Chapter 7 India’s Cultural Roots Very Short Question

Very Short Question Answers: India’s Cultural Roots

Q1. What are the Vedas?
Ans: The most ancient texts of India, comprising hymns and prayers recited orally.

Q2. How many Vedas are there?
Ans: Four – Ṛig Veda, Yajur Veda, Sāma Veda, and Atharva Veda.

Q3. What language were the Vedic hymns composed in?
Ans: Early Sanskrit.

Q4. Who composed the Vedic hymns?
Ans: Rishis and rishikas (male and female seers or sages).

Q5. Name some deities mentioned in the Vedas.
Ans: Indra, Agni, Varuṇa, Mitra, Sarasvatī, Uṣhas, among others.

Q6. What does ṛitam refer to in Vedic texts?
Ans: Truth and cosmic order.

Q7. How did the Vedic seers view the deities?
Ans: As manifestations of a single supreme reality.

Q8. Which values were particularly important in Vedic culture?
Ans: Truth and unity among people.

Q9. How was early Vedic society organized?
Ans: Into various clans or janas.

Q10. What were some professions mentioned in the Vedas?
Ans: Agriculturist, weaver, potter, carpenter, healer, priest, etc.

Q11. What are the Upaniṣhads?
Ans: Texts that developed philosophical ideas based on the Vedas.

Q12. What concept did the Upaniṣhads introduce?
Ans: Rebirth (reincarnation) and karma (law of cause and effect).

Q13. According to Vedanta, what is the ultimate divine essence?
Ans: Brahman.

Q14. What is ātman in the context of the Upaniṣhads?
Ans: The individual soul, ultimately identical with Brahman.

Q15. Who founded Buddhism?
Ans: Siddhārtha Gautama, later known as the Buddha.

Q16. What led Siddhārtha Gautama to leave his palace life?
Ans: Witnessing old age, sickness, death, and an ascetic who seemed at peace.

Q17. Where did the Buddha attain enlightenment?
Ans: Under a pipal tree at Bodh Gaya.

Q18. What principle did the Buddha emphasize?
Ans: Ahimsa (non-violence) and inner discipline.

Q19. What does the term ‘Jina’ mean in Jainism?
Ans: Conqueror, referring to one who conquers ignorance and attachments.

Q20. Who founded Jainism?
Ans: Vardhamāna Mahāvīra.

Q21. What are the key teachings of Jainism?
Ans: Ahimsa (non-violence), anekāntavāda (non-absolutism), aparigraha (non-possessiveness).

Q22. What do the Jātaka tales describe?
Ans: Stories of the Buddha’s past lives and teachings.

Q23. How do tribal traditions view elements of nature?
Ans: As sacred, often associated with deities or spirits.

Q24. Which Indian state is known for its Toda tribal community?
Ans: Tamil Nadu.

Q25. What is the significance of Donyipolo in tribal beliefs?
Ans: A combined form of the Sun and Moon worshipped as a supreme deity.

Q26. What term did ancient Indians use for ‘tribes’?
Ans: Jana.

Q27. How has the interaction between tribal and Hindu beliefs influenced Indian culture?
Ans: Enriched both through mutual borrowing of deities, rituals, and concepts.

Q28. Who composed the Mahābhārata and Rāmāyaṇa epics?
Ans: Valmiki and Vyasa, respectively.

Q29. Name a significant ethical principle shared by Vedic, Buddhist, and Jain traditions.
Ans: Ahimsa (non-violence).

Q30. What characterizes the Ātman in the Upaniṣhads?
Ans: The divine essence within each individual, identical to Brahman.

Q31. Where did the Vedic hymns originate?
Ans: In the Sapta Sindhava region (northwest Indian subcontinent).

Q32. How were the Vedas transmitted over generations?
Ans: Orally, through rigorous memorization and recitation.

Q33. What role did Agni play in Vedic rituals?
Ans: Central deity associated with fire, receiving offerings.

Q34. Who was Mahāvīra?
Ans: Founder of Jainism, known as the ‘great hero’.

Q35. What is the central theme of the Vedas?
Ans: Invocation of deities for various worldly and spiritual benefits.

Q36. How did the Buddha achieve enlightenment?
Ans: Through meditation and realization of the causes of human suffering.

Q37. Name a famous mantra from the Upaniṣhads.
Ans: “Aham Brahmāsmi” (I am Brahman).

Q38. What do the Vedic hymns primarily consist of?
Ans: Prayers and hymns addressed to various deities.

Q39. What geographical region is associated with the Vedic civilization?
Ans: Northwestern part of the Indian subcontinent (Sapta Sindhava).

Q40. What concept of truth was significant in Vedic philosophy?
Ans: Ṛitam, representing cosmic order and truth in human life.