RBSE IMPORTANT POINTS AND QUESTIONS - 1

Chapter No. 1

Ancient Civilisations of the World

Important Points

Harappan Civilisation

1. Civilisations developed in the middle of Indus(Sindhu) and its tributaries and Saraswati river is known as Indus- Saraswati Civilisation. Saraswati River originates from the Himalayas, and enters in Nohar in Rajasthan. From here it flows to Bikaner and Jaisalmer, and enters the Rann of Kutch in Gujarat and finally merges in the Arabian Sea near Prabhas-Patan. Saraswati River, at present, is not in existence. According to Vedic Epic Hindu literature like Ramayana and Mahabharata, there is clear evidence which reveals the presence of the river. During Mahabharata war, Krishna's brother Balram had visited many pilgrimages which were located near the banks of the Saraswati River.

2. It is believed that this Sindhu-Saraswati Civilization was born a long time back, and by 3250 B.C. The main sites of Indus-Saraswati civilization Harappa, Mohenjo-Daro and Bhawalpur are now in Pakistan. Whereas Kalibangan (Rajasthan), Rakhigarhi, Dholavira, Rangpur, Lothal are in India.

3. In the year 1921, Rai Bahadur Daya Ram Sahni, an archaeologist, excavated the Harappa town. Another archaeologist Rakhaldas Banerjee, in the year 1922, discovered Mohenjo-daro. Indus-Saraswati civilization was famous for its town planning

4. Mahenjo-Daro means "The Mound of Dead"

Vedic Civilisation

5. Vedas, Brahmins, Upanishads, Aranyakas are the major Vedic Literature. There are four Vedas: The Rigveda, the Yajurveda, the Samaveda and the Atharvaveda.

6. In Vedic society the caste (Varna) system was based on Karma

7. Hundred was the maximum age, and for this, the ideal of four Ashramas developed for people- Brahmacharya, Grihastha, Vanaprastha and Sanyasa. Sixteen rituals were done during the Vedic period, so that an individual's character could be enhanced. Some of the important among these were-Pushvan, Anna Prashan, Mundan, Namkaran, Vidhyarajan, Vivah, etc. Cows were held with great respect, they were symbols of wealth and prosperity of the Aryans.

MESOPOTAMIAN CIVILIZATION

8. Mesopotamia (Iraq) is a Greek word, which means 'the land between two rivers'(Euphrates, and Tigris). The civilization of Sumerians, Babylonia and Assyrians is together known as the Mesopotamia Civilization. Ur was one of the largest cities in Mesopotamia.

9. The Temples of Mesopotamia are known as 'Ziggurat'. Hammurabi the king of Babylon established firm laws for his people of his kingdom, and this is one of the ancient law codes.

EGYPTIAN CIVILIZATION

10. The Egyptian civilization was developed in Nile river valley. In Egyptian civilization pyramid of Giza is the best artwork from the ancient architectural point of view. The Pharaoh was the ruler of ancient Egypt.

CHINESE CIVILIZATION

11. The ancient civilization of China developed around Huang He (Yellow river) and Yangtze river valleys.

12. The Great Wall of China is the best model of ancient architecture.

GREEK CIVILIZATION

13. Greece was the first country in Europe to develop. Socrates, Plato and Aristotle were famous philosophers of Greece. Sparta and Athens were the two most important city-states. Sparta was ruled by Military power, whereas Athens was a Democratic.

ANCIENT CIVILIZATION OF RAJASTHAN

14. From Kalibangan (Hanumangarh district)evidences of pre-Harappa and post-Harappa period are found. Presently, river Ghaggar flows in this area, which was known as Saraswati during the ancient period.

15. Ahar : This a small town in the Udaipur district of south-eastern Rajasthan in the Banas Valley and is a major center for Bronze culture.  Dhulkot was the central place of Ahar Civilisation, so this civilization was majorly known as Dhulkot. This culture was developed in the valley of Berach Banas

16. Balathal civilization is situated in Vallabhnagar tehsil of Udaipur district

17. In the foothills of Mount Abu in Sirohi district near Abu-road, Chandravati civilization is located

OBJECTIVE QUESTION :

1.       Which of the Archaeological site of the Indus Valley civilization is in Pakistan?

          (a) Harappa (b) Rangpur (c) Kalibanga (d) Dholavira

2.       Which of the texts gives the knowledge of the Vedic Civilization?

          (a) Vedas (b) Upanishads (c) Aranyakas (d) all of the above

3.       Egypt civilization is situated in which river:

          (a) Nile (b) Indus (c) Hwang Ho (d) Dajla and Farat

4.       Who was the author of the best epics of the world-Odyssey and Iliad?

          (a) Herodotus (b) Thucydides (c*) Homar (d) Phythogoras

5.       Ploughed fields remains are been found from which place:

          (a) Kalibanga (b) Ahar (c) Chadravati (d) Mohenjo-daro

6.       Dhulakot and Bronze place is the name of which civilization:

          (a) Bhalathal (b) Chandravati (c) Ahar (d) Indus

Chapter No. 2

The World's Leading Philosophy

Important Points

1. Vedic philosophy, Jain Philosophy, Buddhist philosophy, Islamic philosophy, Christian Philosophy and Persian philosophy are the leading life philosophies of the world

2. Vedic philosophy: is based on Vedas. There are four Vedas - the Rigveda, the Yajurveda, the Samveda and the Atharvaveda. Rigveda is considered to be the most ancient out of these and the world's first book. Vedic religion believes in the theory of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam.

3. Jain Philosophy :Tirthankaras have played an important role in the development of Jain philosophy. The first Tirthankara of Jain religion was Rishabhdev, twenty-third Tirthankara was Parshvanath and twenty-forth Tirthankara was Mahavira Swami(Vardhaman). Five main Mahavratas of Jain Dharma are - Ahimsa, Satya, Asteya(not to steal), Brahmacharya and Aparigraha(not to collect wealth). The word 'Jain' is formed out of 'Jin'. Its literary meaning is 'winner'.

4. Buddha Philosophy: Mahatma Buddha(Siddhartha) was born in 563 BC in Kapilvastu republic in northern Bihar in a Shakya family in Kshatriya clan. There are four Noble Truths of Buddhist Philosophy - suffering, cause of suffering, removal of suffering and Eightfold path for suffering removal.

5. Hazrat Muhammad Saheb was founder of Islamic philosophy. His important teachings are found in Quran. When Hazrat Muhammad had to leave Mecca and go to Madina. This important incident is known as Hijrat in Islam.

6. Jesus Christ was the founder of Christian religion. His sermons are compiled in the sacred text of Christians 'Bible'.

7. Zoroaster was the founder of Persian religion. The sacred text of this religion is the Avesta

8. According to the philosophical thoughts established by Zoroaster, the body is mortal and the soul is immortal. By following truthfulness or falsehood, a person attains heaven or hell according to his actions.

Important Questions

1. When was Mahavir Swami born ?

Ans. Mahavira was born into a royal family in Kundgram near Vaishali (Bihar) in 599 BC

2. Where did Mahatma Buddha deliver his first sermon ?

Ans. At Sarnath near Benaras

3. When did Hijri Samvat begin ?

Ans. 622 B.C.

5. How many Purasharthas are there ? Write their names

Ans. Four - Dharma, Artha, Kama and Moksha

6. Where is Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam described ?

Ans. Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam is described in Vedic philosophy

7. What was the childhood name of Mahatma Buddha?

Ans. Gautama or Siddhartha

8. What is the cause of sufferings according to Mahatma Buddha?

Ans. Desire is the cause of sufferings

9. How many sects is the Buddha religion divided into?

Ans. Two (Hinayana & Mahayana)

10. What is the incident of migration of Muhammad Sahab from Mecca to Madina called ?

Ans. Hijra

11. Who were the most important disciples of Jesus Christ ?

Ans. Saint Paul and Peter propagated his doctrines to far-off places

12. What are the followers of ancient principles of Bible called ?

Ans. Catholics are the followers of ancient principles of Bible

13. Who was the founder of Persian religion ?

Ans. Zarathushtra Spitama or Zoroaster, was the founder of Zoroastrianism

14. Who is considered as the symbol of supreme God in the Persian religion ?

Ans. Ahura Mazda is described as the highest spirit of worship in Zoroastrianism

Chapter No. 3

Ancient India and the World

1. India was known as the 'Golden Bird' in ancient time.

2. The part of Asia where Indian civilization was spread from ancient period to 10th century is known as Greater India.

3. Greater India was spread towards Central Asia, north-eastern and south-eastern part of Asia.

4. In Greater India Hindu temples and Buddhist stupas were found almost everywhere.

5. In ancient India pearl, precious stones, clothes, spices, medicines, etc. were the main items that were exported to foreign countries.

6. In ancient time, the trade unions were called Shreni, Shreshthi or Gan.

7. The architectural monuments found in India are of four types - pillars, stupas or mounds, buildings and cave temples.

8. The statue made on the Sarnath Pillars of Ashoka is an excellent example of Indian sculpture.

Among the stupas, the Sanchi stupa near Bhopal in middle India is the most famous.

9. During ancient period Taxila, Nalanda University and Ujjain, Benaras, Rajgir and Patliputra were the main centres of higher education. The world's first university was established in Takshshila in 700 BC. Second university was established in Nalanda in 400 BC. To obtain education of knowledge, Megasthenes, Huin Tsang, Fa Hein, etc. foreign scholars visited India.

10. In ancient India three languages were popular - Sanskrit, Prakrit and Pali language. Mudrarakshasa of Vishakhadatta, Arthashastra of Kautilya are the excellent works in Sanskrit literature.

11. The greatest contribution of India in mathematics is the invention of zero, which was invented in the 5th century by Aryabhatta. Aryabhatta also obtained the knowledge of the famous determinant 'pie' up to four places of decimals in ratio to the circle's circumference and diameter. Aryabhatta also explained the concept of solar eclipse and lunar eclipse by finding out about various planets and constellations. Bhaskaracharya presented the rule that if a negative number is divided by zero, the result is infinity.

12. Dhanvantari is regarded as the Father of Ayurveda. Sushruta is considered as the first surgical doctor(plastic surgeon) of Ayurvcda. Charak also has a significant place in the field of medicinal science.

Questions-

1. Which country was called the Golden bird in ancient time?

Ans. India

2. What is Nishk?

Ans. Golden coin

3. Kamara Sambhavam and Raghuvansham is written by-

Ans. Kalidas

4. Where is the stone pillar situated which is erected on the plain earth?

Ans. Sarnath

5. Lilavati and Siddhanta-Siromani text is written by :

Ans. Bhaskaracharya

6. Where is Angkorwat situated?

Ans. Cambodia

7. What is the ancient name of Vietnam?

Ans. Champa

8. Where is Iron pillar situated?

Ans. 1600 years old iron pillar of Delhi

9. Who had calculated the value of 'pie'?

Ans. Aryabhatt

10. Who had introduced the Pythagoras theorem?

Ans. By a scholar named Baudhayana, 2700 years ago.

19. What was the ancient name of Thailand?

Ans. Siam