1.Define a votive inscription.
(Chapter 2 : Kings, Farmers and Towns - Early States and Economies)

Ans:Votive inscriptions are inscription that record gifts made to religious institutions. They have details like name of the donor , its occupation and also about people who lived in towns: washing folk, weavers, scribes, carpenters, potters, goldsmiths, blacksmiths, officials, religious teachers, merchants and kings.

2.The special officers appointed to spread the message of Dhamma by Asoka were known as __________________.
(Chapter 2: Kings, Farmers and Towns - Early States and Economies)

Ans: dhamma mahamatta

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3.What were the duties of the samantas in the Gupta empire ?
(Chapter 2: Kings, Farmers and Towns - Early States and Economies)

Ans: Samantas are men who maintained themselves through local resources including control over land.They offered homage and provided military support to rulers

4.Why did Magadha emerge as a powerful Mahajanapada in the 6th Century?
(Chapter 2: Kings, Farmers and Towns - Early States and Economies)

Ans:
Between the sixth and the fourth centuries BCE, Magadha (in present-day Bihar) became the most powerful mahajanapada because:

• Magadha was a region where agriculture was especially productive.
• Iron mines were accessible and provided resources for tools and weapons. Elephants, an important component of the army, were found in forests in that region.
• The Ganga and its tributaries provided a means of cheap and convenient communication.

5.How did Kushana rulers exemplify themselves with the high status ?
(Chapter 2 : Kings, Farmers and Towns : Early States and Economies)

Ans:
The high status is mostly exemplified with variety of deities and the best example is Kushanas.

• Colossal statues of Kushana rulers have been found installed in a shrine at Mat near Mathura (Uttar Pradesh) and also in a shrine in Afghanistan as well.
• Some historians feel indicates that the Kushanas considered themselves godlike.
• Many Kushana rulers also adopted the title devaputra, or "son of god", possibly inspired by Chinese rulers who called themselves sons of heaven.

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6.Explain the different coins in circulation in the sixth century BCE.
(Chapter 2: Kings, Farmers and Towns - Early States and Economies)

Ans:

• In the sixth century BCE exchanges were facilitated by the introduction of coinage.
• Punch-marked coins made of silver and copper were amongst the earliest to be minted and used.
• The first coins to bear the names and images of rulers were issued by the Indo-Greeks, who established control over the north-western part of the subcontinent c. second century BCE.
• The first gold coins were issued c. first century CE by the Kushanas.
• Hoards of Roman coins have been found from archaeological sites in south India.
• Coins were also issued by tribal republics such as that of the Yaudheyas of Punjab and Haryana.
• Archaeologists have unearthed several thousand copper coins issued by the Yaudheyas, pointing to the latter’s interest and participation in economic exchanges.
• Some of the most spectacular gold coins were issued by the Gupta rulers.

7.Eventhough the inscriptions are a major source to reconstruct the history of ancient India, they have certain limitations. What are they? (Chapter 2: Kings, Farmers and Towns - Early States and Economies)

• Technical limitations: letters are very faintly engraved, and thus reconstructions are uncertain.
• Inscriptions may be damaged or letters missing.
• It is not always easy to be sure about the exact meaning of the words used in inscriptions, some of which may be specific to a particular place or time.
• The content of inscriptions almost invariably projects the perspective of the person(s) who commissioned them.

8.Who was James Prinsep and how has he contributed to the historic development in the Indian epigraphy?

Ans: James Prinsep, was an officer in the mint of the East India Company.
His discovery has given new direction to the historic development of Indian epigraphy because

• He deciphered Brahmi and Kharosthi, two scripts used in the earliest inscriptions and coins.
• He found there were a few inscriptions which also referred to the king as Asoka, one of the most famous rulers known from Buddhist texts.
• This gave a new direction to investigations into early Indian political history as European and Indian scholars used inscriptions and texts composed in a variety of languages to reconstruct the lineages of major dynasties that had ruled the subcontinent.
• Scholars began to shift their focus to the context of political history, investigating whether there were connections between political changes and economic and social developments.

9.Write a short note on mahajanapadas.

Ans:

• Buddhist and Jaina texts has a mention of sixteen states known as mahajanapadas.
• Some important mahajanapadas are Vajji, Magadha, Koshala, Kuru, Panchala, Gandhara and Avanti.
• While most mahajanapadas were ruled by kings, some, known as ganas or sanghas, were oligarchies where power was shared by a number of men, often collectively called rajas.
• Each mahajanapada had a capital city, which was often fortified.

10.Define Oligarchy.

Ans: Oligarchy refers to a form of government where power is exercised by a group of men.

11.What is dhamma?

Ans: Asoka was the first ruler who inscribed his messages to his subjects and officials on stone surfaces – natural rocks as well as polished pillars. He used the inscriptions to proclaim what he understood to be dhamma.

12.Name the five major political centres mentioned in Asokan inscriptions.

Ans: The capital Pataliputra and the provincial centres of Taxila, Ujjayini, Tosali and Suvarnagiri.

13.Name the Greek ambassador to the court of Chandragupta Maurya.

Ans:Megasthenes

14.Explain the role played by committee for doing military activity as per Megasthenes.

Ans: Megasthenes mentions a committee with six subcommittees for coordinating military activity. Of these, one looked after the navy, the second managed transport and provisions, the third was responsible for foot-soldiers, the fourth for horses, the fifth for chariots and the sixth for elephants. The activities of the second subcommittee were rather varied: arranging for bullock carts to carry equipment, procuring food for soldiers and fodder for animals, and recruiting servants and artisans to look after the soldiers.

15.Who was Gahapati?

Ans: Megasthenes mentions a committee with six subcommittees for coordinating military activity. Of these, one looked after the navy, the second managed transport and provisions, the third was responsible for foot-soldiers, the fourth for horses, the fifth for chariots and the sixth for elephants. The activities of the second subcommittee were rather varied: arranging for bullock carts to carry equipment, procuring food for soldiers and fodder for animals, and recruiting servants and artisans to look after the soldiers.

16.Explain the methods used to increase agriculture production after the 6th century BCE.

Ans:

• The plough was shifted to the alluvial fertile valleys like Ganga and Kaveri.
• The iron-tipped ploughshare was used to turn the alluvial soil in areas which had high rainfall that helped to increase agriculture production.
• The start of transplantation for paddy crop increased the production in some parts of the Ganga valley.
• The use of irrigation, through wells and tanks, and less commonly, canals also helped in agriculture.

17.Mention any two features of the administrative system of the Mauryan Empire.

Ans:
The important features of the administrative system of the Mauryan Empire were :

• There were five major political centres in the empire – the capital Pataliputra followed by Taxila, Ujjayini, Tosali and Suvarnagiri.
• The administrative control was strongest in areas around the capital and the provincial centres. These centres were carefully chosen, both Taxila and Ujjayini being situated on important long-distance trade routes, while Suvarnagiri was possibly important for tapping the gold mines of Karnataka.

18.Explain briefly the notions of kingship during Kushanas and Gupta empire.

Ans:
Kushanas ruled over a vast kingdom extending from Central Asia to northwest India in the first first century BCE - first century CE.

• Their history has been reconstructed from inscriptions and textual traditions. The notions of kingship they wished to project are perhaps best evidenced in their coins and sculpture. Colossal statues of Kushana rulers have been found installed in a shrine at Mat near Mathura and Afghanistan.
• Some historians feel that the Kushanas considered themselves godlike. Many Kushana rulers also adopted the title devaputra, or "son of god", possibly inspired by Chinese rulers who called themselves sons of heaven.

• Histories of the Gupta rulers have been reconstructed from literature, coins and inscriptions, including prashastis, composed in praise of kings in particular, and patrons in general.
• The Prayaga Prashasti composed in Sanskrit by Harishena, the court poet of Samudragupta, arguably the most powerful book of the Gupta rulers in the fourth century.

19.Mention any two ways in which the inscriptions of land grants help us to understand rural society in ancient times.

Ans:

• The records that are present generally show land grants to religious institutions or to Brahmanas.
• There were regional variations in the sizes of land donated – ranging from small plots to vast stretches of uncultivated land – and the rights given to donees.
• Some feel that land grants were part of a strategy adopted by ruling lineages to extend agriculture to new areas. Others suggest that land grants were indicative of weakening political power: as kings were losing control over their samantas, they tried to win allies by making grants of land.

20.What is Numismatics?

Ans:
Numismatics is the study of coins, including visual elements such as scripts and images, metallurgical analysis and the contexts in which they have been found.

21.Explain the system of land grants and trade from 600 BCE to 600 CE.

Ans:
System of Land Grants:

• From the early centuries of the Common Era, we find grants of land being made, many of which were recorded in inscriptions. Some of these inscriptions were on stone, but most were on copper plates which were probably given as a record of the transaction to those who received the land.
• The records that are present generally show land grants to religious institutions or to Brahmanas. Most inscriptions were in Sanskrit.
• According to Sanskrit legal texts, women were not supposed to have independent access to resources such as land.But there was an exceptional case of Queen Prabhavati daughter of Chandragupta II who had access to land.
• As per the inscription, the peasants had to obey the new lord of the village, and perhaps pay him taxes.
• The impact of land grants is a subject of heated debate among historians. Some feel that land grants were part of a strategy adopted by ruling lineages to extend agriculture to new areas.
• Some suggest that land grants were indicative of weakening political power: as kings were losing control over their samantas, they tried to win allies by making grants of land.
• Land grants provide some insight into the relationship between cultivators and the state.

• From the sixth century BCE, land and river routes criss-crossed the subcontinent and extended in various directions.
• Rulers often attempted to control these routes, possibly by offering protection for a price.
• Those who traversed these routes included peddlers who probably travelled on foot and merchants who travelled with caravans of bullock carts and pack-animals.
• There were seafarers, whose ventures were risky but highly profitable.
• Successful merchants, designated as masattuvan in Tamil and setthis and satthavahas in Prakrit, could become enormously rich.
• A wide range of goods were carried from one place to another – salt, grain, cloth, metal ores and finished products, stone, timber, medicinal plants, to name a few.
• Spices, especially pepper, were in high demand in the Roman Empire, as were textiles and medicinal plants, and these were all transported across the Arabian Sea to the Mediterranean.

22.Explain the limitations of Inscriptional Evidence.

Ans:
The limitations of Inscriptional evidence are as follows:

• There are technical limitations for example letters are very faintly engraved, and thus reconstructions are uncertain.
• The inscriptions may be damaged or letters missing.
• Besides, it is not always easy to be sure about the exact meaning of the words used in inscriptions, some of which may be specific to a particular place or time.
• Several thousand inscriptions have been discovered, not all have been deciphered, published and translated.
• There is another, perhaps more fundamental, problem: not everything that we may consider politically or economically significant was necessarily recorded in inscriptions.
• For instance, routine agricultural practices and the joys and sorrows of daily existence find no mention in inscriptions, which focus, more often than not, on grand, unique events.

23.What does Ashokan Inscriptions tell about the Mauryas?

Ans:

• Asoka was the first ruler who inscribed his messages to his subjects and officials on stone surfaces – natural rocks as well as polished pillars.
• The name of the ruler, Asoka, is not mentioned in the inscription; instead are titles adopted by the ruler – devanampiya, often translated as "beloved of the gods" and piyadassi, or "pleasant to behold". The name Asoka is mentioned in some other inscriptions, which also contain these titles.
• He used the inscriptions to proclaim what he understood to be dhamma.This included respect towards elders, generosity towards Brahmanas and those who renounced worldly life, treating slaves and servants kindly, and respect for religions and traditions other than one's own.
• Asoka also tried to hold his empire together by propagating dhamma, the principles of which, as we have seen, were simple and virtually universally applicable. This, according to him, would ensure the well-being of people in this world and the next.