramodharma”. He paid great importance to non-violence and rejected the authority of the vedas and the supremacy of the brahmins. He believed in establishing an order which would lead the people to the path of truth and salvation. To liberate the soul from the bondage of karma, it is necessary to destroy the latter. This can be achieved by an individual by practicing the five vows or principles.

Five vows (principles) or avoidance of the five evil karmas: Mahaveera preached the ethical code and insisted that the following five should be practiced.
They are:

• Non – violence (Ahimsa): Jainism believed in an extreme form of non-violence. Ahimsa means that violence should not be caused by words, thoughts and actions. There should be no harm or ill-treatment to any living being.
• Truth (Satya): One should not speak untruth, and should also avoid speaking a bitter truth.
• Non-stealing (Asteya): One should never steal or pick up things that do not belong to them cither directly or indirectly.
• Non-possession (Aparigraha): Aparigraha means one is to avoid the longing for worldly things, possession of wealtth and property.
• Chastity (Brahmacharya): Chastity means control of passions, emotions and desires. Purity of thought, words and deed are to be cultivated.

All these five principles will lead to the path of salvation.
Mahaveera did not believe that the universe was created by God nor did he make any reference to Him. He preached that change was a natural phenomenon. Birth and death were natural and applicable to men and matter. He condemned the caste system and the sacrificial rituals. Nirvana should be the ultimate aim of a soul.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Ten Marks Questions and Answers

IV. Answer the following in 30 to 40 sentences.

Question 1.
Sketch the life and teachings of Buddha.
Answer:
Life of Gauthama Buddha: Gautama Buddha was the founder of Buddhism. He was bom at Lumbinivana in 583 BCE. He was the son of a shakya chief Shuddhodhana and Mayadevi. Gauthama lost his mother and was brought up by his stepmother, Mahaprajapati Gautami. The early name of Gauthama was Siddhartha. He was brought up in great luxury and manned Yashodhara at the age of 16. A son was born to them, who was named Rahula. According to a Jataka story, one day when Siddhartha went out with his charioteer Channa, he saw for the first time in his life four ominous sights. Seeing an old man, a diseased (sick) person, a dead body and an ascetic (sage), resulted in bringing in him a realization of the miseries of the world.

He renounced the world to find a remedy to end these human woes. This event is known as “The Great Renunciation”. To find a solution to the problems of old age, sickness, and death, he left his home, went out to Uravcla forest near Gaya and spent six years wandering in that pursuit. During that period he seif inflicted maximum pain to his body and soul and finally came to the conclusion that hunger and starvation was not the way to find the truth. Thereafter he spent some period, meditating under a pipal tree at Bodhgaya. He got enlightenment at last, about the truths regarding life and death. Having received the light, Gauthama became Buddha or the Enlightened one. He was also called “Thathagatha” which means one who has realized the truth.

Gautama as a preacher: After attaining Knowledge (Enlightenment), he decided to spread his ideas among the suffering humanity. In the Deer park near Saranath (near Benaras), he delivered his first sermon and converted five disciples into Buddhism. This is known as the Dharma Chakra Pravarthan or turning of the wheel of law (Dharma). Dharma chakra is the symbol of Buddhism. Buddha went on preaching, travelling from place to place. His personality and simplicity attracted people towards Buddhism. Buddha attained parinirvana at Kushinagara (U.P.) at the age of eighty. Edwin Arnold refers to him as ‘The light of Asia”. His birth day (ful 1 moon day) is famous and celebrated as ‘Buddha Poornima”.

Teachings orBuddha: Buddha wanted to prescribe a new code of conduct, which would lead to the spiritual development of the soul. He condemned the authority of the Vedas, superiority of Brahmins, meaningless performance of sacrifices and the caste system. He laid down the Principles of equality among all human beings. Buddha never wished to discuss about the Creator of the Universe or God.

Buddha taught his preachings through conversation, lectures and parables. His method of teaching was unique. He preached that the world was full of sorrow and ignorance. Ignorance produces desire, desire leads to action (karma), action leads to impulses, to be born again and again in order to satisfy the desires. Thus, he believed in transmigration and that the chain of rebirth can be stopped if the person realises that worldly things are not permanent. Buddha laid down the analysis of life with four different principles. His favourite sutra was ‘Four Noble Truths or Aryasatyas’, which emphasised the fact that life was full of pain (misery) which could be removed only by the removal of all desires.

His four noble truths are:

1. Life is full of sorrow and pain. (Existence of sorrow)
2. Desire is the root cause for sorrow. (Cause of sorrow)
3. To destroy misery, desire must be destroyed first. (The removal of sorrow)
4. Desire can be overcome by following the ‘ Asthangamarga or the Middle Path’.

When desire ceases, rebirth ceases and the soul can find peace and enjoy emal bliss. Buddha prescribed the Middle path or Asthangamarga, in order to achieve self control and salvation. The eightfold path or the midde path consists of

1. Right faith
2. Right thought
3. Right speech
4. Right conduct
5. Right effort
6. Right meditation
7. Right livelihood and
8. Right mindfulness.

This path is known as the middle path or eightfold path. Buddha ruled out completely self-indulgence and self-mortification. Buddhist teachings consitute the three pitakas.

Buddha prescribed several codes of conduct for his followers such as – not to steal other’s properties, not to kill (non-violence), not to use intoxicants, not to tell lies, not to accept or keep money, not to commit adultery, not to sleep on comfortable beds, always intent upon achieving their sacred goals. Nirvana is the final result of the end of all desires. Man is to be judged by his deeds rather than by his birth and family. IIe opposed caste system and advocated equality. He gave importance to non-violence. He did not refer to God. Buddha. Pharma and Sangha are the three gems of Buddhism.

Mauryans (320-180 BCE)

2nd PUC History Ancient Period One Mark Questions and Answers

I. Answer the following questions in one word or a sentence each.

Question 1.
Who was the founder of the Mauryan dynasty?
Answer:
Chandragupta Maurya was the founder.

Question 2.
Which was the capital of the Mauryans?
Answer:
Pataliputra (present Patna) was their capital.

Question 3.
Which was the Royal emblem of the Mauryans?
Answer:
Dharmachakra was the Royal emblem of the Mauryans.

Question 4.
Who was the author of Mudrarakshasa?
Answer:
Vishakadatta was the author of Mudrarakshasa.

Question 5.
Who wrote Arthashasthra?
Answer:
Kautilya wrote Arthashasthra.

Question 6.
Who wrote the book ‘Indica’?
Answer:
Megasthanes the Greek Ambassador wrote the book Indica.

Question 7.
Who helped Chandragupta to establish the Mauryan Empire?
Answer:
Kautilya (Chanakya).

Question 8.
Who was the Nanda ruler defeated by Chandragupta Maurya?
Answer:
Dhanananda was the Nanda Ruler defeated by Chandragupta Maurya.

Question 9.
Who sent Megasthanes as Ambassador to the court of Chandragupta Maurya?
Answer:
Seleucus sent Megasthanes as Ambassador to the court of Chandragupta Maurya.

Question 10.
Name the Greek Ruler defeated by Chandragupta Maurya.
Answer:
Seleucus was the Greek Ruler defeated by Chandragupta Maurya.

Question 11.
Name the Mauryan Ruler who followed Jainism.
Answer:
Chandragupta Maurya.

Question 12.
Where did Chandragupta Maurya spend his last days?
Answer:
Chandragupta Maurya spent his last days at Shravanabelagola in Karnataka.

Question 13.
Who was the greatest Ruler of the Mauryan dynasty?
Answer:
Ashoka. .

Question 14.
Which edict of Ashoka tells us about the Kalinga war?
Answer:
Rock edict XIII gives us details about the Kalinga war.

Question 15.
Who embraced Buddhism after the Kalinga war?
Answer:
Ashoka embraced Buddhism.

Question 16.
Where was the Third Buddhist Council held?
Answer:
The Third Buddhist Council was held at Pataliputra in 250 BCE.

Question 17.
Which was the biggest stupa built by Ashoka?
Answer:
Sanchi Stupa in Madhya Pradesh was the biggest Stupabuiltby Ashoka.

Question 18.
Which is the National emblem of India.
Answer:
The Dharmachakra and on the abacus four Lions which are seated back to back is the National emblem of India.

Question 19.
Who was the founder of the Sathavahana dynasty?
Answer:
Simuka was the founder of the Sathavahana dynasty.

Question 20.
Which was the capital of the Sathavahanas?
Answer:
Prathisthana or Paithan was the capital of the Sathavahanas.

Question 21.
Who wrote the book ‘Gathasapthasati’?
Answer:
King Hal a wrote Gathasapthasati in Prakrit language.

Question 22.
Which was the inscription issued by Gautami Balashri?
Answer:
The Nasik cave inscription.

Question 23.
Which event (incident) was the turning point in the life of Ashoka?
Answer:
Kalinga war (261 B.C.) was the turning point in the life of Ashoka.

Question 24.
What was the advice given by Ashoka to his subjects in his edicts?
Answer:
Ashoka always wished for mutual reverence, toleration and morality.

Question 25.
Which inscriptions mention the name of Ashoka?
Answer:
The Maski and Calcutta edicts refer to the King as ‘Devanampriya Ashokasa’.

Question 26.
Who converted Ashoka to Buddhism?
Answer:
Upa Gupta, the Buddhist monk converted Ashoka to Buddhism.

Question 27.
Which were the titles assumed by GautamiputraSathakarni?
Answer:
Tri SamudraToyaPithavahanaandShaka-Yavana-PahlavaNisudhana.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Two Marks Questions and Answers

II. Answer the following questions in two words or two sentence each

Question 1.
Name the important sources which help us to know’ about the Mauryan dynasty.
Answer:
Arthashasthra of Kautilya, Indica of Megasthanes, Mudrarakshasa of Vishakadatta, the Jain works (Parishishtaparva and Kalpasutra), Buddhist works (Deepavamsa and Mahavamsa), Ashokan edicts, Monuments etc.,

Question 2.
Where do we find Ashokan inscriptions in Karnataka?
Answer:
Ashokan inscriptions are found at Maski (RaichurDist), Gavimatha and Palkigonda (Koppala Dist), Brahmagiri, Siddapura and Jatingarameshwara (Chitradurga Dist), Nittur and Udayagollam (Bellary Dist) and Sannathi (Yadagiri Dist).

Question 3.
Which were the two types of courts that existed in the Mauryan period?
Answer:
Dharmastheyas (Civil cases) and Kantakashodana (Criminal cases).

Question 4.
In which district of Karnataka is Maski located? What is the importance of it?
Answer:
Maski is located in Raichur District. This ediet which refers to ‘Devanampriya Ashokasa’
confirms that Ashoka had the titles ‘Devanampriya’and ‘Priyadarshi Raja’.

Question 5.
Who was Megasthanes? Name his work.
Answer:
Megasthanes was the Greek Ambassador of Seleucus to the court of Chandragupta Maurya. He wrote the book called Indica.

Question 6.
Name any two works of Vishakadatta.
Answer:
Mudrarakshasa and Devi Chandraguptham.

Question 7.
Who was Kautilya? Which was his famous work? (or) For what was Kautilya famous?
Answer:
Kautilya was a Statesman, Scholar and teacher of Chandragupta Maurya. He is famous for his work Arthashastra which explains the art of governance of a country.

Question 8.
Which ruler appointed Dharmamahamathras? What was their duty?
Answer:
Ashoka appointed Dharmamahamathras to spread Buddhism among the people.

Question 9.
Name the important Rulers of Sathavahanas.
Answer:
Simukha, Hala, Gautamiputra Sathakami, Vashistiputra Pulamayi, Yajnashri and others were the important Sathavahana Rulers.

Question 10.
Name the important architectural centres of the Sathavahanas.
Answer:
Nasik, Ajantha, Amaravathi, Nagarjunakonda, Ghantasala, Karle, Kanheri, Kondane, Gudiwada, Jaggayapeta, etc., are the important architectural centres of the Sathavahanas.

Question 11.
Name the administrative provinces of Mauryans.
Answer:
The Mauryan Empire consisted of 5 provinces whose capitals were:

1. Gimar
2. Taxila
3. Ujjain
4. Suvamagiri and
5. Tosali.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Five Marks Questions and Answers

III. Answer the following questions in 15 to 20 sentences each.

Question 1.
Explain (he achievements of Chandragupta Maurya.
Answer:
Chandragupta Maurya 324-300 BCE: Chandragupta Maurya was the founder of the Mauryan dynasty. There is very little information about his parents, his birth and early childhood, lie was born in the capital city of Pataliputra. Kautilya, better known as Chanakya, a brahmin from Takshashi la took the orphan under his care, educated him in all the princely requirements and trained him to be a worthy commander and Ruler. Chandragupta was fortunate to come under the influence of this great thinker, politician and statesman.

Military Achievements:

1. Conquests of Punjab: Chandragupta built a strong army under the guidance of
Chanakya and defeated the petty Rulers of Punjab and annexed their regions. He then marched against Magadha.

2. Defect of the Nanda ruler: Chandragupta made several attempts to defeat the Nandas. Chanakya had vowed to depose Dhanananda, because he had insulted Chanakya. Dhanananda was finally defeated and killed and Chandragupta Maurya became the King of Magadha and established the Mauryan dynasty. After overthrowing and ending Dhanananda’s oppressive rule, Chandragupta consolidated his power and freed the country from foreign occupation. The Greek Governors appointed by Alexander in the Sindh and Punjab provinces were defeated and the territories were annexed by Chandragupta.

3. War with Seleucus: After the death of Alexander, the eastern part of his Empire went over to Seleucus. A war ensued between Seleucus and Chandragupta Maurya. Seleucus was defeated, and he had to sign a treaty with Chandragupta and had to surrender the provinces of Kabul, Afghanistan, Kandahar and Baluchistan. This victory of Chandragupta spread his Kingdom upto the frontiers of Hindukush (Afghanisthan)in the north west. Seleucus maintained friendly relations with the Mauryas and sent Megasthanes as his A mbassador to Patal i putra.

Assessment: Chandragupta was undoubtedly one of the greatest Rulers of India. He expelled the Greeks from the country. According to Jain tradition, in the last days of his reign, Chandragupta abdicated the throne and embraced Jainism under the influence of the Jain scholar Bhadrabahu. lie spent his last days at Shravanabelagola in Karnataka and died by performing ‘Sallekhana’ in 300 BCE.

Question 2.
What were the measures taken by Ashoka for the spread of Buddhism?
Answer:
The greatness of Ashoka is not only due to his territorial expansion, but for his moral greatness and the practical ethics which he propagated. The Kalinga war was a turning point in the life of Ashoka. Seeing the extent of the loss of human li fe and bloodshed, Ashoka was fi 1 led with sorrow and vowed to stop ‘Digvijaya or Bhcri Ghosha (Beating of war drums) and to take up ‘Dharmavijaya’ (Winning the hearts of the people). He declared “The Chief conquest is the conquest by right path and love and not by might and sin”. The Bhabru edict clearly indicates Ashoka’s faith in Buddha, Sangha and Dharmas.

The intention of Ashoka was to spread Buddhism not only in India but also outside India. He took many measures for the same. They were:

• He visited the holy places from the life of Buddha such as Lumbini, Kapilavastu. Gaya, Saranath and arranged discourses on religion.
• He constructed a large number of monasteries all over the Empire and gave liberal grants for such institutions.
• He spread the doctrines of Buddha by engraving them on rocks, pillars and on the walls of the caves throughout his Empire.
• Ashoka appointed officers called Dharmamahamathras, Yukthas and Rajjukas to spread Buddhism among people. He also appointed Sthree Adhyaksha Mahamalras to take care of women and bring religious awareness among them.
• He organised the 3rd Buddhist Council at Pataliputra which was presided by Moggaliputra Tissa in 250 BCE. The purpose was to settle the differences among the Buddhists.
• Ashoka sent missionaries to preach Buddhism in Afghanisthan, Burma, Srilanka and Europe. He deputed his son Mahendra and daughter Sanghamithra to Srilanka with a Bodhi Sapling as a symbol of peace.
• He undertook many welfare activities like digging of wells, building rest houses, planting of fruit-bearing trees etc., He constructed hospitals for men and animals. He made arrangements to feed the poor and physically disabled persons. His aim was “Service and Sacrifice”.

Ashoka believed that a moral life was the pre-requisite for a happy life. He laid emphasis on simple living, high thinking and a good moral life. On account of his extensive propagation, Buddism became a religion of the masses in India and it also spread to Nepal, Tibet, China, Japan, Burma and many South-east Asian countries and thus became a world religion during his period.

Question 3.
Explain the contributions of Mauryans to Art and Architecture
(or)
What were the main contributions of Mauryans to Art and Architecture?
Answer:
Mauryans built several buildings, palaces and monuments. They used wood, bricks and stones as building materials.
Stupas: The stupas were dome like mounds of brick or stone, built in honor of Buddha. The purpose of erecting stupas was to enshrine some of the relics of Buddha. It is believed that Ashoka built about 84,000 stupas all over his Empire, The best of them are still surviving at Sanchi, Barahut and Saranath. Sanchi stupa is the biggest Stupa.

Rock-cut halls or Caves: Ashoka and his grandson Dasharatha built caves for meditation for the Buddhist monks. The Sudhama cave which was dedicated to the Ajivika monks and Lamasha Rishi Cave at the Barabar hills near Gaya (Bihar) were built by Ashoka. The largest cave of Dasaratha’s time was the Gopi cave at the Nagarjuna hills.

Monolithic Pillars : Stone pillars of various designs were erected during the reign of Ashoka. Such pillars were generally installed in front of places of worship. Each pillar weighs about 50 tons and measures 30 feet in height. The pillars consist of a base, a shaft and on top of these pillars there are figures of animals such as lion, elephant or horse on an inverted lotus called Capitals.

The most important among them is the pillar at Saranath. It consists of an inverted lotus, the Dharmachakra and on the abacus four lions which are seated back to back. The Chakra and the Animals all have a deep symbolism and are connected with the life and teachings of Buddha in some form. The Saranath Capital was adopted as our national emblem by the Indian Government on 26th January 1950.

Palaces: The palaces in Pataliputra were renowned for their beauty. Megasthenes has given a good description of this city. According to them, the Royal Palace was one of the best in the world. The Chinese pilgrim Fa-hien has also given us a good description of that period.

Question 4.
Describe the administration of Mauryans.
Answer:
Mauryan Administration: The Mauryans established an efficient.system of administration.
Their administration was benevolent in nature. They followed certain principles of Dharma to establish an uniform administrative system. The basic principle of administration was the promotion of welfare of the people.

The Central Government:

1. King: King was the supreme authority in the state. Kings did not enjoy absolute monarchy. They followed certain principles of Dharma. The main duty of the King was to work for the welfare of the people. Kautilya always considered the King as a “Dharma Pravartaka and Public servant”.

2. Mantri Parishad (The Council of Ministers): The Mantri Parishad was an important organ of the administration in the Mauryan Empire. The Mantri Parishad was established to assist the King in the administration. The ministers were appointed by the King on the basis of their merits and abilities. Each minister was in charge of a department. The mantris were higher officials like Prime Minister, Purohit, Senapati, Yuvaraja, Amatya and others. All matters were considered and discussed in the Mantri Parishad.

3. Secretarial: Administrative matters of the Central Government were divided into 30 departments, each under a superintendent. They dealt with the activities of the state such as irrigation, market, education, famine relief etc.,

4. Judicial Administration: King was the supreme authority in the Judiciary. His court was the final authority of appeal, There were two kinds of courts called Dharma Stheyas which dealt with Civil cases and Kantakashodanas which dealt with Criminal causes. A uniform system of law was introduced throughout the Kingdom. Justice was imparted without any delay. Village heads solved the cases within the villages. The Mauryan Penal Code was very severe.

5. Revenue (Finance) Administration: Land tax was the main source of income of the state. of the annual produce was fixed as the tax. Taxes were collected both in cash and kind. Samahart was the in charge of Revenue. Taxes were also levied on professions, houses, cattle, sales tax forest products etc.,

Provincial Administration: Mauryan Empire was divided into Five provinces with their capitals at Gimar, Taxi la, Ujjain, Tosaii andSuvamagiri. Princes (Kumaras) or Governors were incharge of the provinces. Each province was divided into a number of Mandalas or Districts that were governed by Sthanikas. Village was the Primary unit of administration. Gramika was its head. The official in charge of ten villages was called as ‘Gopa’

Pataliputra Administration: The Greek Ambassador Megasthanes gives us a very good account of the administration of the Pataliputra. According to him, administrative work was earned by a council of 30 members divided into 6 boards of five members each. Each board was in charge of a particular branch of Municipal work.

Military Administration: The Mauryans had developed a well organised Military system. Kautilya gives us an elaborate account of the Mauryan army. It was very large, well equipped and disciplined. Kautilya speaks of four kinds of Forts (Duigas) for security. The King personally led the army during wars. The army of Chandragupta consisted of 6,00,000 infantry, 30,000 cavalry and 9000 elephants. The war office was administered by six boards, each consisting of five members. They were: 1) Navy, 2) Transport, 3) Infantry, 4) Cavalary, 5) Chariots and 6) Elephant force. ‘Senapati’ was the highest officer of the army.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Ten Marks Questions and Answers

III. Answer the following questions in 30 to 40 sentences.

Question 1.
Explain the life and achievements of Ashoka.
Answer:
Ashoka the Great: Ashoka was the greatest ruler of the Mauryas and one of the renowned Rulers of the world. He is mentioned in his edicts as ‘Devanampriya’ and “Priyadarshi’. He considered his subjects as his own children and considered that the Primary duty of the King was to promote the welfare of the people. He came to power in 273 BCE, but his coronation was celebrated only in 269 BCE.

Kalinga War (261 BCE) : Ashoka waged a war against the Kalinga Kingdom as he considered war and annexation as the rightful duty of a King. It was this imperialistic consideration that prompted Ashoka to conquer Kalinga. Rock Edict XIII of Ashoka tells us that the war ended with bloodshed and misery. One lakh people died, 1.5 lakh were taken as prisoners of war. This event had a deep impact on his mind. Kalinga War was the turning point in the life of Ashoka becuase after the war he embraced Buddhism by the influence of Upagupta and followed the principles of non-violence.

Ashoka was filled with sorrow at the sight of all that bloodshed, that this became his last war as he decided not to wage wars in future. He changed his foreign policy from ‘Digvijaya or Bherighosha’ (Beating of war drums) to ‘Dharmaghosha orVijaya (winning the hearts of the people). He declared that ‘The real conquest was the conquest by right path and love and not by might and sin”. Ashoka did not wage any war further and dedicated his whole life for the propagation of Dhairna and Peace.

Ashokan Empire extended from Kashmir and Afghanisthan in the North to Karnataka in the South, from Bengal in the East to Sindu and Baluchis than in the West.

Edicts of Ashoka: Ashoka issued a number of Inscriptions which throw light on the religion, society and administration of the Mauryans. Ashokan inscriptions are found throughout the extent of his Empire. The languages of these edicts were Pali and Prakriti and the script used was Brahmi and Kharoshti. Brahmi script, which was a riddle for a long time was deciphered by James Princep in 1831. Ashokan inscriptions are found in places like Pataliputra, Rampurava, Rummindei, Sravasti, Bodhgaya, Bhabru, Barabara, Sanchi, Kausambi, Maski, Taxila etc., The edicts are classified into 1) Major rock edicts, 2) Minor rock edicts, 3) Pillar inscriptions and 4) Cave inscriptions.

Edicts in Karnataka: A number of Ashokan edicts have been discovered in Karnataka. They have been found at Maski (Raichur dist). Gavimatha and Palkigonda (Koppal Dist), Siddapur, Brahmagiri and Jatingarameshwar(Chitradurga dist) Nittur and Udayagollam (Bellary Dist) and Sannathi (Yadagiri). Most of the edicts of Ashoka, preach moral values to the people and about the teachings of Buddha. The Maski and Calcutta edicts refer to King Ashoka as ‘Devanampriya Asokasa’. Thus these edicts helped in identifying the other edicts of Ashoka. He wanted to inculcate the virtues of practical morality, compassion to animals, reverence and obedience to teachers, elders and parents, truthfulness etc.,

Religion: Ashoka made a great contribution to religion. He believed that a moral life was a pre-requisite of happy life. He propogated the ideas of developing virtues like truthfulness, purity of thought, kindness, honesty, gratitude, self-restraint and compassion. He laid emphasis on simple living, high thinking and leading a good moral life. The Bhabru edict clearly indicates Ashoka’s faith in Buddha, Sangha and Dharma. Ashoka took many measures for the spread of Buddhism.

He visited the holy places from the life of Buddha. He constructed monasteries and gave liberal grants to them. He followed the policy of religious tolerance. He assumed the title ‘Devanmapriya’ (beloved of the Oods). He spread the doctrines of Buddha by engraving them on rock edicts throughout the Empire. He appointed officers called Dharmamahamathras, Yukthas, Rajjukas and Sthree Adhyaksha Mahamatras to spread Dharma among the people. Ashoka organised the 3rd Buddhist council at Pataliputra in 250 BCE, to settle the internal differences among the Buddhists. He took much interest and adopted special measures to propagate Buddhism. He sent
Buddhist missionaries to far off lands to preach the Gospel of Buddha.

He deputed his son Mahendra amd daughter Sanghamitra to Sri Lanka to spread Buddhism. It was on account of his extensive propagation that Buddhism became a religion of the masses in India and also spread to Nepal, Tibet, China, Japan, Burma and many South¬East Asian Countries. He took many welfare activities and made arrangements to feed the poor and physically disabled people. He was concerned with the moral and spiritual welfare of his people. H.G Wells remarks that “Amidst the tens of thousands of Majesties and Royal Highnesses and the like, the name of Ashoka shines and shines along like a Star”.

Kushanas

2nd PUC History Ancient Period One Mark Questions and Answers

I. Answer the following questions in one word or a sentence each.

Question 1.
Which was the original home of the Kushanas?
Answer:
China was the original home of the Kushanas. They originally belonged to a nomadic race known as ‘Yueh-chi’.

Question 2.
Who was the first ruler of the Kushanas?
Answer:
KujulaKadphisis was the first ruler of the Kushanas.

Question 3.
Who was the greatest King of the Kushanas?
Answer:
Kanishka was the greatest ruler of the Kushanas.

Question 4.
Name the Chinese general who defeated Kanishka.
Answer:
Kanishka was defeated by the Chinese general Pan-Chao.

Question 5.
Which was the capital of Kanishka?
Answer:
Purushapura (Peshawar in Pakistan) was the capital of Kanishka.

Question 6.
Who influenced Kanishka to embrace Buddhism?
Answer:
Ashwaghosha influenced Kanishka to embrace Buddhism.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Two Marks Questions and Answers

II. Answer the following questions in two words or two sentences each.

Question 1.
When and why was the fourth Buddhist council held?
Answer:
The main aim of the 4th buddhist council was to patch up the differences existing in Buddhism at that time. But, ultimately Buddhism divided into Hinayana and Mahayana schools of thought. The 4th council was held in 102 C.E., during the reign of Kanishka, at Kundalavana in Kashmir..

Question 2.
Write any two measures of Kanishka for the spread of Buddhism.
Answer:

1. Kanishka gave royal patronage to Buddhism and it was also extended to the buddhist monks.
2. A large number of missionaries were sent to foreign countries like Japan, Tibet and Central Asia for spreading Buddhism.
3. Kanishka conducted the 4th buddhist council in Kashmir in 102 C.E., presided by
   Vasumithra. The purpose of this council was to settle the disputes that were existing in Buddhism at that time. .

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Five Marks Questions and Answers

III. Answer the following questions in 15 to 20 sentence each

Question 1.
Explain the achievements of Kanishka
(or)
What were the contributions of Kanishka to the indian history?
Answer:
Kanishka was the greatest of the Kushana Emperors. There are controversies about the date of Kanishka’s accession. The most probable date is 120 C.E. Another school of thought projects Kanishka as the founder of the Saka era (78 CE). Purushapura (present Peshawar in Pakistan) was his capital.

Conquests (Expeditions): Kanishka was a great warrior, ambitious and imperialistic Ruler. He extended his Empire in different directions very rapidly. His Empire consisted of Baclria, Persia, Afghanistan, Punjab and a large portion of Sindh.

Kashmir: Kanishka annexed Kashmir during his early reign and founded a city called Kanishkapura (the present day Srinagar), where he built many monuments.

Expeditions on Magadha, Saka and Sathrapas: He conquered Kashmir, occupied Punjab, . Mathura, Saketa and Benaras. Then he turned towards the famous city of Pataliputra (Patna). After a glorious victory, he returned to his capital Purushapura along with the famous buddhist scholar, Ashvaghosha. Towards the west, Kanishka marched against the Parthians and got victory over them, and established his supremacy over a very large area.

War with China: After the conquest of the northern India, Kanishka turned his attention towards China. Kadphises-II (Kushana) had suffered defeat at the hands of the Chinese general Pan-Chao and as a result of this defeat, the Kushanas had to pay a heavy annual tribute to the Chinese King. Kanishka stopped paying the tribute and invaded China, but the Chinese general Pan-chao defeated him.

After making renewed preparations, he attacked China once again but the Chinese general Pan-Chao had died by then and his son Pan-Chanang, the new general was defeated by Kanishka and he annexed three Chinese provinces into his Empire. Kanishka was the first Indian ruler who established territories outside India. His Kingdom extended to Kashgar in the north, Sindh in the south, Benaras in the East and Afghanistan in the west.

Religion (Kanishka’s religious policy): The Kushanas who belonged to the Yuch-Chi tribe, followed tribal religious customs. After their settlement in India, they adopted Indian culture and Hinduism. Kanishka was also a follower of Hinduism. In course of time, he was attracted towards Buddhism by the influence of Ashwaghosha. Kanishka attempted to serve and spread Buddhism in China, Tibet, Japan and other central Asian countries. He organized the 4lh buddhist council in Kashmir. The main purpose of the council was to settle the dispute existing in Buddhism at that time. During his rule, Buddhism split into Hinayana and Mahayana Sects.

Patronage to art (Gandhara art): Kanishka was a great lover of art and literature. He patronished Sanskrit language and had great scholars like Ashwaghosha, Vasumitra, Nagarjuna and Charaka in his court. Ashwagandha wrote Budda charita and Sutralanara. Nagarjuna wrote Madhyamika sutra and Charaka wrote a treatise on Ayurveda.

Kanishka was a great builder, and fine buildings of architectural beauty are found at Gandhara, Mathura, Kanishkapura and Taxila. The Kushana period was important for the growth of Gandhara art. it became the meeting ground of eastern and western cultures, known as the Greco-buddhist style. Combining Indian and Greek styles, there arose a new school of art called ‘The Gandhara School of Art’. This style originated in the Gandhara region, now in Afghanistan.

Question 2.
Describe the chief characteristics of the Gandhara school of art.
Answer:
Gandhara art: The Kushana period was famous for the growth of Gandhara ait. The important centres of this art were Jalalabad, Hadda and Baniyan in Afghanistan. Peshawar became the meeting ground^of the eastern and western cultures. Greek and roman sculptors and artists were brought to construct buildings, Viharas and Chaityas.,This art was a combination of the Indian and Greek (Greco-Buddhist) styles. This new school of art called the Gandhar school of art originated in the Gandhara region, now in Afghanistan.

Main characteristics of the Gandhara art:

1. In this school of art, the life size statues of Buddha were carved. Until then, the Buddhist existence was shown only in the form of symbols like lotus, umbrella etc.
2. While carving the statues, utmost care was given to the symmetry of the body including the muscles and moustaches which were shown in a natural setting.
3. In the specimens of the craftsmanship of this art, the folds and turns of the clothes were exhibited with minute care and skill.
4. In this art, the ornaments that were carved on the statues received much attention which added to the physical beauty of the statues.
5. Polishing the statues was an important feature of this ait.
6. The specimens were mostly prepared in stone, terracotta and clay.

The technique used in making the statues was greek but, the idea, inspiration, and personality were all indian. According to Dr. R.C. Mazumdar – ‘The Gandhara artist had the hand of a Greek but the heart of an indian. It is for this reason, that in the statues and images made under this art, an attempt was made to carve Lord Buddha like the Greek God Appolo. The Gandhara style spread to south east Asian countries as the parent of the Buddhist art.”

Guptas (300-600CE)

2nd PUC History Ancient Period One Mark Questions and Answers

I. Answer the following questions in one word or a sentence each.

Question 1.
Who was the founder of the Gupta dynasty?
Answer:
Sri Gupta was the founder of the Gupta dynasty.

Question 2.
When did the Gupta era commence?
Answer:
The Gupta era began in 320 CE during the reign of Chandragupta-I

Question 3.
Who composed the Allahabad pillar inscription?
Answer:
Harisena who was the commander-in-chief and court poet of Samudragupta, composed the Allahabad pillar inscription.

Question 4.
Which inscription of Samudragupta throws light on his expeditions?
Answer:
The Allahabad pillar inscription of Samudragupta, informs about his expeditions.

Question 5.
Who was the author of Kavyamimamse?
Answer:
Rajashekarawas the author of Kavyamimamse.

Question 6.
Who was the greatest ruler of the Gupta dynasty?
Answer:
Samudragupta was the greatest ruler of the Gupta dynasty.

Question 7.
Which Gupta ruler performed Ashwameda sacrifice? ,
Answer:
Samudragupta performed Ashwameda (horse) sacrifice.

Question 8.
Who had the title ‘Kaviraja’?
(or)
Which Gupta King was called as Kaviraja?
Answer:
Samudragupta was called as Kaviraja.

Question 9.
Who wrote Shakunthala?
Answer:
Kalidasa wrote the famous drama Shakunthala.

Question 10.
Who wrote Aryabhata? (or) Who was the author of Aryabhata?
Answer:
Aryabhatta was the author of Aryabhata.

Question 11.
Who had the title Vikramaditya?
Answer:
Chandragupta-II had the title Vikramaditya.

Question 12.
Who wroteAmarakosha?
Answer:
Amarasimha wroteAmarakosha.

Question 13.
Who was the author of Brihathsamhithe?
Answer:
Varahamihira wrote Brihathsamhithe.

Question 14.
Who wrote‘Gho-ko-ki’?
Answer:
The Chinese traveller Fa-hien wrote the book ‘Gho-ko-ki’.

Question 15.
Name the author of Kiratarjuneeyam.
Answer:
Bharavi was the author of Kiratarjuneeyam.

Question 16.
Who is called ‘The father of Indian Medicine’?
Answer:
Dhanwanthri is called ‘The father of Indian Medicine’ (Ayurveda).

Question 17.
Where is the iron pillar of the Gupta age found?
Answer:
Their on pillar of the Gupta age is found at Mehrauli near Delhi.

Question 18.
Who is called as the Indian Napolean’?
Answer:
V.A. Smith the historian called Samudragupta as the ‘Indian Napolean’.

Question 19.
Who was the Chinese Pilgrim who visited India during the reign of Chandragupta-II (Vikramaditya-II)?
Answer:
Chinese pilgrim Fa-hien (399-414 CE) visited India, during Chandragupta – II’s period. He wrote a book ‘Gho-ko-ki’ which throws light on the administration of Guptas.

Question 20.
Who is called as the ‘Indian Shakespeare’?
Answer:
Kalidasa is called as the Indian Shakespeare.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Two Marks Questions and Answers

II. Answer the following questions in two words or two sentences each.

Question 1.
Which were the two capitals of the Guptas?
Answer:
Pataliputra was the first capital and Ujjain became the second capital during Chandragupta- II’s reign.

Question 2.
Which inscription describes the conquests of Samudragupta? Who composed it?
Answer:
The Allahabad pillar inscription describes the conquests of Samudragupta. Harisena composed the Allahabad pillar inscription.

Question 3.
Name some poets of the Gupta period.
Answer:
Kalidasa, Shudraka, Bharavi, Dandi, Vishakadatta, Vishnusharma, Amarasimha and Shanku were some important poets of the Gupta period.

Question 4.
Mention some works of Kalidasa.
Answer:
The famous works of Kalidasa were Abhijnana Shakuntala, Raghuvamsha, Meghadhoota, Kumarasambhava,Vikramorvashiya, Malavikagnimitra, Ritusamharaetc.

Question 5.
Who was Fa-hien? Why did he come to India?
Answer:

Fa-hien was a Chinese pilgrim, who visited India during the reign of Chandragupta-II. He came to India to study Buddhism.

Question 6.
Which sources are helpful to us in the study of Gupta history?
Answer:
Some important sources that help us to study the Gupta history are:

• The Allahabad pillar inscription of Samudragupta.
• Mudrarakshasa and Devi Chandraguptam of Vishakadatta.
• Works of Kalidasa and Kavyamimamse by Rajashekara.
• Writings of Fa-hien and Itsing.

Question 7.
Name the northern Rulers defeated by Samudragupta.
Answer:
The nine northern Rulers of Aryavartha defeated by Samudragupta were, Nandin, Balavarman, Chandravarman, Nagadatta, Nagasena, Ganapathinaga, Achyathanaga, Mathila and Rudradeva.

Question 8.
Name the southern Kingdoms defeated by Samudragupta.
Answer:
The twelve southern Kingdoms defeated by Samudragupta were, Mahendra of Kosala, Vyagraraja of Mahakanthara, Mantharaja of Kowrala, Mahendra of Pistapura, Swamydatta of Kottura, Damana of Yarandapalli, Vishnugopaof Kanchi, Hasthivarman of Vengi, Neelaraja of Avamuktha, Ugrascna of Palakkad, Kubcra of Devarasthra and Dhananjaya of Kustalapura.

Question 9.
Name any two well known Universities of the Gupta period.
Answer:
Taxila, Nalanda, Ujjain, Ajantha, Saranatha, PataliputraaridVallabhi were the well known educational centres of the Gupta period.

Question 10.
Name any two works of Varahamihira.
Answer:
Panchasiddantika (astronomy), Brihadjataka andLaghujataka (astrology) and Brihatsamhita were the famous works of Varahamihira.

Question 11.
Name any two architectural centres of the Gupta period.
Answer:
Mathura, Benaras, Pataliputra, Udayagiri, Devgarh etc. were the architectural centers of the Gupta period.

Question 12.
What is the importance of the Allahabad inscription?
Answer:
The author of this edict was Harisena. It is made of 33 lines of Sanskrit prose and verse. This inscription is in the nature of a prasasti. It throws light upon personal qualities and conquests of Samudragupta.

Question 13.
Who were the important scientists of the Gupta period?
Answer:
The well known scientists of the Gupta period were, Aryabhatta, Varahamihira, Brahmagupta, Vriddh Vagbhata, Dhanvantari, CharakaandShushrutha.

Question 14.
Which Gupta ruler patronized the nine gems (Navaratnas) in his court? Name them.
Answer:
Vikramaditya-II (Chandragupta-II) patronized the nine gems in his court. They were, 1) Kalidasa
(Poet) 2) Varahamihira (Astronomer), 3) Shanku (Architect), 4) Dhanvantari (Physician), 5) Amarasimha (Lexicographer), 6) Kshapanaka (Astrologer), 7) Vararuchi (Grammarian), 8) Vethalabhatta (Magician) and 9) Ghatakarpara (Poet).

Question 15.
Name the works of Aryabhatta.
Answer:
Aryabhatta wrote Surya siddhanta, Aryabhata, and Dasagitika (Trigonometry).

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Five Marks Questions and Answers

III. Answer the following questions in 15 to 20 sentences each.

Question 1.
Explain the conquests of Samudragupta (or)
Samudragupta is called as the Indian Napolean. Explain why?
Answer:
Samudragupta (335 to 375 CE): The most outstanding ruler of the Gupta dynasty was Samudragupta, who was the son and successor of Chandragupta-I. He was an ambitious, ablest and most distinguished ruler and wanted to be an ‘Emperor’ (Chakravarthi).

The Allahabad pillar inscription (Prayag) throws much light on his conquests and personal qualities. The author of this edict was Ilarisena, the court poet as well as the commander – in – chief of Samudragupta. It is in Sanskrit prose and verse and contains 33 lines. The inscription is in the nature of a prasasti (ponegric). The military conquests mentioned in the inscription may be divided into four distinct campaigns.

1) Northern campaign (Aryavartha): The early yearssof his reign were spent in subduing the provinces of the Gangetic plain called ‘Aryavartha’. According to the inscription, he defeated nine Kings in his northern campaign and annexed their territories into his Empire. The Rulers who were defeated by Samudragupta were i) Nandin, ii) Balavarman, iii) Chandravarman, iv) Nagadatta, v) Nagasena, vi) Ganapathinaga, vii) Achyutanaga, viii) Mathila and ix) Rudradeva. After the conquest, he performed Ashwamedha yaga and became the master of Aryavartha.

2) Conquest of the Forest Kingdoms (Central India): Samudragupta conquered the forest Kingdoms of Abhiras, Madrakas, Kakas, Reva, Jabalpur, Nagapur and Bhaghelkhanda in the upper Vindya regions, many of whom surrendered to him voluntarily.

3) Southern Campaign: After consolidating his authority in the north, he turned his attention towards the South and took an expedition. Samudragupta derived hisjiame and fame by his compaigns in South India and he did not extend his direct rule over this region. The inscription refers to the twelve Kings of the south who were defeated and later reinstated to rule under him. They were: i) Mahendra of Kosala, ii) Vyagraraja of Mahaknathara, iii) Mantaraja of Kowrala, iv) Mahendra of Pistapura, v) Swamydatta of Kottura, vi) Damana of Yarandapalti, vii) Vishnugopa of Kanchi, viii) Hasthivarman of Vengi, ix) Neelaraja of Avamuktha, x) Ugrasena of Palakkad, xi) Kubera of Devarashtra and xii) DhananjayaofKustalapura.

The southern states were far away from his capital Pataliputra, and so they could not be brought under his direct control. The defeated rulers accepted his sovereignty and paid him tributes. No territory was annexed.

4) Annexation of the frontier Kingdoms: The frontier area also came under the control of Samudragupta. They accepted his authority and paid tributes to him. They were Kamarupa (Assam), Samataka (Bengal), Karthripura (Punjab), Devaka (Nepal) and Rohilkhanda.

5) Extended the Kingdom: Samudragupta’s Empire had extended from Bengal in the east to Punjab in the west, Himalayas in the north and upto the Vindya mountains in the south. The fame of Samudragupta reached far and wide. He maintained friendly relations with Ceylon. He was triumphant everywhere in India. Hence, Dr. V.A. Smith, the historian has called him as the ‘The Indian Napolean’. After his conquests, he performed ‘Ashwameda Yaga (horse sacrifice) to commemorate his victories. He also issued gold coins of various denominations. He composed many poems and thereby earned the title ‘Kaviraja’.

Question 2.
What were the contributions of Guptas to the Held of literature and science ?
Answer:
Literature: The Gupta age was also the golden age of Sanskrit literature. Guptas were not only warriors, but also patronized literature and science. Harisena’s prasasli as recorded on the Allahabad pillar, is in chaste Sanskrit prose and verse. Itcontains 33 lines and is a remarkable example of the poetry of the Gupta age. Samudragupta himself was a poet and scholar and he got the title of ‘Kaviraja’. Chandragupta-II patronized the ‘Nine Gems’ (navarathnas), the Sanskrit scholars in his court.

They were i) Kalidasa (Poet), ii) Dhanvantari (Physician), iii) Varahamihira (Astronomer), iv) Amarasimha (Lexicographer), v) Shanku (Architect), vi) Kshapanaka (Astrologer), vii) Vararuchi, (Grammarian), viii) Vetalabhatta (Magician) and ix) Ghatakarpara (Poet).

The most outstanding literary figure of that age was Kalidasa. He wrote a number of excellent works like Shakuntala, Malavikagnim’itra, Raghuvamsha, Kumarasambhava, Meghadhoota, Ritusamhara, Vikramorvashiyam etc. Both in drama and poetry, he stands unsurpassed and unrivalled even today. Kalidasa emerged as the King of all poets and hailed as the ‘Indian Shakespeare’.

Bhasa was another Sanskrit dramatist of this period. He was the author of 13 dramas, which are considered as the treasure in Sanskrit literature. The important dramas include Swapnavasava, Charudatta and Urubhanga. Vishakadatta wrote Mudrarakshasa and Devi Chandraguptam. Sudraka wrote Mrichchakatika. Bharavi was the author of Kirathaijuneeyam. Dandi wrote Dashakumaracharita and Kavyadhara, Vishnusimha composed Panchatantra and Amarasimha wrote Amarakosa.

The Nitisara of Kamandaka and the smritis of Yagnavalkya are also noteworthy. Some of the buddhist scholars of this period were Asanga, Vasubandhu, Dignaga, Chandragomin and others, who wrote many works in Sanskrit. The literary standard of this period was high. Sanskrit became the common as well as the official language. Naturally, this led to a renaissance in Sanskrit literature. The development of Sanskrit reached its zenith.

Development of science: The Gupta age made tremendous progress in the field of science, especially in the disciplines of Astronomy, Medicine, Astrology, Mathematics and Metallurgy. Dhanvantri and Vagbhatta were great physicians. Aryabhatta, Varahamihira and Brahmagupta were the great astronomers and mathematicians of that age.

1) Aryabhatta was one of the greatest scientists of the Gupta period. He wrote two great works on astronomy namely, Aryabhata and Suryasiddhanta. His major contributions : i) To find the place value of numbers from 1 to 9, ii) The discovery of the exact value of 22pi (TC) viz or 3.14159, iii) The formula to calculate the area of a triangle, iv) The true 7 cause of why solar and luner eclipses occur, v) The rotation and revolution of Earth on its axis, vi) The decimal system of notation. An indian satellite sent into space has been named Aryabhatta in his honour.

2) Varahamihira wrote Brihathsamhithe, Panchasiddantika, Brihadjataka and Laghujataka. He studied and wrote about the movements of the heavenly bodies. He was an authority on Astronomy, Botany, Mathematics and Geography.

3) Brahmagupta was the great astronomer who wrote the book ‘Brahmaputra Siddhanta’. He declared that all things fall to the Earth, by a law of nature. He showed the importance of zero.

4) Bhaskaracharya was a renowed mathematician.

5) Vridha Vagbhata was the great physician and author of Ashtanga sangraha.

6) Dhanvantari was a great physician and he wrote Ayurveda Nighantu. He is regarded as the ‘Father of Indian medicine’ (Ayurveda).

7) Charaka and Sushrutha were physicians, and wrote samhithes.
The iron pillar near the Kutb minar atMeharauli (Delhi) is the best example of the progress in metallurgy achieved by the Guptas. That pillar’s weight is about 6 tonnes, height 23.8 ft and a diameter of 16.4 inches at the base. It is still free from rust, even though it is exposed to the elements, like wind, rain, sun etc., all these years.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Ten Marks Questions and Answers

IV. Answer the following question in 30 to 40 sentences.

Question 1.
Why is the Gupta age called ‘The golden age’ in Indian history?
Answer:
Introduction : Gupta period was a unique phase in the Indian history, due to the all round development during this age. It has been described as the ‘Golden age’ and the “Classical period of Indian history”. Dr. R.N. Saletore has compared it with the ages of Augustus Caesar of Rome and Queen Elizabeth of England. Dr. L.D. Barnet compared it with the age of Pericles of Greece. The achievements in the fields of religion, education, literature, art, architecture, science and technology were extraordinary.

Religion: Revival of Hinduism (Hindu renaissance) was one of the outstanding features of the Gupta age. Guptas followed vedic religion, but they were tolerant towards the other religions. The worship of Vishnu, Shiva and Durga became very popular. Pashupata sect of Shaivism became very popular. Worship of the Saptamatrikas became widespread. The Shiva temple at Deogadh, the temple of Bhumara and the Mahakal temple ofUjjain were built in the Gupta age.

The Gupta Rulers performed vedic rites and sacrifices. Samudragupta and Chandragupta-II, were worshippers of Vishnu. They assumed the titles ‘Parama Bhagavatha’ (Devotee of Vishnu). Image worship, rites and ceremonies became very common. The vedic rituals like Ashwameda, Vajapeya and Rajasuya yagas were performed with all splendour. Buddhism also enjoyed great popularity during the Gupta age The Buddhist caves at Ajantha, Ellora, Kanheri and Karle belong to the Gupta period. Some of the Gupta rulers followed Buddhism and extended patronage to it. In fact, Buddha was adopted into Hinduism and he was regarded as one of the Avataras of Vishnu.

Education: Education flourished well under the Guptas. The rulers themselves were great scholors. They paid special attention to education. Taxila, Nalanda, Ajantha and Saranatha were well known Universities of the Gupta era. Pataliputra and Vallabhi were great educational centres. The important subjects taught were Puranas, Literature, Philosophy, Arithmatic, Astrology and Science.

Literature: The Gupta age is called ‘the Golden age of Sanskrit literature’. Samudragupta has been described as a King among poets in the Allahabad inscription. He got a title of ‘Kaviraja’. Chandragupta-II (Vikramadhitya-II) partronized the ‘Nine gems’ (navaratnas) of Sanskrit scholors in his court. Among them, Kalidasa was the most outstanding literary figure of that age. He wrote a number of excellent works like Malavikagnimithra, Vikramorvashiya, Shakunthala, Raghuvamsa, Kumarasambhava, Meghaduta, Rithusamhara etc., Kalidasa emerges as the King of all poets and hailed as the ‘Indian Shakespeare”.

Other important writers and their works: Sudraka wrote Mrichchakatika, Bharavi – Kirataijuneya, Dandhi – Kavyadhara, Vishnusimha – Panchatantra, Amarasimha- Amarakosa, Vishakadatta – Mudrarakshasa, Bhavabuthi-Uttararamacharithe, Charaka-Charakasamhithe, Shanku – Shilpashastra, Kshapanaka – Jyothishashastra, Vethalabhatta-Manthrashaslhra and others. The literary standard of this period was high and Sanskrit became the common as well as the official language. Naturally, this led to a renaissance in Sanskrit literature.

Development of science: The Gupta age made a tremendous progress in the Held of science, especially in the disciplines of Astronomy, Astrology, Mathematics, Medicine and Metallurgy. Aryabhatta was one of the greatest scientists of this period. He wrote two great works- Aryabhatia and Surya siddhantha. He gave very valuable contributions to indian science. Brahmagupta was the great astronomer and mathematician, who wrote the book ‘Brahmaputra siddhantha.

He showed the importance of zero. Varahamihira was the astronomer, who wrote Brihatsamhithe. Vridha Vagbhata (physician) wrote Ashtanga Sangraha. Dhanvantari (physician) wrote Ayurveda Nighantu. He was regarded as the father of indian medicine. Charaka and Sushrutha were the physicians who wrote Samhithes. The Meharauli iron pillar discovered near Delhi is an outstanding example of the metallurgical skill of that period. It is still free from rust, even though it has been exposed to the elements like wind, rain, sun etc., all these hundreds of years.

Art and Architecture: The basic structural features of the Indian temple architecture were developed during the Gupta period. The Gupta art is famous for its simple expression and spiritual purpose. The art of the Guptas was purely Indian in nature. Naturalism, beauty, spiritualism and realism were the main features of their art. Mathura, Benaras, Pataliputra, Udayagiri, Devgarh etc were the centres of their artistic activities.

The Gupta architecture is represented by many brick temples. The temples have pyramidal roofs and the walls are decorated with scenes from Hindu mythologies. The Dashavatara temple of Devgarh (MP), has a tower of about 40 feet. It’s doorway is excellently carved and decorated.

Many images of Shiva such as the Ekamukhi and Chaturmukhi Shi valings were also carved during this period. The Ardhanarishwara i.e., oneness of Shiva and Shakti is also a remarkable

Cholas

2nd PUC History Ancient Period One Mark Questions and Answers

I. Answer the following questions in one word or a sentences each.

Question 1.
What is meant by Sangam?
Answer:
Sangam refers to the Tamil literary union. The period of the three literary unions between 200 B.CE to 500 C.E. is called the Sangam age.

Question 2.
Who was the first Chola King of the Sangam age?
Answer:
Ilain Chola was the first Chola King and Uraiyur was his capital.

Question 3.
Who built the Rajarajeshwara temple at Tanjore?
Answer:
Rajaraja Chola-I built the Rajarajeshwara temple at Tanjore.

Question 4.
Which inscription tells about the Chola village administration?
Answer:
Uttarameruru inscription of Paranthaka -1, tells about the Chola village administration.

Question 5.
What is meant by‘Kuduvalai’?
Answer:
The representatives of the people (members) for the village administration were elected through a lucky draw system which was called “Kuduvalai.”

Question 6.
What is meant by ‘Variyam’?
Answer:
Elected representatives for the village administration had to work in the Annual, Garden and Tank Bund commitees which were called as variyams.

Question 7.
Which dynasty patronized Sangam literature?
Answer:
The Pandyas of Madurai, patronized Sangam literature.

Question 8.
Who was the greatest ruler of the Cholas?
Answer:
Rajaraja Chola-I (985-1014 C.E) was the greatest Chola ruler.

Question 9.
Who was the last ruler of the Sangam age?
Answer:
Sengunnian was the last Chola ruler of the Sangam age.

Question 10.
Which battle led to the decline of the Chola Empire?
Answer:
The Takkolam battle between Cholas and Rastrakutas in 949 C.E. led to the collapse of the Chola Empire.

Question 11.
Which was the capital of the Cholas?
Answer:
Tanjore was the capital of the Cholas.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Two Marks Questions and Answers

II. Answer the following questions in two words or two sentences each.

Question 1.
Name some famous works of the Sangam Age.
Answer:
Tirukkural, Silappadigaram and Manimekhalai are the famous works of the Sangam age.

Question 2.
When and between whom did the battle of Takkolam take place?
Answer:
The battle of Takkolam was fought between Cholas and Rastrakutas in 949 C.E.

Question 3.
Mention any two titles of Rajendra Chola-I.
Answer:
Rajendra Chola had assumed titles like Pandita Chola, Gangaikonda Chola and Kedarukonda Devaetc.,

Question 4.
Name the powerful rulers of the cholas.
Answer:
Rajaraja Chola-I and Rajendra Chola-I were the powerful rulers.

Question 5.
Which temple in India has the biggest and tallest shikhara? Who built it?
Answer:
Brihadeshwara or Rajarajeshwara temple in Tanjore has the biggest and tallest shikara in India. It was built by Rajaraja Chola I.

Question 6.
Mention the titles assumed by Rajaraja Chola -I
Answer:
Rajaraja Chola -1 assumed titles like Shivapadashekhara, Cholendra Simha, Mummadi Chola deva, Jayagonda, Chola Martanda etc.,

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Five Marks Questions and Answers

III. Answer the following questions in 15 to 20 sentences each.

Question 1.
Describe the achievements of Rajendra Chola-I.
Answer:
Rajendra Chola -1 (Reign 1014 to 1044 C.E.): Rajendra Chola was the son and successor of Rajaraja Chola -1. He came to the throne in 1014 C.E. He was also known as Gangaikonda Chola or Ultama Chola. Under him, the Chola Empire became the most extensive and powerful Empire. He gained a number of victories over the Ceylonese, Pandyas, Cheras and Eastern Chalukyas.

Conquests: Rajendra Chola defeated Mahendra – V, the King of Ceylon in 1018 C.E. After the death of Mahendra- V in prison at Tanjore, Ceylon became a part of the Chola empire. War with Chalukyas of Kalyana: Rajendra Chola declared war on Jayasimhall of Kalyana Chalukyas in 1021 C.E. and defeated him in Masangi (Maski). Vijayaditya of Vengi who came to the support of Jayasimha was defeated and expelled from the Empire. Rajendra Chola placed RajarajaNarendra on the throne of Vengi.

Northern expedition: Rajendra marched towards Orissa and defeated King Mahipala of Bengal. The Chola army marched onwards till the Ganga river. His northern expedition was successful. To commemorate this event, he assumed the title of ‘Gangaikonda Chola’ and built a new capital Gangaikonda Cholapuram near Tiruchirapally in honour of this conquest.

Expedition towards south east: In 1025 C.E. Rajendra Chola took an expedition to Shailendra in South east Asia, with his powerful army. Crossing the Bay of Bengal, he conquered Jawa, Sumatra and defeated Sangrama Vijayottunga Varman, the King of Shai lendra. He built the Gangaikonda Chola Shiva temple at Shailendra, in memory of this victory.

Rajendra Chola -1 was an able administrator and also a patron of learning. He established a higher education centre at Ennayiram (South Arcot) in 1025 C.E. Free boarding and lodging facility was arranged for 340 students, who were studying at this educational centre. Rajendra Chola -1 had many titles like ‘Pandita Chola, Gangaikonda Chola and Kedarakonda Deva etc. He increased his dignity and honour by sending his Ambassadors to China in 1033 C.E.

Question 2.
Describe the village (local) Administration of the Chola rulers.
Answer:
Village (local sell) Administration: An important feature of the Chola administration was the village autonomy. People of a village looked after administration through their own elected bodies. The Chola inscriptions mention the existence of two types of villages Ur and Brahmadeya Villages. Ur had its own local assembly, consisting of all the male members of the village excluding untouchables. It looked after all aspects of the village administration. The Brahmadeya villages (Agraharas) were granted by the King to learned brahmins. They had their own assemblies called Mahasabhas, which had complete freedom in governance.

Uttarameruru inscription of Paratanka -1, gives us a detailed information about the village administration. (Uttarameruru is in the Chengulpet district of Tamilnadu). The villages enjoyed complete independence in the management of local affairs. Two kinds of assemblies existed which were 1. Ur or Urar (kuri) and 2. The Mahasabha.

According to the Uttarameruru inscription, Uttarameruru village was divided into 30 parts (Kudumbu). One member from each unit was elected for a period of one year. The representatives of the people were elected through a lucky draw (Kuduvalai) system. Vil lagers assembled in the temple and conducted an election through a lucky draw. The names of the candidates were written on palm leaves and put in a pot. Then a small boy was asked to pick out the leaves one after the other in the presence of the people and thus the representatives were elected.

Elected representatives had to work in the Annual, Garden (Tottavariyam) and Tank Bund (Erivariyam) committees called ‘Variyams’. The representatives were called ‘Variya Perumakkal’. The village assemblies were autonomous and democratic institutions.

Duties of the committees: The village committees performed duties like the protection of the village properties, collection of taxes and the protection of temples, lakes, groves and forests etc. The resolutions of the committees were written down. The central administration did not interfere in the village administration.

Minimum qualifications of members: The Uttarameruru inscription deals with rules and regulations regarding the election, the qualifications and disqualifications of members. These committees worked for 360 days when fresh elections were held.

Qualifications needed for a member to be elected:

1. The candidate should possess a minimum of 1/2 acre of taxable land.
2. He should reside in his own house built on his own site.
3. Candidate should be more than 35 years old and less than 70 years of age.
4. Candidate should have knowledge of Vedas, Brahmanakas and Commerce.
5. Candidate should possess a good character.

Disqualifications of members:

1.  A member was disqualified for re-election if he had been a member of any committee continuously for the previous 3 years.
2. Those who were in the committee and who had not submitted accounts and their close relatives.
3. Persons who were wicked, cheats, alcoholics, thieves, accused of murdering brahmins and committing adultery.

This way, certain minimum qualifications and disqualifications were enforced in the village administration. Scholars have termed the Chola village administration as “Small Democratic States”.

Vardhanas and Early Chalukyas – Pallavas

2nd PUC History Ancient Period One Mark Questions and Answers

I. Answer the following questions in one word or a sentence each.

Question 1.
Who was the greatest Ruler of the Vardhanas?
Answer:
Harshavardhana was the greatest Vardhana Ruler.

Question 2.
Which was the capital of Harshavardhana?
Answer:
Thaneshwar was the capital of Harshavardhana.

Question 3.
Who was the sister of Harshavardhana?
Answer:
Rajashri was Harshavardhana’s younger sister.

Question 4.
Who wrote Ilarshacharite?
Answer:
Banabhatta was the author of ‘Harshacharite’.

Question 5.
Who was famous as ‘Ultarapatheshwara’?
Answer:
Harshavardhana was famous as ‘Uttarapatheshwara’.

Question 6.
Who presided over the religious conference at Kanauj?
Answer:
Hieuntsang presided over the religious conference at Kanauj.

Question 7.
When was the Buddhist council at Prayag held?
Answer:
Harashavardhana organized a Buddhist council at Prayag in 643 C.E.

Question 8.
Who was the founder of the Kadamba dynasty?
Answer:
Mayuravarma was the founder of the Kadamba dynasty.

Question 9.
Which was the first Kannada inscription?
Answer:
Halmidi inscription issued by Kakusthavarma in 450 CE, was the first Kannada inscription.

Question 10.
Who was the most famous ruler among the Ganga Kings?
Answer:
Durvinitha was the most famous ruler of the Ganga dynasty.

Question 11.
Which was the capital of the early Chalukyas?
Answer:
Badami (Vatapi) was the capital of the early Chalukyas.’

Question 12.
Who was the most famous ruler among the Chalukyas of Badami?
Answer:
Pulikeshi – II was the most famous ruler among the Chalukyas of Badami.

Question 13.
Which was the royal emblem of the Chalukyas of Badami?
Answer:
Varaha (Pig) was the royal emblem of the Chalukyas of Badami.

Question 14.
Who was famous as ‘Dakshina Patheshwara?
Answer:
Pulikeshi – II was famous as ‘Dakshina Patheshwara’.

Question 15.
Who composed the Aihole Inscription?
Answer:
Aihole inscription was composed by Ravi Keerthi.

Question 16.
Name the work composed by Vijayabhattarika.
Answer:
Vijayabhattarika wrote ‘Kaumudi Mahotsava’.

Question 17.
What was the name of the book written by Hieun Tsang?
Answer:
Hieun Tsang wrote a book “Si-Yu-Ki.”

Question 18.
Who was the originator (founder) of the Vardhana dynasty?
Answer:
Pushyabhuthi was the originator of the Vardhanas.

Question 19.
Whose capital was Banavasi?
Answer:
Banavasi (Vanavasi) was the capital of the Kadambas.

Question 20.
Which was the royal emblem of the Kadamba dynasty?
Answer:
Lion and a flag with a picture of a monkey, was the emblem of the Kadambas.

Question 21.
Who were the founders of the Ganga dynasty?
Answer:
Dadiga and Madhava were the founders of the Ganga dynasty.

Question 22.
Which was the capital of the Gangas.
Answer:
Talakadu was the capital of the Gangas.

Question 23.
Whose emblem was the musk Elephant?
Answer:
Musk elephant was the royal emblem of the Gangas.

Question 24.
Which place is called as the museum of Jainism?
Answer:
Shravanabelagola (Hassan dist) is called as the museum of Jainism.

Question 25.
Which Chalukyan King assumed the title ‘Parameshwara’?
Answer:
Pulikeshi-II assumed the title‘Parameshwara’.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Two Marks Questions and Answers

II. Answer the following questions in two words or two sentences each.

Question 1.
Who were the parents of Harshavardhana?
Answer:
Prabhakara Vardhana and Yashomathi were the parents of Harshavardhana.

Question 2.
Name the literary works of Harshavardhana.
Answer:
Harshavardhana wrote dramas like Rathnavali, Priyadarshika and Nagananda in Sanskrit.

Question 3.
Who erected the Gommateshwara statue and where?
Answer:
Chavundaraya erected the Gommateshwara statue at Shravanabelagola in 983 C.E.

Question 4.
Mention the titles assumed by Pulikeshi – H. (What were the titles of Pulikeshi)?
Answer:
Pulikeshi – II assumed the title ‘Parameshwara’ after the battle of river Narmada. Other titles
were “Sri Prithvivallabha, Dakshinapatheshwara, Satyashraya, Kanchigonda, Paramabhaghavata” etc.

Question 5.
Name any two temples at Aihole.
Answer:
Durga temple (Sun God), Meguthi Jain temple, Jyothirlinga, Mallikarjuna, Siddeshwara etc.,

Question 6.
Name any two temples of Pattadakallu.
Answer:
Virupakshatemple, Kasi Vishwanatha, Papanatha, Jambulingeshwara, Sangamcshwara and Mallikarjuna temples.

Question 7.
Name any two important architectural centres of Pallavas.
Answer:
Kanchi and Mahabalipuram were the important architectural centres of the Pallava period.

Question 8.
Name the Chinese pilgrims, who studied at the Nalanda University?
Answer:
Hieun Tsang and Itsing studied at the Nalanda University.

Question 9.
Name the important centres of education during the Kadamba period.
Answer:
The Agraharas, Ghatikas, Brahmapuris, Mathas, Buddhist and Jain monasteries were the important centres of education.

Question 10.
Name the art and architecture centres of the Gangas.
Answer:
Varuna, Manne, Talakadu, Nandi, Aralaguppe, Kolar, Javagal, Kuppatture, Chikkahanumanasoge, Shravanabelagola, etc.,

Question 11.
Who issued the Aihole inscription? Whose achievements are recorded in it?
Answer:
Pulikeshi – II issued the Aihole inscription. It gives the details about the campaigns of Pulikeshi – II.

Question 12.
What is Vesara or new style? Name the art and architectural centres of Badami Chalukyas.
Answer:
A combination of Nagar and the Dravidian style of architecture is called Vesara or new style. Badami, Aihole, Mahakuta, Pattadakallu and other places, were the noteworthy centres.

Question 13.
Who was the founder of Pallava dynasty? Which was his capital?
Answer:
Pallava dynasty began with Shivaskanda Varma and Kanchi was his capital.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Five Marks Questions and Answers

III. Answer the following questions in 15 to 20 sentences each.

Question 1.
Describe the achievements of Harshavardhana.
Answer:
Harshavardhana (606-647 C.E): Harshavardhana was the greatest ruler of the Vardhanas. He came to power in 606 C.E. Prabhakara Vardhana and Yashomathi were his parents. He had an elder brother Rajavardhana and a younger sister Rajyashri. Prabhakara Vardhana was succeeded by Rajavardhana. Yashomathi pained by the death of her husband, committed Sati in 605 C.E. Devagupta of Malwa killed Rajyashri’s husband Gruhavarma and imprisoned her at Kanauj. Rajavardhana who went to get her released, was killed by Shashanka of Gaudadesha. Harshavardhana came to power under such painful circumstances.

Immediate tasks and conquests : The immediate task of Ilarsha was twofold One to crush his enemies and the other to save his sister from the ememy’s prison. King Shashanka of Bengal was responsible for the murder of Harsha’s brother and even for imprisoning Rajyashri. Harsha marched against Shashanka and won a diplomatic victory by concluding a treaty of friendship with Bhaskaravarma of Kamarupa, then attacked Shashanka and took revenge. Harsha’s first act was to rescue Rajyashri.

She had escaped from prison (Kanauj) and went towards the Vindhya forests. Harsha searched for her with great difficulty, saved her and brought her back to Kanauj. Rajyashri did not agree to rule Kanauj. Harsha was compel led to accept that and he united the Kingdoms of Thaneshwar and Kanauj. Later he shifted his capital to Kanauj. Later, he defeated Devagupta of Malwa and annexed his Kingdom. By 612 C.E., he achieved complete control over the five sindus of Punjab, Kanauj, Goudadcsha, Mithila, Orissa and other places and annexed them to his Kingdom.

Annexation of North India: HaVshavardhana won Orissa, Magadha, Vodra, Ganjam and Bengal. Later he defeated the ruler of Nepal and received tributes from him. He established his supremacy by defeating most of the north Indian Kingdoms. In commemoration of these achievements, he took the title‘Uttarapatheshwara’.

War with Pulikcshi – II : After the northern campaign, Harsha turned his attention towards south. However, he received resistance from the Chalukyan ruler, Pulikeshi – II when he tried to extend his Empire in the south. Armies of the two Emperors met on the banks of Narmada, in 634 C.E. In the battle of Narmada, Harshavardhana was defeated. Pulikeshi – II won the battle and took the title ‘Parameshwara’. As a result, the river Narmada became the boundary line of both the Empires. Aihole inscription says, that Harsha’s Harsha” (happiness) flew away, ^ seeing his war elephants falling in the battle field.

Extent of the Kingdom: I larsha exchanged Ambassadors with China. The credit for uniting north India after the Guptas, goes to I Jarshavardhana. His Empire extended from Bengal and Orissa in the east, Punjab in the west, Himalayas in the north and Narmada river in the south.

Religion: Harsha was a devotee of Lord Shiva and called himself ‘Parama Maheshwara’. Later, he embraced Buddhism due to the influence of Hieun Tsang. He built stupas at a few prominent places of Buddhism. He conducted a Buddhist council at Kanauj for a religious debate in 643 C.E. 3000 Buddhist monks, 1000 scholars, 20 Kings, 3000 brahmins and Jains attended the conference. A golden statue of Buddha, as well as that of the King were installed in the Auditorium. Hieun Tsang explained the philosophy of Mahayana in this council. Harshavardhana organised the Mahamoksha Parishat, at Prayag in 643 C.E. Hieun Tsang was invited to it and a procession of Buddha’s idol along with that of Shiva and Surya was taken out.

Literature: Harsha was an able administrator, patron of literature and cared for the welfare of his people. He wrote the following dramasRatnavali, Nagananda and Priyadarshika in Sanskrit. He patronised the famous poet Biinabhatta, author of Harshacharite. The celebrated Chinese pilgrim and scholar Hieun Tsang adorned his court. Nalanda University, which was established by Kumara Gupta, spread Mahayana Buddhist Philosophy and received the patronage and reached the zenith of its glory, during the reign of Harshavardhana.

Question 2.
Explain the Chalukya and Pallava conflict.
Answer:
The Chalukyas and Pallavas were contemporary Rulers in the south. So, for the establishment of supremacy over each other, there was an ongoing conflict between them from the 6th to the 8th century C.E. Pandyas played an important role in this conflict. The conflict was to establish control over the Krishna – Tungabhadra doab region.

In the first stage of the conflict, Pulikeshi – II defeated Mahendravarman -1 in the battle of Pallalur. Then he annexed Kanchi. Later, Narasimhavarman -1, son of Mahendravarman -1 defeated Pulikeshi -II and seized the Chalukyan capital, Badami in 642 A.D.

Vikramaditya -1 (son of Pulikeshi II) conquered Badami back from the Pallavas. He defeated the Pallava rulers Narasimhavarman I, Mahendravarman II and Parameshwaravarman -1. Later, his son, Vinayaditya defeated Mahendravarman – II and conquered Kanchi. His grandson Vijayaditya, defeated Parameshwaravarman – V. Finally, there was peace with Narasimhavarman – II, and many temples were built at Kanchi.

Pallava and Chalikya conflict started once again, during the reign of Vikramaditya – II. He invaded Kanchi, defeated the then Pallava ruler Parameshwaravarman – II at Vilanda in 731 C.E., and invaded Kanchi again in 735 C.L. and conquered it by defeating Nandivarman. He donated a lotto the Rajasimha temple at Kanchi and got an inscription composed about his victory; When the Rashtrakutas reduced the influence of the Chalukyas, the continuous conflict between the Chalukyas and Pal lavas came to an end. ,

3. Write about the contributions of Chalukyas of Badami to art and architecture.
Answer:
Art and Architecture: The Chalukyas of Badami, have given some noteworthy contributions to the Indian art and architecture. Building of Sthambha, Navaranga arid Sukhanasi along with the Garbhagruha (Sanctum) were the unique contributions of the Chalukyas in temple architecture. The Chalukyas developed their own style of architecture known as Vesara or new style or Chalukyan style of architecture, which was a combination of the Nagara style and Dravidian style.

They built many temples. The chalukyan art took its birth at Aihole and developed in Badami and Pattadakallu. The great art critic Percy Brown remarked that Aihole was “The cradle of Indian temple Architecture” and Dr. Shivarama Karanth has commented about Chalukyan period as the “Golden age of Karnataka Art”.

Important Characteristics of Chalukyan Architecture:

Chalukyas adopted the following features in their constrution of temples. They are:

1. Small base design
2. Horse shoe base
3. Square sanctum (Garbhagruha)
4. Inner pradakshanapatha
5. Mukhamantapa, Navaranga, Sukhanasi and Pyramidical Tower on the Sanctum
6. Ekakuta, (one cell) Dwikuta and Trikuta temples.

The Chalukyan monuments could be broadly classified into two majar categories viz.,

1. Rock – cut (Cave) temples
2. The structural temples.

1. Rock-cut (cave) temples: Mangalesha and Kirthi varma built the 4 rock-cut temples on the hill at Badami. Two of them are dedicated to Vishnu, one to Shiva and the other is a Jain temple. These are connected to one another by a causeway. These caves contain a varanda with stone pillars, a hall with columns and small deeply cut garbhagrihas. These temples have gigantic images of Ardhanarishwara, Harihara, Mahishasuramardhini, Vishnu seated on the serpent, Narasimha, Trivikrama and Nataraja.

The Jain cave has the sculptures of Mahaveera and the 23rd JainThirthanakara. Probably, the ceillings of the caves had paintings, which have faded away over time. In fact, the Chalukyas were the first to construct rock-cut temples in south India.

Rock-cut temples at Aihole: There are two rock cut temples at Aihole. One is for Shiva and other is a Jain one. These rockcut temples have a square mantapa and have a special plan of their own.

2. The structural temples: The Chalukyas have built more than 100 temples. Badami, Aihole, Pattadakallu, Mahakuta etc, are religious as well as architectural centres of the Badami Chalukyas. The Shiva temple at Gokak, Mahalakshmi temple at Kollapura are examples of early Chalukyan architecture.

The Chalukyan temples, in the beginning, had flat or slightly inclined rooftops. Later, tower-like structural levels appeared. A big prayer hall, sanctum and an intervening room (Sukanasi) were included in the temple structure. ,
Aihole: Aihole contains over 70 temples. The structural temples of Aihole, represent the best of Chalukyan temple architecture. Thus Percy Brown rightly called Aihole as the cardie of Indian temple architecture.

Ladhkan temple: Among the most important temples, Ladhkhan Temple is one of the earliest. A muslim saint by name Ladhkhan lived here for a long time and so people started calling it as Ladhkhan temple. It contains a Mukhamantapa and a Garbhagruha with a Nandi idol. The tower lies not above the Sanctum, but over the centre of the temple.

The Durga temple: This temple is designed like a horseshoe and a Buddhist Chaityalaya. There is a Rangamantapa with two rows of pillars and the verandas on the two sides go till the Garbhagruha and merge in a semicircle. The temple is surrounded by a fort wall and so it is called the fort (durga) temple. The back view of the temple resembles the posterior view of an elephant. The Shikara resembles the Shikara of the Orissa temples.

The Huchimalii temple: This temple contains the Shikara (Tower) of the Nagara style, It has square pillars and simple construction details. This is a very special feature of Chalukyan architecture.

Meguthi Jain temple built by Ravikirthi near Aihole, has a sanctum and two platforms built in the dravidian style. The other important temples of Aihole are Jyothirlinga, Mallikarjuna and Siddheswara etc.,

Pattadakallu: The ancient name of Pattadakallu was ‘Kisuvolalu’. 10 temples of Badami Chalukyas are here. The Virupaksha or Lokeshwara temple is quite a famous one. This was built by Lokamadevi. (Queen of Vikramaditya – II). The architect of this temple was Anirvathachari Gunda. It contains two main entrances at the east and west. In front of the Nandi mantapa, on either side of the big platform, there are two Sanctums. Next is the main garbhagruha, where a Shivalinga is installed with a pradakshanapatha. Above these, there is a tower built in the Dravidian style. The temple is 224 ft long and 150 ft broad.

Mallikarjuna or Trilokeshwara Temple was built by Trilokamadevi, the other queen of Vikramaditya – II. Papanatha, Karisiddeshwara, and Jambulingeshwara temples are in the Nagar style. Sangameshwara, Virupaksha, and Mallikarjuna temples are in the Dravidian (Pallava) style.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Ten Marks Questions and Answers

IV. Answer the following in 30 to 40 sentences.

Question 1.
Describe the achievements of Pulikeshi – II.
Answer:
Pulikeshi – II (609-642 C.E.): Pulikeshi – II was the most outstanding personality among the Chalukyas of Badami. He was a benevolent monarch and people enjoyed plenty and prosperity under him. Pulikeshi – II was the son of Keertivarma – I. He was still a boy when Keertivarma died. Hence, Mangalesha (Brother of Keertivarma) took over the charge of administration. Mangalesha planned to pass on the throne to his son instead of Pulikeshi – II, the rightful heir. This led to a civil war between the two.

Finally, Mangalesha was defeated and he died in the battle.  Pulikeshi came to the throne in 609 C.E. Hieun Tsang’s Si-Yu-Ki, Bana’s – Harshacharite, Aihole inscription etc, give information about Pulikeshi – II. This civil war was an unfortunate incident, but became inevitable for Pulikeshi, and the throne inherited by him was not a bed of roses. This indicates that the civil war had caused a confused situattion in the Kingdom. Many chiefs wanted to take advantage of the situation and become independent. Hence they rebelled against Pulikeshi – II.

Conquests of Pulikeshi – II :

1. Attack on the Rashtrakuta chiefs : The Rashtrakutas were following a policy of aggression and expansion during the time of Pulikeshi. The Rashtrakuta chiefs Appayika and Govinda rebelled against Badami rule. Pulikeshi crushed them in a battle on the banks of river Bhima. Appayika ran away from the battle field, while Govinda surrendered to Pulikeshi.

2. Subjugation of the Kadambas, Mauryas, Alupas and Gangas : After strengthening his power and resources, Pulikeshi – II adopted a policy of conquest. He took an expedition against the Rulers of places surrounding Badami. He subjugated the Kadambas of Banavasi, Mauryas of Konkan, Alupas of south Canara and Gangas of Talakadu.

3. Attack on Lata, Malwa and Gurjaras : Pulikeshi – II set his eyes towards the North –  west, on Lata, Malwa and Gurjaras. As a result, these Rulers were also defeated and he extended his territories upto Malwa. He appointed his brother, Jayasimha as the Governor of Gujarath.

4. War with Harshavardhana: The most significant and memorable of his military career was  his victory over Harshavardhana of Kanauj. A powerful Kingdom had been established by Harsha who had conquered most of north India, and was making an attempt to extend his reign in the south also. Pulikeshi took an expedition towards north, and Harsha came into conflict with Pulikeshi – II. But Pulikeshi who had camped on the banks of the river Narmada, did not allow Harsha to cross the river.

Harshavardhana was defeated by Pulikeshi in the battle of Narmada in 634 C.E. Narmada became the common frontier of the two Kingdoms. After the battle, Pulikeshi assumed the title of ‘Parameshwara and Dakshinapatheshwara’. Hieun : Tsang’s record and the Aihole inscriptions give testimony to this victory of Pulikeshi – II.

5. Expedition towards East: After the Northern campaign, Pulikeshi turned his eyes towards  east and conquered Kosala and Kalinga regions and the important fort of Pistapura (Godavari). He appointed his brother Kubja Vishnuvardhana as the Governor of these provinces. Kubja Vishnuvardhana became the founder of the Eastern Chalukya dynasty.

6. Expedition in South: The Pallava ruler Mahendravarma -1 had become powerful in the south. Pulikeshi invaded the Pallava Kingdom and defeated Mahendravarma -1 in the battle of Pallalur. Then he annexed other Pallava territories also and seized Kanchi in 632 C.E. After these successful military campaigns, Pulikeshi returned to his capital and reigned in peace for quite some time. His name and fame began to spread far and wide. He performed the ‘Ashwamedha Sacrifice’ to commemorate his victory and assumed titles like ‘Sathyashraya, Vikrama, Parameshwara, Dakshinapatheshwara, Pruthvi Vallabha, Maharajadhiraja etc.,

Extent of his Kingdom : The Kingdom of Pulikeshi – II extended from the Kosala and Kalinga (Bay of Bengal) in the east, to Konkana in the west, the river Narmada in the north and upto river Cauveri .in the south.

Due to the campaigns of Pulikeshi, his name and fame began to spread far and wide. He maintained cultural and commercial contacts with Persia and exchanged Ambassadors with the Persian Emperor Khusru – II (Ajantha cave paintings depict this scene). The Chinese pilgrim Ilieun Tsang visited the court of Pulikeshi – II in 641 C.E. He has given us afactual and reliable description about the King and his Empire.

In his last days, Pulikeshi – II had to face the attack of the mighty Pallava forces under Narasimhavarman -1. Pulikeshi was defeated in the battle, and Narasimhavarman seized the Chalukyan capital in 642 C.E. In memory of this victory, Narasimhavarman assumed the title ‘Vatapikonda’.

RASHTRAKUTAS (753-978 C.E)

2nd PUC History Ancient Period One Marks Questions and Answers

I. Answer the following questions in one word or a sentence each.

Question 1.
What was the Royal Emblem of the Rashtrakutas?
Answer:
Eagle (Garuda) was the Royal Emblem of the Rashtrakutas.

Question 2.
Which was the capital of the Rashtrakutas?
Answer:
Manyakheta or Malakheda was the capital of the Rashtrakutas.

Question 3.
Who was the founder of the Rashtrakuta dynasty?
Answer:
Dantidurga was the founder of the Rashtrakuta dynasty.

Question 4.
Who was the greatest ruler of the Rashtrakutas?
Answer:
Amoghavarsha I (814-878 C.E.).

Question 5.
Who was the Arab traveller who visited the court of Amoghavarsha?
Answer:
The Arab traveller Sulaiman visited the court of Amoghavarsha.

Question 6.
Which was the earliest kannada literary work?
Answer:
Kavirajamarga was the earliest kannada literary work.

Question 7.
Who is called ‘Ubhaya Kavichakravarthi? (or) Who received the title ‘Ubhaya Kavi Chakravarthi’?
Answer:
Ponna is called ‘Ubhaya Kavichakravarthi’, patronised by Krishna – III.

Question 8.
Who patronised Ponna?
Answer:
Krishna III.

Question 9.
Who is called ‘Adikavi’ of Kannada? (or) Who is famous as Adikavi?
Answer:
Pampa is called the Adikavi of Kannada, patronised by Arikeshari-II.

Question 10.
Who patronised Pampa?
Answer:
Arikesari -II,

Question 11.
What does the word Rashtrakuta denote?
Answer:
In the word Rashtrakuta, ‘Rashtra’ means country and ‘kuta’ means head.

Question 12.
What are the other names of Amoghavarsha?
Answer:
Sharva, and Sreevijaya were some other names of Amoghavarsha.

Question 13.
Who was the eminent commander of Amoghavarsha?
Answer:
Bankesha was the eminent commander of Amoghavarsha.

Question 14.
Why was Bankapura built by Amoghavarsha?
Answer:
In the memory of his North Karnataka campaigns and to honour Bankesha, Bankapura was built by Amoghavarsha.

Question 15.
Who was honoured with the title ‘Kavi Chakravarthi’?
Answer:
Ranna was honoured with the title ‘Kavi Chakravarthi’.

Question 16.
Which book is called the first prose work of old Kannada?
Answer:
Vaddaradhane is called the first prose work of old Kannada.

Question 17.
Name the literary work by Amoghavarsha.
Answer:
Amoghavarsha wrote Prashnottara Ratnamala in Sanskrit.

Question 18.
Which was the first capital of the Rashtratutas?
Answer:
Latur was the first capital of the Rashtrakutas.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Two Marks Questions and Answers

II. Answer the following questions in two words or two sentences each.

Question 1.
Who built the Kailasanatha temple? Where was it built?
Answer:
Krishna-I built the Kailasanatha temple at Ellora.

Question 2.
Name any two titles of Dhruva.
Answer:
Dharavarsha, Srivallabha, Narendrasena, Kalivallabha.

Question 3.
Write any two titles of Govinda-III.
Answer:
Govinda – III was honoured with the titles like Jagattunga, Prabhuthavarasha. Sri Vallabha andTribhuvanadhavala.

Question 4.
Mention the titles of Amoghavarsha.
Answer:
Amoghavarsha had titles like Athishayadhavala, Nrupatunga, Veeranarayana, Sri Vallabha, Rattamarthanda etc.

Question 5.
Name any two works of Ponna.
Answer:
Ponna wrote Shanthinathapurana, Bhuvanaikya Ramabhyudaya and Jinaksharamale.

Question 6.
Name any two works of Pampa.
Answer:
Pampa hailed as the first poet (Adikavi) of Kannada, wrote Adipurana, Pampabharata or Vikramaijuna Vijaya.
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Question 7.
Who were the famous Rulers of the Rashtrakuta dynasty?
Answer:
Dantidurga, Krishna-I, Govinda – II, Dhruva, Govinda – III, Amoghavarsha, and Indi a – III, were some great Rashtrakuta Rulers. ‘

Question 8.
Who were the trinity (Three Gems) of Kannada literature?
Answer:
Pampa, Ponna and Ranna were considered as the trinity of Kannada literature.

Question 9.
Who was Sulaiman? In whose reign did he visit?
Answer:
Sulaiman was an Arab traveller. He visited the Rashtrakuta Empire during the period of Amoghavarsha in 851 C.E.

Question 10.
Which was the first Kannada literary work? Who wrote it?
Answer:
Kavirajamarga was the first Kannada literary work. Srivijaya was the author of this treatise.

Question 11.
Who wrote the first prose work in old Kannada? Which was his work?
Answer:
Shivakotyacharya wrote the first prose work in old Kannada. Vaddaradhane was his work.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Five Marks Questions and Answers

III. Answer the following questions in 15 to 20 sentences each.

Question 1.
Describe the achievements of Govinda – III
Answer:
Govinda – III (793-814 C.E.) He was the third son of Dhruva and he ascended the Rashtrakuta throne in 793 C.E. His rule was marked by splendid military achievements. He had to face the revolt of his brothers (Sthamba andlndra). Sthamba, who lost the chance of succeeding his father, was unhappy and broke out in revolt. Govinda – III successfully subdued his brother’s rebellion. Govinda treated his rebellious brothers leniently and allowed them to continue as the Governors of Gangawadi and Gujarath.

Northern Victories: Govinda – HI turned his attention towards north. He defeated Nagabhatta – II, successor to Vatsaraja of Prathihara near Bundelkhanda. Dharmapala of Bengal and Chakrayudha of Kanauj were also forced to accept the sovereignty of Govinda – HI. His . campaign Went as far as the Himalayas.

Sanjan copper plates remark that his horses drank the flowing waters at the foothills of the Himalayas and his war elephants bathed in the Ganga waters.

Southern campaign: The Northern victories brought him wealth and fame, but he did not , annex those territories to his.Kingdom. In the south, Pallavas, Pandyas, Cholas, Cheras and Gangas had formed an alliance to fight against Govinda. But they could not withstand his attacks in the battle.

Inscription of 805 C.E. remarks that Govinda snatched away ‘Fish’ from the Pandyas, the ‘Bull’ from the Pallavas, the ‘Tiger’ from the Cheras and the “Varaha” from the Chalukyas. (they were the respective emblems of those Kingdoms). On coming to know about this, the King of Ceylon voluntarily surrendered to Govinda – III, The whole of India from Kanauj to Kanyakumari and from Broach to Benaras accepted his supremacy. The Rashtrakuta pow&r reached the zenith of its glory under Govinda – III. He assumed titles like Srivallabha, Prabhutavarsha, Jagattunga,Tribhuvanadavala, Janavallabha and Kirthinarayana.

Question 2.
Explain the life and achievements of Amoghavarsha.
Answer:
Amoghavarsha (814-880 C.E.) After Govinda – III, his son Amoghavarsha came to the throne in 814 C.E. lie was the greatest ruler among Rashtrakutas. His early name was Sharva, and Sreevijaya was another name by which he was known. He was only 14 years old, when he ascended the throne. His uncle Karkasuvamavarsha became his guardian. Taking advantage of this, many subordinate Kings under the Rashtrakutas, rose in rebellion against Amoghavarsha.

Achievements: The Ganga ruler Shivamara – II rose against Amoghavarsha and after His death his son Rachamalla continued the war against the Rashtrakutas. Amoghavarsha’s commander Bankesha fought against the Gangas. Neither side could achieve superemacy. At hist, Amoghavarsha gave his daughter Chandralabbe in marriage to the Ganga Prince Bhutuga -1.

This matrimonial alliance between them, finally brought peace with the Gangas.
In 830 C.E., Amoghavarsha declared war against Vijayadhitya of the Vengi Chalukyas. He defeated the Chalukyas finally-at Vingavalli. Later, he developed matrimonial relations with the Chalukyas by giving his daughter Sheelamahadevi to the Chalukyan prince Vishnuvardhana – V (son of Vijayadhitya) and brought peace in that front.

Amoghavarsha had similar relations with the Pallavas too, by giving his daughter Sankha in marriage to Nandivarma – III of the Pallava dynasty. Thus, Amoghavarsha achieved much peace by matrimonial alliances with the Gangas, Chalukyas and Pallavas.

According to the inscriptions of Neelagunda and Sinir, Amoghavarsha was respected in Anga, Vanga, Magadha, Malwa and Vengi Kingdoms. In his last days, he had to face the rebellion of his own son.

The Arab traveller Sulaiman, visited his court in 851 C.E. He remarked that ‘The Kingdom of Amoghavarsha was one of the four great Empires of the world”. (The others being the Roman Empire, the Chinese Empire and the Khalifa of Baghdad).

During his last days, Amoghavarsha had to face the rebellion of Yuvaraja Krishna. Banks faced this rebellion ably. In memory of this victory, Amoghavarsha built the city of ‘Bankapura’ to honour Bankesha and made him the Governor of Banavasi. He built the new Rashtrakuta capital of Malakheda. Inscriptions have described that “Amoghavarsha’s capital was so great and grand, that it would put to shame even the capital of Lord Indra”.

Religion and Literature : Even though Amoghavarsha was the follower of Jainism, he extended equal respect and importance to other religions. He granted liberal grants and endowments to all religious institutions. He was a great devotee of Goddess Mahalakshmi of Kolhapur. Sanjan inscription says that he cut off his left thumb as a sacrifice to Mahalakshmi, to protect his subjects from plague and famine.

Amoghavarsha was peace loving, a patron of literature and a scholar himself. He wrote Trashnottara Ratnamala’ in Sanskrit. He patronised scholars like Jinasenacharya, Mahaveeracharya, Shakatayana, Srivijaya and others, Srivijaya wrote “Kaviraja Marga” in Kannada. Kaviraja’marga was the first literary work in Kannada. It refers to the fact that Karnataka was extending from Cauvery to Godavari. Amoghavarsha had titles like Nrupatunga, Athishayadhavala, Veeranarayana, Nitinirantara, Rajasimha, Rattamarthanda, Laxmi Vallabendra, Sri Vallabha etc., vested on him.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Ten Marks Questions and Answers

IV. Answer the following in 30 to 40 sentences.

Question 1.
Explain the cultural contributions of Rashtrakutas to the Indian culture.
Answer:
Cultural contributions of Rashtrakutas: Religion: Rashtrakuta rulers practised religious tolerance towards all religions. Even though they were followers of the vedic religion, they also patronised Jainism and Buddhism. Amoghavarsha was a great devotee of Goddess Mahalaxmi. They granted liberal grants and endowments to all religious institutions. Rashtrakutas constructed a number of temples in Malkehda, Mudhola, Lakshmeshwar, Naregal, Jogeshwar, Ellora etc., in different parts of their Kingdom. Brahmanas were engaged to perform yagnas and yagas. Kings respected them and gave them money generously.

Development of literature: The Rashtrakuta period witnessed great literary activity in both Kannada and Sanskrit. Amogahavarsha himself was a scholar and he wrote ‘Prashnottara Ratnamala’ in Sanskrit. He patronised scholars like Jinasenacharya who wrote Adipurana and Parshwabhyudaya, Mahaveeracharya who wrote Ganita Sara Sangraha and Shakatayana who was the author of Shabdanushasana. Srivijaya wrote ‘Kavirajamarga’, which was the earliest work of Kannada literature. It refers to the fact that Karnataka extended from Cauvery to Godavari. Asaga wrote VardhamanaPurana, Halayudha wroteKavirahasyaandMruta Sanjeevini andTrivikrama wrote Madalasachampu.

Pampa was given patronage by Arikeshari – II. Pampa is respected as the ‘Adikavi ’ of Kannada. He wrote Vikramarjuna Vijaya (Pampabharatha) and Adipurana (Champu Work). Ponna was called ‘Ubhaya Kavichakravailhi’ and he lived in the court of Krishna – III. He wrote Bhuvanaika Ramabhyudaya, Jinaksharamala and Shanthinathapurana. Pushpadantfaa wrote Mahapurana and Nayakumar Charite. Shivakotyacharya wrote Vaddaradhane, which is accepted as the first prose work of old Kannada. Harisena and Gunabhadra were other well known writers.

Art and Architeture: The contributions of the Rashtrakutas to the field of art and architecture are memorable. The architectural monuments of the Rashtrakutas are found at Ellora, Elephanta, Naregal, Malkheda, Mudhola, Lakshmeshwara, Jogeshwari, Mandapcshwaraetc.,The Pallava (Dravidian) style of architecture was adopted by the Rashtrakutas. Temples were built consisting of Pradakshanapatha, Mukhamantapa, Sabhamantapa, Antarala and Garbhagruha. The Rashtrakuta contributions to art and architecture are reflected in the splendid rock cut (Cave) shrines at Ellora, Ajantha and Elephanta. There are 34 cave temples at Ellora. They belong to Buddhist, Hindu and Jain deties. .

The Kailasanatha Temple: The most extensive temple is the Kai Iasanatha temple at Ellora, (Aurangabad Dist) built by Krishna -1 in the 8th century C.E. The temple is divided into four main parts. It was carved out of a single rock. This storied temple is supported by life-size elephants at the base. It is 276 ft long, 154 feet wide and 107 feet deep. On the walls of the temples are the figures like Ravana lifting mount Kailasa, adorned with Nandi, Vishnu, Bairava, Laxmi, Shiva and Parvathi which attracts one’s attention. There are other such scenes of carvings in bas relief like Shiva in dancing pose and Vishnu and Lakshmi listening to the music. Some other noteworthy and famous rock cuts are Ravana’s cave, Rameshwara cave No. 21, Neelakhantacave, Jagannatha sabha, Dasavatharacave -15 etc.,

Dashavatara Cave: It consists of two storeys and the underground hall measures 97 ft x 50 ft. The sculptured figures of Vishnu and Shiva and the scene of death of I Hiranyakashipu are excellent.

Elephanta Caves (Trimurthi Temple): Elephanta is an island near Bombay. It has a big hall, 130 feet long and 129 feet wide. It has three enttrances leading to the hall. At the end of this hall is the garbhagruha with Linga. Opposite to the central hall at the back, is the gigantic image of Thrimurthi which is 25 feet high. Dwarapalaka, Ardhanareshwara, Shiva – Parvathi and other bas – reliefs have been beautifully carved. The paintings in the cave temples of Ellora are a witness to the fact that the Rashtrakutas patronised paintings.

Later Chalukyas and Hoysalas

2nd PUC History Ancient Period One Mark Questions and Answers

I. Answer the following questions in one word or a sentence each.

Question 1.
Who was the founder of the Chalukya dynasty of Kalyana?
Answer:
Tailapa-II was the founder of the Chalukya dynasty of Kalyana.

Question 2.
Which was the first capital of the Chalukyas of Kalyana?
Answer:
Manyakheta was their first capital. Someshwara-I, shifted the capital to Kalyana.

Question 3.
Who was the patron of Ranna?
Answer:
Ranna was patronized by Sathyashraya.

Question 4.
Who was conferred with the title ‘Kavichakravarthi’?
Answer:
Ranna was conferred with the title‘Kavichakravarthi’.

Question 5.
Which work is considered as ‘The first Encyclopaedia’ of Sanskrit?
Answer:
Someshwara-III’s ‘Abhiiashithartha Chintamani or Manasollasa’ is considered as the first Encyclopaedia of Sanskrit.

Question 6.
Who was the founder of the Iloysala Kingdom?
Answer:
Sala was the founder of the Hoysala Kingdom.

Question 7.
What was the Royal Emblem of the Iloysalas?
Answer:
A depiction of Sala killing a tiger, was the Royal Emblem of the Hoysalas.

Question 8.
Who was the greatest Ruler of the Chalukyas of Kalyana?
Answer:
Vikramaditya-VI was the greatest Ruler among the Chalukyas of Kalyana.

Question 9.
Which was the first work in Kannada on Astrology?
Answer:
Sreedharacharya wrote ‘JatakaTilaka’, the first work in Kannada on Astrology.

Question 10.
Which was the first work in Kannada on Veterinary science?
Answer:
Kirthivarma wrote ‘Govaidya’ the first Kannada work on Veterinary science.

Question 11.
Who was the author of Panchatantra in Kannada?
Answer:
Durgasimha was the author of Panchatantra in Kannada.

Question 12.
Who was the court poet of Vikramaditya-VI?
Answer:
The Kashmiri poet Bilhana was the court poet of Vikramaditya – IV.

Question 13.
Whose feudatory were the Hoysalas?
Answer:
Hoysalas were the feudatories of Chalukyas of Kalyana.

Question 14.
Who converted Vishnuvardhana to Vaishnavism?
Answer:
Vishnuvardhana was converted to Vaishanavism by the influence of Ramanujacharya.

Question 15.
Who possessed the title ‘Talakadugonda’?
Answer:
Vishnuvardhana assumed the title ‘Talakadugonda”.

Question 16.
Who was called as ‘AbhinavaPampa’?
Answer:
Nagachandra was called as‘AbhinavaPampa’.

Question 17.
Which temple is considered as the jewel of Indian architecture?
Answer:
Hoysaleshwara temple at Halebeedu is considered as the jewel of Indian architecture.

Question 18.
Who was the general of Allauddin Khilji who invaded the Iloysala Kingdom?
Answer:
Malik Kafur invaded the Hoysala Kingdom, during the reign of Ballala-III.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Two Marks Questions and Answers

II. Answer the following questions in two words or two sentences each.

Question 1.
Who started the ‘Vikrama Era’? When did it begin?
Answer:
Vikramaditya-VI started the Vikrama era in 1076 CE.

Question 2.
Mention any two titles of Vikramaditya-VI.
Answer:
Vikramaditya assumed titles like Permadideva andTribhuvanamalla. He is called as the ‘Moon of Karnataka’. (Karnataka Chandra).

Question 3.
Name any two works of Ranna.
Answer:
Ranna wrote Ajitanatha Purana and Sahasa Bhima Vijaya (Gadhayuddha).

Question 4.
Who was the court poet of Vikramaditya- VI? Name his work.
Answer:
Bilhana was the court poet of Vikramaditya-VI. He wrote Vikraman ka Deva Charitham (Biography of Vikramaditya-VI).

Question 5.
Name the capitals of the Hoysalas.
Answer:
Dwarasamudra (Halebeedu), Belur, Bankapura, Hakkundi and Kannanur were the capitals of the Hoysalas during different periods under different rulers.

Question 6.
Name some titles of Vishnuvardhana (or) What were the titles assumed by Vishnuvardhana?
Answer:
Talakadugonda, Kadanaprachanda, Kanchigonda, Viraganga, Maleperulganda, Mahamandaleshwara, Satyaratnakara, Veeranarayana were the titles of Vishnuvardhana.

Question 7.
Name any two famous temples of the Hoysala period.
Answer:
Channakeshava temple at Belur built by Vishnuvardhanain 1117 C.E., Hoysaleshwara temple at Halebeedu built by Narasimha-I in 1121C.E., Keshava temple at Somanathapura built by
Narasimha-III in 1268 C.E.

Question 8.
Which temple is called as ‘Emperor of temples’? Who built it?
Answer:
Mahadeva temple at Itagi (Gadag)MahadevaDandanayaka built it.

Question 9.
Name the important art and architectural centres of the Hoysala period.
Answer:
Gadag,Bankapura, Arasikere,Harihara,Belur,Halebeedu, Somanathapura, Haradanahalli, Bhadravatietc., .

Question 10.
Who was the famous Queen of Vishnuvardhana? Which was her faith?
Answer:
Shantaladevi (called as Natya Saraswati) was the Queen of Vishnuvardhana. She was a follower of Jainism.

2nd PUC History Ancient Period Five Marks Questions and Answers

III. Answer the following questions in 15 to 20 sentences each.

Question 1.
Explain the cultural contributions of the Chalukyas of Kalyana.
Answer:
Cultural contributions: Literature: The Chalukyas of Kalyana followed the great tradition of the Chalukyas of Badami and made rich contributions to the culture of Karnataka, espectially in literature, art and architecture. Kannada and Sanskrit literature developed during this period. The famous Kannada poet Ranna was the court poet of Satyashraya.

He wrote Sahasabhimavijaya (Gadhayuddha) and Ajithanatha purana. He was bestowed upon with the title ‘Kavichakravarlhi’ and was honoured in the court of Tailapa II. Nagavarma-I wrote Karnataka Kadambari and Chandombudi. Chavundaraya – II wrote Lokopakara which deals with Astronomy, Astrology, Sculpture and Medicine. Sreedharacharya wrote Jaatakatilaka which was the first work in Kannada on Astrology.

Kirti varma wrote Govaidya, a work on Veterinary science. King Someshwara-III wrote Manasollasa or Abhilashithartha Chinthamani, which is considered as the first encyclopedia in Sanskrit. The great court poet of Vikramadithya- VI, Bilhana wrote Vikraman ka Devacharitam. Vijnaneshwara another great scholar, wrote Mitakshara Samhita, Nayasena wrote Dharmamrutha, and Durgasimha wrote Panchatantra in Kannada. Shantinatha wrote Sukumara Charithe. Vikramaditya’s Queen Chandralekha was a great exponent of dance and music, and she had the titles Nritya Vtdyadhari and Abhinaya Saraswati.

Art and Architecture: Chalukyas of Kalyana were great patrons of art and architecture. They continued the architectural style of the Chalukyas of Badami. The Kalyana Chalukyas’ period consists of certain distinctive, features of architecture. They are: i) The tower of the temple was pyramidical in shape, the Garbhagriha (Sanctum) was enclosed by the inner pradakshinapatha. (ii) The doorways of the temples were richly carved, (iii) The decorations of the exterior walls of the temples were an amalgam of both Nagara and Dravidian styles, (iv) The pillars of the temples added to the artistic beauty of the whole structure.

The earliest examples of the Kalyana Chalukyan style are found at Kukkanur. Kalleshwara and Navalinga temples at Kukkanur resemble the temples of Aihole and Pattadakallu. The Jai n temple at Lakkundi (Gadag) forms the next step in the improvement of their style, introducing a greater ornamental effect in the treatment of the surface.

The Shiva temple at Jalasanghvi (near Humnabad), has the most wonderful sculpture of dancing Ganapathi on the wall of the temple. The Doddabasappa temple at Gadag has been built in star-shape. Kashivishweshwara temple at Lakkundi, Mallikarjuna temple at Kuruvatti, Someshwara temple at Laxmeshwara, Kalleshwara temple at Hirehadagali, Dambala – Doddabasaveshwara, Hanagal-Tharakeshwara, and Mahadeva temple at Itagi etc are fine examples for the later Chalukyan architecture. The Mahadeva temple at Itagi (near Gadag) built by Mahadeva, the Dandanayaka of Vikramaditya-VI is called as the ‘Emperor of Temples’. Chalukyas contributed immensely to the culture of Karnataka and have left an indelible impression on the style of architecture in India.

Question 2.
Describe the achievements of Vishnuvardhana.
Answer:
Vishnuvardhana 1108-1152 CE: Bittideva or Vishnuvardhana was the greatest Hoysala ruler. He was the son of Ereyanga, and he ascended the throne in 1108 CE. He had taken part in many wars during his brother Ballala-I’s reign. He gained a lot of experience in administration, as the Governor of Nanjangud province. He had ambitions of making the Kingdom independent. He was the first Hoysala King to revolt against the Chalukyas of Kalyana and tried to establish an independent Kingdom. But, he was defeated by Vikramaditya-VI. By his ability and might, he became a powerful ruler.

Military achievements of Vishnuvardhana:

(1) War with Cholas: The aim of Vishnuvardhana was to defeat and expel the Cholas from Gangavadi. He sent an army to conquer Talakadu, Kolar and Mysore. He completely routed the Cholas from Gangavadi in the battle of Talakadu in 1114 CE and took the title ‘Talakadugonda’. In commemoration of this victory, he built the K’irtinarayana temple at Talakadu and the Channakeshwara temple at Belur.

According to the Malavalli inscription, Vishnuvardhana himself chased the Cholas and occupied Kolar. Later, he drove back the Cholas upto Kanchi and earned the title Kanchigonda. From there, he raided Madurai and defeated Pandyas. After conquering Pandyas of Uchchangi in 1117 CE in the ‘Battle of Dumme’, he marched upto Rameshwara. He defeated the Nidugal Cholas and Cheras also.

(2) Defeated the Kongalavas and Alupas: According to the Belur inscription, Vishnuvardhana defeated the Kongalava King and married his daughter Chandala Devi. While returning, he defeated Rattar of Halasagi and Alupas of South Canara.

Chamarajanagar inscription of 1117 CE, infers that Vishnuvardhana threatened the Todas, destroyed the Pallavas by killing their King Kala and made the Kongas run away.

War with the Chalukyas of Kalyana : Vishnuvardhana wanted to free his Kingdom from the yoke of Chalukyan imperialism. But, he was defeated by Vikramaditya – VI in 1118 CE in the battle of Kannegala. The Chalukyan sovereign continued till the death of Vikramaditya- VI.

Titles of Vishnuvardhana: He had titles like Mahamandaleshwara, Chalukyamani, Mandalika Chudamani, Maleperolganda, Talakadugonda, Kanchigonda, Veeraganga, Nolambagonda, Kaliyaga Partha, Kirthinarayana, Vikramaganga etc.,

Religious Policy: Vishnuvardhana became a great follower of Ramanuja and embraced Sri Vaishnavism. During his rule, Jainism had also attained the highest position. His Queen Shantala and general Gangaraja were devout jains. Gangaraja was given enough grants to renovate all the basadies in Gangavadi. Vishnuvardhana practised religious tolerance towards Basadies and temples atTalakadu, Belur, Melukote,Tonnur, Gadag, Bankapura etc.,

Art and Architecture: Vishnuvardhana was a great patron of art and architecture. During his regime, a unique style of temple building began. His period was called ‘the golden age of temple building’ and he laid the foundation for the Hoysala architecture.
Important temples built by him were the Channakeshwara and Kappechanniga temples at Belur, Kirtinarayana temple of Talakadu, Veeranarayana temples at Gadag andTonnur, Chaluvanarayana temple at Melukote, Mahalakshmi temple of Doddagaddavalli and Gangadhareshwara temple at Shivaganga etc.,

Literature : Vishnuvardhana encouraged literature too. Jain scholar Rajadhitya wrote, Kshetraganitha, Vyavaharaganitha andLeelavathi in Kannada. Nayasena wrote Dharmamrutha, Ramanujacharya wrote Vedanthasara, Vedanthadeepika and Vedanthasangraha.

Question 3.
Illustrate Hoysala contributions to religion and literature.
Answer:
Hoysala rulers have contributed a lot in the fields of religion, literature, art and architecture. A unique style of architecture and sculpture was developed during this period. It is known as ‘The golden age of temple architecture’.

Religion: The Hoysala period witnessed great religious activities. Hoysalas patronised Shaivism, Vaishnavism and Jainism. Most of the Hoysala rulers were devout Jains and patronised Jainism. Bittideva (Vishnuvardhana) was initially a Jain, but by the influence of Ramanujacharya, he embraced Srivaishnavism. He changed his name from Bittideva to Vishunardhana. His Queen Shantaladevi and his general Gangaraja were Jains.

Shaivism was encouraged by the Hoysala Kings like Ballala-II and Someshwara. Sivacharya wrote commentaries on the Gita and Brahma sastras. By the 12th century, a dynamic form of Saivism known as Virasaivism came into existence. Ramanujacharya’led the spread of Srivaishnavism in Karnataka. People had complete freedom in their religious activities. This led to the construction and renovation of a number of temples and basadies in different parts of the Kingdom.

Literature: Kannada and Sanskrit literature flourished during this period. Nagachandra was patronised by Ballala-I. He was called as ‘Ahinava Pampa’ or ‘Kavita Manohara’. He was the author of books like Mallinathapurana, Ramachandra charitha and Pampa Ramayana. Janna was in the court of Ballala-II, and he received the title ‘Kavichakravarthi’. Janna wrote Yashodacharitre and Ananthanatha Purana. Keshiraja wrote Shabdamanidarpana, the first Kannada grammer treatise. Nayasena was the author of Dharmamrutha.

Among the several other celebrities were Harihara who wrote Girija Kalyana, Pampashataka and Shivaksharamale and Raghavanka, who wrote Harischandrakavya and Siddaramapurana. Rajaditya was the author of Kshetra Ganitha, Vyavahara Ganitha and Leelavathi. Thrivikramapanditha wrote Ushaharana, Narayanapanditha wrote Mandhava Vijaya and Manimanjari and Sakala, Vidyachakravarthi-III wrote Rukmini Kalyana. All these were in Sanskrit.

Question 4.
Explain the main features of the Hoysala architecture.
Answer:
Hoysala art and architecture: Hoysalas occupy a unique place in the Indian architectural history. Hoysalas adapted the Vesara and Dravidian styles and developed a new style of architecture. So, it is nothing but the culmination of the Chalukyan architecture and is called ‘The Hoysala style’ of architecture. The great sculptors who built most of the Hoysala temples were Dasoja, Chavana, Kedaraja, Nagoja, Jakkanna, Mallitamma, Byroja and others.

The main characteristics (Salient features) of the Hoysala temples:

1. Hoysala temples are star-shaped. The temples have a tower (sikhara) above the sanctum (Garbhagriha). This tower is in the form of a pyramid.
2. Hoysala temples are constructed on a raised platform (jagati) of 4 to 5 feet. The walls of the basement are covered with stone carvings.
3. Just above the platform, space is left all around the temple, to do pradakshana of the temple, which is called Pradhakshinapatha.
4. The temples have carved stone windows with apertures and the walls are covered with ornamental sculptures.
5. The outer walls of the temples have stone carvings, The bottom portion consists of a row of elephants, horses, flower designs, swans, stories from the epics and puranas.
6. The doorways of the temples have beautiful carvings in stone and a pair of dwarapalakas stand on either side.
7. The centreof the ceiling of the hall has intricate carvings of Bhuvaneshwari. Above the
   pillars, on the brackets stand the statues of dancing girls in different poses.
8. Hoysala temples have been classified as per the number of cel ls'(kutas)e.g., One cell (ekakuta) temples to five cells (panchakuta) temples. The sanctums (Garbhagriha) are small and simple square chambers.

Hoysala temple constructions : Hoysalas built more than 100 temples between the 11th and 13th centuries. Vishnuvardhana period was the ‘Golden age’ of temple building in the Hoysala Kingdom. Vishnuvardhana built, Kiithinarayana temple atTalakadu, Cheluvanarayana temple at Melkote, Channakeshava temple and Kappechenniga temples at Belur, Mallikaijuna and Rangantha temples at Huliyur, Veeranarayana temples at Gadag and Bankapura.

Channakeshava temple (Ekakuta) at Belur is the epitome of the Hoysala style. Ballala-III (1173-1220 CE) built Amrulheshwara and Ballaleshwara temples at Arasikere and Kedareshwara temple at Halebeedu. Narasimha-I and his deputy Ketamalla built the Hoysaleshwara (Dwikuta) temple (1121 CE) at Halebeedu.

Narasimha II built the Harihareshwar temple at Harihara, Lakshminarasimha temple at Bhadravati, and Someshwara and Keshava temples at Haradanahalli. Narasimha-III built Keshava temple (Thrikuta) at Somanathapura in 1268 CE., Lakshmi temple (chathuskuta) at Doddagaddavalli andPanchalingeshwara temple (Panchakuta) at Govindanahalli.

The Channkeshava temple (1117 CE) built by Vishnuvardhana at Belur, The Hoysaleshwar temple (1121 CE) built by Ketamalla at Halebeedu and the Keshava temple (1268 CE) built by Narasimha – III at Somanathapura are the best examples of the best variety. According to Fergusson the famous historian, Hoysaleshwara temple can be termed as the ‘Jewel of Indian Architecture’.

Question 5.
Describe the achievements of Vikramaditya-VI.
Answer:
Vikramaditya-VI (1076-1126 CE): He was the most outstanding ruler of the Chalukyas of Kalyana. He was the Governor of Gangavadi during the reign of his brother Someshwara-II. Vikramaditya-VI overthrew his brother and proclaimed himself as the King of Chalukyas of Kalyana in 1076 CE. To commemorate his accession to the throne, he started a new era known as the Vikrama era from 1076 C.E.

1) The revolt of Jayasimha-IV: In 1080 CE, Jayasimha-IV (younger brother) who had been appointed as the Governor of Banavasi rose in revolt and made an attempt to seize the throne. Vikramaditya-VI defeated him and kept him in prison.

2) Interference in Paramara politics: The Paramara ruler Udayaditya passed away and a conflict for the throne began amongst his sons. Vikramaditya-VI helped Jayadeva to secure the throne. As a result, Jayadeva remained the most trusted feudatory of Vikramaditya-VI.

3) Conquest on Hoysalas: The Hoysalas were feudatories of the Chalukyas of Kaylana, but under the leadership of the ambitious Vishnuvardhana, they wanted to overthrow the Chalukyan yoke. In 1117 C.E., Vishnuvardhana invaded and occupied, the Chalukyan territory of Nolambavadi. But in 1118 C.E., Vishnuvardhana after a bitter struggle lost in the battle of KannegalatoVikramaditya-VI.

4) War with Cholas: Vikramaditya-VI marched against the Cholas and captured Kanchi. Kulottunga Chola had captured Vengi, but it was reconquered by Vikramaditya-VI in 1118 CE. He turned his attention towards north. The northern rulers like Gurjaras, and later Malwa and Sindhe were all routed by him and accepted the supremacy of Vikramaditya-VI.

5) Expedition to south: Southern rulers like the Kadambas of Hanagal, Pandyas of Uchchangi, Shiiaharas of north Konkan, Alupas, Sevanas and others were also defeated and accepted the sovereignty of Vikramaditya-VI.

6) Extention of the Kingdom: Vikramaditya extended his Kingdom towards east upto Godavari, west upto Konkana, north upto river Narmada and in south upto southern Karnataka.

Vikramaditya was an able ruler and well-known patron of learning. He patronized scholars like Bilhana, Vijananeshwara and others. Vikramaditya assumed titles like Permadideva and Tribhuvanamalla. He was also called as the ‘Moon of Karnataka’. He maintained cordial relations with Ceylon. He started the ‘ Vikrama era’ in 1076 C.E.

Karnataka 2nd PUC Political Science Question Bank Chapter 1 Origin and Growth of Indian Political System

You can Download Chapter 1 Origin and Growth of Indian Political System, Notes, 2nd PUC Political Science Question Bank with Answers Karnataka State Board Solutions help you to revise complete Syllabus and score more marks in your examinations.

2nd PUC Political Science Origin and Growth of Indian Political System One Mark Questions and Answers

Question 1.
Name one of the ideals of National Movement.
Answer:
Popular Sovereignty’ is one of the ideals of National Movement.

Question 2.
State one of the problems that India faced after independence.
Answer:
Agriculture and industrial stagnation was one of the problems that India faced after independence.

Question 3.
When did East India Company established the Trade Centres in India?
Answer:
East India Company established its Trade Centres in India in 1600.

Question 4.
How long the East India Company ruled India?
Answer:
East India Company ruled India from 1757 to 1858.

Question 5.
Which Act transferred power from Company to the Crown? (July 2017)
Answer:
British Crown Act 1858 transferred power from Company to Crown.

Question 6.
When was INC formed? (July 2018)
Answer:
INC was formed in 1885.

Question 7.
State one of the reforms of the Act of 1909.
Answer:
Providing separate electorate to the Muslims was one of the reforms of the act of 1909.

Question 8.
Mention one of the reforms of Montagu-Chelmsford Report.
Answer:
Introducing Dyarchy in the British Provinces was one of the reforms of Montagu-Chelmsford Report.

Question 9.
State the reason for the Government of India Act 1935.
Answer:
Failure of 1919 Act to meet the needs of Indians was the reason for the Government of India Act 1935.

Question 10.
Why was Statutory Commission formed?
Answer:
The Statutory Commission was formed to review the 1919 Act and to report about the working of the system of Dyarchy.

Question 11.
What did Simon Commission recommend?
Answer:
The Simon Commission recommended the British Government to provide ‘Dominion Status’ to India.

Question 12.
When was the 3rd Round Table Conference held?
Answer:
The 3rd Round Table Conference held in 1932.

Question 13.
Mention one of the Provisions of 1935 Act.
Answer:
The Act provided for the establishment of Federation of India.

Question 14.
Which Act provided for the provisions of Federal system in India?
Answer:
1935 act provided for the provisions of Federal system in India.

Question 15.
Why did Gandhiji decided to ‘fast untodeath’ ?
Answer:
Gandhiji opposed separate electorate for untouchables and decided to ‘fast untodeath’.

Question 16.
When was Poona Pact signed? (July 2017)
Answer:
Poona Pact was signed on 24th September 1932.

Question 17.
Who are the signitaries of Poona Pact? (July 2017)
Answer:
Gandhiji and Dr.B.R. Ambedkar are the signitaries of Poona Pact.

Question 18.
Who exercised Residuary powers?
Answer:
Governor General can exercise the Residuary powers.

Question 19.
What is Dyarchy ? (March 2016)
Answer:
Dual government in the British Provinces is called Dyarchy.

Question 20.
Who was authorized to act upon transferred subjects?
Answer:
Governor General was authorized to act upon transferred subjects.

Question 21.
What was the term of Federal Assembly?
Answer:
The term of Federal Assembly was 5 years.

Question 22.
What was the total strength of Council of States?
Answer:
The total strength of Council of States was 260.

Question 23.
What was the total strength of the Federal Assembly?
Answer:
The total strength of the Federal Assembly was 375.

Question 24.
How many members were nominated by the rulers of the Princely States?
Answer:
125 members were nominated by the rulers of the princely States.

Question 25.
State the total strength of judges in Federal Court.
Answer:
The total strength of judges in Federal Court was one Chief Justice and 6 Additional Judges.

Question 26.
Who was the appointing authority to the judges of Federal Court?
Answer:
The British Government can appoint the judges of Federal Court on the basis of high legal qualifications.

Question 27.
What is the meaning of Original Jurisdiction?
Answer:
The authority to decide the disputes between the centre and the provinces is called Original Jurisdiction.

Question 28.
What is the meaning of Appellate Jurisdiction?
Answer:
The citizens can appeal over the decisions of the High Courts, it is called Appellate Jurisdiction.

Question 29.
What is the meaning of Advisory Jurisdiction?
Answer:
Advising the Governor General on any point of law is called Advisory Jurisdiction.

Question 30.
Which is called as the Court of Records?
Answer:
Federal Court is called as the Court of Records.

Question 31.
Who was the first Chief Justice of Federal Court?
Answer:
Sir Maurice Gwyer was the first Chief Justice of Federal Court.

Question 32.
How long did the Federal Court function?
Answer:
The Federal Court functioned in India for about 12 years.

Question 33.
What is Provincial Autonomy?
Answer:
The provinces no longer remained as delegates of Central Government but became autonomous units of administration, it is called Provincial Autonomy.

Question 34.
How many provinces introduced provincial autonomy?
Answer:
11 Provinces were introduced provincial autonomy.

Question 35.
Who administered the Provinces?
Answer:
Provincial Governors administered the Provinces.

Question 36.
When was the Drafting Committee set up?
Answer:
The Drafting Committee was set up on 29! August 1947.

Question 37.
Who was the Chairman of the Drafting Committee?
Answer:
Dr. B.R. Ambedkar was the Chairman of the Drafting Committee.

Question 38.
Who was the Chairman of the Constituent Assembly?
Answer:
Dr. Rajendra Prasad was the Chainnan of the Constituent assembly.

Question 39.
Who stood for a separate state of Pakistan?
Answer:
Mohamed Ali Jinna stood for a separate state of Pakistan.

Question 40.
Who was the Chairman of the Boundry Commission? (March 2018)
Answer:
Sir Cyril Radcliffe was the Chainnan of the Boundry Commission.

Question 41.
When was the Interim Government of India formed? (July 2017)
Answer:
The Interim Government of India was formed on 2nd September 1946.

Question 42.
Till when did the Interim Government remain in office?
Answer:
The Interim Government remains in office till 15th August 1947.

Question 43.
How long did the Interim Government worked?
Answer:
The Interim Government worked for 9 months 13 days.

Question 44.
Who was the Vice President of Viceroy’s Executive Council? (March 2016)
Answer:
Jawaharlal Nehru was the Vice President of Viceroy’s Executive Council.

Question 45.
When did the independent India accepted the Constitution?
Answer:
The independent India accepted the Constitution on 26th November 1949.

Question 46.
When did the Constitution of India came into effect? (July 2016)
Answer:
The Constitution of India came into effect on 26th  January 1950.

Question 47.
When were the first general elections held?
Answer:
The first general elections were held during October 1951 to February 1952.

Question 48.
Which country holds world’s largest democracy?
Answer:
India holds world’s largest democracy.

Question 49.
For how many seats in Loksabha, elections were held in the first general elections?
Answer:
Answer: For 489 seats in Loksabha, elections were held in the first general elections.

Question 50.
Who was the first speaker of Loksabha?
Answer:
Answer: G.V. Mavalankar was the first speaker of Loksabha.

Question 51.
Mention the number of electorates who exercised their franchise?
Answer:
Answer: 176 millions electorates exercised their franchise in the first general elections.

Question 52.
Mention the number of persons who actually exercised voting?
Answer:
Answer: 105.5 millions were actually exercised their voting in the first general elections.

Question 53.
What was the number of polling booths in first general elections?
Answer:
Number of polling booths in first general elections was 2.24,000.

Question 54.
What was the percentage of votes polled in first general elections?
Answer:
Answer: The percentage of votes polled in first general elections was 45%.

Question 55.
How many political parties were in the fray in the first general elections?
Answer:
Nearly 70 political parties were in the fray in the first general elections.

Question 56.
How many candidates contested for the first general elections?
Answer:
Answer: 1800 candidates were contested for the first general elections.

Question 57.
What is Paramountcy?
Answer:
The Princely States of India accepted British supremacy in the matters of External Affairs, but
enjoyed certain amount of freedom in their internal affairs, this is called Paramountcy.

Question 58.
What is meant by ‘Instrument of Accession’?
Answer:
An acceptance by the provinces to join with Indian Union, it is called ‘Instrument of Accession’.

Question 59.
How many princely states signed for ‘Instrument of Accession’?
Answer:
Nearly 565 Princely States have signed for instrument of Accession’.

Question 60.
Name one of the states which did not sign the ‘Instrument of Accession’.
Answer:
Hyderabad did not sign the instrument of Accession’.

Question 61.
What is meant by ‘Patel Scheme’?
Answer:
The process of integration of states were made in three-fold is known as ‘Patel Scheme’.

Question 62.
Who was the Architect of the ‘Reorganization of States’?
Answer:
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel w-as the Architect of the ‘Reorganization of States’.

Question 63.
What is ‘Operation Polo’? (July 2016)
Answer:
The Indian army entered into Hyderabad to end the anarchy of Nizam and to liberate the Hyderabad, it is known as ‘Operation Polo’.

Question 64.
Who was called as the ‘Man of Iron Will’? (March 2018)
Answer:
Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was called as the ‘Man of Iron Will’.

Question 65.
Which Article of the Indian Constitution provides special status to Jammu and Kashmir?
Answer:
Article 370 of the Indian Constitution provides special status to Jammu and Kashmir.

Question 66.
Who was the Chairman of Linguistic Provinces Commission?
Answer:
Justice S.K. Dar was the Chairman of Linguistic Provinces Commission.

Question 67.
When was the States Reorganization Committee (SRC) formed?
Answer:
The States Reorganization Committee was formed in 1953.

Question 68.
When was States Reorganization Act enacted?
Answer:
The States Reorganization Act was enacted on November 4956.

Question 69.
Which new state was created in 2014?
Answer:
Telangana state was created in 2014.

Question 70.
When was Bombay bifurcated?
Answer:
Bombay was bifurcated in 1960.

Question 71.
When was Punjab bifurcated?
Answer:
Punjab was bifurcated in 1966.

2nd PUC Political Science Origin and Growth of Indian Political System Two marks questions and answers:

Question 1.
Name any two leaders of Indian Freedom Movement.
Answer:
The two leaders of Indian Freedom Movement are Dadabhai Naoroji and Gopala Krishna Gokhale.

Question 2.
Name any two challenges that India faced after Independence.
Answer:
Economic backwardness and poverty are the two challenges that India faced after Independence.

Question 3.
Name any two ideals of National Movement that are in the Indian Constitution.
Answer:
Civil liberties and self-reliant economy are the two ideals of National Movement that are in the Indian Constitution.

Question 4.
How many Articles and Schedules were there in the Act of 1935? (March 2019)
Answer:
The Act contained 321 Articles and 10 Schedules.

Question 5.
How many subjects were there in Federal list? Name one of them.
Answer:
There are 59 subjects in Federal list. Ex. External Affairs.

Question 6.
State the number of subjects in Provincial list and name one of them.
Answer:
There are 54 subjects in Provincial list. Ex. Police.

Question 7.
Name any two subjects that are in the Concurrent list.
Answer:
Criminal law. Civil Procedure, Marriage and Divorce are in the Concurrent list.

Question 8.
What is meant by Reserved Subjects? Give an example.
Answer:
The subjects which are dealt by Governor General with the help of Councilors who are appointed by him and not responsible to legislature is called Reserved subjects. Ex. Defence, External Affairs.

Question 9.
What is Bicameral Legislature?
Answer:
The central legislature was consisting of two houses called Federal Assembly and the Council of States, it is called bicameral legislature.

Question 10.
Name two houses of Central Legislature.
Answer:

1. Federal assembly (Lower House).
2. Council of States (Upper House).

Question 11.
State any two provinces which had Bicameral Legislature.
Answer:

1. Bombay
2. Bihar.

Question 12.
When was Federal Court established and where? (March 2017)
Answer:
The Federal Court was established in 1937 at Delhi.

Question 13.
Write any two proposals of Sir Stafford Cripps.
Answer:

1. Formation of Constituent Assembly to frame the Constitution after the 2nd World War.
2. Providing Dominion status to India.

Question 14.
State any two recommendations of Cabinet Mission.
Answer:

1. Formation of Constituent Assembly with 389 members.
2. Formation of Interim Government with the support of all political parties.

Question 15.
What is Mount Batten Plan?
Answer:
The agreement between Congress and Muslim League on the basis of partition and the Princely States can have liberty to join with India or Pakistan or to remain independent.

Question 16.
How many days and sessions did the first Loksabha meet?
Answer:
The first Loksabha met 14 sessions in 667 davs.

Question 17.
Which state was formed first on the basis of language and when?
Answer:
Andhra Pradesh was formed in 1953 on the basis of language.

Question 18.
As per the Act of 1956 how many States and Union Territories were formed?
Answer:
14 States and 6 Union Territories were formed as per the Act of 1956.

Question 19.
How many states was Bombay divided into? Which are they? (July 2015)
Answer:
Bombay was divided into 2 states. They are Maharashtra and Gujarat.

Question 20.
How many states was Punjab divided into? Which are they? (March 2016)
Answer:
Punjab was divided into 2 states. They are Punjab and Haryana.

2nd PUC Political Science Origin and Growth of Indian Political System Five marks questions and answers

Question 1.
Explain the contents of white paper after Round Table Conferences.
Answer:
The outcome of Round Table Conference are as follows:-

• Educational facilities and reservation in politics for depressed class.
• Universal adult franchise
• Prohibition of social boycott.
• Communal representation.
• Separate electorate for the untouchables.

Question 2.
Explain the distribution of powers among states in the Act of 1935.
Answer:
It divided legislative, powders between the Central and Provincial legislatures. There was a three fold division.

1. Federal list: It consisted of 59 subjects like External Affairs, Currency, Defence etc., over which the Federal Legislature had legislative powers.
2. Provincial list: It consisted of 54 subjects like Police. Education etc., over which Provincial Legislature had jurisdiction.
3. Concurrent list: It consisted of 36 subjects like Criminal law, Civil Procedure, Marriage and Divorce etc. over which both the Federal and Provincial Legislatures had competence.
4. The Residuary powers were vested with the Governor General.

Question 3.
Write about the jurisdiction of Federal Court.
Answer:
The jurisdiction of the Federal Court are as follows:

• It had Original Jurisdiction to decide disputes between the centre and the provinces.
• Appellate Jurisdiction over decisions of the High Courts.
• Advisory’ Jurisdiction to advice the Governor General on any point of law.
• It also acts as a court of record. This means that its decisions are recorded for future reference.

Question 4.
List out the number of members of the Executive Council along with their portpolios
Answer:

Question 5.
Write a note on the Interim Government. (July 2018)
Answer:
The Interim Government of India was formed on 2nd’September 1946. The Constituent Assembly had 389 members. It was drawn from the newly elected Constituent Assembly of India. It has the task of assisting the transition of India and Pakistan from British rule to Independence. It remained until 15[h August 1947, when India became independent. The Constituent Assembly became a sovereign body and performed the role of Legislature for the new state. It was responsible for framing the Constitution and making ordinary laws as well.

Question 6.
How do you come to the conclusion that ours is the world’s largest free and fair election? (March 2015)
OR
Write a short note on First General election. (March 2019)
Answer:
India became a Sovereign Democratic Republic after the Constitution was adopted on 26th January 1950. General elections to the first Loksabha were held in India from October 1951 to February 1952 on the basis of Universal Adult Franchise. With this India emerged as the world’s largest Democracy. The provision of Universal Adult Franchise was an act of faith on the part of framers of the Constitution in the democratic process.

The holding of general elections was a bold implementation of that faith in man and democracy. The first general election was the most gigantic political experiment in the history’ of democracy. The Election Commission of India is empower to conduct free and fair election periodically. The Election Commission is a constitutionally autonomus body which is totally free from the control and influence of legislature and executive.

So all the voters who attained the age of 18 years can have the right to vote. The right to vote or franchise is the pivot of the dramatic system. This right is the individual expression of sovereignty. When it is collectively exercised by the people, it implies popular sovereignty. So ours is the world’s largest free and fair election.

Question 7.
State the results and the party position in the first general election.
Answer:

Question 8.
Explain the accession of Junagadh, Hyderabad and Kashmir. (July 2018)
Answer:
Junagadh : The Nawab of Junagadh Mohbat Khan declared accession to Pakistan much against the wishes of the people of the state. They were in favour of joining India. After the declaration of accession, they rose in rebellion against the Nawab. As a result, he fled to Pakistan. A ‘Plebiscite’ was held in which the people voted to accede to Indian Union. Later Junagadh was merged with Saurashtra.

Hyderabad : Hyderabad, the largest of the princely States was surrounded by Indian Territory. Its ruler Nizam wanted an independent status. But the Indian Government felt that an independent Hyderabad would pose security threat. Through his paramilitary force named Razakars, the Nizam ostracized the people. To end this anarchy, the Indian army entered into Hyderabad. This police action is known as ‘Operation Polo’. The Nizam surrendered and it was followed by complete accession of Hyderabad into Indian Union.

Kashmir : Jammu & Kashmir was a Princely State. Its ruler Harisingh was a Hindu and the population was largely Muslims. They did not want to merge with India or Pakistan but have an independent status for the state. In October 1947. Kashmir was invaded by Tribal infiltrators of Pakistan. This forced Maharaja to seek Indian military help. India reacted positively after the merge of Kashmir into Indian Union. But still there is a problem and crisis.

Question 9.
Narrate the role of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel in the event of integration of states. (March 2016) (July 2017)
Answer:
India became the independent democratic country on 15th August 1947 follow ing the partition as two countries like India and Pakistan. The British Indian Province were directly under the control of the British Government and thus transferred to India. The Princely States free to join India or Pakistan. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel took charge of the Indian States Department. He dealt with matters arising between Central Government and the Indian States.

All States except a few7 acceded to Indian Union in accordance with an ‘Instrument of accession’. Nearly 565 States except junagadh, Hyderabad and Kashmir acceded Indian Union. The process of integration was three-fold and known as Patel Scheme. Firstly merger of small states with adjoining provinces, secondly grouping of small states and thirdly integration into Chief Commissioner’s Province.

This process was taken place successfully by means of the virtual leadership of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.

Question 10.
Language is a basis for the reorganization of states. Substantiate. (July 2015) (July 2016) (March 2018)
Answer:
Tanguage as basis for reorganization is important because:-

• Language is close!} related to culture and customs of people.
• Spread of education and literacy can occur only through medium of mother tongue.
• To a common man. democracy can be real only when politics and administration are conducted in his language.
• Linguistic states can provide education, administration and judicial activity in mother tongue.

Therefore, it was concluded that language is a basis for the reorganization of states.

Question 11.
What are the main features of the States Reorganization Act of 1956?
Answer:
The main features of the Act are:

• Abolishing the distinction between Part A. B. C and D States.
• Establishment of two categories of units i.e. (i) States (ii) Union Territories.
• Abolition of Rajpramukhs.
• The Act provided for creation of 14 States and 6 Union Territories.

Question 12.
List out the States and Union Territories in India at present.
Answer:
States

1. Andhra Pradesh
2. Arunachal Pradesh
3. Assam.
4. Bihar
5. Chattisgarh
6. Goa
7. Gujarat
8. Haryana
9. Himachal Pradesh
10. Jammu & Kashmir
11. Jharkhand
12. Karnataka
13. Kerala
14. Madhya Pradesh
15. Maharashtra
16. Manipur
17. Meghalaya
18. Mizoram
19. Nagaland
20. Odisha
21. Punjab
22. Rajasthan
23. Sikkim
24. Tamil Nadu
25. Tripura
26. Uttarakhand
27. Uttara Pradesh
28. West Bengal
29. Telangana

Union Territories

1. Andaman & Nicobar
2. Chandigarh
3. Dadra & Nagar Haveli
4. Daman & Diu
5. Delhi (NCT)
6. Lakshadweep
7. Puducherry

2nd PUC Political Science Origin and Growth of Indian Political System Ten marks questions and answers:

Question 1.
Explain the Provisions of the Government of India Act 1935. (July 2017) (March 2018)
Answer:
The Government of India Act 1935 contained 321 Articles and 10 Schedules. The important provisions of the Act are as follows:
(a) Federation: The Act provided for the establishement of Federation of India. It consisted of Provinces of British India and Princely States as units. For the first time an attempt was made to establish a Federal Government.

(b) Distribution of powers: It divided legislative powers between the Central and Provincial legislatures. There was a three-fold division:-

1. Federal list: Consisted of 59 subjects like external affairs, currency, defence etc. over which the federal legislature had legislative powers.
2. Provincial list: Consisted of 54 subjects like police, education etc. over which provincial legislature had jurisdiction.
3. Concurrent list: Consisted of 36 subjects like criminal law, civil procedure, marriage and divorce etc. over which both the federal and provincial legislatures had competence.
4. The Residuary powers were vested with the Governor General.

(c) Dyarchy at the centre: The Dyarchy which was established in the Provinces by the Act of 1919 was now adopted at the centre. The executive authority vested in the Governor General included the following:

1. The administration of reserved subjects like defence, external affairs etc. was done by Governor General with the help of Councilors, who are appointed by him and not responsible to legislature.
2. In the matters of transferred subjects the Governor General acted on the advice of Council of Ministers who were responsible to the legislature.

(d) The Federal legislature: The central legislature was bi-cameral consisting of Federal assembly and the Council of States.

1. The Council of States consisted of 260 members.
2. Federal Assembly consisted of 475 members.

(e) Federal Court: It provided for the first time the establishment of a Federal Court for India in Delhi in 1937. Following were the jurisdiction of Federal Court:-

1. It had Original Jurisdiction to decide disputes between the centre and the provinces.
2. Appellate Jurisdiction over decisions of the High Court.
3. Advisory Jurisdiction to advice the Governor General on any point of law.

(f) Provincial Autonomy:- As per 1935 Act, the provinces no longer remained as delegates of Central Government but became autonomus units of administration. The provincial autonomy was introduced in 11 provinces.

Question 2.
List out the Provisions of the Act of 1947. (july 2017)(March 2016)
Answer:
The main provisions of the Act 1947 are as follows:-

1. The Act provided that on 15Ih August 1947, two independent dominions India and Pakistan would be set up and the Act provided for complete transfer of power.

2. The dominion oflndia got the territory of Bombay, Madras, Uttar Pradesh. Central Province, Bihar, East Punjab, West Bengal. Assam, Delhi, Ajmer etc. and the remaining provinces called Sindh, Baluchistan, West Punjab. East Bengal, North West Frontier Province which became the territories of Pakistan.

3. For demarcating the boundries, Boundry Commission was formed with Sir Cyril Radcliffe as the Chairman.

4. The Crown was no longer the source of authority.

5. The Governor General and Provincial Governors were to act as constitutional heads. They lost extraordinary powers to legislate.

6. The office of the Secretary of State was abolished.

7. From 15lh August 1947, the British Crown lost all rights of Paramountcy over India and the Indian states were free to join either Indian Union or Pakistan.

8. The power in each dominion was transferred to the Constituent Assembly which became fully sovereign from 15th August 1947 and were absolutely free to frame the constitution.

Question 3.
Explain the Reorganization of States.
Answer:
Reorganization of States of Indian States was necessary because prior to 1947 the territories of India consisted of the British Indian Provinces and Princely States. The boundaries were drawn in a haphazard manner. There w ere above 500 Indian States which were merged before independence into a dozen units. The provinces were multi-lingual and multi-cultural. No heed was paid to linguistic or cultural cohesion.

With the introduction of the present constitution the territories were divided into four categories.

1. Part A States: Andhra Pradesh. Assam. Bihar. Bombay, Madhya Pradesh. Madras, Orissa, Punjab, United Provinces and West Bengal. These were the former British Provinces.

2. Part B States: Hyderabad. Jammu. Kashmir, Madhya Bharat, Mysore, Patiala. PEPSU. Rajasthan. Saurashtra. Travancore and Cochin. These were Princely States.

3. Part C States: Ajmer, Bhopal. Coorg, Delhi, Himachal. Pradesh. Kutch, Manipur, Tripura and Vindva Pradesh.

4. Part D States: Andaman and Nicobar.
The states under Part C and D were ruled by the President with the aid of Lt.Govemor or Chief Commissioners.

After independence, due to various regional issues, it was assumed that free India would base its boundaries on linguistic principles.

The States Reorganization Committee was constituted on December 1953, the recommendations of the Committee was passed on November 1956 and the following are enforced:-

• Abolishing the distinction between Part A. B, C ad D States.
• Establishment of two categories of units (a) States (b) Union Territories.
• Abolishing the Rajpramukhs.

Question 4.
Describe the process of Integration of States. (july 2017)
Answer:
British India consisted of British Provinces and Princely States. The British Indian Provinces were directly under the control of the British Government and the Princely States accepted British supremacy on external matters but enjoyed certain powers in internal affairs. After independence on 15lh August 1947, the British Provinces transferred to India and the Princely States became independent and free to join India or Pakistan. About 565 Princely States have merged with Indian Union under the virtue and leadership of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel. The process of integration was three-fold and known as “Patel Scheme”.

1. Merger of Small States with Adjoining Provinces: About 216 states were merged with provinces adjoining them. Ex. Merger of 24 states of Orissa, 14 states of central province, Pudukkotah with Madras etc. These mergedstates were included in Part B of the Constitution.

2. Grouping of Small States: Many small states grouped themselves to form a big state with .the ruler of the most important one becoming the Rajapramukhs. Eg. Union of Saurashtra, Patiala and East Punjab States Union (PEPSU) etc., These Unions were called Part B States.

3. Integration into Chief Commissioner’s Provinces: About 61 States which were small and backward were converted into centrally administered areas. They were called Part C States. Eg. Elimachal Pradesh, Ajmer, Coorg, Cooch-Bihar, etc.

All the Princely States acceded Indian Union and grouped as above except Junagadh, Hyderabad and Kashmir. These three Provinces have been handled in different ways and merged with Indian Union.

The Nawab of junagadh declared accession to Pakistan but people rose in rebellion against him. As a result he fled to Pakistan and Junagadh was merged with Saurashtra. Nizam of Hyderabad wanted an independent status. His paramilitary force Razakars created anarchy. The Indian army entered into Hyderabad. Finally Nizam surrendered and Hyderabad merged into Indian Union.

Jammu and Kashmir was a princely state ruled by Harisingh who was  Hindu and the population was largely Muslims. They did not want to merge with India or Pakistan but have an independent status for the state. In October 147, Kashmir was invaded by Tribal infiltrators of Pakistan. This forced Maharaja to seek Indian military help. India reacted positively after the merge of Kashmir into Indian Union. All the above spectacular events have been succeeded due to the personality of Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel.

You can Download Chapter 3 Indus Civilization Questions and Answers, Notes, 2nd PUC History Question Bank with Answers Karnataka State Board Solutions help you to revise complete Syllabus and score more marks in your examinations.

Karnataka 2nd PUC History Question Bank Chapter 3 Indus Civilization

2nd PUC History Indus Civilization One Mark Questions and Answers

I. Answer the following Questions in one word or a sentence each.

Question 1.
In which year was the Archaeological Department of India established?
Answer:
Lord Curzon established, the Archaeological Department of India in 1904.

Question 2.
What does the word ‘Mohenjodaro’ mean?
Answer:
In Sindhi language, Mohenjodaro means ‘mound of the dead’.

Question 3.
Where was the Great Bath of Indus valley civilization located?
Answer:
The Great Bath of Indus valley civilization was located at Mohenjodaro.

Question 4.
Where was the dockyard of Indus valley civilization discovered?
Answer:
Dr. S.R. Rao discovered the dockyard of Indus valley civilization at Lothal (Cambay) in Gujarat.

Question 5.
Mention the important deity of the Indus people.
Answer:
Mother Goddess was their chief deity. Shiva was worshipped in the form of Pashupati (Mahayogi) and Linga form.

2nd PUC History Indus Civilization Two marks Questions and Answers

II. Answer the following Questions in two words or two sentences each.

Question 1.
Who discovered Harappa and Mohenjodaro sites?
Answer:
In 1921, Dr. R.B. Dayaram Sahani discovered the Harappan site in the Montgomery district of West Punjab, presently in Pakistan. In 1922, Dr. R.D. Baneijee discovered Mohenjodaro . on the banks of river Sindh in the Larkhan district of Sindh province (Pakistan).

Question 2.
Mention a few sites discovered, with respect to the Indus civilization.
Answer:
Harappa, Mohenjodaro, Chanhudaro and Kotdiji in Pakistan. Dholvira, Rangpur, Surkotadn and Lothal in Gujarat, Kalibangan in Rajasthan, Banawali in Haryana and Rupar in Punjab.

Question 3.
Mention the methods of disposal of the dead by Indus people.
Answer:
Indus people disposed of the bodies of their dead by cremation or burial. Many urns containing human bones and ashes have been found. It appears, that some household vessels and personal articles were also kept along with the dead bodies, for the onward journey after death.

Question 4.
Mention any two imports of the Indus people.
Answer:
Indus people imported precious stones, copper and tin.

Question 5.
Mention any two exports of the Indus people.
Answer:
Indus people exported ivory, gold, beads, timber and other goods.

Question 6.
Mention any two causes which brought an end to the Indus civilization.
Answer:
Major causes for the decline of the Indus civilization are,

1. The conquest and destruction of their important cities by the powerful set of invaders (probably Aryans) declined the civilization.
2. Natural calamities such as wildfires, floods or severe earthquakes might have resulted in the damage of the cities and ruined them. For example, Mohenjodaro was rebuilt more than 7 times.
3. Shifting of the monsoons and soil erosion made the people to desert the places. For want of fertile land, the people might have abandoned these places.
4. Spread of epidemics must have wiped out the population.
5. The rivers might have changed their course and ruined the cities. The drifting away of the rivers from the cities might have rendered the place unfertile.

Question 7.
Why did the Indus valley civilization is called as the Ilarappan civilization?
Answer:
The first excavations were made at Harappa and as the Ilarappan features predominate at the sites of Indus, the Indus valley civilization is called as Harappan civilization.

2nd PUC History Indus Civilization Five marks Questions and Answers

III. Answer the following Questions in 15 to 20 sentences each.

Question 1.
Explain the town planning of the Indus civilization (or)
Enumerate briefly the salient features of the Indus civilization.
Answer:
(1) Town planning: Town planning was a unique feature of Indus civilization. Their town planning proves that they lived a highly civilized, urban and developed life. The cities were excellently planned and efficiently constructed. Indus cities were built according to a standard and uniform plan with well laid streets, construction of houses, drainage systems, Great Bath, granary and other features which is quite amazing in nature.

(2) Streets: The streets were broad, running from east to west and north to south. The roads crossed each other at right angles. The main streets were 13 to 34.feet wide. The streets and roads divided the city into rectangular blocks. Street lights and dustbins were also provided on the streets. An elaborate drainage system was maintained.

(3) Buildings: People of Indus, built houses and other buildings by the side of roads. They built terraced houses and used burnt bricks made of mud and mortar as building materials. In each house, there were the open courtyard, rooms around it, a kitchen and a bathroom. Every house had two or more storeys. The entrances to the houses were usually in side alleys, and most of the houses had a well. The bathroom was constructed nearest to the street, so that the waste water drain was directly connected to the main drainage through clay pipes. Water supply was excellent. They also built a dockyard at Lothal.

(4) Drainage system: One of the most remarkable features of this civilization was an excellent closed drainage system. Each house had its own soak pit, which was connected to the public drainage. The drainage channels were 9 inches wide to 12 inches deep, The drains were laid well below the street level. The drains were all covered with slabs and had manholes at regular intervals for cleaning and clearing purposes. Thus, Indus, people had perfected the underground drainage system.

(5) The Great Bath (Public bath): The public bath is the most remarkable well to be found at Mohanjodharo. It consists of a large quadrangle. The actual bathing pool measured 39 x 33 feet with a depth of 8 ft. It was surrounded by verandahs with rooms and galleries behind them. On all sides of the pool there were steps. Provisions were made to drain off the dirty water from the pool regularly and fresh water was brought in. It speaks volumes about the technical skill, perfection, sense of sanitation and hygiene possessed by the Indus people.

(6) The Granary (Warehouse): The most remarkable and the largest building at I Iarappa is the great granary. It measures 169 x 135 ft. The one in Mohanjodharo is 150 x 75 feet. Revenue was probably collected in kind and the granary was used to store the grains collected.

(7) Dockyard: Dr. S.R Rao discovered the Lothal dockyard at Cambay in Gujarat. It is a noteworthy structure, which could accommodate several ships at a time. It shows that Indus people earned on external trade through ships. It gives us a good idea of the engineering skill of them.

Conclusion: The whole city was well maintained by the municipal authorities by supplying water, constructing public wells, providing street lights, dustbins and maintaining an excellent drainage system. But there is no information regarding the political organization or nature of Government.

Question 2.
State the social and economic conditions of the Indus people.
Answer:
Social conditions:
(i) Race: Experts are of the opinion, that the Indus people belonged to a mixed (admixtured) race of Proto-austroloids, Alpines, Mediterraneans and Mongoloids. Some other scholars believed, that Dravidians founded the Indus culture.

(ii) Social divisions (classes): There was no caste system then. With the help of the excavations, historians have come to the conclusion that there was a fourfold division of the society based on occupations. They were probably, as follows. The first class was made up of priests, physician^, astrologers eta, the second that of warriors, the third class consisted of traders and various artisans and the fourth one comprising of manual labourers and agriculturists who were the majority.

(iii) Dresses and ornaments: Both men and women used cotton and woollen threads as fabrics. Men wore an upper garment like shawl or cloak and their lower garment was dhoti. Women used skirts and a garment to cover their upper body and a kind of fan shaped head¬dress. They were conscious about their physical appearance. Women used cosmetics like face powder. lipsticks, eye ointment and accessories like mirrors, combs and hairpins. Ornaments: Ornaments were worn by men and women, like necklaces, anklets, girdles, armlets and finger rings. Women alone used girdles, nose studs, earstuds, anklets etc. Rich amongst them used gold, silver, ivory and semi precious stone ornaments and the poor used shell, bone and copper ornaments.

(iv) Household articles: Highly sophisticated household articles were found at the Indus sites. They had used mud to make domestic vessels of different shapes and sizes, stands and storage jars. Vessels of copper, bronze, silver and porcelain were also used and they knew how to make them. Toilet jars made of ivory, metal, pottery and stones have been discovered at Harappa.

(v) Food articles : Indus people consumed wheat, barley, rice, other grains, vegetables, fruits and milk. Animal produce like beef* mutton, pork, fresh and dried fish etc., were also consumed.

(vi) Amusements: The people had great love for indoor and outdoor games. Dice, balls, hunting, animal and bird fight were their entertainment games. Toys were made of terracotta consisting of rattles, whistles, carts, birds and figures of men and women. Chanhudaro was a centre for toy products.

(vii) Weapons: Excavations have brought to light, weapons such as slings, maces, daggers, spears, bows and arrows. No piece of iron has been discovered there and only weapons of defence have been found. Therefore, scholars hold the view, that Indus people were peace loving people. ’

Economic conditions:
(i) Agriculture: Agriculture was the main occupation followed by cattle rearing and dairy farming. In those days, the Indus basin must have been much more fertile and received more rain. They produced wheat, barley, peas, sesame, mustard, rice, fruits and vegetables.

(ii) Domestication of animals: The Indus people had domesticated a number of animals. They were cow, oxen, sheep, goat, dog, pig, cat, elephant, camel, buffaloe, humped bull etc. They reared a fine breed of cattle, both for milk and meat purposes.

(iii) Industries: At both Mohenjodaro and Harappa, several industries including homespun cloth were developed. There were professionals like potters, carpenters, jewellers, ivory workers, goldsmiths, weavers, blacksmiths and dyers. Chanhudaro became a great centre for pottery and terracotta toys. They produced artistically made stone beads.

(iv) Trade and commerce: Indus people had developed internal and external trade. External trade was with many countries of Western Asia, Egypt, Persia, Sumeria. Baluchistan etc., They used bullock carts as a means of transport to carry goods. Harappa, Lothal, Rupar, Kalibangari, Surkotada and Chanhudaro were the main centers of trade. They carried on their trading activities through a barter system. They also had knowledge of the decimal system. The dockyard at Lothal-(Gurajat) shows, that they carried on external trade through ships. They exported ivory, gold, beads, timber etc, and imported precious stones, copper and tin. The uniform seals and a regular system of weights and measures have helped commercial transactions. Weight ratios were 1,2,4,8,16,32,64,160,200,320 and 640. Measurement of the linear scale used was 13.2 inches.

Question 3.
Enumerate briefly the salient features of Indus Civilization
(or)
Describe the religious beliefs, seals and scripts of the Indus people.
Answer:
Religion: Seals, terracotta figurines and statues narrate the religious life of the Indus people. They primarily worshipped nature in its various forms: Mother Goddess (Sakti), Pashupathi and Shiva were their main Gods and Goddesses. They worshipped sacred trees like Pipal, Neem and Acacia. The worship of Linga was associated with Shiva was very common. Worship of nature, animals, trees and spirits also existed. The Indus people worshipped animals like the humped bull, elephant, crocodile, unicorn, tiger, naga, etc. Probably the different birds and animals were accepted as vehicles of the various Gods and Goddesses.

Art and crafts: Art specimens of the Indus people are found in their pottery, carpentry, ivory carvings, stone-cuttings, seals and other objects. Statues were made in stone, clay, copper and bronze. The most remarkable contribution of the Indus people to the ancient craftsmanship was in the form of toys. The bronze idol of a dancing girl is a noteworthy object. It indicates their artistic skill.

Seals and Scripts: More than 3000 seals made of terracotta and ivory and stone have been found. Most of them are square or rectangular in shape and small (1/2 to 3cm) in size. These give us a lot of information about their script, religious beliefs, commercial contacts etc., The seals contain figures of animals, human beings and pictographic writings. The direction of the writings was from right to left and pictographic in nature. Many of the symbols used during that age, were similar to the ancient Egyptian script. Due to lack of sufficient written proof, it has been very difficult to study them in depth.

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Karnataka 2nd PUC History Question Bank Chapter 2 Stone Age And Metal Age

2nd PUC History Stone Age And Metal Age One Mark Questions and Answers

I. Answer the following Questions in one word or a sentence each.

Question 1.
Name the stone used by the paleolithic people.
Answer:
Paleolithic (old stone age) people used rough and undressed stones fitted to a stick. These hard stones were called quartzite, and so they were also known as quartzite men.

Question 2.
Which is the earliest paleolithic site found in India?
Answer:
The Paleolithic sites found in the Deccan region, Cuddapah and Tanjavur districts in the south were the earliest known centres of this age in India. ‘Cuddapah’ considered to be ‘The home of Paleolithic culture’, for its quartzite rocks.

Question 3.
Which was the first metal used by humans in North India?
Answer:
Copper was the first metal used by humans in North India.

Question 4.
Which was the first metal used by humans in South India?
Answer:
In South India, the new stone age was replaced by iron age, as iron was the first metal used by humans in South India.

2nd PUC History Stone Age And Metal Age Two marks Questions and Answers

II. Answer the following Questions in two words or two sentences each.

Question 1.
What is the meaning of the term ‘Paleolithic’
Answer:
The word paleolithic is derived from the Greek words ‘Paleo’ (old) and lithic (stone), which means old stone age (40,000 to 10,000 BCE).

Question 2.
Mention some sites in India of the paleolithic age.
Answer:
Narmada and Tungabhadra valleys, Bhopal and Chota Nagpur area of MP, Madurai, Tanjavur, Trichinopoly and Arcot of Tamil Nadu, Nellore, Kumooi, Guntur, Chittoor, Cuddapah and Krishna of A.P., Raichur, Ghataprabha river basin in Belgaum, Bengal, Bihar, Orissa vie., arc some of the sites.

Question 3.
Mention some sites in India of the mesolithic age (middle stone age)
Answer:
Important mesolithic age sites in India are found at Ajmer in Rajasthan, Sabarmati basin in Gujarat, Ahmadnagar in Maharashtra. Sangankallu in Bellary district and Brahmagiri in Chitradurga district of Karnataka.

Question 4.
What is the meaning of the word ‘Neolithic’?
Answer:
The word Neolithic is derived from the Greek words, ‘Neo’ (new) and ‘Lithic’ (stone). Neolithic means new stone age (8000 to 4000 BCE).

Question 5.
Name some sites in India of the neolithic age.
Answer:
The neolithic sites are Maski in Raichur, Cauvery basin, Bellary and Mysore in Karnataka, Salem and Tirunelveli in Tamilnadu, Hyderabad and Kurnool in A.P., Kathewar in Gujarat, Sindh, Bundelkhand, Kashmir, West Bengal, Orissa etc.,

2nd PUC History Stone Age And Metal Age Ten marks Questions and Answers

III. Answer the following Questions in 30 to 40 sentences each.

Question 1.
Write short notes on Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic and Metal ages.
Answer:
Introduction : In the evolution of mankind, paleolithic (old stone) age played a very great role. Here, humans began to make some sort of rough and primitive tools which helped them to some extent to defend themselves from the wild animals and started establishing their supremacy. We can study the history on the basis of the crude implements they used. This is also known as pre-historic era. India was one of the earliest homes of humans. Scholars are of the opinion that the Indian people belonged to an admixtured race of Negroes, Mongoloids, Alpines, Dravidians etc. The pre-historic period is classified into 4 main stages, based on the stone implements and metals used by them. They are (i) Paleolithic age, (ii) Mesolithic age, (iii) Neolithic age, (iv)Age of metals (Copper, Bronze andiron).

1) Paleolithic period (age) 40,000 to 10,000 BCE : The word paleolithic is derived from the ‘Greek’ words ‘Paleo’ (old) and ‘lithic’ (stone), which means old stone age. People used rough and undressed stones fitted to a stick. As they used a very hard stone called ‘quartzite’, they were also known as ‘quartzite men’. They had no idea of the use of lire, pottery and agriculture. Hence, the earlist period of civilization came to be known as the paleolithic age. They were mostly hunters and not cultivators. The important sites of the paleolithie period in India are the Narmada and Tiingabhadra valleys, Ghataprabha river basin, Bhopal and Chota Nagpur area of M.P., Tanjavur, Tirunelveli and Arcot in T.N., Kurnool, Nellore, Guntur and Krishna in A.P. and the Belan caves of Uttar Pradesh.

2) Mesolithic age (Middle stone age -10,000 to &000 BCE): The word ‘mesolithic’ is derived from the greek words ‘meso’ (middle) and ‘lithic’ (stone), which means middle stone age. This was the intervening period between paleolithic and neolithic ages. Humans used implements made of stone, though bone was also used. They were still hunting only for food and had no knowledge of agriculture. They must have also consumed forest produce and also knew the use of fire and buried their dead. The important mesolithic sites in India are found at Ajmer in Rajasthan, Sabarmati basin in Gujarat, Ahmadnagar in Maharashtra, Sanganakallu and Brahmagiri in Karnataka.

3) Neolithic age (New stone age – 8000 to 4000 BCE): The word neolithic is derived from the greek words ‘neo’ (New) and lithic (stone), which means new stone age. During this period, humans used stones along with quartzite, learnt cultivation and domesticated a variety of animals like cow, sheep, goat etc. They lived in caves and weaving was also known to them. They used wool and cotton to manufacture cloth. The most important invention of this period was the wheel. They subsisted on vegetables, roots, fruits, nuts, wild pulses, cereals, flesh of animals, fish and milk products including curd, butter and ghee. They also used ornaments like beads, rings, bangles and armlets. The neolithic people arc believed to have worshipped their ancestors and spirits and performed a large number of rites and rituals on the occasions of death. They cremated their dead and preserved the ashes. They performed human and animal sacrifices. Many human skulls have been found during excavations. The important neolithic sites in India are foundin the Cauvery basin at Bellary and Raichur in Karnataka, Salem and Tirunelveli in T.N., Kurnool and Hyderabad in A.R, Kathewar in Gujarat, West Bengal, Orissa etc.

4) Metal age (Copper, Bronze and Iron): The process of transition from stone age to metal age was a very slow process. Metallic and stone implements were both used, but there was no uniformity regarding the use of metals in the different parts of India. Copper replaced stone in northen India, whereas in south India, new stone age was succeeded by the Iron Age.

Gold was the earliest metal to be used for only ornaments. Copper was used to prepare implements like swords, axes, spear, daggers, spearheads etc. The implements were used for agriculture, fighting, fishing and hunting. Iron was extensively used in South India for the same purpose.

Conclusion: We can find that the people of this age took a leap forward in the direction of spread of human culture and civilization. Discovery of fire by the people of the later stone age, that of agriculture by the new stone age and the art of writing by the metal age people took a real step forward in the advancement of the human race.

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Karnataka 2nd PUC History Question Bank Chapter 1 Introduction

2nd PUC History Introduction One Mark Questions and Answers

I. Answer the following Questions in one word or a sentence each.

Question 1.
From which language is the word ‘India’ derived?
Answer:
The word ‘India’ is derived from the Persian word ‘Indos’ which stands for Sindhu, the important river of the subcontinent.

Question 2.
Name the work that mentions the extent of ancient Karnataka.
Answer:
‘Kavirajamarga’ of Sri Vijaya refers that ancient Karnataka extended from Cauvery in the south to Godavari in the north.

Question 3.
What is meant by Numismatics?
Answer:
Numismatics is the science of studying coins. Coins being very small in size, contain information in a very short form.

Question 4.
What is excavation?
Answer:
Excavation is the scientific digging of earth for unearthing ancient buildings or artefacts belonging to earlier periods.

Question 5.
Whose conquests do the Aihole inscriptions describe?
Answer:
Aihole inscriptions describe about the conquests of Pulakeshi-II.

Question 6.
Who wrote‘Buddacharita’?
Answer:
Buddacharita was written by Ashwagosha.

Question 7.
Which is the famous work of Pliny?
Answer:
“Natural Historia” is the famous work of Pliny.

Question 8.
What is meant by Archaeology?
Answer:
Archaeology means the scientific study of human antiquities. (The term archaeology is derived from the greek words “Archaoius” meaning ancient and “logos” meaning discourse or knowledge)

Question 9.
What is Epigraphy?
Answer:
The scientific study of inscriptions is called epigraphy. (Inscriptions are writings found on hard substances like stone, metal etc)

Question 10.
Who wrote the book Indica’?
Answer:
The Greek Ambassador Megaslhanes at the court of King Chandragupta Maurya, wrote the bookTndica’.

2nd PUC History Introduction Two Mark Questions and Answers

II. Answer the following Questions in two words or two sentences each.

Question 1.
Name any two passes that connect India with the west.
Answer:
KhyberandBolan passes.

Question 2.
What was the extent of India according to Vishnupurana?
Answer:
According to Vishnupurana, the extent of India was the present Afghanistan, Pakistan, Nepal, Bhutan, Myanmar, Bangladesh and Srilanka. Reference to this Indian sub-continent is found in Vishnupurana.

Question 3.
Mention any two names of India.
Answer:
The sub-continent is called by different names such as Bharatavarsha, Bharatakhanda, Bharata, Jambudweepa, India and Hindustan.

Question 4.
Name some physical features of India.
Answer:

1. The Himalayan mountains in the North,
2. Plains of Hindustan (or)TheIndo-Gangetic plain,
3. The Deccan Plateau,
4. The Coastal regions and
5. The Thar desert.

Question 5.
Name a few mountain ranges of India.
Answer:
Himalayan mountains, Vindhya and Satpura mountains, Aravalli range, Eastern and Western Ghats etc.,

Question 6.
Mention some dominant religions of Indian origin.
Answer:
Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism, and Sikhism have originated in India.

Question 7.
Name some world heritage sites of India.
Answer:
UNO has recognized more than 30 historical heritage sites in India. Some famous ones are the Hill forts of Rajasthan, Khajuraho, Konark, Tajmahal, Jantar-Mantar, Gaya, Sanchi, Ajanta, Ellora, Hampi, Aihole, Pattadakallu, Madurai, Kanchi, Mahabalipuram, Churches of Goa etc.,

Question 8.
Name some universities of ancient India.
Answer:
The universities of Nalanda, Taxila, Ujjain, Prayag, Vikramashila, Kashi and Kanchi were the educational centres of ancient India.

Question 9.
Name some dynasties of ancient India.
Answer:
Mauryas, Guptas, Kushans, Vardhanas, Rashtrakutas, Chalukyas, Pallavas etc., were some of the ancient dynasties in India.

Question 10.
Name some dynasties of medieval India.
Answer:
Moghuls, Marathas, Rajaputs, Hoysalas, Vijayanagara etc., were the important medieval dynasties in India.

Question 11.
What was the extent of Karnataka according to Kavirajamarga?
Answer:
According to Kavirajamarga, in the ancient times, Karnataka extended from Cauvery in the south to Godavari (AP) in the north.

Question 12.
Name some important dynasties that ruled Karnataka.
Answer:
Kadambas, Gangas, Rashtrakutas, Chalukyas, Hoysalas, Vijayanagaras, Bahamani Sultans, Wodeyars etc., ruled Karnataka.

Question 13.
Write any two physical features of Karnataka.
Answer:
Geographically, Karnataka may be divided into 5 regions having different physical features. They are:

1. The west coast belt or the coastal region,
2. The western ghats (Sahyadri mountain) and Malnad area,
3. The transitional belt or Eastern ghats,
4. The northern plains or belt and
5. The southern plains (Bangalore, Mysore, Kolar, Mandya, Tumkur).

Question 14.
‘No sources No history’ Why?
Answer:
History is the record of past events of humans. But as these events cannot be reproduced, historians try to reconstruct the past, based on the available sources. Without sources, the historical events become purely legendary. Hence, ‘No sources, No history’.

Question 15.
What is the difference between prehistoric and historic periods?
Answer:
The period about which written records are not available is known as prehistoric period and the period about which we have written records, is known as historic period.

Question 16.
Mention any two uses of coins in the reconstruction of history.
Answer:
Coins help us to understand the chronology (period), dynasties, economic conditions, religions, scripts and languages. They also give information regarding metalluragy, artistic abilites, titles, commercial contact and extent of the Empires etc.

Question 17.
Why are inscriptions the most reliable sources in the reconstruction of history?
Answer:
Inscriptions are the most valuable, reliable, authentic and direct sources in the reconstruction
of history. They are generally contemporary and related to the events. So they are more reliable. They give a lot of information about the past events.

Question 18.
What are Archaeological sources?
Answer:
The important Archaeological sources are inscriptions, coins, monuments, seals, household articles, terracotta figurines, tools, pottery, weapons, paintings etc. These provide us with valuable and useful information to reconstruct history.

Question 19.
Mention the two kinds of literary sources.
Answer:
Literary (written records) sources can be classified into two types. They are i) Indigenous (native) literary sources, ii) Foreign accounts or Foreign literary sources.

Question 20.
Name the epics of India.
Answer:
The Ramayana and the Mahabharata are the two great epics of India.

Question 21.
Mention the two works of Aryabhata.
Answer:
Aryabhata wrote on science and mathematics like Suryasiddhantaand Aryabhatiyam.

Question 22.
Name any two Chinese pilgrims who visited India.
Answer:
A number of Chinese Buddhist pilgrims visited India. Important among them were Fahian (Gupta age). Hiuen Tsang (Harshavardhana) and Itsing (7th century CE)

Question 23.
Name some foreigners who visited the Vijayanagara Empire.
Answer:
Nicolo Conti of Italy, Abdul Razzak of Persia, Barbosa and Domingo Paes of Portugal, Niketin of Russia, Fernao Nuniz were some of the foreigners who visited the Vijayanagara Empire.

2nd PUC History Introduction Five Mark Questions and Answers

III. Answer the following questions in 15 to 20 sentences each.

Question 1.
Explain briefly the impact of geography on Indian History.
Answer:
India is a vast country (32,87,782 sq.km) with different climatic conditions and customs. There are diversities in the form of worship, way of life and mode of thinking. At the same time, we find an underlying cultural unity in the country. India is a land, where we see unity in diversity. “India” is the epitome of the world. On the basis of its physical features, India can be broadly divided into 5 geographical divisions. They are,

1. The Himalayan regions,
2. The plains of Hindustan or the Northern plains,
3. The Deccan plateau or plains,
4. The coastal region or coastline and
5. The Thar desert.

The Himalayan region: The Himalayas separate India from the rest of Asia. These are the highest mountain ranges in the world. The Himalayas have played a very important role in the indian history. They prevent the cold winds and invaders from the north. The snow-capped mountain ranges have given birth to the north Indian rivers (Sindhu, Ganga, Yamuna and Brahmaputra). They are rich in minerals and natural wealth.

The Northern Plains: It is located between the Himalayas in the north and the Vindhya mountains to the south. From Assam in the east to Punjab in the west it runs over 2400 kms. This region is watered by the great rivers like the Sindhu and her tributaries in the west, Ganga and Yamuna in the center and Brahmaputra valley in the east. These rivers have made the plains rich and fertile, and they were the cradles of civilizations and Empires. The great Indus valley civilization and vedic culture developed in this region. The Aryan culture was brought up in the Indo-Gangetic plain. The northern passes such as Khybar, Bolan etc., have helped indians to have commercial and cultural relations with the outside world.

The western desert and the dense forests of the Deccan plateau : This region includes the Kathiawar (Gujarat) and Rann of Kutch (Rajastan). It stretches almost upto and beyond the Aravalli range, which is now almost dry in the hot weather. So, this region has turned the inhabitants into hard working and warlike.

Deccan Plateau : It is a tringular peninsula or ‘v’ shaped land. It is surrounded by the Vindhyas in the north and by sea on the other three sides (Bay of Bengal in the east, Arabian sea in the west and the Indian ocean in the south). They have helped develop the commerical and cultural relations with the west. The geographical diversity and existence of various races like Dravidian, Alpine, Mongolian and different tribes have led to the development of different languages and cultures. The river valleys in the north and south have made the country agrarian. They have also influenced the rise and fall of many dynasties and growth of many religious, cultural, educational and commercial centres.

Coastline: Eastern (Coromandel coast) and western (Malabar) coastal plains are traversed by many big rivers like Mahanadi, Godavari, Krishna and Cauvery. Abundance of rain and favourable climate has resulted in the growth of rich flora (plants of a particular region) and fauna (Animals of a region). Excluding the Himalayas, hills and the desert area, the whole country falls in the tropical climate zone. The atmosphere is conducive for the all-round growth of mankind.

Question 2.
Explain the features of Indian History.
Answer:
India is the 7th largest country in area and the second most populous country in the world.

The special features of Indian history are:

1) Continuity of civilization and culture: India has one of the earliest histories in the world. The physical features of our country, full of variety, richness and contrasts tend to divide India into different local zones. However, it has 4000 years of continuous history and continuity of civilization and culture, like China.

2) Evolution in phases : Its has developed in various stages with necessary improvements.
We find a connecting link of events from the Indus to the Vedic period, Vedic to Islamic and Christian influences. ‘

3) Foreign invasions : The natural barriers on the frontiers of India provided security from foreign invasions. However, foreigners like Greeks, Persians, Huns, Shakas, Arabs, Turks, Kushans, Afghans and others entered India from the Khyber and Bolan passes. All these invaders contributed to the Indian culture. The historical monuments and other structures like Forts built by these invaders are attracting tourists even today. South India had immunity from such invasions and developed a distinct culture of its own.

4) Religious tolerance (Dominant and tolerant Hindu faith): India is home for Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, Sikhs, Muslims, Parsis, Christians and several tribal faiths and practices. Indians believe in the concept of ‘Vasudhaivaka kutumbakam’ and ‘Sarve janalia sukhino bhavantu’, which means that the whole world is one family and let all the people be happy.

5) Indian contributions to the world : India has contributed immensely in the fields of literature, philosophy, science, art, culture, architecture, mathematics, medicine, astronomy etc., UNO has recognized more than 30 Indian historical sites as centers of world heritage, such as the Hill forts of Rajasthan, Khujaraho, Konark,Tajmahal, Bodh Gaya, Sanchi, Ajanta, Ellora, Hampi, Aihole, Pattadakallu, Madurai, Kanchi, Churches of Goa etc., Yoga, Ayurveda and other artistic specimens are the special contributions of Indians to the world. The great contributions of Indian mathematicians have enriched the world with the concept of zero and the decimal system. The ancient universites of Nalanda, Takshashila, Ujjain, Prayag, Vikramshila, Kashi and Kanchi attracted students from different countries of the world. India was at the height of its intellectual and spiritual glory.

6) Unity in diversity: India possesses diverse physical and geographical features and also shows diversity racially, linguistically, socially, economically, religiously and almo.-t in every sphere of human activities. Inspite of all these diversities, there are many unifying forces that have kept India united.

Question 3.
‘Unity in diversity is the unique feature of Indian history’. Explain.
Answer:
India is a vast country (32,87,782 sq.km) with different c!im«tie conditions and customs. There are diversities in the form of worship, way of life and mode of thinking. At the same time, we find an underlying cultural unity in the country. India is a land where we sec unity in diversity.

Diversities :
1) Geographical diversity: India possesses diverse geographical features. The Himalayan region has a cold climate, the Indo-Gangetic plain has a temperate climate and the Deccan plateau has a tropical climate. The hot desert of Rajasthan, coastlines, evergreen forests, heavy (Assam) and low (Rajastan) rainfall areas etc., have added to the variety of our flora and fauna.

2) Racial and linguistic diversities: People belonging to different races and ethnic groups like Dravidian, Negroids, Alpines, Mongoloids etc., inhabited this country. No wonder, India has been described as ‘an ethnological museum’. Linguistic diversity is also another unique feature of India. There are more than 1600 minor dialects and 15 major languages in India.

3) Social and religious diversity : India is a land of different religions, castes, cults, faiths, customs, racial types, languages, variety of food habits and costumes. It has both patriarchal and matriarchal family systems. Monogamy, polygamy and polyandry are also practiced. Hinduism, Jainism, Buddhism and Sikhism have originated in this land. People belonging to Christianity, Islam, Jewism, Zoroastrianism (Parsees) and the innumerable sub-sects of all these religions, co-exist here with great harmony.

4) Economic and Political diversities : The political history of India shows a lack of political unity. The whole of India never came under a single administration. Indian resources are also unevenly distributed. On one hand, we find some regions highly prosperous and well developed and on the other hand, certain areas very poor and underdeveloped. The urban parts of India are highly developed and modem compared to the rural sectors.
In spite of all these diversities, there are many unifying factors that have kept India united.

Important among them are the following ones:

1) Geographical unity : India has well defined boundaries which provide a permanent shape with the Himalayas to the north and oceans below surrounding the southern parts. This has isolated India from the rest of the world and formed a separate geographical unit.

2) Administrative unity: The administrative system of ancient India was mostly identical and uniform, and followed the set of rules laid down by Chanakya in his ‘ Arthashastra’. The King who brought different parts of the country under his sovereignty came to be called as Chakravarthi. Mouryas, Guptas, Vardhanas, Chalukyas, Moghuls etc., have all tried unsuccessfully to bring political unity in the country, by expanding their territories and bringing larger areas under a single ruler.

3) Uniformity of education and literature: Sanskrit, the divine language, vedic literature including Ramayana, Mahabharata and the Bhagavadgeetha have instilled the feelings of oneness and also added to the unity of India. Knowledge of Sanskrit had enabled persons to move freely across India and exchange their views with people from other parts of the country. Languages like Pali, Prakriti, Persian, and English also played an important role. A composite culture evolved during Muslim and British rules. Hence, Indians have developed the spirit of tolerance and co-existence.

4) Religious and social ceremonies: India is a land of various religions, castes, creeds and sects. People here lead a life of harmony. They participate in the religious and social ceremonies of each other. This has inculcated a feeling of oneness.
Recent changes: Indian constitution and the Government, the present economic and social conditions, the effects of globalization etc., have reduced the differences further. Global unity transcends the innumerable diversities of race, skin colour, language, dress, customs, and traditions. This again has ushered in unity among the people.

Question 4.
Write a note on the contributions of foreign writers in reconstructing the history of India.
Answer:
Foreign Accounts: There are some interesting sources of information from the accounts narrated by foreign writers. India had attracted many foreign traders, pilgrims, philosophers and invaders. Many of them left their records, impressions and opinions about India. These help to fill in the gaps about important events.

Greek and Roman writers: Megasthenes, theAmbassadarof the Greek Sovereign Seleucos to the court of Chandragupta Mourya, has left a detailed account of India during the Mauryan period, in his book ‘Indica’. Ptolemy, another greek, wrote a geographical account of India in the 2nd century AD. He gave information regarding the commercial relations of Greece with ancient India. ‘The Periplus of the Erithrean sea’, a work by an unknown greek author mentions many coastal towns, rulers and products of India. Pliny wrote ‘Natural Historia’ (1st century AD) which gives some idea regarding Indo-Roman trade relations and the political conditions of India.

Chinese Accounts: There were some notable Chinese pilgrims who visited India, Fahian visited India (The reign of Chandragupta-II) in early 5th century AD and has given a vivid picture of many cities and Ashoka’s palace. He also gives information about the Gupta administration. Hiuen Tsang (629-645 AD) visited India in the 7th century AD. He left valuable information in his book ‘Siyuki’ (Records of the western world. He visited the court of Harshavardhana and Pulikeshi-II. He has given a vivid picture of the education, religion, society and administration of their regimes. He has also mentioned the battle of Narmada and the defeat of Harshavardhana.

Itsing visited India during the end of the 7th century AD. He had travelled across India extensively and gives information regarding various cities of India like Rajagraha, Kasi and Nalanda and describes the status of Buddhism in India at that period.

Arab and other writers: Muslim writers and historians have given valuable contributions to the reconstruction of our history. Prominent among them were Firdousi’s (Ibn Hassan) ‘Shahanama’, ‘Babamama’ by Emperor Babar, ‘Jahangimama’byJahangirand ‘Akbamama’ by Abdul Fa al and many more. The Arab travellers, Sulaiman Albcruni (contemporary of Mohammad Ghazni) and Ibn Batuta, have left their records about India. Other travellers like Nicolo Conti of Italy, Abdul Razzak (Persia), Barbosa and Domingo Paes (Portugal) and Niketin (Russia) have given a lot of information regarding Vijayanagara and Bahamani Empires.

Question 5.
Write a note on the importance of Archaeological sources in reconstructing the history of India. tor) Estimate the value of the archaeological sources for the study of Ancient Indian history.
Answer:
Archaeology is a systematic study of antiquities. It deals with the actual remains of the dim. distant past by way of inscriptions (Epigraphy), coins (Numismatics) and monument. These provide us with valuable and useful information to enable us to reconstruct our history

Excavations: Excavation is the scientific digging of earth for unearthing sources of historical importance. Excavations provide an insight into the social, cultural and religious life of the people of some earlier era. The archaeological remains found during excavations ai v put to scientific tests by carbon -14 dating and potassium methods to ascertain their age.

Inscriptions: Inscriptions are windings found on hard substances such as stone, metal, wood, shell, pottery etc. Inscriptions provide information about the type of coins that were in circulation, trade and commerce, the agricultural system that existed, names of Kin. their dynasties and the Era. Culture of the region was also often reflected in inscriptions. So, inscriptions are the most valuable, reliable, authentic and direct sources for writing history. They were written in various languages like Pali, Prakriti, Sanskrit, Tamil, old Kannada etc. Ashoka’s Ilatigumpha cave inscriptions at Kharvela (Orissa) are regarded as one of the earliest. The Allahabad pillar inscription of Samudragupta, Aiholc inscription of Pulikeshi-II etc., gives details regarding their expeditions. Thus, inscriptions throw light on a variety of matters of history and culture of ancient India.

Coins (Numismatics): Coins help us to understand the age, dynasty, economic and religious conditions, script, languages, extent of the Empire etc. Coins were usually minted in gold, silver, copper, lead etc. The coins of Guptas, Shatavahanas, Yadavas, Vijayanagara etc., are noteworthy.

Monuments: Monuments are structures or sites of historical importance. They are the materials actually made and used by the people from the earlier era. Forts, palace: caves, temples, statues, stupas, mosques, tombs, churches, basadies etc., are examples of monuments. The cave paintings of Ajanta, Ellora, Elephanta, Khajuraho, Badami, the temples at Konark, Belur, IHalebeedu, Tanjavur and Hampi, the statues of Gomateshwara and Buddha etc., help us to understand the cultural heritage of India. They are the true signs of the prosperity of that period and speak volumes of the artistic taste of the people and Rulers of that time.

Paintings: The paintings of various periods give us a very vivid picture of the cultural, social and religious aspects of those bygone eras. For example, among the paintings at the Ajanta caves there is a picture of Pulikeshi-II receiving the Ambassador of Khusro-II.
We find the importance of the archaeological sources in reconstructing the history of lndia. A critical analysis of these sources will enable us to write an authentic history in a very scientific way.