Here are expected questions from the chapter Kingdoms, Kings and the Early Republic.

1. The ………………………. was a ritual performed by ambitious kings to ascertain their supremacy.

Ashvamedha or horse sacrifice

2. The priests divided people into four groups called ……………………………..

Varnas

3. ………………………. were expected to study and teach Vedas and perform sacrifices.

The Brahmins

4. ……………………… were expected to fight battles and protect people.

The kshatriyas

5. Farmers, traders and herders were ………………………….

Vaishyas

6. Why did people oppose the system of varna?

People opposed the system of varna because it promoted inequality in the society. Another reason to oppose this classification was that birth could not be the basis for deciding which varna a person belonged to. There were also people who believed that there should be no difference among people on the basis of occupation.

7. What does the word janapada means?

The term janapada literally means the land where jana or people set their foot and settled down.

8. Briefly describe life in the janapadas.

People lived in huts and kept cattle and other animals. They also grew rice, wheat, barley, pulses, sugarcane and mustard. They made earthen pots – some of them were grey in color and others were red.

9. What are mahajanapadas?

About 2500 years ago, some janapadas became more important than others and came to be known as mahajanapadas. Mahajanapadas usually had a capital city and many of them also had walls around them.

10. Name some important mahajanapadas?

Gandhara, Vajii, Avanti, Kosala, Magadha, Kuru, Panchala and Anga

11. Why did rulers of mahajanapadas started collecting taxes?

As the rulers of mahajanapadas were building forts around their city and maintaining armies, they needed money. Hence, they appointed officials to regularly collect taxes from the people.

12. What was bhaga?

Bhaga was the tax on crops. It was fixed at 1/6^th of what was produced.

13. How did rulers of mahajanapadas collected taxes?

They collected tax in various ways. Tax on crops was the most important and it was fixed at 1/6^th of the produce.

Craft persons were probably taxed by making them work for the king for a day every month.

Herders paid tax in the form of animals and animal produce and hunters and gatherers provided forest produce to the king.

There were also taxes on goods that were bought and sold.

14. Mention important changes in agriculture.

People started using iron ploughshares. This enabled them to turn over the soil much better and increase the yield. People also started transplanting paddy. This allowed more plants to survive and led to increased production.

15. How did Magadha became the most important mahajanaganapada?

Many important rivers such as the Ganga and Son flowed through Magadha. This facilitated water transport and made the land fertile. Many parts of Magadha were forested. Elephants who lived in these forests could be captured and trained for the wars. The forests also provided wood for building houses, carts and chariots. Magadha also had iron mines from which iron could be extracted to produce strong tools and weapons.

16. Who were the most important rulers of Magadha?

Bimbisara, Ajatasattu and Mahapadma Nanda

17. ……………………….. was the capital of Magadha for a long time?

Rajagriha or Rajgir.

18. After Rajagriha, which city became the capital of Magadha?

Pataliputra

19. What is the present name of Pataliputra?

Patna

20. Name the Macedonian ruler who set out to conquer the world around 2300 years ago.

Alexander

21. Alexander reached up to the banks of the river ……………………………

Beas

22. What was the capital of Vajji?

Vaishali

23. What form of government existed in Vajji?

Gana or Sangha

24. Write a short note on gana or sangha.

In a gana or sangha there were several rulers and each one was called a raja. They performed rituals together and met in assemblies to decide what had to be done and how. Women, dasas and landless agricultural labourers could not participate in these assemblies.

25. Who were kammakkaras?

They were landless agricultural labourers in janapadas.

26. Both Buddha and Mahavira belonged to ……………………. or ……………………..

Ganas, Sanghas

27. What is a Gana?

It is a group that has many members.

28. What is a Sangha?

It is an organisation or association.

True or false

1. Shudras were excluded from most rituals – true

2. Brahmins alone could perform sacrifices – false

3. Kshatriyas and vaishyas could perform sacrifices – true

4. Women and shudras were allowed to study vedas – false

5. In ganas, women could participate in assemblies – false

6. Magadha was the strongest mahajanapada – true

Textbook questions

1. State whether true or false

a) Rajas who let the Ashvamedha horse to pass through their land were invited to the sacrifice – true

b) The charioteer sprinkled sacred water on the king – false (this was done by priests)

c) Archaeologists have found palaces in the settlements of janapadas – false

d) Pots to store grains were made out of Painted Grey Ware – false

e) Many cities in Mahajanapadas were fortified – true

3. Who were the groups who could not participate in the assemblies of the ganas?

Women, dasas and kammakkaras (landless agricultural labourers)

4. Why did rajas of mahajanapadas build forts?

They built ports because people were afraid of attacks from other rajas and needed protection. Building impressive forts were also a way for rajas to show how rich and powerful they were. In addition, by building forts, they could better control the land and people living inside it.

5. In what ways are present day elections different from the ways in which rulers were chosen in janapadas?

In present day democracies, rulers are elected through voting. Men and women above 18 can vote to choose their rulers. This was not the case in janapadas. In those times, ambitious warriors asserted their supremacy through a ritual called Ashvamedha. In Ganas or Sanghas, there were several rulers and they regularly met in assemblies. Unlike in the modern democracies, where both men and women can vote, in Ganas or Sanghas, women, dasas and kammakkaras were not allowed to participate in assemblies.