Class 12 History - Chapter / Theme 4 : Thinkers, Beliefs and Buildings

Class 12 History - Chapter / Theme 4 : Thinkers, Beliefs and Buildings - Cultural Developments

1.Jain teachers were called __________.
a) Tirthankaras
b) Bhikkhus
c) Brahmanas
(Chapter 4 :Thinkers, Beliefs and Buildings - Cultural Developments)

Ans: a) Tirthankaras

2.Distinguish between Mahayana Buddhism and Hinayana Buddhism.
(Chapter 4: Thinkers, Beliefs and Buildings - Cultural Developments)

Ans:

Mahayana Buddhism	Hinayana Buddhism
This new way of thinking was called Mahayana – literally, the "great vehicle".	The older tradition is called as Hinayana or the "lesser vehicle"
The first century CE, there is evidence of changes in Buddhist ideas and practices called Mahayana.	Hinayana was the traditional form of Buddhism.

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3.The stupas are considered to be an emblem of Buddha and Buddhism Why?
(Chapter 4 : Thinkers, Beliefs and Buildings - Cultural Developments)

Ans:

The stupas contained relics regarded as sacred, and hence were considered to be an emblem of Buddha and Buddhism.
According to a Buddhist text known as the Ashokavadana, Asoka distributed portions of the Buddha's relics to every important town and ordered the construction of stupas over them.
By the second century BCE a number of stupas, including those at Bharhut, Sanchi and Sarnath, had been built.

4.Explain the principles of Buddhism (any three).
(Chapter 4 : Thinkers, Beliefs and Buildings - Cultural Developments)

Ans:
As per Buddhism:

the world is transient (anicca) and constantly changing;
it is also soulless (anatta) as there is nothing permanent or eternal in it.
Within this transient world, sorrow (dukkha) is intrinsic to human existence.
The Buddha regarded the social world as the creation of humans rather than of divine origin. Therefore, he advised kings and gahapatis to be humane and ethical.