1. ‘Sutudri’ mentioned in the Rig Veda is
(a) a term used to denote bride
(b) the name of a river
(c) a plant used in the preparation of Sura
(d) a sacrificial animal
2. A board of copper images generally assigned to the Harappan culture phase, has been found at
(a) Daimabad
(b) Brahmagiri
(c) Inamgaon
(d) Nasik
3. About the 5th century BC the Indian satrapy was paying an annual tribute to 320 talents of gold to
(a) Greece
(b) Persia
(c) Bactria
(d) China
4. Ashoka’s son who propagated Buddhism in Sri Lanka was
(a) Mahendra
(b) Kunala
(c) Tivara
(d) Chandra Gupta
5. Aranyani, Goddess of the forest, is first mentioned in the
(a) Rik Samhita
(b) Atharvaveda
(c) Aranyaka texts
(d) Upanishadic text
6. Ashoka’s contemporary Greek King of Syria mentioned in his edicts, was
(a) Antiochus II Theos
(b) Ptolemy II
(c) Antigonas
(d) Alexander
7. ‘Harshacharit’ is a work of one of the following
(a) Kalhan
(b) Harshvardhan
(c) Banabhatta
(d) Vishnu Sharma
8. During the period of Harshavardhana, the fields were watered by the pots of the ghati-yantra. This is known from the writings of
(a) Hiuen Tsang (b) Bana
(c) Subhandhu (d) Dandin
9. Ghati-yantra was used in early India for
(a) manufacturing of vessels of metal
(b) pouring of water in sacrificial rituals
(c) conducting tantric rituals
(d) irrigation from wells
10. Hiuen Tsang found Jainsim flourishing in
(a) Orissa (b) Kashmir
(c) Bengal (d) Bihar
11. In ancient Indian social structure, the term aniravasita was related to
(a) brahmanas and kshatriyas
(b) vaisyas and sudras
(c) sudras only
(d) people outside the varna classification
12. In the Mauryan administration, the official designated as Rupadarsaka was
(a) examiner of silver and other metals
(b) superintendent of courtesans
(c) manager of stage
(d) examiner of coins
13. In Vajrayana Buddhism, the spouse of the Buddha Bodhisatva was known as
(a) Matangi (b) Yogini
(c) Dakini (d) Tara
14. Kumarasambhavam describes the story of the birth of
(a) Sanathkumara
(b) Kartikeya
(c) Pradyumna
(d) Abhimanyu
15. Megasthenes was succeeded as ambassador to the Mauryan court by
(a) Hegesander (b) Deimachos
(c) Athenaeus (d) Nearchus
16. Rig Vedic people invoked Indra for
(a) acquisition of knowledge
(b) a life after death
(c) release from the cycle of births and deaths
(d) material comforts and victory
17. The crops cultivated by the Harappans included
(a) wheat, barley and mustard
(b) barley, groundnut and rice
(c) wheat, rice and sugarcane
(d) wheat, cotton and sugarcane
18. The largest concentration of Harappan sites has been found along the
(a) Sutlej
(b) Indus
(c) Ghaggar-Hakra
(d) Ravi
19. The predominant funerary practice at Harappa was
(a) cremation
(b) burying ash kept in an urn
(c) extended burial of the body with pottery
(d) making a memorial to mark the site
20. Which of the following are characteristics ascribed to Buddhism?
A. Rejection of the authority of the Vedas
B. Emphasis on the role of the individual
C. Belief in the categories of Jiva and Ajiva
D. Theory of Prakriti and Purusha
Choose the correct answer from the codes given below:
(a) A and B
(b) A, C, and D
(c) B and C
(d) C and D
21. Which of the following Harappan sites are located in the Kutch region?
(a) Besalpur and Surkotada
(b) Rangpur and Rojidi
(c) Allabadino and Balakot
(d) Lothal and Surkotada
22. Which of the following was/were stressed by the Bhakti saints of the 15th and 16th centuries?
A. Idea of Personal God
B. Purity of caste system
C. Futility of religious rites
D. Conception of Nirguna brahma
Select the correct answer by using the codes given below:
(a) A and B
(b) A and C
(c) C and D
(d) D only
23. Which one of the following is a commentary on the Arthasastra?
(a) Aparajitaprccha of Bhuvanadeva
(b) Samaranganasutradhara of Bhojadeva
(c) Prabandhachintamani of Merutunga
(d) Pratipada-Panchika of Bhattasvamin
24. Which one of the following statements about Mohenjodaro is correct?
(a) The houses were made of cut and polished stone.
(b) Axes, chisels, knives, and fishhook were all made of iron.
(c) The floor of the Great Bath was made of burnt brick.
(d) Gold ornaments were unknown to the inhabitants.
25. Ashoka propagated Buddhism in which of the following countries?
A. Burma B. Nepal
C. Sri Lanka D. China
(a) A, B, and C
(b) A, C, and D
(c) B, C, and D
(d) A, B, and D
26. Arrange the following ancient works in chronological order.
A. Mudrarakshasa
B. Mattavilasa Prahasana
C. Milindapanhu
D. Arthashastra
(a) A, B, D, C (b) C, D, A, B
(c) D, A, C, B (d) D, C, A, B
27. Which of the following statements is not correct?
(a) The Rig Vedic people worshipped nature.
(b) The Rig Vedic Aryans were by and large urban people.
(c) The Rig Vedic family comprised parents and other kith and kin apart from husband and wife.
(d) The Rig Vedic women were highly respected and that most of the religious ceremonies were considered incomplete unless wives joined their husbands.
28. In the Mauryan period, free labourers working for a regular wage in guilds were known as
A. Bhritakas or bhatakas
B. Kupyas
C. Karamkaras
D. Jethakas
Choose the answer from the codes given below:
(a) A and B (b) A and C
(c) C and D (d) C only
29. Match the following:
List I List II
A. Ashoka 1. Gandhara school of art
B. Kanishka 2. Monolithic pillars
C. Krishna I 3. Brithadivara temple
D. Raja Raja 4. Kailasanath Temple, Ellora
Codes:
A B C D
(a) 2 3 4 1
(b) 2 1 4 3
(c) 3 4 1 2
(d) 4 3 2 1
30. The great grammarian Patanjali of ancient India was whose contemporary among the following?
(a) Chandragupta Maurya
(b) Ashoka
(c) Pushymitra Sunga
(d) Vasu Mitra
Answers
1. (b) 2. (a) 3. (b) 4. (a) 5. (a) 6. (a) 7. (c) 8. (a) 9. (d) 10. (c)
11. (c) 12. (d) 13. (d) 14. (b) 15. (b) 16. (d) 17. (a) 18. (c) 19. (c) 20. (a)
21. (a) 22. (b) 23. (d) 24. (c) 25. (a) 26. (c) 27. (c) 28. (a) 29. (d) 30. (c)
