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Question Answer Set - 5 for RAIL/GROUP D/WBCS/WBPSC/WBP

1. Vedic literature is also known as :

(a) Shruti (b) Smriti

2. Who was the founder of Vedic culture?

(a) Dravid (b) Arya

3. The word ‘Aryan’ denotes :

(a) Ethnic group (b) Nomadic people

4. The staple food of the Vedic Aryan was :

(a) Barley and rice

(b) Rice and pulse

(d) Milk and its products

5. Who is the most important God in Rigaveda?

(a) Agni (b) Indra

6. Who wrote a book ‘Return of the Aryans’ ?

(a) Bhagvan Das Gidvani

(b) L.D. Kalla

(d) D.S. Trivedi

7. Which river has not been mentioned in Rigveda?

(a) Sindhu (b) Saraswati

8. Which of the following is the major impact of

Vedic culture on Indian history?

(a) Progress of philosophy

(b) Development of culture

(d) Perception of a new world

9. Which of the following Vedic deities is not

mentioned in the Boghazkoi inscription ?

(a) Indra (b) Agni

10. Who of the following was the God of morality

during the Rigvedic times?

(a) Indra (b) Rudra

11. The river Chenab was known during the Vedic

period by the name :

(a) Askini (b) Parushni

12. Which one of the following assemblies was also

called Narishta meaning a resolution that cannot

be broken?

(a) Gana (b) Vidhata

13. Which of the following does not come under

Shruti literature?

(a) Brahmana (b) Vedanga

14. The Vedic river Vitasta has been identified with :

(a) Ravi (b) Jhelum

15. Which of the following Brahmana texts belongs

to Atharvaveda?

(a) Shatpatha (b) Aitareya

16. Who of the following led the confederacy of ten

kings against Sudasa?

(a) Vishwamitra (b) Bharadwaja

17. Dasarajana was :

(a) Ten incarnations of Vishnu

(b) A sacrifice to be performed by the king

(d) None of these

18. Which part of Rigveda gives an account of the

origin of the Universe?

(a) Second Mandala (b) Fourth Mandala

19. The famous ‘Battle of Kings’ between Bharat and

the host of ten kings was fought near the river :

(a) Sindhu (b) Saraswati

20. Which one of the following Vedic Gods depicts

an association with the Sun?

(a) Ashvin (b) Pushan

21. Which of the following is concerned with origin

of Indian medicine?

(a) Rigveda (b) Samveda

22. Which one of the following is described in

Upanishad?

(a) Dharma (b) Yoga

23. Which of the following Purusarthas is not a part

of Trivarga?

(a) Artha (b) Dharma

24. Who of the following has opened that the original

homeland of the Aryan was Arctic region?

(a) Bal Gangadhar Tilak

(b) Max Muller

(d) A.C. Das

25. In Rigveda, maximum number of shlokas are

written in the memory of :

(a) Indra (b) Brahma

26. How many times does the word ‘Jana’ occur in

the Rigveda?

(a) 75 times (b) 175 times

27. Which of the following assemblies was normally

involved in the election of king?

(a) Sabha (b) Samiti

28. The expounder of Yoga philosophy was :

(a) Patanjali (b) Shankaracharya

29. The word Gotra occurs for the first time in :

(a) Rigveda (b) Samveda

30. The word Visamatta was used in the latter Vedic

Age for :

(a) The king (b) The priest

31. In the Vedic Period, which animal was known as

‘Aghanya’?

(a) Bull (b) Sheep

32. Which of the following Samhitas of Yajurveda

contains only hymns and no prose?

(a) Katha (b) Maitrayaviya

33. The game of ‘dice’ was part of the ritual of :

(a) Agnistoma (b) Aswamegha

34. The rivers Ganga and Yamuna are mentioned for

the first time in :

(a) Rigveda

(b) Atharvaveda

(d) Chhandogya Upanishad

35. The Gayatri Mantra is dedicated to :

(a) Indra (b) Aditi

36. Who among the following was a Brahmavadini

that composed some hymns of the Vedas?

(a) Lopamudra (b) Gargi

37. The river most mentioned in Rigveda is :

(a) Sindhu (b) Sutudri

38. The famous dialogue between Nachiketa and

Yama is mentioned in the :

(a) Chhandogyopanishad

(b) Mundakopnishad

(d) Kenopanishad

Answer Key :

1. (a) Vedic literature is also known as Shruti. The

literature which has been handed down from time

immemorial by verbal transmission.

2. (b) The Aryans were the founder of Vedic culture.

The Aryans entered India through the Khyber

pass, around 1500 BC. They adopted the settled

agricultural lifestyle of their predecessors and

established small agrarian communities across

the state of Punjab. The Aryans are believed to

have brought with them the horse, developed the

Sanskrit language and made significant inroads

into the religion and culture of that time.

4. (d) The staple diet of the people was milk, ghee

(clarified butter), vegetables, fruit and barley. On

special occasions like a religious feast or the arrival

of a guest, a more elaborate meal was organized.

Meats from the ox, goat and sheep were served

along with intoxicating drinks, like Sura and

Madhu.

5. (b) Indra was the most important divinity and

was lord of war. 250 hymns have been devoted

to only Indra in Rigveda, which is highest for any

of the Gods. His other names are: Car-warrior

(Rathestha); A winner ( Jitendra) and Soma

Drinker (Somapa). Indra is mentioned as son of

Dyaus. He killed a demon Vritra, so he is known as

Vritrahan. He destroyed the forests so also known

as Purandhar. He held the thunderbolt (Vajra) with

which he destroyed the enemies.

6. (a) The book ‘Return of the Aryans’ was written

by Bhagvan S. Gidvani. This book tells the epic

story of the Aryans – a gripping tale of kings and

poets, seers and gods, battles and romance and the

rise and fall of civilizations.

7. (d) The Sapta Sindhu (seven rivers) plays a

prominent part in the hymns of the Rigveda. The

Rigveda mentions rivers Kabul, Swat, Kurram,

Gumal, Indus, Jhelum, Chenab, Ravi, Beas, Sutlej,

etc. which proves that the settlements were in

Afghanistan and Punjab as well.

The river Tapti is not mentioned in Rigveda.

8. (c) The earliest expressions of caste can be found

in one of India’s religious scripture known as the

Vedas. In the beginning, the caste system was not

rigid. But in the later Vedic period, it became rigid

when the Brahmins and the Kshatriyas became

powerful. So, the rigidification of caste system is

the major impact of Vedic culture on India.

9. (b) The Vedic deities Agni is not mentioned in

the Boghazkoi inscription. Four Vedic deities, i.e.

Indra, Mitra, Varuna and Nasatya were mentioned

in Boghazkoi inscription.

10. (d) Varuna, the Vedic god was the custodian of

the moral and cosmic order. He was also concerned

with societal affairs other than being a deification

of nature.

11. (a) The river Chenab was known in the Vedic

period as Chandrabhaga also Ashkini or Iskmati

and as Acesines to the Ancient Greeks.

12. (c) The Sabha is called Narishta which meant

a ‘resolution of many’ that cannot be broken. It

performed the executive functions. In the later

Vedic period it lost its importance due to the rise

of royal power.

13. (b) Vedanga does not come under Shruti

literature. It comes from post-Vedic literature.

The Vedanga (limbs of the Veda) are six auxiliary

disciplines traditionally associated with the study

and understanding of the Vedas. They are Shiksha,

Kalpa, Vyakarana, Nirukta, Chandas and Jyotisha.

14. (b) The river Jhelum is called Vitasta in the

Rigveda. The Vitasta is mentioned as one of the

major rivers by the holy scriptures of the Indo-

Aryans — the Rigveda. It has been speculated

that the Vitasta must have been one of the seven

rivers (Sapta Sindhu) mentioned so many times in

the Rigveda.

15. (c) The Gopatha Brahmana is the only

Brahmana, a genre of the prose texts describing

the Vedic rituals, associated with the Atharvaveda.

16. (a) Battle of ten kings is the story of the

campaign and the decisive battle connected with

sages Vishwamitra and Vashistha. Vishwamitra

organized a confederacy against Sudas of all those

who had enmity with Sudas.

17. (c) Dasarajana was the battle of ten kings. The

name of confederate kings involved in this war

is actually slightly over ten, but was referred to

roughly as ‘dasha’ in the Rigveda. They were

Puru, Yadu, Turvasa, Anu, Druhyu, Alina, Paktha,

Bhalanas, Shiva, Vishanin, Simyu, Vaikrna and

others.

18. (d) In the tenth book (Tenth Mandala) of Rig-

veda, 129th hymn (Suktam) deals with the origin

of the universe and creation.

19. (c) The famous Battle of ten kings between

Bharat and the host of ten kings was fought near

the river of Parushi. In the most important tribal

war, the king of Bharata, Sudas was victorious.

21. (d) Atharvaveda concerned with the origin of

Indian medicine. It also consists mainly of magical

spells and charms.

22. (c) The Upanishads form the core of Indian

philosophy. They give us both spiritual vision

and philosophical argument and it is by a strictly

personal effort that one can reach the truth.

23. (c) Artha, Dharma and Kama are a part of

Trivarga. But Moksh is not a part of Trivarga, it is

a part of Chaturvarga.

24. (a) The Arctic Home in the Vedas is a book

written at the end of 1898 on the origin of Aryans

by Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak. It propounded

the theory that the North Pole was the original

home of Aryans during pre-glacial period which

they had to leave due to the ice deluge around

8000 BC and had to migrate to the Northern parts

of Europe and Asia. In support to his theory, Tilak

has presented certain Vedic hymns, and Vedic

calendars with interpretations of the contents in

detail.

25. (a) Maximum number of Shlokas in Rigveda are

written in the memory of Indra. Indra was the most

popular God in Vedic period.

26. (c) The term ‘Jana’ occurs 275 times in the

Rigveda. But Janapada is not mentioned. The term

Rajya occurs only once.

27. (b) Sabha and Samiti were the two popular

assemblies existed in Vedic period. The most

important work of the Samiti was to elect the king.

28. (a) The ancient Sage Patanjali was an expounder

of the Yoga Sutras one of the most important text

of yoga covering all aspects of life. Patanjali’s

Yoga Sutras describe the working of the mind and

emotions.

29. (a) The Gotra classification came into existence

probably during the Rigvedic period. The concept

of Gotra was first attempted among Brahmins to

classify themselves among different groups. In

present days, marriage is not allowed within the

same Gotra in order to avoid impure matrimony.

This thinking is in tune with the modern day

genetic paradigms of hybrid vigour.

30. (a) The word Visamatta was used in the

latter Vedic age for the king. In the Shatapatha

Brahmana, the king is described as devourer of

the people.

31. (c) The word Aghanya is referred to as the cow in

many mantras of Vedas. The meaning of this word

means, “not to be killed under any circumstances”.

32. (d) The Samhita of Yajurveda that contains only

hymns and no prose is Vayasaneyi.

33. (c) Dicing seems to have a special significance

when connected with myths and rituals. Dicing

involves uncertainty, chance, the vagaries of

fortune. The dice game is representative of the

challenges that a king must endure during his

reign. The game of dice is a part of the rituals of

Rajasuya Yagya.

34. (a) The rivers Ganga and Yamuna are first time

mentioned in the Rigveda. Vedic literature hymn

that starts with the rivers as Ganga, Yamuna,

Saraswati and then other rivers to the West.

35. (d) The Gayatri Mantra is a highly revered

mantra, based on a Vedic Sanskrit verse from

a hymn of the Rigveda. The Gayatri mantra is

dedicated to Savitr, is hence called Savitri. It is

considered to be among the holiest mantras of

Hinduism.

36. (a) Lopamudra was a Brahmavadini who

composed some hymns of the Vedas. Many hymns

of Rigveda were composed by women and they

were called Brahmavadini. The prominents in them

were Lopamudra, Vishwawara, Sikta, Nivavari,

Ghosa, etc.

37. (a) Rigvedic hymns mention several rivers. In

the text Sindhu (or Indus), Saraswati (now lost),

the Gomati (modern Gomal), the Krumu (modern

Kurram) and the Kubha (modern Kabul) are

mentioned. The most important river seems to be

the Sindhu and its tributaries–Shutudri (Sutluj),

Vipas (Beas), Parushni (Ravi), Asikni (Chenab)

and Vitasta (Jhelum).

38. (c) The famous dialogue between Nachiketa and

Yama about transmigration of soul is mentioned

in the Kathopanishad.

Question Answer Set - 5 for RAIL/GROUP D/WBCS/WBPSC/WBP

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