NCERT Class 6 Social Science Chapter 5 What Books and Burials Tell Us

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NCERT Class 6 Social Science Chapter 5 What Books and Burials Tell Us

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Also, you can read the NCERT book online in these sections Solutions by Expert Teachers as per Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE) Book guidelines. CBSE Class 6 Social Science Solutions are part of All Subject Solutions. Here we have given NCERT Class 6 Social Science Chapter 5 What Books and Burials Tell Us, NCERT Class 6 Social Science Textbook of Our Pasts – I: History, The Earth – Our Habitat: Geography, Social and political Life: Civics. for All Chapters, You can practice these here.

What Books and Burials Tell Us

Chapter: 5

OUR PASTS – I [HISTORY]

NCERT TEXTBOOK QUESTIONS WITH ANSWERS

LET’S RECALL

Q. 1. Match the columns: 

Ans. 

Q. 2. Complete the sentences:

(a) Slaves were used for ________.

Ans. working, who could made them to whatever work they wanted. 

(b) Megaliths are found in ________.

Ans. the deccan area of South India, in the north eastern area and Kashmir. 

(c) Stone circles or boulders on the surface were used to __________.

Ans. determine that there are burials beneath. 

(d) Port-holes were used for __________.

Ans. indicating that the people belonging to the same family were buried in the same place.

(e) People at Inamgaon ate__________.

Ans. millets, seasames, peas, fruits, wheats, barley, rice, pulses.

LET’S DISCUSS

Q.3. In what ways are the books we read today different from the Rigveda? 

Ans. Rigveda: It is the earliest. Veda which was composed by the Aryans. It has 1028 hymns. It is the main source of information about Vedic culture. It gives us information about: social, religious and economic life of the people.

Modern books: These books contain doses of scientific and technical knowledge along with religious and ethical values. It is written to pass knowledge. It is even read and dictated. 

Q. 4. What kind of evidence from burials do archaeologists use to find out whether there were social differences amongst those who were buried? 

Ans. Evidences from burials that archaeologists used are as follows:

(a) There were objects found in graves were usually different and varied.

(b) Which skeleton probably belonged to the dead person.

(c) In Brahmagiri, one skeleton was buried with 33 gold beads, 2 stone beads, 4 copper bangles and one conch shell.

(d) Other skeletons have only a few pots.

(e) These suggest that there was some differences in status amongst the people who were buried. Some were rich, others poor, some chiefs, others followers.

Q.5. In what ways do you think that the life of a raja was different from that of a dasa or dasi?

Ans. The life of a raja was different from that of a dasa or dasi because: 

Dasa:

(a) The slave of the tribe.

(b) They were both men and women who captured in war. 

(c) They could not perform any task of their choice.

(d) He belongs to the lower sections of society.

(e) Their life is full of difficulties.

Raja:

(a) He was the king or head of a tribe. 

(b) They are monarchical and sometimes rulers of elected kingdoms.

(e) They made the slaves to do tasks of their choice.

(d) He was from the upper section of society.

(e) The life of Raja is luxurious.

SOME OTHER IMPORTANT QUESTIONS FOR EXAMINATION

VERY SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

Q.1. Name the four Vedas. 

Ans. The four Vedas are the Rigveda, Samaveda, Yajurveda and Atharvaveda,

Q. 2. Name the rivers which are being mentioned in the Rigveda. 

Ans. The rivers which are being mentioned in the hymns are Saraswati, Ganga and Yamuna. 

Q. 3. Name the two groups mentioned in Rigveda, who were described in terms of their work.

Ans. The two groups who are described in terms of their work are the priests and brahmins.

Q. 4. Which word describe the people as a whole? 

Ans. The word which describe the people as a whole was Jana and Vaishya.

Q. 5. Give another term for Early Vedic Age. 

Ans. The Early Vedic Age is also called the Rigvedic Age because the Rigveda was compose at this time.

Q. 6. What does the word Veda literally mean?

Ans. The word “Veda’ means knowledge. 

They are the oldest text composed in India: 

Q. 7. Name some of gods worshiped during the early Vedic period. 

Ans. Some of the gods worshiped during the early Vedic period were: Agni (the god fire), Indra (the warrior god).

Q. 8. Name the sacrifice that a Vedic king might perform to expand his kingdom.

Ans. Ashvamedha sacrifice. 

Q. 9. How were the assets of the Vedic people judged? 

Ans. Cow was considered as the main wealth and people’s assets were judged by the number of cattle they possessed.

Q. 10. Name the two main occupations of the Rigvedic Aryans. 

Ans. Agriculture and cattle rearing were the two main occupations of the Aryans. 

Q. 11. What are phases into which the Vedic Age has been divided?

Ans. The phases into which the Vedic Age has been divided are: 

(a) The Early Vedic Age (1500 BCE-1000 BCE). 

(b) The Later Vedic Age (1000 BCE-600 BCE)

Q. 12. Name the crops grown by the vedic people.

Ans. Wheat, barley, rice, pulses, millets, peas and sesame were some of the crops grown by.

Q. 13. Give examples of fruits that the vedic people collected and ate.

Ans. Vedic people collected fruits such as ber, amla, dates, jamun and berries.

Q. 14. Name the foods and drinks intoxicated by the Aryans.

Ans. The food and the drinks intoxicating by Aryans are, food-milk, barley, cereals, grains ghee, fruits, vegetables and meat.

Drinks: They were also fond of intoxicating drinks like soma and sura. Soma, a sacred drink extracted from a plant was consumed during religious ceremonies They also ate different varieties of meat.

SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

Q. 1. Who was been treated as property of their owners during the Vedic period? Give reasons.

Ans. Slaves were being treated as the property of their owners because they were captured in war. Their owners ie, the Aryas could make them do, whatever work they liked. (The people who composed the hymns were called Aryas). The term dasa and feminine desi came mean slaves. 

Q. 2. What is the use of Megaliths? Where can we find them?

Ans. The stone boulders are known as Megaliths. They are used to mark burial sites. The practice of erecting megaliths began about 3000 years ago. They were prevalent throughout the Deccan, south India, in the north east and Kashmir. 

Q.3. What was Charaka Samhita? What has been mentioned in this book?

Ans. About 2000 years ago, there was a famous physician named Charaka who wrote book on medicine known as the Charaka Samhita. There he states that the human body has 360 bones. This is a much larger number than the 200 bones that are recognised in modern anatomy. Charaka arrived at this figure by counting the teeth, joints and cartilage. 

Q. 4. Where did the Aryans came from? What was their main language?

Ans. The Aryans came from Central Asia. Their main language was Sanskrit.

Q. 5. In addition to the Vedas, what are the other texts that form a part of vedic literature?

Ans. In addition to the four Vedas like Rigveda, Samaveda, Yajurveda and Atharvaveda the other texts that form a part of Vedic literature are the Brahmanas, the Aranyakas, the Upanishads and the epics, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. All these books are collectively known as the Vedic literature. 

Q. 6. Who was Rajan? Name the important people who assisted Rajan.

Ans. The head of the Aryans tribe or Jana was the Rajan. He was assisted with Senapati Senapati was incharge of military responsibilities and the Purohita was given the responsibilities of managing religious duties.

Q. 7. What is so special about Inamgaon?

Ans. Inamgaon is a chalcolithic settlement discovered near Pune in Maharashtra. It is a historic site located on the banks of river Ghod, a tributary of the river Bhima. People here lived between 3600 and 2700 years ago. 

LONG ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

Q. 1. What do the findings at Inamgaon suggest about the occupations of the people? 

Ans. Archaeologists have found seeds of wheat, barley, rice, pulses, millets, peas and seasame. Bones of a number of animals, many bearing cut marks that show they might have been used as food, have also been found. These include cattle, buffalo, goat, sheep, dog, horse, ass, pig. sambhar, spotted deer, black buck, antelope, hare and mongoose, besides birds, crocodile, turtle, crab and fish. There are evidences that fruits such as ber, amla, jamun, dates and a variety of berries were collected.

Q. 2. Mention the long journey of a man’s life through four ashrams according to Vedic tradition.

Ans. The long journey of a man’s life through four ashrams according to Vedic tradition in as follows:

(a) Brahmacharya: This was the first stage of a man’s life after birth. In this he needed to obtain knowledge as a student by studying the Vedas. 

(b) Grihastha: This was the second stage of life. In this stage man was supposed to marry and lead a family life.

(c) Vanaprastha: It was the stage when man needed to offer his services to others.

(d) Sanyasa: It was the last stage in a man’s life when he renounced the world and lived in the forest.

Q. 3. Discuss about the religion of the Aryans.

Ans. Religion of the Aryans had the following features: 

(a) The people worshipped nature gods and goddess such as Indra (the warrior god), Agni (the god of fire), Vayu (the wind god) and Prithvi (the god of earth).

(b) Prayers were recited in praise of the gods for good health, sons and cattle.

(c) There were no temples or idols.

(d) Gods were worshipped by chanting hymns and making offerings of cattle, grains, milk ghee and soma. 

(e) Yajnas (sacrifices) were performed by the brahmins and the entire family took part in the Yajnas.

Q. 4. Explain the political organization of the Aryans. 

Ans. Political Organisation of the Aryans can be explained as follows: 

(a) The most successful among the Aryan chiefs emerged as kings or Rajans. The king exercised vast powers. The kingship became as the hereditary in the Later Vedic Age i.e., it is the title which passed from father to his eldest son. 

(b) The king ruled with the help of a number of officials, such as the Senani and the Purohita.

(c) The Gramini also assisted him.

Thus, they kept a fighting band ready to help the king. 

(d) There were also two important assemblies known as the Samiti and the Sabha.

(e) In the Later Vedic period the small tribal kingdoms were replaced by larger kingdoms and the number of officers also increased. 

Q. 5. Discuss the social division of the Aryans.

Ans. During Rigvedic period, differences based on occupations started like:

(a) Priests, scholars and teachers were regarded as Brahmans. 

(b) The common people involved in production such as agriculture, crafts and trade were called the Vaishyas.

(c) The lowest rung of the social ladder were the Shudras whose duty was to serve the upper castes and do menial jobs. Thus, within the family people choose different occupations.

Q. 6. What do the burials of the Vedic Age tell us?

Ans. The burials of the vedic age tells us about the following things: 

(a) Burials tells us about the social set-up of the people. At Brahmagiri, one skeleton was buried with 33 gold beads, 2 stone beads, 4 copper bangles and one conch shell. Whereas other skeletous have only a few pots. These finds suggest that social differences existed among the people. Some were rich, others poor, some chiefs, others followers. 

(b) People were aware about iron, as iron tosts have been discovered from Inamgaon.

(c) A distinct form of pottery, Le., Black and Red ware has also been unearthed. 

(d) Agriculture and cattle rearing were the main occupation of the vedic people as archaeologists have found seeds of barley, rice, pulses, millets and peas. Animals such as cattle. goat, buffalo dog, etc. were reared.

HIGH ORDER THINKING SKILLS

Q. 1. What was so special about the writing in China? Why was it famous? 

Ans. The writings were on animal bones. These are called oracle bones because they were used to predict the future. Kings used to scribes questions on the bones. It has been put into the fire, and they cracked because of the heat. Then fortune tellers studied these cracks, and tried to predict the future. They sometimes made mistakes. These kings lived in palaces in cities. They possessed vast qualities of wealth, including larger, elaborately decorated bronze vessels. However, they did not know the use of them.

Q. 2. What was so special about the burial at Inamgaon? 

Ans. Inamgaon is a site on the river Ghod. It is a tributary of the Bhima. It was occupied between 3600 and 2700 years ago. Here, adults were generally buried in the ground, laid out straight, with the head towards the north. Sometimes burials were within the houses. Vessels that probably contained food and water were placed with the dead. 

One man was found buried in a large, four legged clay jar in the courtyard of a five-roomed house, in the center of the settlement. This house also had a granary. The body was placed in across legged position.

Q.3. Why was the period from 1500 BC-4000 BC called the Vedic Age? 

Ans. The period from 1500 BC-6000 BC is called Vedic Age because our main source of information about these periods came from the four Vedas. They are the Rigveda, Samaveda, Yajurveda and Atharvaveda. All these four Vedas give a lot of information about the Aryans and their religion, society and culture.

Q. 4. Explain the political life of the Rigvedic people.

Ans. The political life can be explained as follows: 

(a) During this period, the people were organized in tribes.

(b) The head of the tribe was the rajan. His poot was hereditary, but he was also elected on several occasions.

(c) The basic unit of society was the family. 

(d) A number of families made up a village or a gram.

(e) Each village was headed by a village headman. 

(f) A number of villages formed a clan several clans made the jain or tribe.

Q. 5. Describe the pottery and metals found at Inamgaon. 

Ans. (a) A distinctive form of pottery, called the black and red ware pottery has been found at Inamgaon.

(b) Tools and weapons made of iron and sometimes skeletons of horses, horses equipment and ornaments of stone and gold have also been fund.

Q. 6. Name and explain the groups of people described in Rigveda. 

Ans. Groups of people described in Rigveda were:

(a) The priests or the brahmins who performed various rituals.

(b) The king or the raja who was the head of the tribe.

(c) Aryas ar the people who composed hymns. 

(d) Slaves or dasas (and their faminine dasi) who were often captured in war and treated as the property of the aryas.

VALUE BASED QUESTIONS

Q. 1. Why did the people pay a lot of emphasis to cattle during the later Vedic period? 

Ans. People paid a lot of emphasis to cattle in the later Vedic period because cattle was domesticated and also used for other purposes like milk etc. It was their most valued possession and chief form of wealth. There were frequent battles for cattle. There are many prayers in the Rigveda for cattle, children and horses.

Q. 2. How can one way that the discovery of iron was a major achievement of the Aryans?

Ans. The discovery of iron was a major achievement of the Aryans because:

(a) It was used for clearing forests and for agricultural purpose.

(b) Its use truly revolutionized agriculture.

(c) It was the better technology used by the Aryans. 

Q. 3. What were the main amusements of the early Aryans? 

Ans. The main amusements of the early Aryans were chariot racing, horse-gambling dancing and music. They used the drum, lute and the flute. They also knew the game of dice. 

Q. 4. What was the status of women during the Vedic period? 

Ans. During the Vedic time the status of women was as follows:

(a) Women were respected and no religious ceremony was complete without the participation of the women of the family. 

(b) Women could offer religious offerings and sacrifices along with their husbands.

(c) Many hymns of Rigveda have been composed by women indicating that some of them received good education.

(d) There are no evidences of child marriage in Rigveda and the practice of widow remarriage has been mentioned. 

Thus, it is well evident that women enjoyed high status. 

Q. 5. In addition to the Vedas, what are the other texts that form a part of vedic literature? 

Ans. In addition to the four Vedas the other texts that form a part of Vedic literature an the Brahmanas, the Aranyakas, the Upanishads and the epics, the Ramayana and the Mahabharata. All these books are collectively known as the Vedic literature.

PICTURE BASED QUESTIONS

Look at the picture carefully and answer the questions that follow: 

(a) What does this picture indicate?

Ans. This picture indicates megaliths.

(b) Name the states where these belong to.

Ans. The states where these belong are Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu. 

(c) What was so important about this burial?

Ans. In some megalithic graves, the dead person was buried along with his or her pottery, clothes, ornaments, weapons etc.

MAP BASED QUESTION

On the physical map of India mark the following sites/cities.

(a) Taxila.

(b) Kosala.

(c) Mohenjodaro.

(d) Harappa.

Ans.

OBJECTIVE TYPE QUESTIONS

1. MULTIPLE CHOICE QUESTIONS 

Tick(✓) the correct option:

(a) Agni was the:

(i) Fire God.

(ii) Earth God.

(iii) Wind God.

Ans. (i) Fire God.

(b) A group of Aryans who settled in India are called:

(i) Indo-Aryans.

(ii) Anglo-Indians.

(iii) Indian Aryana.

Ans. Indo-Aryans.

(c) In the later Vedic Age, the caste system based itself on __________.

(i) ability.

(i) birth.

(iii) occupation.

Ans. (i) birth.

(d) The Aryans made a distinction between themselves and the non-Aryans whom they called __________.

(i) Sudras.

(ii) Dosa or Dasyus.

(iii) None of these.

Ans. (i) Dasa or Dasyus.

(e) The word Aryavarta means __________.

(i) Land of Aryabhatt.

(ii) Land of Aryans.

(iii) All of these.

Ans. (i) Land of Aryans.

II. FILL IN THE BLANKS:

(a) The Rigveda, oldest of the vedas, was composed about _________years ago.

Ans. 3500

(b) The use of _________technology truly revolutionized agriculture.

Ans. Iron.

(e) The head of the Aryan tribe was the ________.

Ana. Rajan.

(d) The ___________veda gives us the information about the Early Vedic period.

Ans. Rig

(e) The __________culture includes non-urban and non-Harappan culture.

Ana. Chalcolithic.

(f) The two epics ofthevedicageare ________and __________.

Ans. Ramayana and Mahabharta.

(g) Discovery of _________was a turning point in the vedic period.

Ans. Iron.

(h) A chalcolithic site in India where pit burials have been found __________.

Ans. Inamgaon near Pune in Maharashtra.

(i) Vedic literature was composed in _________.

Ans. Sanskrit.

(j) ___________is the oldest veda.

Ans. Rigveda.

III. WRITE TRUE OR FALSE:

(a) The Kshatriyas were the warrior caste.

Ans. True.

(b) Megaliths were mainly found on trade routes and around river valleys. 

Ans. True.

(c) Sanyasa was the first stage in a man’s life after birth when he needed to obtain knowledge as a student by studying the vedas.

Ans. False.

(d) The original home of the Aryans was in Europe.

Ans. False.

(e) The fee received by the Guru was called the Gurukul.

Ans. False.