CHAPTER 8: CULTURAL CURRENTS: 13TH TO 17TH CENTURIES
Q1. What does culture include?
A. Only religious practices
B. Only language and literature
C. Values, customs, traditions, art, music, literature, philosophy and science
D. Only food and clothing
Answer: C. Values, customs, traditions, art, music, literature, philosophy and science
Q2. Why has Indian culture remained resilient over centuries?
A. Because it avoided all contact with other cultures
B. Because of its deep roots, timeless values and rich philosophical and artistic traditions
C. Because political instability never affected India
D. Because it depended only on foreign rulers
Answer: B. Because of its deep roots, timeless values and rich philosophical and artistic traditions
Q3. Which regions did many visitors to India come from, bringing their cultural traditions?
A. Only Europe
B. Only Africa
C. Only East Asia
D. Greece, Persia, Central Asia, East Asia and beyond
Answer: D. Greece, Persia, Central Asia, East Asia and beyond
Q4. Which period does this chapter mainly examine?
A. The 13th to 17th centuries
B. The 5th to 8th centuries
C. The 18th to 20th centuries
D. The 1st to 4th centuries
Answer: A. The 13th to 17th centuries
Q5. Which was a common pattern of cultural development during this period?
A. The complete disappearance of traditional practices
B. The end of artistic patronage
C. The continuation of traditional practices alongside new influences
D. The exclusion of ordinary people from cultural activities
Answer: C. The continuation of traditional practices alongside new influences
Q6. Which foreign cultural influences became visible in several aspects of local Indian culture during this period?
A. Only Chinese and Japanese influences
B. Persian and Arabic influences
C. Only Greek influences
D. Only Roman influences
Answer: B. Persian and Arabic influences
Q7. What is the central idea behind the chapter’s discussion of Indian cultural history?
A. Indian culture remained completely unchanged.
B. Indian culture developed only through royal orders.
C. Indian traditions disappeared during political instability.
D. Indian culture continued to evolve by retaining traditions and adapting new influences.
Answer: D. Indian culture continued to evolve by retaining traditions and adapting new influences.
Q8. What does the chapter describe as one of the important paths to moksha?
A. Bhakti, or the path of devotion
B. Military conquest
C. Wealth accumulation
D. Political administration
Answer: A. Bhakti, or the path of devotion
Q9. What is meant by bhakti marga?
A. The path of trade
B. The path of royal service
C. The path of devotion
D. The path of military training
Answer: C. The path of devotion
Q10. According to the chapter, what was a distinctive feature of the bhakti tradition?
A. It required every devotee to become a priest.
B. It did not require rituals or priests as a necessary path to devotion.
C. It allowed only rulers to participate.
D. It discouraged the use of local languages.
Answer: B. It did not require rituals or priests as a necessary path to devotion.
Q11. In which century had the bhakti tradition crystallised, according to the chapter?
A. 1st century
B. 3rd century
C. 10th century
D. 6th century
Answer: D. 6th century
Q12. Which themes were commonly expressed in bhakti songs and verses during this period?
A. Love, compassion and equality
B. Warfare and military expansion only
C. Trade and taxation only
D. Court ceremonies and royal titles only
Answer: A. Love, compassion and equality
Q13. Who was Kabirdas, popularly known as Kabir?
A. A Mughal emperor
B. A Persian painter
C. A 15th-century poet whose compositions spoke of one God and criticised rituals of both Hinduism and Islam
D. A ruler of the Vijayanagara Empire
Answer: C. A 15th-century poet whose compositions spoke of one God and criticised rituals of both Hinduism and Islam
Q14. What was the main message of Ravidas’s poetry?
A. The superiority of wealthy communities
B. Equality and oneness among people
C. The importance of military conquest
D. The need to separate communities
Answer: B. Equality and oneness among people
Q15. Which saint spread the message of one God and the equality of all people through journeys across regions?
A. Tansen
B. Abul Fazl
C. Raja Mansingh Tomar
D. Guru Nanak
Answer: D. Guru Nanak
Q16. Where are the teachings of Guru Nanak and hymns of several Hindu saints preserved?
A. Guru Granth Sahib
B. Ain-i-Akbari
C. Razmnama
D. Jahangir-nama
Answer: A. Guru Granth Sahib
Q17. Which of the following saints is associated with Rajasthan?
A. Kanakadasa
B. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu
C. Mirabai
D. Purandaradasa
Answer: C. Mirabai
Q18. Which saint is associated with the eastern regions of India in the chapter?
A. Ravidas
B. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu
C. Tukaram
D. Namdev
Answer: B. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu
Q19. Which group consists of saints associated with the western regions of India?
A. Kabir and Ravidas
B. Purandaradasa and Kanakadasa
C. Mirabai and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu
D. Tukaram, Dnyaneshwar and Namdev
Answer: D. Tukaram, Dnyaneshwar and Namdev
Q20. What role did bhajans play in society?
A. They brought people together through devotion, music and dance.
B. They were used only for military training.
C. They were performed only in royal courts.
D. They discouraged participation by ordinary people.
Answer: A. They brought people together through devotion, music and dance.
Q21. What does Sufism focus on?
A. Political administration and warfare
B. The accumulation of wealth
C. Devotion and an inner, personal search for God
D. The rejection of all forms of spiritual practice
Answer: C. Devotion and an inner, personal search for God
Q22. What are qawwalis?
A. Persian miniature paintings
B. Devotional songs associated with Sufi traditions
C. Types of royal gardens
D. Traditional weaving techniques
Answer: B. Devotional songs associated with Sufi traditions
Q23. Which two Sufi saints encouraged music as a way of connecting with God?
A. Kabir and Ravidas
B. Tukaram and Namdev
C. Tansen and Purandaradasa
D. Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti and Nizamuddin Auliya
Answer: D. Khwaja Moinuddin Chishti and Nizamuddin Auliya
Q24. What does the term zikr mean?
A. Remembrance of God through repeated chanting or silent recitation
B. A form of miniature painting
C. A system of land taxation
D. A type of traditional textile
Answer: A. Remembrance of God through repeated chanting or silent recitation
Q25. Which historical figure supported the idea that Vedanta and Sufism converged on universal truth?
A. Akbar
B. Tansen
C. Dara Shikoh
D. Raja Mansingh Tomar
Answer: C. Dara Shikoh
Q26. Who is described in the chapter as the father of Carnatic music?
A. Amir Khusro
B. Purandaradasa
C. Tansen
D. Guru Nanak
Answer: B. Purandaradasa
Q27. Which devotional compositions are associated with Purandaradasa?
A. Qawwalis
B. Persian court chronicles
C. Miniature paintings
D. Kirtanas
Answer: D. Kirtanas
Q28. Which devotional hymns were associated with the Alvars and Nayanars of Tamil Nadu?
A. Divya Prabandham and Tiruvachakam
B. Guru Granth Sahib and Razmnama
C. Ain-i-Akbari and Jahangir-nama
D. Ramcharitmanas and Arthashastra
Answer: A. Divya Prabandham and Tiruvachakam
Q29. Which text formalised Indian traditions by bringing together dance, drama, music, science, mathematics, aesthetics and mythology?
A. Ain-i-Akbari
B. Guru Granth Sahib
C. Natyashastra
D. Jahangir-nama
Answer: C. Natyashastra
Q30. What is pattachitra?
A. A form of Sufi meditation
B. A storytelling tradition involving paintings on cloth
C. A type of Mughal garden
D. A system of apprenticeship
Answer: B. A storytelling tradition involving paintings on cloth
Q31. Into which two related streams did Indian classical music develop?
A. Folk and Western music
B. Temple and military music
C. Persian and Arabic music only
D. Hindustani and Carnatic music
Answer: D. Hindustani and Carnatic music
Q32. Who patronised the development of dhrupad to new heights in the late 15th century?
A. Raja Mansingh Tomar of Gwalior
B. Dara Shikoh
C. Nur Jahan
D. Guru Nanak
Answer: A. Raja Mansingh Tomar of Gwalior
Q33. What was Tansen’s original name?
A. Amir Khusro
B. Purandaradasa
C. Ramtanu Pandey
D. Abu al-Hasan
Answer: C. Ramtanu Pandey
Q34. At whose court did Tansen become one of the nine ratnas?
A. Raja Mansingh Tomar
B. Akbar
C. Jahangir
D. Krishnadevaraya
Answer: B. Akbar
Q35. Who is credited with developing qawwali by blending Indian, Persian and Arabic singing traditions?
A. Tansen
B. Ravidas
C. Purandaradasa
D. Amir Khusro
Answer: D. Amir Khusro
Q36. Which statement about Carnatic music is supported by the chapter?
A. It continued to develop independently and was largely unaffected by Persian and Arabic influences.
B. It developed entirely from Persian court music.
C. It replaced all regional musical traditions.
D. It was practised only by Mughal rulers.
Answer: A. It continued to develop independently and was largely unaffected by Persian and Arabic influences.
Q37. Which instruments evolved into their modern forms during these centuries?
A. Flute and veena only
B. Drum and conch only
C. Sitar and tabla
D. Violin and piano
Answer: C. Sitar and tabla
Q38. When did paper reach India, according to the chapter?
A. In the 6th or 7th century
B. In the 10th or 11th century
C. In the 13th or 14th century
D. In the 17th or 18th century
Answer: B. In the 10th or 11th century
Q39. Which themes were commonly depicted in Rajput paintings?
A. Only European landscapes
B. Only Persian court ceremonies
C. Only scenes of maritime trade
D. Traditional Hindu themes and familiar expressions of beauty from nature
Answer: D. Traditional Hindu themes and familiar expressions of beauty from nature
Q40. Which influence helped shape Mughal miniature painting?
A. Persian artistic influences
B. European industrial design
C. Modern photography
D. Japanese woodblock printing
Answer: A. Persian artistic influences
Q41. What was a distinctive feature of the collaborative work in Akbar’s painting atelier?
A. Every painting was produced without assistance.
B. Only foreign artists were permitted to work.
C. Different artists handled drawing, colouring and finishing.
D. Paintings were made exclusively on temple walls.
Answer: C. Different artists handled drawing, colouring and finishing.
Q42. What does the term charbagh refer to in Mughal garden design?
A. A circular fort without gardens
B. A garden divided into four parts with waterways
C. A temple surrounded by forests
D. A palace without open spaces
Answer: B. A garden divided into four parts with waterways
Q43. Which architectural elements were commonly incorporated into Mughal gardens?
A. Only dry stone walls
B. Underground factories
C. Wooden bridges without water features
D. Water channels, fountains and terraces
Answer: D. Water channels, fountains and terraces
Q44. Who was the first and only female ruler of the Delhi Sultanate mentioned in the chapter?
A. Razia Sultan
B. Nur Jahan
C. Mirabai
D. Rani Durgavati
Answer: A. Razia Sultan
Q45. Which Mughal woman played an active role in governance, attended court meetings and issued royal orders?
A. Mirabai
B. Razia Sultan
C. Nur Jahan
D. Chaitanya Mahaprabhu
Answer: C. Nur Jahan
Q46. Which institutions supported education during the period covered in the chapter?
A. Only modern universities
B. Gurukulas, mathas, temple schools, Buddhist viharas and Jain pallis
C. Only military academies
D. Only European trading schools
Answer: B. Gurukulas, mathas, temple schools, Buddhist viharas and Jain pallis
Q47. Which subjects were studied in traditional institutions of learning?
A. Only trade and navigation
B. Only painting and sculpture
C. Only military strategy
D. Grammar, astronomy, law, medicine and sacred texts
Answer: D. Grammar, astronomy, law, medicine and sacred texts
Q48. What was the role of apprenticeships in traditional Indian crafts?
A. They transferred practical knowledge and skills from masters to learners.
B. They prevented young people from learning occupations.
C. They replaced all forms of artistic production.
D. They restricted craft knowledge to royal families.
Answer: A. They transferred practical knowledge and skills from masters to learners.
Q49. Which features became part of the signature style of Banaras silk saris under Mughal influence?
A. Only plain cotton fabric
B. Designs without patterns or decoration
C. Zari or zardozi, brocades and designs inspired by nature and geometry
D. Only printed designs made by machines
Answer: C. Zari or zardozi, brocades and designs inspired by nature and geometry
Q50. What is the main message of the chapter “Cultural Currents: 13th to 17th Centuries”?
A. Indian culture stopped developing during political instability.
B. Indian culture retained its traditions while adapting and integrating diverse cultural influences.
C. All Indian cultural traditions were replaced by foreign traditions.
D. Cultural development depended exclusively on rulers, without public participation.
Answer: B. Indian culture retained its traditions while adapting and integrating diverse cultural influences.
