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d |
The earliest Indian civilization developed along what river? A)Nile B)Euphrates C)Ganges D)Indus |
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a |
In terms of India’s geography, what regions have been home to its great empires? A)Fertile plains in the river valleys B)Forests at the foot of the Himalayas C)Deserts of the Rajasthan regions D)Jungles of the Vindhya Mountains |
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d |
What was one of the first crops to be developed in India? A)Rice B)Lentils C)Cotton D)Wheat |
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b |
The first Indian civilization—the Harappan civilization—is also known as which of the following? A)The Mauryan Empire B)The Indus Valley civilization C)The Indo-Aryan civilization D)Mesopotamia |
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c |
What is unusual about the written language of the Harappan people? A)It consisted of only four hundred letters. B)It was very similar to Sumerian cuneiform. C)No one has yet deciphered it. D)It was written on papyrus and silk. |
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a |
Compared to ancient Egyptian and Sumerian civilizations, what makes the Indus civilization unique? A)It was nearly twice as large in territory. B)It lasted less than three hundred years. C)Its people did not grow cotton. D)It was not a literate society. |
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c |
Harappan craftsmen are the first known producers of what cloth? A)Wool B)Linen C)Cotton D)Silk |
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d |
Harappan houses were built around what feature? A)A household shrine B)A burial site C)A cooking hearth D)A courtyard |
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d |
What was one of the most unique features of Harappan cities? A)Assembly halls B)Wide roads C)Communal wells D)Drainage systems |
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b |
On which of the following did the prosperity of the Indus (Harappan) civilization depend? A)Extensive trade with China B)Intensive cultivation of the fertile river valley C)The religious toleration shown to conquered peoples D)Their skill in making and trading jewelry |
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d |
Like early Mesopotamian and Egyptian civilization, Harappan civilization depended on what annually? A)Visitation from the gods to provide for abundance during harvest B)A short but wet growing season C)Attending the Tigris River Valley seed market D)Floods and irrigation to sustain agriculture |
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a |
As in Egypt, Harappan agriculture was aided by which of the following? A)A long, hot growing season B)Monsoon rains C)Man-made lakes D)Mild temperatures |
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d |
Which of the following was true of the Aryans? A)They were the native people of the Ganges Valley. B)They were a warrior people who destroyed the Indus civilization. C)They put an end to the strict Harappan caste system. D)They spoke an Indo-European language. |
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a |
The Aryans spoke an early form of what language? A)Sanskrit B)Hindi C)Persian D)Tamil |
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c |
What was the Rig Veda? A)An oral collection of military stories B)The name given to Harappan texts C)An oral collection of ritual texts, treatises, and hymns D)A collection of Greek epics borrowed by the Aryans |
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a |
Who was at the head of each Aryan tribal group? A)A raja or chief B)A head priest C)An assembly of tribesmen D)A god-king |
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b |
What did the Aryans use to ease the difficult task of clearing the jungle? A)Fire B)Iron tools C)Pesticides D)Wooden plows |
|
a |
What are priests referred to as in the Indian caste system? A)Brahmins B)Jains C)Buddhas D)Shudras |
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c |
How was Indian slavery in the Vedic Age similar to slavery in Mesopotamia? A)Only men captured in warfare were enslaved. B)Men in the nobility were the only ones who could own slaves. C)Men might sell themselves and their families into slavery to pay debts. D)Slaves were the only people who could serve as butchers. |
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b |
Who were the "untouchables" in the varna system? A)Women who belonged to the lowest caste B)Outsiders who were considered "impure" C)The nobility D)Child slaves |
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c |
Which of the following statements is true about women in ancient Aryan society? A)Women could never remarry if widowed. B)Almost all females were married while they were still children. C)Women lived in patrilineal and patriarchal tribal groups. D)Women were economically equal to men and could hold property. |
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d |
Who commonly performed the important ritual sacrifice of animals in Brahmanism? A)Untouchables B)Teenagers, because they were considered pure C)Male rulers only D)The priestly caste |
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c |
With what sacred text did the Aryan religion shift to a more ascetic and philosophical religion? A)Rig Veda B)Sutras C)Upanishads D)Mahabharata |
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b |
To what does the term asceticism refer? A)What Brahmans refer to as the individual soul B)The practice of severe self-discipline and self-denial C)The rejection of anthropomorphic gods D)All of the Brahman faith’s sacrificial rites |
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c |
According to the Upanishads, what is moksha? A)Human reincarnation as a lower animal B)A cleansing fire ritual for women after childbirth C)Release from the wheel of life and freedom from reincarnation D)The cosmic tally of one’s deeds |
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d |
How did the introduction of the concepts of samsara and karma from the Upanishads affect Indian society? A)It destabilized Indian society by undermining Brahmin privileges. B)It led society to consider the concepts part of the Hindu response to Buddhism and Jainism. C)It made Kshatriya fear that existing authority would be undermined. D)It stabilized Indian society by encouraging the poor to work hard, live righteously, and do good deeds. |
|
a |
Mahavira was the founder of what Indian religion? A)Jainism B)Buddhism C)Hinduism D)Sikhism |
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b |
According to Mahavira, what kinds of objects have souls? A)Only human beings have souls. B)All objects, living or inanimate, have souls. C)Only living creatures, human and animal, have souls. D)All animate objects, but only some inanimate objects, have souls. |
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d |
Which of the following is associated with Jainism? A)Personal liberty B)Gender equality C)Democracy D)Nonviolence |
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b |
What motivated the Jains’ practice of radical nonviolence? A)A reaction to the brutality their founder had suffered from the Brahmins B)The desire to avoid the karmic consequences of harming other life forms C)The belief that nonviolence would put an end to class conflict D)The fear that a warrior class would dominate their small population |
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c |
With which of the following groups did the Buddha have the least success? A)Artisans B)Merchants C)Brahmins D)Farmers |
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b |
Buddha taught that individuals could triumph over human weakness by A)following an ascetic lifestyle. B)following the Eightfold Path. C)entering a monastery. D)properly observing the rituals of Hinduism. |
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c |
What is the last step in Buddhism’s Eightfold Path? A)Contemplation B)Conduct C)Awareness D)Endeavor |
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c |
What are sutras in the Buddhist tradition? A)The steps on the Eightfold Path B)Animals sacrificed to the Buddha C)The written teachings of the Buddha D)Sacred names taken by monks |
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d |
What was the main ritual performed in Buddhist monasteries? A)Extreme asceticism B)Pilgrimage to Nepal C)Growing one’s own food D)Communal recitation of sutras |
|
a |
What qualified Bodhisattvas to help guide Buddhist believers to enlightenment? A)They had already achieved enlightenment. B)They were descendants of the Buddha himself. C)They were once Brahmin priests before converting. D)They could recite the most prayers from memory. |
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c |
What is the ultimate goal of Hinduism? A)Wealth and earthly prosperity B)Becoming a priest C)Union with Brahman D)Physical immortality |
|
d |
What is the Hindu concept of dharma? A)The rejection of ritualism B)The belief in reincarnation C)The balance sheet of good and bad deeds D)The moral law that Hindus are to observe |
|
d |
What Hindu text urges action in this world? A)The Sutras B)Rig Veda C)Ramayana D)Bhagavad Gita |
|
b |
What enabled India to make contact with the outside world in the sixth century B.C.E.? A)Alexander the Great’s conquest brought knowledge of the Mediterranean world. B)As the Persian Empire expanded, it made territorial conquests in the Indus Valley. C)Great expansion of overseas trade by Indian merchants and a new merchant fleet led to outside contact. D)Significant technological improvements in sailing led to greater communication and travel. |
|
c |
Which Persian emperor conquered the Indus Valley and Kashmir about 513 B.C.E.? A)Xrxes B)Darius C)Cyrus D)Cambyses |
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c |
Who was Chandragupta? A)The leader of Buddhist reform in India B)The military leader who defeated Alexander the Great at Taxila C)The founder of the Mauryan Empire D)A famous Greek ambassador who was sent to the Mauryan court |
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c |
What was the capital of Chandragupta’s empire? A)Kalinga B)Taxila C)Pataliputra D)Gujarat |
|
c |
Who was Kautilya? A)India’s greatest general B)The founder of Jainism C)Chandragupta’s minister D)An Aryan chieftain |
|
a |
How did Chandragupta control the outlying areas of his empire? A)He trusted local kings to continue on if they took a pledge of loyalty. B)He sent agents to the provinces to oversee government and keep him informed. C)He forced the migration of loyal supporters to distant realms. D)He did not try to control the areas but instead collected taxes. |
|
d |
What personal change did Ashoka make following the conquest of Kalinga? A)He converted to Jainism and became an ascetic monk. B)He divorced his wife and married a Kalingan princess. C)He became a paranoid, reclusive emperor. D)He converted to Buddhism after witnessing the horror of war. |
|
b |
How did Buddhism influence Ashoka’s rule? A)He required all of his people to convert to the faith even though he was a Jainist. B)He appointed officials to oversee the moral welfare of the realm. C)He banned all other forms of religious thought. D)He began a series of religious wars against non-Buddhists. |
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b |
Ashoka’s religious policies A)were directed at the suppression of Jainism. B)supported orthodoxy in Buddhism. C)spurned all other religions except Buddhism. D)weakened the central government of the empire. |
|
c |
After the fall of the Mauryans, what new empire emerged in the region that is now Afghanistan, Pakistan, and west India? A)Taxila B)Cholas C)Kushan D)Magadha |
|
b |
During the Kushan period, Indian art was strongly influenced by the art of what society? A)Egyptian B)Greek C)Chinese D)Turkish |
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dharma |
The Sanskrit word for moral law, central both to Buddhist and Hindu teachings |
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caste system |
The Indian system of dividing society into hereditary groups whose members interacted primarily within the group and especially married within the group. |
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Brahmins |
Priests of the Aryans; they supported the growth of royal power in return for royal confirmation of their own religious rights, power, and status. |
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samsara |
The transmigration of souls by a continual process of rebirth. |
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Harappan |
The first Indian civilization; also known as the Indus Valley civilization. |
|
Rig Veda |
The earliest collection of Indian hymns, ritual texts, and philosophical treatises, it is the central source of information on early Aryans. |
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karma |
The tally of good and bad deeds that determines the status of an individual’s next life. |
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Jainism |
Indian religion whose followers consider all life sacred and avoid destroying other life. |
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Mahayana |
The "Great Vehicle," a tradition of Buddhism that aspires to be more inclusive. |
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Four Noble Truths |
The Buddha’s message that pain and suffering are inescapable parts of life; suffering and anxiety are caused by human desires and attachments; people can understand and triumph over these weaknesses; and the triumph is made possible by following a simple code of conduct. |
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Code of Manu |
The codification of early Indian law that lays down family, caste, and commercial law. |
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bodhisattvas |
Buddhas-to-be who stayed in the world after enlightenment to help others on the path to salvation. |
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Aryans |
The dominant people in north India after the decline of the Indus Valley civilization; they spoke an early form of Sanskrit. |
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brahman |
The unchanging ultimate reality, according to the Upanishads. |
|
Mauryan Empire |
The first Indian empire founded by Chandragupta. |
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Eightfold Path |
The code of conduct set forth by the Buddha in his first sermon, beginning with "right conduct" and ending with "right contemplation." |
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