Chapter 4 What Books and Burials Tell Us

Let’s recall

Question 1 Match the columns

Sukta	Stone boulder
Chariots	Sacrifice
Yajna	Well-said
Dasa	Used in battles
Megalith	Slave

Answer 1

Sukta	Well-said
Chariots	Used in battles
Yajna	Sacrifice
Dasa	Slave
Megalith	Stone boulder

Question 2 Complete the sentences:

(a) Slaves were used for __________

(b) Megaliths are found in __________

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

(d) Port-holes were used for __________

(e) People at Inamgaon ate __________

Answer 2 

(a) Slaves were used for work

(b) Megaliths are found in South India, north-east and Kashmir

(c) Stone circles or boulders on the surface were used to indicate the exact place of burial

(d) Port-holes were used for burying the other member of the same family at the same place

(e) People at Inamgaon ate wheat, barley, rice, pulses, millets, peas, sesame, etc.

Let’s discuss

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

Answer 3  Now a days  the books we read are written and printed. The Rigveda was recited , heard and memorized by the students rather than read.

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

Answer 4 Archaeologists find a circle of stone boulders or a single large stone standing on the ground. These are the only indications that there are burials beneath. All these burials have some common features. Generally, the dead were buried with distinctive pots, which are called Black and Red Ware. Also found are tools and weapons of iron and sometimes, skeleton of horses, horse equipment and ornaments of stone and gold. They found that in some burials the skeletons found were buried with lots of pots and some with less pots. They concluded that people were buried according to the status.

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

Answer 5  In the society, ‘raja’ was one of the highest civil positions. Rajas’ were the kings of the community, whereas the ‘dasas’/’dasis’ were the lowest position in society. The ‘dasas’/’dasis’ were slaves who were used for work. They were treated as the property of their owners. They were captured in war and made slaves.

Let’s do

Question 6 Find out whether your school library has a collection of books on religion, and list the names of five books from this collection.

Answer 6 The Mahabharata , The Ramayana , The Bible , The Bhagavad Gita and The Quran are the collection of books on religion in our school library.