Exercise Answers
A. Choose the correct answer.
1. The oldest of the four Vedas is the:
a. Rig Veda
b. Sama Veda
c. Yajur Veda
d. Atharva Veda
Ans. a. Rig Veda
2. The smallest unit in Early Vedic Society was:
a. grama
b. vis
c. kula
d. jana
Ans. c. kula
3. The stage in the life of a person in the Vedic Age where they had to lead the life of a married householder was:
a. Brahmacharya
b. Grihastha
c. Vanaprastha
d. Sanyasa
Ans. b. Grihastha
4. The meaning of the word 'megalith' is
a. Small stone
b. Large stone
c. Stones mixed with copper
d. Stones mixed with chalk
Ans. b. Large stone
B. Fill in the blanks:
1. The word 'Veda' comes from the Sanskrit word ________ meaning ________.
Ans. Vid, to know
2. In Vedic society, a number of families made up the _______ with a _______ at its head.
Ans. Village or grama, gramani
3. Aryan society was divided into four __________ based on occupation.
Ans. Varnas
4. Two popular drinks of the Vedic people were ________ and _______.
Ans. Sura and Soma
5. In the Chalcolithic age, people made tools out of both _______ and ________.
Ans. copper and stone
C. Answer in one or two sentences:
1. Who were the vedic people?
Ans. 1. The people who composed the Vedas are known as the Vedic people or the Aryans.
2. What were the main crops grown by the people in the later Vedic period?
Ans. 2. The main crops grown by the people in the later Vedic period were rice, wheat and barley.
3. Name some of the gods and goddesses worshipped in the Early Vedic Age?
Ans. 3. In the Early Vedic Period, the Aryans worshipped various forces of nature, such as Agni (god of fire), Indra (god of rain and thunderstorms), Surya (the Sun god), Prithvi (goddess of the Earth) and Vayu (god of wind).
4. In the vedic age, what were the cultures that flourished in parts of the Deccan and South India?
Ans. During the vedic age, other cultures were developing in different parts of India. Inamgaon in Maharashtra is an example of a Chalcolithic settlement, while brahmagiri in Karnataka is an example of Megalithic culture.
5. What is a cist?
Ans. 5. The bodies were buried in rectangular cists (small stone-lined graves) or excavated pits.
E. Answer in a paragraph.
1. Describe the political structure of the Vedic people.
Ans. 1. The political system of the vedic people are as follows:
a. The family or kula was the smallest unit of society headed by grihapati.
b. A number of families made up a village or grama headed by gramani.
c. Several villages put together called clan or vis headed by visapati.
d. Several vis put together form the jana headed by janapati aur Rajan.
2. Describe the four stages or ashramas of person's life in the Vedic Age?
Ans. 2. The Vedas divided the life of a person into four stages or ashramas.
• Brahmacharya: This was the stage of a student.
• Grihastha: The next stage was that of a grihastha or a married householder.
• Vanaprastha: In this stage, people devoted themselves to prayer and meditation.
• Sanyasa: In this final stage people lived a life of renunciation as an ascetic.
3. What were the occupations of the people during the vedic age?
Ans. 3. The Aryans were divided into groups or varnas based on their occupations.
a. The priestly class that performed religious rites, rituals and sacrifices was called the class of Brahmins.
b. The king and his warriors were known as the Kshatriyas.
c. Vaishyas were the traders, merchants, craftsman and cultivators.
d. The shudras were the labourers.
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