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You can Download The Market as a Social Institution Questions and Answers, Notes, Plus Two Sociology Chapter Wise Questions and Answers Kerala Chapter 4 help you to revise complete Syllabus and score more marks in your examinations.

Kerala Plus Two Sociology Chapter Wise Questions and Answers Chapter 4 The Market as a Social Institution

The Market as a Social Institution Questions and Answers

Question 1.
In the 18th century, economics was known as …
a) Social economy
b) Political economy
c) Cultural economy
d) Technical economy
Answer:
Political Economy

Question 2.
Who was the most important political economist of the early period?
a) Karl Marx
b) AmartyaSen
c) Alfred Marshal
d) Adam Smith
Answer:
Adam Smith

Question 3.
………… said that individual transactions affect the market system.
a) Karl Marx
b) Adam Smith
c) Alfred Marshal
d) AmartyaSen
Answer:
Adam Smith

Question 4.
The French word ……… means giving freedom in the matters connected with market and industry (non- regulated market).
a) Laissez-faire
b) Marketization
c) Globalization
d) Liberalization
Answer:
Laissez-faire

Question 5.
Economic activities of the ……… are similar to those of the capitalists.
Answer:
Nagarathars (Also known as Nattukkottai Chettiars)

Question 6.
What is the most important book of Adam Smith?
a) Capital
b) Wealth of Nations
c) Communist Manifesto
d) Market
Answer:
Wealth of Nations

Question 7.
Who is the person who coined the term ‘invisible hand’?.
a) Karl Marx
b) Engels
c) Alfred Marshal
d) Adam Smith
Answer:
Adam Smith

Question 8.
Anthropologist who made studies in the Dorai village pointed out the social importance of market,
a) Adam Smith
b) Alfred Gell
c) Karl Marx
d) Engels
Answer:
Alfred Gell

Question 9.
Who said that In the capitalist production system, labour itself becomes goods’?
a) Adam Smith
b) Karl Marx
c) Alfred Gell
d) Alfred Marshal
Answer:
Karl Marx

Question 10.
Match the following.

Answer:

Question 11.
What are the different meanings of ‘market’?
Answer:
These are the different meanings of market:

• A place for selling and buying things (fruit market, wholesale market).
• The coming together of people for buying and selling (weekly market).
• Trade-Business sector (Car market, Ready-made clothes market).
• Demand for special products or services (market for mobiles phones, market for computer professionals).

Question 12.
What are the sociological views about Markets and Economic System?
Answer:
The main aim of economics is to understand and explain how markets work in the modem capitalist economy. For example, how are prices determined? What are the benefits of certain kinds of investment? What are the factors that make people earn money and spend it? All these questions are answered by economics. Here the question is what contribution the sociologist can make in the study of markets. Sociology tries to go beyond the things that economics tells us. That means, Sociology tells us things about the market which Economics does not tell us. Sociology looks at the changes markets bring in the society.

Question 13.
What role does Sociology have in the study of markets?
Answer:
To answer this question, we have to look into the England of the 18th century and the starting of Economics. Economics was then called political economy. Among the early political economists, the most famous was Adam Smith. He is known as the Father of Economics. He published a book called “The Wealth of Nations” in 1776. In his book, Smith tried to understand the market system that started at that time.

Smith argued that economic system is made by individual transactions, like a series of buying and selling. It slowly becomes a self-working, orderly system. Market system is not something anybody deliberately creates. The millions of people that made transactions did not have any intention to create a market system. Each individual looks at his personal interest or gain.

When we try for our personal interests, automatically the interests of the society get protected. In other words, what individuals do for their benefit will prove beneficial to the society as a whole. Smith argued that this is brought about by an invisible power. He called this invisible power as “invisible hand”. In his opinion, the capitalist economy is propelled forward by the selfish interests of individuals. It is when buyers and sellers take rational decisions, protecting their interests that the capitalist economy goes forward smoothly.

Smith used the concept of ‘Invisible Hand’ to argue that when people pursue their selfish interests in the market, it proves beneficial to the Society. When they work for their personal interests, it awakens the economy and that way more wealth is produced. Because of this Smith supported the idea of free market. Free market means a market without controls from the government or any other agency. This idea is called laissez-faire. It is a French word. It means leave something alone to do its work.

It is from the ideas presented by early political economists like Adam Smith, modern Economics is developed. Modern economics says that the system of wealth should be studied as a separate part of the society. Economic system works with its own principles. It does not worry about the social and political background. But sociologists had an entirely different viewpoint. They tried to study economics within the larger sociological framework. Thus they developed an alternative method for studying economic institutions.

Sociologists look at markets as social institutions. They observe that markets are formed through special cultural ways. For example, markets are organized and controlled by special social classes. They have special relations with other institutions, social processes and structures.

Sociologists say that wealth systems are set in the society. They point out two examples. One is the weekly market of the Tribal Groups, and the second is the traditional business community and its business chains in colonial India.

Question 14.
What is free market?
Answer:
Free market means a market which is not controlled in any way by the government or any other agency. This economic vision is called laissez-faire.

Question 15.
Describe the features of weekly markets.
Answer:
Weekly markets are a central feature of the social and economic activities of agricultural communities. Weekly markets bring people from different villages together. They sell their products and buy those things that are not available in their own villages. Traders from outside, money lenders, artist of various kinds, fortune tellers and such other people also came to the weekly markets with their own purposes. In the Indian villages, there are also special markets at fixed short-term intervals. For example, there are the cattle markets. Such markets bring the economic systems of different places together. They thus get connected to the urban economy and finally to the national economy.

Question 16.
Give a picture of the Doke Market.
Answer:

Question 17.
What were the changes brought into the Indian society by the coming of Colonialism?
Answer:
Studies show that with the coming of Colonialism, the unchanging economic system of India began o crumble. With the establishment of colonial rule, a new economic system came up in money, market and trade. It even penetrated the local agricultural economy. Gradually this agricultural economy became part of a wide exchange chain. With this, self-sufficient villages collapsed.

The old studies say that the coming of the colonial rule brought revolutionary changes in the village and urban communities of India. But modern studies do not support this view. The old studies say that before the colonial rule, the Indian economy was immobile. It was self-sufficient. There, exchanges (barters) took place without any interference of market forces. Economy based on money was not there.

All these arguments were denied by the new studies conducted by Bailey, Burton Stein and Sanjay Subramanian. New studies point out that just before the colonial rule, the system of collecting taxes in cash was started in India. Trade was also done using money. There is no doubt that in many villages of India there still was the barter system as found in the Jajmani system. At the same time, many agricultural products and other goods were also sold for cash in the markets. Recent researches show that extensive trade and business chains were in existence in India before the colonial rule.

Question 18.
How were the indigenous trade chains organized in India?
Answer:
The history of the t mottukkottai Chettiars (Nagarathars) of Tamil Nadu will help us to know about this. The Nagarathars were a famous trade and business community in Tamil Nadu. They had a banking system based on Jati and an extensive business chain. Their community, relatives and family were interested in trade matters. Therefore all their trade activities worked within this social structure. Their banks were institutions run by joint families. Similarly, their trade and banking activities were done through the connections of Jati and relatives. For example, they had extensive Jati-based relations in South East Asia and Sri Lanka. This helped them to extend their business interests into those areas. Some people. say that the economic activities of the Nagarathars were some of kind indigenous capitalism. This raises an important question: Did India have capitalist systems different from those of Europe?

Question 19.
How was the social structure of the markets?
Answer:
ln India there were many traditional trade communities like the Nagarathars. There is a close relation between Jati system and economic system. This relation can be seen in things like ownership of land and differences in professions. For example, the big land (estate) owners during the colonial times were people belonging to the Upper Classes. It was Jati that determined the profession for each Caste. The relations between Jati and economy are also found in trade and market.
The main profession of Vaisyas, one of the 4 Vamas, is trade! It shows that even in ancient India trade and traders had a high status in society.

There are many Vaisya communities here which have taken up trade as their traditional profession. The Banias of North India are good examples. But trade and business were not the monopoly of Vaisyas. In the traditional trade communities of India, there were. Parsis, Sindhis, Bohras, Jains and also members of other communities. In the trade communities, there were also people who did not have a high status in the society. For example, during the colonial period, it was the Banjaras who controlled the export trade of salt. Banjaras are Low Caste Tribals.

Question 20.
Describe the changes that colonial rule brought to India.
Answer:
Describe the changes that colonial rule brought to India.
a) It destroyed the handloom industry. When cheap factory manufactured clothes came to India, the Indian handloom industry could not survive in the competition.
b) The Indian economy was strongly linked to the world capitalist system.
c) Before colonisation, India was a country exporting manufactured goods to the world market. But after colonization, India became a place for collecting raw materials for the British factories, agricultural products for their consumption and market to sell their finished goods. Thus all the benefits went to England.
d) New groups – especially Europeans – entered the. trade and commerce market. The new groups either worked with the existing trading communities or ousted them from their trade.
e) In India, a market economy came. It helped some new trade communities to grow. They tried to take advantage of the new circumstances. These communities continued to remain powerful even after independence.

Question 21.
Show how the.new trade communities made use of the opportunities provided by the colonial rule, citing the example of Marwaris.
Answer:
Marwaris are the most famous and widespread trade community in India. That community includes business magnates like Birla and also the small traders found all over the cities and towns of India. It was during the colonial rule that the Marwaris became so successful in their trade. They took advantage of the opportunities offered by the colonial rule in cities like Calcutta. To engage in trade and money-lending business, they spread across India. Like the Nagarathars, they were able to make use of extensive trade chains and acquire the confidence of the business world.

Many Marwari families made huge amounts of money through trade. They worked like bankers by giving money on interest. Thus they also helped in the development of British trade policies. Towards the end of the colonial rule, and even after independence, the Marwaris continue to march forward successfully. Many Marwari families became modem industrialists. Even now amongst all communities, Marwari community has the biggest share of Indian industries. This story of the Marwaris shows the importance of social background in economic processes.

Question 22.
Examine the evaluation of Marx on capitalism.
Answer:
Marx saw capitalism as a system for the production of goods. All productions in capitalism aim the market. For production, hired labour is used. In Marx’s view, all economic systems are also social systems. Each style of manufacture (slavery, feudalism, capitalism) gives birth to a certain class structure. Marx pointed out that in the economic system, the only important thing is not just the goods. Relations between people are an important aspect also. People are connected through the manufacturing (Production) process.

In the capitalist production system, labour itself becomes a kind of goods. The workers are forced to sell their work power in the market. This creates two important classes – capitalists and workers.

Question 23.
Write about the views of Marx about Capitalist and Labour classes.
Answer:
Capitalists are the owners of the means of production like factory, machinery and land. Labourers are those who live by selling their labour. A product has value because of the work of the labourers. It is the workers

that convert a cheap raw material into a product of high value. The entire profit is taken by the capitalists. (Profit = the cost of the product – production. expenses.) Capitalists try to maximise their profit by giving workers minimum wages. Marx imagined that the labours will fight against this exploitation by organizing themselves and fighting against the capitalists, establishing a Socialist-Communist society. The theory of Marx regarding capitalist economy and society helped in the making of many theories and debates regarding the nature of capitalism.

Question 24.
What is the meaning of materialization?
Answer:
Two important features of capitalist society are materialization and consumerism. As capitalism grew, markets began to spread all over the world. Markets came in all aspects of human life. With this, the process of materialization also started. Materialization takes place when things not available in the market until then become available. It is a process by which non-goods are changed into goods and made part of the economy. For example, drinking water was not an item for sale. Nobody bought and sold water. When drinking water is bottled and sold – in the market, it becomes ‘goods’ for sale. Materialization takes place. Like that, labour, and skill have been materialized.

Question 25.
A special feature of capitalism is consumerism. Clarify.
Answer:
Consumerism is a special feature of capitalism. This is becoming more and more significant. Consumerism has symbolic meanings. This, and not economic reasons, makes the importance of consumerism greater.

In the modern society, consumerism creates social differences. When a consumer buys some things and shows them off he is showing his social and economic status or his cultural concerns. Companies, which want to sell their products, attract customers by presenting them as symbols of status and culture. In the advertisements, we see on television, in the media and even on the advertising boards, these techniques for sale are used.

Question 26.
What is globalization? What are it features?
Answer:
Globalization era means an era when the entire world is mutually connected. The world is connected economically, politically and culturally. This mutual relation is the mark of globalization.

There are many tendencies in globalization. The main tendency liere is the flow of goods, money, information, and people from one country to another. Technology (computer, telecommunication, transport) and internal structure are also factors of globalization. The, most important feature of globalization is the expansion of markets and their linkage.

Question 27.
What are the changes globalization brought in the market?
Answer:
As a result of globalization, markets expanded in a big way. Not only that important markets of the world have also been linked. With this, the change in one market began to affect other markets also. For example, following the 11 September 2001 (9/ 11) terrorist attack on the World Trade Centre in New York, there was a crisis in the American economy. It seriously affected the software industry in India. It adversely affected our business and professional fields. Many lost their jobs. It is through Software industry, BPO industries like Call-Centres, etc. we get connected to the global economy. Many Indian companies give cheap services to many consumers in developed nations. Indian software industry and other services have a world market.

Question 28.
What do the liberalization policies show?
Answer:
It was the liberalization policy started in India at the end of the 1980s that led to globalization here. The policy included selling public (government) companies to private organizations, removing control over capital and labour market, reduction of customs and duties on imported goods, allowing foreign companies to start industries in India, etc.

The policy of liberalization is often called marketization. It is solving social, political and economic problems using markets. This includes reducing and removing economic controls, privatizing industries, removing governmental control over prices and wages, etc.

The proponents of marketization believe that it will hasten economic growth and prosperity. It is seen that private industries are far more efficient than public or government industries.

Question 29.
Critically examine the changes liberalization and marketization brought in the Indian economic system.
Answer:
Liberalization and marketization brought many changes in the Indian economic system. They stimulated economic growth and opened Indian markets to foreign goods. Many things that were not available in the Indian markets are now available here. There was an increase in foreign investment. It was hoped it would help economic growth and create employment opportunities. It was also hoped that the privatization of government enterprises would make them more efficient and also reduce the responsibility of the government to run them. But liberalization had mixed results. Some people feel that liberalization and globalization had negative results in India.

Some industries were benefited by globalization. Software industry, technology, fish farming and fruit farming made good progress as they could enter foreign markets and make gains. But areas like automobile industry, electronics and oil seeds suffered setbacks as they could not compete with foreign competitors.
Indian farmers are facing serious competition from foreign farmers. The reason for this is the permission given to import agricultural products here. In the past Indian farmers were protected from foreign competition by the government, giving them subsidies and base prices for their products. Such support helped the farmers. By giving them base price, the government promised the farmers to buy their products at a minimum price.

Since they were given subsidies to farm, their expenses were not high. But liberalization was against such policies of giving subsidies and base prices. It demanded the slow reduction and final abolition of both subsidies and support prices. With this, it was certain that farmers could not live comfortably with the little they got from their farms. The many suicides of farmers in India show the evils of liberalization and globalization. Globalization adversely affected small manufacturers and traders. They faced stiff competition in the market. Foreign goods and foreign brands captured the markets. Many small manufacturing units had to close down. Many small shops were also had to close because of stiff competition.

Globalization brought serious loss of jobs in some areas. Many lost their jobs in the organized sector. But this increased jobs in the non-organized sectors. While organized labour suffered, un-organized labour gained. But this was not beneficial to the workers. In the organized labour sector, workers are ensured stability of jobs and better wages. But in the un-‘ organized sector nothing of this kind is available.

You can Download The Demographic Structure of Indian Society Questions and Answers, Notes, Plus Two Sociology Chapter Wise Questions and Answers Kerala Chapter 2 help you to revise complete Syllabus and score more marks in your examinations.

Kerala Plus Two Sociology Chapter Wise Questions and Answers Chapter 2 The Demographic Structure of Indian Society

The Demographic Structure of Indian Society Questions and Answers

Question 1.
The subject which studies things about birth, death, emigration, marriage, divorce etc. is called
a) Demography
b) Formal demography
c) Social Demography
d) Census
Answer:
Formal Demography

Question 2.
The first census in the world is the American census of the year. ?
Answer:
1790

Question 3.
Who is the social scientist that found that there are personal reasons as well as societal reasons behind every suicide?
Answer:
Emile Durkheim

Question 4.
The function of ……….. is analyzing the features involved in changes in the population.
Answer:
Demography

Question 5.
………. is the scientific study of population.
Answer:
Demography

Question 6.
Who wrote “An Essay on the Principle of Popula¬tion”?.
Answer:
Thomas Malthus

Question 7.
According to the 2011 Census, what is the gender ratio in India?
a) 934
b) 927
c) 933
d) 940
Answer:
940

Question 8.
When did the new Population Policy of India come into force?
Answer:
1, February 2000

Question 9.
Match the following:

Answer:

Question 10.
Which State of India has the highest literacy rate?
Answer:
Kerala

Question 11.
What is the difference in the gender ratio in India according to the 2011 Census?
(i) 16.7 %
(ii) 21,7 %
(iii) 24.8 %
(iv) 26.7 %
Answer:
16.7%

Question 12.
Who was the person who found that increase in population is the cause for poverty?
Answer:
Malthus

Question 13.
Who introduced the Demography Mutation Theory?
Answer:
Kingsley Davis

Question 14.
What is demography?
Answer:
Demography is the scientific study of populations. This word comes from Greek. ‘Demos’ means people. ‘Graphein’ means to write or describe. By combining these two words we get demography. It means describing people. It studies the trends and processes that affect populations.

Question 15.
What is the difference between formal demography and social demography?
Answer:
Formal demography is mainly concerned with measurements. It is concerned with things like birth, death, emigration, marriage, divorce, etc. Social demography stresses the social, economic and political aspects of the population.

The main function of formal demography is measuring and analyzing the components of population change. It stresses evolutionary analysis. For this, it uses mathematical and statistical methods. It is a method that helps in foreseeing changes in population growth and its structure.

Social demography or population studies study the reasons for changes in population and its structures and their results (repercussions). Social demographers believe that demographic processes are controlled by social processes and structures. People like social scientists, demographers also try to find out the social causes for demographic tendencies.

Question 16.
What are the two processes that helped in the growth of demography?
Answer:
pThe two processes are the formation of national states and the growth of statistical science. With the advent of the modern age, national states came up in Europe as important political organizations. With this, the role and responsibility of the modern nations began to increase. For example, administering public health, economic policies related to manufacturing and industry, tax, its collection, increasing incomes, urban management – all these needed the attention of the nation.

The growth of numerical (statistical) science was also important. As the areas of activity of nations increased, there was a need to have precise statistical data. Statistical data were needed in the case of population and economic systems with regard to their number, size and measure.

Question 17.
Who were the people that came out with demographic theories?
Answer:
Different theories about demography have been proposed by different scholars. The theories of Malthus, the Liberals, Marx and Kingsley David have been extensively discussed.

Question 18.
Explain the demographic theory of Malthus.
Answer:
One of the most popular theories on demography is that of Thomas Robert Malthus. He was an economist from England. In 1798 he published a book titled “An Essay on the Principle of Population”. In this book, he explained his demographic theory. His theory is pessimistic. Here are the important ideas – of his theory.

Malthus argued that population is increasing on a much faster rate than the increase in the means of livelihood (food, clothes, agricultural products etc). He pointed out that there is tremendous growth in population but there is no proportional growth in food production. Therefore mankind id destined to live in permanent poverty. The increase in population always exceeds the increase in agricultural production.
Population increases geometrically (in the order 2, 4, 8, 16.. 32, 64, 128, etc.). But food production increase is only arithmetical or parallel.

In short, increase in population will always keep food production behind. So Malthus tried to show that mankind will be faced with serious food shortages and ultimate ruin.

Malthus argued that the only way to make progress is by controlling population growth. He said there were two ways of controlling it One is moral restraints like marrying late, celibacy etc. The other is natural controls which inside wars, famine and diseases. Unfortunately, the power of mankind to limit population growth by moral control is very limited. Therefore Malthus believed that only natural controls will help in limiting population growth. He explained that natural controls are Nature’s way of solving the problem created by the geometrical growth of population and the arithmetical growth of good production.

The Theory of Malthus remained influential for long. ’ But theoreticians who showed that economic growth will be greater than population growth proved Malthus wrong. The experiences of European countries showed that the theory of Malthus is not right By the 2nd half of the 19th century there were changes in. the population growth. By the beginning of the 20th century, these changes were quite dramatic.

Birth rate reduced drastically. (The reason for this is the use of various means of birth control.) Contagious diseases were checked. (This was helped by progress in medical science.) There was tremendous increase in food production. (Improved technologies helped this.)

Although there was considerable increase in population, food production increased and the living standards became better. Thus the predictions of Malthus were proved wrong.

The theory of Malthus that the increase in population caused poverty was severely criticised by the Liberals and Marx. They argued that poverty and hunger are not the results of population growth, but the result of inequitable distribution of wealth and other resources. They showed that in an unjust society, the few wealthy live in great luxury whereas the majority of people live in, poverty.

Question 19.
What are the means of population control as suggested by Malthus?
Answer:

Question 20.
Explain the theory of Demographic Transition.
Answer:
Demographic Transition is another important theory in demography. This theory was presented in the 1940s by the American Social Scientist Kingsley Davis. His theory was an optimistic one. This theory argued that population growth is related to all-round economic development. He showed that each community or society follows its own development model in accordance with its population growth. The Theory of Demographic Transition says there are three basic stages in population growth.

In the first stage the society is not developed and the economic condition is backward. At this stage, both birth rate and death rate will be high. Therefore the growth in population will be small.

In the 2nd stage iff a transition stage. There is technological growth in the society and there is a big jump in the growth of population. The birth rate is high and the death rate is low. The growth in population will be very high.

The 3rd and last sage start when there is extensive industrialization. At this stage, birth rate and death rate will below.

It is during the transition between the 1st and 3d stage there is high growth of population or population explosion: When disease control, public health care, and nutritious food bring down the death rate, the birth rate remains high. There is thus population, explosion. The society will take some time to get adjusted to the new situation. The nature of procreation that was in existence during the time of poverty and high death rate will take some time to get used to the new situation of technological progress and high longevity.

This kind of transition took place in Europe at the end of the 19th century and the beginning of the 20th. This kind of transition (changing the nature of procreation to suit the new circumstances) is also followed by the developing nations. These nations are trying hard to reduce the birth rate as deaths are getting reduced. The transition stage is not yet complete in India. Although death rate is drastically reduced, it has not been possible to reduce birth rate drastically.

Question 21.
What is birth rate and death rate?
Answer:
Birth rate is the number of live births per 1,000 people per year in a place (a country, a State, a district or a geographical region).
Date rate is the number of deaths per 1000 of a population perversion a place.

Question 22.
What are the common indicators affecting population?
Answer:
There are many indicators that affect population.
a. Birth rate: Birth rate is the number of live births per 1,000 people per year in a place (a country, a State, a district or a geographical region).
b. Death rate: Date rate is the number of deaths per 1000 of a population per year in a place.
c. The rate of growth in population: The growth in population is the difference between birth rate and death rate. When this becomes 0 or very low, we can say that the population is stable. In some societies, there is negative growth rate. This is when birth rate is less than the death rate in those societies.
d. Fertility rate: This is the number of live births per 1000 women between the ages of 15 and 49 years. The ages 15 to 49 show the period when women can conceive.
e. Total fertility rate: This is an imaginary rate. It represents the number of children that would be born alive to a woman if she were to live to the end of her childbearing years (5-49) and bear children in accordance with age-specific fertility rates of the specified year.
f. Child death (mortality) rate: The under-5 mortality rate is the number of children who die by the age of five, per thousand live births per year.
g. Maternal mortality rate (MMR): This is the annual number of female deaths during delivery, per thousand deliveries. The high child and maternal death rates indicate poverty and backwardness.
h. Longevity: This is complex concept related to population. It shows the number of years an average person will live.
i. Gender Ratio: It shows how many females are there for thousand males in a region.
j. The Age Structure of the Population: It shows the number of persons in various age groups in proportion to the total population.
k. Dependency Ratio: Many persons cant-do any work either because they are children or they are too old. They have to depend on others. The dependency ratio is a measure showing the number of dependents (aged 0-14 and over the age of 65) to the total population (aged 15-64).

Question 23.
What are the common concepts and indicators of population?
Answer:
The common concepts and indicators of population are:

• Birthrate
• Death rate
• Growth rate
• Fertility rate
• Total fertility rate
• Maternal death rate
• Longevity
• Gender ratio
• Age Structure of the Population
• Dependency Ratio

Question 24.
Describe the size and growth of the Indian population
Answer:
After China, India has the largest population in the world. According to the 2011 Census, the population of India is 121 crores (1.21 billion). The growth rate in India is not always high. Between 1901 and 1951, the annual rate of growth never exceeded 1.33%. This is a moderate growth. In fact, the growth rate between 1911 and 1921 was drastically reduced to the negative growth of -0.03%. In short, the growth until 1921 was very slow. There are some reasons for it. In 1918-19 there was an epidemic which kept population under check. In the epidemic 12.5 lakh people, i.e. 5% of the total population, died. Killer diseases like plague and malaria and famine killed lakhs of people.

During the post-independent period, population growth increased considerably. In the period 1961-1981, it went up to 2.2%. After that, even though our growth rate was reduced, India still continues to be one of the most highly populated countries of the world. The , following table gives the population and the growth rate during the various census years.

Indian Population1901-2011

Question 25.
What are the reasons for the decreased death rate. after 1921?
Answer:
There were two reasons that were responsible for the reduced rate after 1921. One is the control over famines and the other i.sthe control of epidemics. Of these two, the second one is more important. The worst killers of the past were different kinds of fever, plague, smallpox, malaria and cholera. The plague in the 1918-19 period killed 12.5 lakh people, 5% of the total population. It was known as Spanish Plague and it was a global killer. Progress in the treatment of this kind of epidemics, preventive vaccinations, improved hygiene and so on helped in the prevention of these killer diseases.

However, even now diseases like malaria, tuberculosis, dysentery, bloody diarrhoea and so on are killing people. But the death rate is not as high as before. In 1994, there was a plague in Surat. In 2006, diseases like dengue fever and chikungunya were reported from different parts of the country. There were also different kinds of bird flu in the country not long ago. Death rate was reduced because of effective control of famines. Famines caused heavy loss of life in the past. With their control deaths are reduced.

Question 26.
Explain the Age Structure of the Indian population.
Answer:
The majority of Indians are young. Thus India has a youthful population. The average age of India is less compared to many other countries. In 1971 persons below 15 were 42%. From this, in 2001, it was reduced to 34%.

The percentage persons between 15 and 60 increased from 53 to 59. People above 60 increased from 5 to 7% during the period 1971-2001.
AGE STRUCTURE: Depending on age, people are divided into children, adults and senior citizens (old people). Children 0-14; Adults 15-60; Above 60 senior citizens.

Question 27.
There are regional variations in the age structure. Clarify.
Answer:
There are wide variations in regional age structures. States like Kerala have begun to achieve an age- structure that is similar to the one in developed countries. But in Uttar Pradesh, the picture is quite different. There the ratio of young people is more and that of the old people is less. When we look at India as a whole, the age ratio is in between these two extremes, because India has States like Kerala and also like Uttar Pradesh.

Question 28.
Describe the features of gender ratio in India,
Answer:
In the structure of population, gender ratio has an important place. It shows the gender equilibrium. Gender ratio means how many women are there for 1000 males. Historically gender ratio favoured women. It means there were more women than men. But for almost a century the gender ratio shows there are more men than women.

At the start of the 19th century, the gender ratio was 972: 1000. It means 972 women for 1000 men. In the 21^st century, the ratio is 933:1000.
The reduction in the number of women has been going on for the last 4 decades. This is a matter for great concern. In 1961 it was 941: 1000; in 2011, it is 940 : 1000.

Question 29.
Describe the apprehensive change in the gender ratio of children.
Answer:
A fact that shocked demographers, policymakers, social workers and even ordinary citizens is the drastic reduction in the gender ratio of children. It was from 1961 that gender ratio related to age was calculated. The ratio of children aged up to 6 is called child gender ratio. This used to be higher in the past, but unfortunately, it has been seriously decreasing. In the 1991-2001 period, the female-male ratio was 933:1000, which was the highest. It had increased by 6 points from the previous 927:1000. At the same time, child gender ratio went down to 927 from 945, showing a decrease of 18 points. Thus for the first time, the child gender ratio became lower than the common gender ratio.

The decrease in the child gender ratio in some States is cause for greater concern. In 6 States and in the Centrally Administered Regions, the child gender ratio is even lower than 90Q girls to 1000 boys. Punjab is the worst in this case. There it is 798:1000. It is the only state that is below 800 females for 1000 males. Just behind Punjab, there are Haryana, Chhatisgarh, Delhi, Gujarat and Himachal Pradesh.

In Uttaranchal, Rajasthan, Uttar Pradesh and Maharashtra, the ratio is less than 925. In Madhya Pradesh, Goa, Jammu-Kashmir, Bihar, Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Orissa, the ratio is above the national average of 914, but it is below 950.

The best ratio is in Kerala. But even here things are not so fine, as the ratio is just 964. Mizoram has the highest ratio in India. There it is 971:1000. Demographers and social scientist point out many reasons for the decrease in the gender ratio, with less women and more men. The most important of them are reasons of health and the attitude of the society towards females.

Question 30.
What are the main reasons for the decrease in the female-male (gender) ratio in India?
Answer;
Demographers and social scientist point out many reasons for the decrease in the gender ratio, with less women and more men. The most important of them are reasons of health and the attitude of the society towards females.

Women have greater health problems than men because of conception and childbirth. In some cases, women die during delivery. The question whether this is the cause for the inequality in gender ratio has much relevance. In the past deaths during or after delivery were common. But with the progress in medical science, such deaths are reduced to a minimum. Maternal death rate has been seriously reduced because of nutritious food, education, awareness, improved medical facilities and transport and communication. So it would e difficult to support the argument that maternal deaths during delivery are a major cause for the unequal gender ratio.
The other reason is said to be the behaviour and attitude of the society to women.

In some societies, birth of females is considered a curse and a burden. In such societies, there are many female foeticides and female infanticides. During pregnancy, through scanning, it is determined whether the child is male or female. If the foetus is female, then abortion is done. This is female foeticide. Some times in some superstitious societies female children are killed (female infanticide) even after their births because of certain cultural and religious superstitions. This points to a serious social issue.

There are evidence that even now this kind of heinous acts are done in India. Using technology like sonograms (ultra-sound echo) the gender of the child is determined before birth, and if it is proved to be female, abortion is done. In all the hospitals we see notices against the determination of child sex using this technology. But unscrupulous gynaecologists take bribes and let the parents know the sex of the unborn child.

Question 31.
What are the uses of literacy?
Answer:

• It empowers people.
• It helps people to choose their jobs.
• It helps in the social and cultural prosperity of the society.

Question 32.
In a table, show the growth in India’s literacy rate.
Answer:
LITERACY RATE IN INDIA

Question 33.
Explain the inequality in literacy fate between male and female.
Answer:
Literacy rate gets different depending on the gender, region and social communities. Female literacy rate is far below male literacy rate. According to the 2011 census, male-female gap in literacy rate is 16.7. Depending on the social communities also, there will be difference in the female literacy rate. Among the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, female literacy rate is very low.

Regional differences also cause disparity in the female literacy rate. States like Kerala are having 100% literacy rate or are very close to it. Kerala has the best literacy rate, both male and female. But States like Bihar are far behind in literacy rate, especially that of female.

The disparities in literacy are very significant. It will create generation gap very acute. Illiterate parents may not be very keen on giving their children higher education. They may not have the circumstances for it. Naturally, then, the present inequality will continue.

Question 34.
The majority of Indians live in villages. Comment.
Answer:
It is very true that the majority of Indians live in villages. According to the 2011 census, 69% of Indians live in villages. Only 31% live in cities and towns. But the urban population is steadily increasing. At the start of the 20th century, the urban population was 11%. By the beginning of the 2181 century, it went up to 28%. Thus in one century, the urban population increased 214 times. The urban population is increasing because of the modem development plans.

Question 35.
The main reason for the increase in urban population is the migration of people from villages to urban areas (cities and towns). How did urban life become more attractive? Why do the rural population migrate to urban centres?
Answer:
Mass media and television played a big role in making rural people migrate to urban centres. The glittering lifestyle and the luxuries that consumer culture has brought in are constantly shown on television and this captivates the rural people. Today even in the remotest villages, people know how the city people live and their high living standards with all sorts of amenities and luxuries. This has tempted the villagers to try their luck in cities.

The gap between the urban and rural people is slowly getting bridged. Even in the past, villages were not inaccessible to market forces. They tried to establish and maintain trade relations with villages to sell their goods. With the growth of the media, especially the visual media, market forces and villages got closer. Now villages also have become part of the consumer culture. Villages are very active in market activities.

Villagers are tempted to move into cities and towns because of their familiarity with the glittery lifestyle available there. Media have been largely responsible for awakening this desire in the rural people.

Greater employment opportunities in towns and cities also attracted people towards them. With urbanization in top gear, the villagers were attracted to the magnetic field of the cities and towns. People who were unemployed in the, villages or those who had only very little work moved into cities and towns

Question 36.
Describe the ill effects (disadvantages) of migration
Answer:
movement of rural people into urban centres quickened the destruction of common properties like ponds, forests and grasslands. These were the sources of the means of livelihood of poor villagers. Those who did not have much land managed to exist by fishing, collecting things from forests and grazing their cattle. With the mass movement of people to urban centres, there was a change everywhere.

Construction work destroyed the grassy plains and the ponds became dry. Forests were cleared either for cultivation or for some other kind of industrialization. Villagers were forced to buy many things which they used to get free. For example, from the public ponds, they could catch fish, from forests they could get firewood and other things, and from the grasslands, they got grass for their cattle. Now nothing was free and people were forced by buy things which were free until now. Thus villagers began to suffer more. Since cash income in hard to come by in villages, their problems got multiplied.

Question 37.
What were the reasons for the migration to cities by villagers?
Answer:

• Influence of the media, especially television.
• Love for consumerist culture.
• Finding better life with good amenities and luxuries.
• Opportunity to look for jobs.
• The unfamiliarity in the cities. Since people don’t know you much, you can do any job and get money. But in villages, one does not like to do jobs which are considered below one’s status.

Question 38.
Describe the population policy of India.
Answer:
Population policy is a very important matter in a country. It is related to the health, prosperity and development of the nation. Population and development are mutually related. For the development of a country, an energetic population is necessary. At the same time, overpopulation can do a lot of harm to development. This problem of overpopulation is felt by the developing nations. The problem of overpopulation was recognized by India at an early stage. In 1952 itself, India declared a population policy.

The population policy of the Indian Government stressed family planning. For this, a Family Planning Board and a Family Planning Department were established. Five Year Plans also gave due importance to family planning. The population policy of India was based on the National Family Planning Programme. The aims of this Programme were:

• Control the rate of growth of the population in a way desirable to the society.
• Encourage various birth control methods and thus reduce the growth rate.
• Improve public health.
• Create awareness in people about the problems of overpopulation and matters related to health.

Question 39.
Describe the gains India made in population control.
Answer:
In the last 6 decades, India has made many gains in the field of population control. They can be summarised thus:

• Crude birth rate reduced to 24.1 in 2004 from 40.8 in 1951.
• Child mortality rate was reduced to 58 per thousand in 2004, from 146 in 1951.
• Welfare of partners increased 4 times from 10.4% in 1971 to 44% in 1998.
• Longevity increased from 37 years of age to 62.
• Awareness was created for the need and methods of family planning.
• Fertility rate became half, from 6.0 in 1951 to 3.0 in 2004.

You can Download Introducing Indian Society Questions and Answers, Notes, Plus Two Sociology Chapter Wise Questions and Answers Kerala Chapter 1 help you to revise complete Syllabus and score more marks in your examinations.

Kerala Plus Two Sociology Chapter Wise Questions and Answers Chapter 1 Introducing Indian Society

Introducing Indian Society Questions and Answers

Question 1.
The ability to know how others look at us and the ability to look at ourselves from outside is called …..
Answer:
Reflexivity

Question 2.
Who is the social scientist that studied the relation between private difficulties and social problems?
Answer:
C. Ret Mills

Question 3.
The subject that studies about Society is called
Answer:
Sociology

Question 4.
…………. marks the place or position of a person in the society.
Answer:
Social map

Question 5.
Match the following.

Answer:

Question 6.
Write the following under two columns, one headed Personal Difficulties and the other Social Problems. Generation Gap, Anxiety, Racism, Unemployment, Communal feeling, Tension, dissatisfaction with elders, gender inequalities)

Answer:

Question 7.
What is Sociology? What is the importance of studying Sociology?
Answer:
Sociology studies about society. For students of Sociology, earlier knowledge about society can be an advantage or disadvantage at the same time. The advantage is that students will not be afraid of Sociology. They will not feel that Sociology is a difficult subject to study. But, at the same time, this prior information might prove a problem in the study of Sociology. That is one important disadvantage. To study Sociology we must temporarily suspend our earlier knowledge about it. In fact, in the beginning of the study of Sociology, importance is given to let the students suspend their earlier knowledge.

Question 8.
What is Sociological perspective (viewpoint)?
Answer:
Sociology teaches us to look at the world from different perspectives (sides). It is not only our perspectives that are important, but also the perspectives of others. From each viewpoint, we see only a part of the whole. In short with just one perspective we will not get a full picture of the world.

When we compare the different views of people about the world, we get a reasonable picture of the entire thing. Each viewpoint of others tells us what is hidden from our own viewpoint.

Question 9.
What is reflexivity?
Answer:
Sociology tells us how others are looking at us. It also teaches us to look at ourselves from outside. This is called self-reflexivity or simply reflexivity.

Question 10.
How is a social map formed?
Answer:
When we understand the Indian society and its structure, we get a social map. We will ou, selves be able to determine our place in it. A social map is as useful as a geographical map. A social map helps us to see ourselves in relation to others and fix our position. For example, imagine that we are living in Arunachal Pradesh. If we look into the Indian geographical map we will know that our State is in the North-East Region. When we compare it with big States like UP, MP, Maharashtra, and Rajasthan we will know that our State is small.

But when we compare it with small states like Manipur, Goa, Haryana, and Punjab we will know our State is comparatively bigger. If you are looking at a map showing the physical features, you will be able to compare Arunachal Pradesh with other States. It will tell us that whether it is a hilly area or a forest area and in what natural resources it is rich. A geographical map determines the place and nature of our area. But a social map tells us our position in the society. Our social group, language, race, religion, race, and tribe – all these will be included in the social map.

Question 11.
Sociology does not merely help you to determine your position or the positions of others in the different social groups. It does much more than that. Explain.
Answer:
C. Wright Mills, an American Social Scientist tells us that Sociology does another important thing. He says that Sociology helps us in finding out the relations between private difficulties and social problems. By private difficulties Mills means personal worries, anxieties, and problems that all people have. For example, you may be dissatisfied with the treatment you get at home from your elders, brothers, and sisters.

You may be dissatisfied with the treatment you get from your friends. You may be worried about future or about the job that you are going to get. There might be anxieties and tensions that wound your self-respect or your confidence. But all these are personal problems. They become meaningful and important when looked from your personal perspective. But social problems are entirely different from personal ones. They are related to big groups. They are not particular to a person.

Question 12.
Differentiate between personal problems and social problems.
Answer:

You can Download Bhakti-Sufi Traditions Questions and Answers, Notes, Plus Two History Chapter Wise Questions and Answers Kerala Chapter 6 help you to revise complete Syllabus and score more marks in your examinations.

Kerala Plus Two History Chapter Wise Questions and Answers Chapter 6 Bhakti-Sufi Traditions (Changes in Religious Beliefs and Devotional Texts)

Question 1.
The propagator of the Great and Little (Brahat-Laghu) tradition:
Answer:
Robert Redfield

Question 2.
Jagannath is the form of which god?
Answer:
Vishnu

Question 3.
The Collection of Saiva hymns by Appar, Sambandhar andSundarar:
Answer:
Thevaram

Question 4.
The book known as Tamil Veda:
Answer:
Nalayira Prabandham

Question 5.
The founder of the Virasaiva Movement?

Question 6.
Under whose leadership did the Arabs attack Sindh?
Answer:
Mohammed Qasim

Question 7.
The common name given to the emigrants in the Middle Ages.
Answer:
Mlechans (the ignorant)

Question 8.
The Founder of Chishti Silsila.
Answer:
Khajamuiddin Chishti

Question 9.
The place where Khawjamuiddin’s tomb is located?
Answer:
Ajmer

Question 10.
What are Lorinamas?
Answer:
Lullabies

Question 11.
Who is the author of the hymns called ‘Shabab’?
Answer:
Guru Nanak

Question 12.
Who authored the Adi Grantha Sahib?
Answer:
Guru Aijun Singh

Question 13.
What are the different forms of piety?
Answer:

1. Regular worship in the temples.
2. Adoration in wild joy.
3. Recitation of hymns and prayers.

Question 14.
Match the items in Column A with those in Column B.

Answer:

Question 15.
Match the following.

Answer:

Question 16.
What is tantrikaradhana? Give two of its special features.
Answer:
Tantrikaradhana is connected with the adoration of Devis (goddesses). Rituals of this kind were in existence in many parts of the subcontinent. Both men and women could participate in them. When these traditions were carried out, differences of Jati and Varna were ignored. In other words, there was no discrimination of gender, Varna or Jati in Tantrikaradhana. The Tantric ideas greatly influenced Saivism and Buddhism.

The followers of Tantric rituals ignored the authority of the Vedas. They tried to uphold their favourite God – Vishnu or Siva. They were in conflict with the principles of Buddhism and Jainism.

Question 17.
How did the pilgrimage centres develop from the travels of Azhvars and Nayanars?
Answer:
During the travels of Azhvars and Nayanars, they recognized certain holy spots as the abodes of their favourite gods. In these places, they built huge temples. These temples later became pilgrimage centres. The recitation of the hymns written by pious poets and worshiping the idols of favourite gods became part of the rituals followed in these temples.

Question 18.
The Chola Kings encouraged Brahmin-Piety traditions. Explain with examples.
Answer:
From the 9^th century to the 13 century, some powerful Chola Kings ruled the country. They supported the Brahmin-Piety traditions. They made land-gifts. They built Vishnu arid Siva temples. It was they who built some of the most imposing Siva temples at Chidambaram, Thanjavur and Gangaikonda Cholapuram. Some very beautiful bronze idols of Siva were also made at this period.

It was the Nayanars who gave encouragement to the sculptors. The Chola Kings encouraged the Nayanars and Azhvars. There were some economic motives behind this. It was the Vellalar farmers who made the economic base for the Chola rule. Naturally, the rulers wanted the support of the Vellalar farmers, who respected Azhvars and Nayanars. That is why the Chola Kings gave their full support to the Azhvars and Nayanars.

Chola kings often claimed divine support. They tried to proclaim their glory by building huge and beautiful temples. These temples were adorned with idols made of stone and metals. The tried to translate the dreams of the popular poets of the hymns into reality. The Kings also encouraged recitations of the Saiva hymns in Tamil in their temples.

They also took the initiative to collect these hymns and make it into a book form (Thevaram). The Chola King named Paranthakan I, got the metallic idols of Appar, Sanbandhar and Sundarar made and they were placed in a Siva Temple. An inscription dated 945 shows this. During festivals, the idols were carried in processions.

Question 19.
Who were Virasaivas? What is the relation of Basavanna with this Movement?
Answer:
In the 12^th century, a new pious movement came up in Karnataka. A Brahmin named Basavanna (1106-1168) was the leader of this movement. Virashaiva Movement is also called Lingayat. In the beginning, Basavanna was a believer of Jainism. He had also served as a minister under King Bijala of Chalukya. Because of serious differences of opinion, Basavanna decided to quit Jainism and with his son-in-law, he formed the Virashaiva Movement. His followers were called Virasaivas or Lingayats.

Question 20.
Point out the religious faiths of the Lingayats and show their importance.
Answer:
Lingayats became an important religious group. They worship Siva in his manifestation as linga, They wore around their left shoulder small linga tied on a cord. The linga was kept in a small silver casket. They also venerated Jangama, the wandering Shaivite monks. Lingayats believe that when they die they will get absorbed in Siva and they will not come back to this world. Therefore they do not cremate their bodies. They bury their dead with elaborate rituals. Lingayats challenged the Caste system.

They also objected to the concept of ‘pollution’(untouchability) and rebirth. Because of these views, they got a lot of followers from the marginalized sects. They encouraged adult marriage and widow re-marriage, which were against the teachings of Dharmasastra. They also rejected fasting, sumptuous meals, pilgrimage and sacrifices or yagas.

Question 21.
What is meant by Zimmi? Explain.
Answer:
Zimmi comes from the Arab word zimma. It means protection. The non-Muslims who lived under Muslim rule were called Zimmis. They had to pay a special tax known as ‘Jizya’.

Question 22.
What are the Five Pillars of Islam?
Answer:
All the people who accept Islam have to acknowledge the Five Pillars of Islam. They are:

1. There is no God except Allah and Mohammed is his Prophet (Shahada).
2. Pray five times a day (Namaz/Salat)
3. Zakat (Almsgiving)
4. Fasting during the month of Ramzan -e) Hajj (Pilgrimage to Mecca)

Question 23.
Dinashrams were centres of social life. Justify this statement.
Answer:
By the 11^th century, Sufism became an Organized Movement with Quranic Literature and rituals of its own. Sufis began to assemble around centres called Dinashrams. Sufis and their disciples lived in these ashrams. They also became centres for Sufi spiritualism and activities.

Dinashrams were under a teacher called Shaikh, Pir orMurshid. He enrolled members into the Dinashram. The disciples were known as Murids. The relation between the teacher the disciple was a special feature of Sufism. Each Pir nominated his successor. The Pir also formulated the spiritual activities of the inmates, the relation between the teacher and the disciples, and the relation between the teacher and the common people and such things.

Question 24.
Write a note about the regional traditions in the construction of mosques.
Answer:
The blending of the global creed of the Muslims and the regional traditions was best seen in the Vastu (construction principles) of the mosques. Some of the Vastu of the mosque are universal. They turn towards Mecca (West), the Mihrab (the semicircular niche in the wall of a mosque) showing where Mecca is, and the Minbar (pulpit – from where the sermons are made).

But there are regional differences. There are variations in the top parts of the building and the materials used for the construction. For example, the Atia Mosque (1609) in Bangladesh is made of bricks. The mosque in Srinagar in Kashmir is built with timber. It was built in 1935.

Question 25.
What is Sufism? What are its salient features?
Answer:
It is a mystic movement that developed within Islam. It is a reformation movement. In the early centuries of Islam, a group of people known as Sufis founded this group. They got their inspiration from the Koran and also from the life of Prophet Mohammed. The Khalifa rule was facing ruin at this time. The greed it showed to worldly life and luxury, made many people dislike it. They turned to mysticism and asceticism. They came to be known as Sufis.

Question 26.
Describe the structure and activities of the Dinashrams.
Answer:
By the 11^th century, Sufism became an Organized Movement with Quranic Literature and rituals of its own. Sufis began to assemble around centres called Dinashrams. Sufis and their disciples lived in these ashrams. They also became centres for Sufi spiritualism and activities.

Dinashrams were under a teacher called Shaikh, Pir orMurshid. He enrolled members into the Dinashram. The disciples were known as Murids. The relation between the teacher the disciple was a special feature of Sufism. Each Pir nominated his successor. The Pir also formulated the spiritual activities of the inmates, the relation between the teacher and the disciples, and the relation between the teacher and the common people and such things.

Question 27.
Write about two Sufi Silsilas that became popular in India.
Answer:
Most Sufi groups are known by the names of their founders. The Khadiri group is known in the name of Shaikh Abdul Khadir Jilani. But the Chishti groups are known by the place where it originated. Chishti is a town in Central Afghanistan.

Question 28.
There were among the Sufis who followed the Islamic laws and those who breached them. By what names are they known?
Answer:
They are known by different names like Qalandars, Madaris, Malanga and Haidari’s.

Question 29.
In the worship of Chishtis, evaluate the importance of Ziyarat and Khavali.
Answer:
In the worship of Chishtis, Ziyarat and Khavali were important. Pilgrimage to the tombs of Sufi Ascetics is called Ziyarat. All over the Muslim world, this is practised. Ziyarat is an opportunity to get spiritual blessings. For the last 7 centuries, people from different faiths and classes have been showing their respect to five famous Chishti ascetics. The most important of them is Garib Nawaz (one who offers solace to the poor) of Khwaja Muinuddin. There are some reasons why this became so famous:

1. The simple life of Khwaja Muinuddin, the greatness of his disciples and the encouragement given by royal visitors.
2. The first Sultan to visit the tomb was Muhammed bin Tughluq (1324-51). But the memorial here was built with the funds given by the Sultan of Malwa, Giyasuddin Khilji, at the end of the 15^th century.
3. This tomb is located along the trade route connecting Delhi and Gujarat. Therefore it attracted many travellers.

By the 16^th century, this tomb became very famous. Even Akbar was impressed by the zealous hymns sung by the pilgrims. He visited this place 14 times to seek blessings for his military operations, to keep his pledges, and to have children. After each visit he gave expensive gifts, it is recorded in the royal documents. In 1568, he donated a huge cauldron to make cooking easy so that food could be given to the pilgrims. He also built a mosque on the premises of the tomb. Music and dance were part of Ziyarat. There were mystical hymns. These were sung by specially trained musicians called Khawals. Their music was capable of giving some kind of spiritual bliss.

Question 30.
In the relations between Chishtis and the nation, there were cordiality and also confrontations. Do you agree? Justify.
Answer:
An important feature of the Chishti tradition is asceticism. Chishtis kept away from worldly powers. But they did not keep themselves completely away from political power. They used to get donations and alms from the rulers and also from rich nobles. The Sultans gave Dinashrams tax-free land (Inam). For – these they established trusts.

The kings wanted the support of the Sufis to make their rule legal. When the Turks established the Delhi Sultanate, the Ulamas wanted to make Sharia the country’s law, but the rulers did not agree to this. Since most of their subjects were non-Muslims, they knew that the imposition of Sharia would provoke them into making protests. In this situation, they wanted to pretend that they received their authority directly from God. For this they needed the support of the Sufi leaders, it was believed that the Awliya, the Sufi leader, could talk with God to improve the material and spiritual condition of the people. That is why many kings wanted their tombs to be near Dinashrams and the Sufi Pilgrim centres.

In short, Sufis maintained good relations with the rulers and received material help from them. The kings tried to make use of the popularity and spiritual power of the Sufis. But there were occasions when the Kings and Sufis got Into conflicts. Both tried to show their position to be superior. Both wanted people to prostrate before them and kiss their feet. When a Sufi Shaikh was addressed high titles were used. The followers of Nizamuddin Awlia addressed him as Sultan-ul-mashaik- the Sultan of Shaikhs. In such shows of power, there were a confrontation between the Sultans and the Sufis.

Question 31.
Who were the two poets that visited Nizamuddin Awlia?
Answer:
Amir Hasan Sijzi and Amir K.huzro

Question 32.
What are Maznavis?
Answer:
Some Sufis considered love for humanity as a symbol for showing love to God. They wrote long poems on this symbol. Such poems are called Maznavis.

Question 33.
Who formed the basis for the Khalsa Panth? What are its 5 symbols?
Answer:
Guru Govind Singh formulated the basis for the Khalsa Panth. The members were supposed to carry 5 symbols with them, they are Kesh (long hair), Kangha (comb), Kara (a metal bracelet), Kachera (cotton under-garments) and Kripan (a curved sword). Together, they are the 5 Ks.

Question 34.
Who was Mirabai? Evaluate her contributions.
Answer:
Mirabai did not have any group of followers or organizations. But she continued to be a source of inspiration for many for centuries. She had composed many Bhajanas. They were all hymns addressed to Bhagwan Krishna. Their hymns I are still used by both men and women, especially those belonging to the lower classes. They are more popular in Rajasthan and Gujarat.

Question 35.
Bhakti-Sufi thinkers used different languages to propagate their views. Explain.
Answer:
There are many sources that help us to recreate. Bhakti-Sufi Traditions. Ancient philosophical sources, Book traditions, New Writings, Hagiographies, etc. are some of them. In the new sources, mostly we have the compositions of ascetic poets. Most of them came out as oral tradition in the languages spoken by people. They were musical. They were collected after the death of their authors by their disciples or fans.

The leaders of the Bhakti Movements were Azhvars and Nayanars. Azhvars worshipped Vishnu. Nayanars adored Siva. Literature Books talk about 12 Azhvars and 63 Nayanars. They composed their hymns mostly in Tamil and a few in Telugu.

Chishtis also used the regional languages for communication and composition of their hymns. Those who were connected with the Chishti Silsila of Delhi used Hindavi. Baba Farid wrote his hymns in the regional language. In Bijapur in Karnataka, a special type of Sufijtymns was popular. These hymns were written inDakhani, a local variety of Urdu. The Sufi teachers who lived here in the 17^th and 18^th centuries were the writers of these hymns. When grinding grain or weaving, women used to sing these. hymns.

The poems of Kabir are available in many languages and dialects. Some of them are written in ‘Sant Bhasha’. Some of his writings are called ‘Ulat Bansi’. Here ideas are put in a very complicated mariner, probably to show that understanding the ultimate reality is very difficult. Some examples if his mystic experiences are seen in ‘Blooming lotus without flowers’, Tire spreading in the sea’.

To explain the ultimate reality, Kabir used different traditions including the Islamic, Vedanta and Yoga. Using Islamic tradition, he called the Ultimate Reality as Khuda, Hasrat and Pir. From the Vedanta tradition he used words like Alak (who can) be seen), Nirakar (with no body), Brahmam, Atma etc. From the Yoga traditions he used Sabda (noise) and Sunya (Emptiness).

Among the books on God and religion, we see a big variety in language, style and presentation. The simplest writings are those of Basavanna. But the most complicated are the writings called ‘farman’ by the Mughal Emperors who wrote in highly ornamental Persian language.

Question 36.
Describe the coming of Sufism in India, the founding of theSilsiias and their activities.
Answer:
(Areas to be considered: the growth of Sufism, Dinashrams and Silsilas, Language and communication, the attitude towards the nation.) Sufism is a mystic movement that developed within Islam. It is a reformation movement. In the early centuries of Islam, a group. of people known as Sufis founded this group.

They got their inspiration from the Koran and also from the life of Prophet Mohammed. The Khalifa rule was facing ruin at this time. The greed it showed to worldly life and luxury, made many people dislike it. They turned to mysticism and asceticism. They came to be known as Sufis.

By the 11^th century, Sufism became an Organized Movement with Quranic Literature and rituals of its own. Sufis began to assemble around centres called Dinashrams. Sufis and their disciples lived in these ashrams. They also became centres for Sufi spiritualism and activities.

Dinashrams were under a teacher called Shaikh, Pir or Murshid. He enrolled members into the Dinashram. The disciples were known as Murids. The relation between the teacher the disciple was a special feature of Sufism. Each Pir nominated his successor. The Pir also formulated the spiritual activities of the inmates, the relation between the teacher and the disciples, and the relation between the teacher and the common people and such things.

Most Sufi groups are known by the names of their founders. The Khadiri group is known in the name of Shaikh Abdul Jhadir Jilani. But the Chishti groups are known by the place where it originated. Christ is a town in Central Afghanistan. There were among the Sufis who followed the Islamic laws and those who breached them. They are known by different names like Qalandars, Madaris, Malanga and Haidari’s.

Chishtis used the regional languages for communication and composition of their hymns. Those who were connected with the Chishti Silsila of Delhi used Hindavi. Baba Farid wrote his hymns in the regional language. In Bijapurin Karnataka, a special type of Sufi hymns was popular. These hymns were written in Dakhani, a local variety of Urdu. The Sufi teachers who lived here in the 17^th and 18^th centuries were the writers of these hymns. When grinding grain or weaving, women used to sing these hymns.

The poems of Kabir are available in many languages and dialects. Some of them are written in ‘Sant Bhasha’. Some of his writings are called ‘Ulat Bansi’. Here ideas are put in a very complicated manner, l probably to show that understanding the ultimate reality is very difficult. Some examples if his mystic experiences are seen in ‘Blooming lotus without flowers’, ‘fire spreading in the sea’.

You can Download Peasants, Zamindars and the State Questions and Answers, Notes, Plus Two History Chapter Wise Questions and Answers Kerala Chapter 7 help you to revise complete Syllabus and score more marks in your examinations.

Kerala Plus Two History Chapter Wise Questions and Answers Chapter 7 Peasants, Zamindars and the State (Agrarian Society and the Mughal Empire)

Question 1.
Writer of Ain-i-Akbari.
Answer:
Abul Fasal

Question 2.
What does ‘Muzarian’ mean?
Answer:
Farmers

Question 3.
The king that banned tobacco
Answer:
Jehangir

Question 4.
What does ‘mandal’ mean?
Answer:
Village head

Question 5.
What does ‘jungli’ mean?
Answer:
Forest Dwellers

Question 6.
A forest produce hat was exported to foreign countries?
Answer:
Resin from trees.

Question 7.
Private lands of zamindars.
Answer:
Milkiyat

Question 8.
Head of the revenue department during the Mughal period.
Answer:
Diwan

Question 9.
Who brought mansabdari system?
Answer:
Akbar

Question 10.
The person who translated Ain-i-Akbar.
Answer:
Henry Blockman

Question 11.
Arrange the following incidents in chronological order:
a. The First Battle of Panipat
b. The British exile Bahadur Shah II
c. Reign of Akbar
d. Nadir Shah attacks India
Answer:
a. The First Battle of Panipat
c. Reign of Akbar
d. Nadir Shah attacks India
b. The British exile Bahadur Shah II

Question 12.
What are the four names used in the Indo-Persian sources to indicate farmers?
Answer:
Raiyat, Muzarian, Khud Kashta and Pahi Kashta.

Question 13.
Who are Khud Kashta and Pahi Kashta? What are their differences?
Answer:
Khud Kashta had their own farmlands in the village. They stayed there permanently and did agricultural work. In short, they are permanent dwellers in the village.
Pahi Kashta did not have lands of their own. They did agricultural work on a contract basis. They did not do agricultural work permanently or stay permanently in the village.

Question 14.
Mention the 4 things that helped agricultural growth in the Mughal period.
Answer:

1. Limitless land
2. Availability of plenty of labourers
3. Mobility of the farmers
4. Irrigation facilities

Question 15.
Name two crops that were related to the seasons.
Answer:
Agriculture was done in two seasons – Spring and Autumn. The Spring crops were called Kharif and the Autumn crops were called Rabi.

Question 16
Mention the two important responsibilities the Mandal (Head of the Village) had. Were the Mandals corrupt?
Answer:
The main responsibility of the Village Head was supervising the income and expenditure. A Patwari (accountant) helped him in this duty.
In Eastern India, all marriages were conducted in the presence of the Mandal (Village Head). In other words, he had the responsibility to observe the behaviour of people so that they did not breach the Jati laws.

Mandals often misused their powers. With the help of the Patwari, they often falsified accounts. They showed a lesser income from their property but they charged more from smaller farmers.

Question 17.
There were Jati Panchayats during the Mughal period. What were the things they did?
Answer:
Apart from the Village Panchayat, each Jati had its own ‘Jati Panchayat’. They had considerable authority in the village community. They had the following responsibilities.

• In Rajasthan, they settled civil differences among the members.
• They worked as mediators in land disputes.
• They judged if marriages were conducted as per Jati laws.
• They decided the protocol to be followed at village functions.
• Except in criminal cases, the decisions of the Jati Panchayats were accepted by the government.

Question 18.
What is meant by ‘jins-i-kamil’? Why did the Mughal rulers encourage it?
Answer:
It means perfect crops. It referred to cash crops. Since they brought income to the country, Mughal rulers encouraged farmers of cash crops. The most important jins-i-kamil were cotton and sugar cane. Cotton was cultivated in Central. India and the highlands of Deccan. Bengal was famous for sugar cane. Pulses and oil.seeds like mustard also were considered cash crops. It shows there was mixture of food crops and cash crops in the country.

Question 19.
Going away from the village (Abandoning) was a way of protest in the Mughal period. Explain
Answer:
Often farmers of the Lower castes complained against officials of the government and zamindars. The decision of the Panchayats would depend on the type of case. Where the case was related to excessive tax, Panchayat often suggested some kind of reconciliation between the parties. If the settlement did not come, farmers often protested. Sometimes they went away, abandoning the village. Land lying without cultivation was available everywhere. Moreover, labourers were in great demand. In the circumstances, leaving the village was a good way of protest by farmers.

Question 20.
The agriculturists of the Mughal period were also artisans. Comment.
Answer:
In a village community, it was not easy to distinguish between agriculturists and artisans. People often worked as both. Even agriculturists and their families dyed clothes did embroidery, made earthenwares, made agricultural implements and repaired them. The leisure period between the stages of agriculture – the period between sowing and weeding, between weeding and harvesting, etc. – was used for manufacturing small useful items.

Question 21.
What is Jajmani system? What are its main features?
Answer:
The artisans received their remuneration in different ways. Jajmani was an Indian system of interaction between upper castes and lower castes. It was an economic system where lower castes performed various functions for upper castes and received grain in return. In the Jajmani system, the artisans and owners of the land discuss things and come to an agreement regarding payment. For example, the zamindars in Bengal paid the ironsmiths, carpenters and goldsmiths some money and the remaining in grains.

Question 22.
The activities of the forest dwellers for their livelihood were connected with the seasons. Do you agree with this statement? Do these activities are connected with their mobility?
Answer:
The forest dwellers who earned their living by collecting forest produce, hunting and rotating cultivation were called jungli. All these activities were based on seasons. For example, the Bhills in Uttar Pradesh collected forest produce during Spring. They did fishing in Summer, agriculture in the rainy season and hunting in Autumn. Naturally, they could not – continue living in the same place for long. They moved from place to place to carry on with their various activities. Mobility was an important factor for the Junglis.

Question 23.
Describe two reasons which brought the Zamindars high status.
Answer:
The first reason is Jati. All the Zamindars belonged to the higher caste. The second reason is the services (khidmat) they rendered to the country.

Question 24.
The weaker sections of the society had some ways to acquire the status of Zamindars. What were they?
Answer:
The Zamindars got united in different ways. These include the colonization of new lands, the exchange of land rights, older of the government, and the purchase of the land. Using some of these ways the lower class people could rise to the status of Zamindars. Zamindaris (lands of the zamindai) were often bought and sold.

Question 25.
Although Zamindars were generally exploiters, their relations with the agriculturists were those of mutuality, paternal affection and patronage. Examine the truth of this statement.
Answer:
There is no doubt that the Zamindars were an exploitative tribe. They exploited peasants in different ways. But their relations with the agriculturists were often those of mutuality, paternal affection and patronage. Two things prove this.

• Firstly, we see that the Bhakti ascetics did not show Zamindars as exploitators of persecutors. These ascetics had strongly criticised the discriminatory measures on Jati basis and the tortures and other repressive measures used against the lower classes by the upper classes. They criticized the revenue officials but not the Zamindars. It shows the relation between Zamindars and farmers was good.
• Secondly, in the 17^th century, there were a number of agricultural uprising in North India. Most of them were against the state and not against Zamindars. Sometimes Zamindars got the support of the peasants when they protested against the state.

Question 26.
What do the words ‘Jama’ and ‘Hasil’ show?
Answer:
The first step in the land revenue system is the determination of the amount of tax to be given by the farmer. This amount is called Jama. The collection of the tax is the second stage. Hie amount collected is known as ‘Hasil’.

Question 27.
When was the writing of “Akbar-nama” by Abut Fasal completed? How many books are there? Explain.
Answer:
In 1598, the 42nd year of Akbar’s reign, Akbar-nama v was completed. Ain-i-Akbari is part of the Akbarmama.
Akbarnama has three books; The first two books art historical writing. The first book deals with the Mughal history before Akbar. The second book deals with the rule of Akbar until 1602. Ain-i-Akbari is planned as a collection of royal laws, and a description of the geography of the empire.

Question 28.
How did the coming of external powers influence village life?
Answer:
External powers came into village life. The most important of them was the Mughal power The majority of the income of the Mughal ruler came from agricultural products. Therefore, the agents of the government tried to control the village community. These officials included tax assessors, tax collectors and keepers of records. They made sure that work was going on regularly and taxes were received.

• Village communities were connected with urban centres.
• Farmers produced a lot of things for the market Naturally trade, money and markets came into the village and thus connected them with the cities.

Question 29.
Describe the agricultural technologies and irrigation methods used during the Mughal period.
Answer:
The government gave all kinds of support to farmers for irrigation projects. The government took the responsibility of making canals (Nahr and nala) in North India. Old canals were repaired. It was during Shah Jahan’s reign that the Shahnahar Canal in Punjab was repaired. For irrigation, even well-water was used Water Was drawn from wells using wheel and bullocks. Babar describes the various methods used in irrigating the land in his memoir ‘Babar-nama’. He points out that people used Persian wheel, bucket and rope to get water from the well.

Agriculture depended on the efforts of people, they also used animal power. There were wooden ploughs in use. Using iron ploughshares on wooden ploughs made it easy to make furrows. But the furrows would not be deep dry grounds. There they used drills They spattered the seed by hand – They, also used an iron blade for digging and weeding.

Question 30.
What is Mansabdari system?
Answer:
This was a special feature of the Mughal rule. It was Akbar who put it into operation, It is a system which joined the civil and military positions. Mansab means status or position. The official who got the position of. mansab is called mansabdar. Akbar gave all officials this status. These officials were to keep a certain number of cavalrymen under them. ThusAkbarwas able to combine civil and military duties in an official. Some mansabdars were given money as their salary. But many were assigned lands in place of money. These lands were called jagirs. From these jagirs, the mansabdars could collect taxes equal to the amount of their salary. Mansabdars were frequently transferred.

Question 31.
Assess the role of women in agricultural production.
Answer:
In the agricultural community of the Middle Ages, women played an important role. They worked alongside men in the fields. When men ploughed the land and made furrows, women sowed seeds. Later they weeded, harvested and separated the chaff from the grain.

• In the Middle Ages, in agricultural communities, all human efforts and resources were used for production. Naturally, there was no gender discrimination here.
• Even then women were given some special considerations because of their childbearing nature. In Western India, women who were having their periods were not allowed to touch the plough or the potter’s wheel. In Bengal, menstruating women were not allowed into the betel leaf farms.
• Things, like spinning, making the clay ready for pot making, stitching etc., were mainly done by women. With the commercialization of products, the role of women began to increase. Women worked not only in their homes and fields but also in the households of their employers. Sometimes they even went to the market for selling things.

Question 32.
Land tax was very important in the economic system of the Mughals. Justify the relevance in this statement.
Answer:
The basis of Mughal economy was land. Land tax was the main source of the government’s income. Because of that to ensure that taxes came in, the government appointed a number of officials to assess the land tax and to collect it. The head of the revenue department (Daftar) was Diwan. He supervised the economic system of the Empire. To help the Diwan there was an Amil-Guzar (Revenue Collector) and many other officials. These officials went around the villages to ensure that taxes came to the Treasury. They became a Strong power in formulating agricultural relationships with the government.

Before fixing the tax, the state collected all the information regarding the agricultural lands and their products. There were two stages in the tax system of the Mughals: Fixing Tax and its actual collection. The first step in the land revenue system is the determination of the amount of tax to be given by the farmer. This amount is called Jama. The collection of the tax is the second stage. The amount collected is known as ‘Hasil’.

Farmers could pay their tax in cash or in goods. The government preferred cash. The government had tried to raise the tax to the maximum. But often it could not collect the fixed tax. Regional circumstances often prevented the government from collecting the entire tax.

Question 33.
Write an essay assessing the position women had in the agricultural sector and in society during the Mughal period.
Answer:
In different communities, men and women played some special roles in the field of production. In the agricultural community Of the Middle Ages, women played an important role. They worked alongside men in the fields. When the men ploughed the land and made furrows, the women sowed the seeds. Later they weeded, harvested and separated the chaff from the grain.

In the Middle Ages, in agricultural communities, all human efforts and resources were used for production. Naturally, there was no gender discrimination here.

Even then women were given some special considerations because of their nature. In Western India, women who were having their periods were not allowed to touch the plough or the potter’s wheel. In Bengal, menstruating women were not allowed into the betel leaf, farms.

Things, like spinning, making the clay ready for pot making, stitching etc., were mainly done by women. With the commercialization of products, the role of women began to increase. Women worked not only in their homes and fields but also in the households of their employers. Sometimes they even went to the market for selling things.

Village communities depended on work for their livelihood. There was a need for more hands to work in the fields. As persons who brought forth children, women were seen as an important group. But the death rate among women was high. Lack of nutrition, regular childbirth, death during delivery, etc. were the reasons for their higher death rate. As a result, there was a considerable reduction in the number of married women. In the agricultural and artisan communities, this caused the rise of some special social customs. These customs were different from those practised by the upper classes. In some communities, instead of getting a dowry, men started giving bride-price. Laws also permitted remarriage of widows and divorced women.

Women had this importance of being the sources of producing children. Society was worried if their importance would make society lose control over them. By the established social laws, man was the head of the family. The male members of the family and the community imposed strict laws on women. Women who were suspected of cheating were severely punished.

Women could complain to the Panchayat against the misbehaviour of their husbands. From the documents received from Rajasthan, Gujarat and Maharashtra, we can see complaints of women sent to the Grama Panchayats seeking justice. Women protested against their men’s cheating (marital infidelity). They also complained against the negligence of their husbands towards their wives and children. Infidelity of men was not often punished. But the state and the higher communities tried to bring comfort to their families. Generally, names of the complaining women were not written in the Panchayat records. Instead, the complainant was referred to as the mother of a certain person, his sister or his wife.

The condition of the wives of the landowners was much better. They had the right to get ancestral property. In Punjab, women, including widows, were actively involved in the market to sell the properties they received as heritage. Hindu and Muslim women got zamindaris as hereditary property. They had the freedom to sell them or mortgage them. In the 18^th century, there were a number of known zamindaris in the name of women in Bengal. One of the biggest and most famous zamindaris, Rajshahi, was in the control of a woman.

You can Download Kings and Chronicles: The Mughal Courts Questions and Answers, Notes, Plus Two History Chapter Wise Questions and Answers Kerala Chapter 8 help you to revise complete Syllabus and score more marks in your examinations.

Kerala Plus Two History Chapter Wise Questions and Answers Chapter 8 Kings and Chronicles: The Mughal Courts

Question 1.
The founder of the Mughal Empire?
Answer:
Babur

Question 2.
The last ruler of the Mughal Empire?
Answer:
Bahadur Shah Safar

Question 3.
The administrative language of the Mughal Empire?
Answer:
Persian

Question 4.
The language that came from a mixture of Persian and Hindavi?
Answer:
Urdu

Question 5.
Those who opposed the Mughal art and painting?
Answer:
Ulamas

Question 6.
The author of Badshahnama?
Answer:
Abdul Hamid Lahori

Question 7.
The ruler who reintroduced Jizya?
Answer:
Aurangzeb

Question 8.
The first capital of the Mughals?
Answer:
Agra

Question 9.
The ruler who brought ‘jarokha darshan’ (public audience)?
Answer:
Akbar

Question 10.
Finance Minister (Head of Revenue Department) in the Mughal rule was called?
Answer:
Diwan-i-ala.

Question 11.
Which Mughal ruler is connected with the 1st Battle of Panipat?
Answer:
Babur

Question 12.
What are Chronicles?
Answer:
As per the instructions from the Mughal Emperors, the palace historians kept a diary of the important happenings in the country. These are the Chronicles. They talk about the achievements of the Mughal rulers. They also give chronologically important events. Chronicles are an important source to study about the Mughal Capital and Mughal Empire.

Question 13.
Why was Akbar especially interested in Abul Fazl?
Answer:
Abul Fazl was the writer of Akbamama. Abul was born and brought up in Agra. He was well-versed in Arabic, Persian, Greek Philosophy and Sufism. He was a scholarly debater and had independent thinking. He severely criticised the views of conservative ulamas. Akbar was attracted by these qualities of Abul Fazl and so he appointed him as his advisor and spokesman. Akbar’s intention was to release the nation from the control of orthodox ulamas. As a palace historian, Abul Fazl was able to formulate ideas related to the administration Akbar liked him very much.

Question 14.
What is special about nastaliq style of writing?
Answer:
Akbar showed great interest in writings in nastaliq script. Nastaliq script is one of the most fluid calligraphy styles for the Arabic alphabet. It has short verticals with no serifs, (serif is a.small line attached to a letter) and long horizontal strokes. It is written using a piece of trimmed reed called “qalam”(“pen” in Arabic) and carbon ink, named “davaf”.

Question 15.
Point out the information we get from the Mughal Chronicles
Answer:
Chronicles give a chronological account of incidents. The Mughal chronicles are great sources to know about Mughal history.

• They give information regarding the founding of the Mughal Empire.
• They tell us about the policies and schemes the Mughal Kings wanted to implement.
• They tell us how theories of all kinds developed and how they reached the people.

Question 16.
Point out the importance of pictures in the manuscripts of the Mughal period.
Answer:
Artists, those who made pictures, played a big role in writing the manuscripts. In the Chronicles along with descriptions of things, pictures were also included. They gave a visual picture of things. The manuscript writer left the following page blank if he felt there was a need for a picture to illustrate the matter. In these blank spaces, artists drew pictures. These pictures were small in size and so they were called ‘miniatures’.

The pictures in the manuscripts increased their beauty and utility.

They showed things in a visual manner of things that would be difficult to describe using words, they give a good picture of the country and the power of the rulers.

Question 17.
Which were the Mughal capitals in India?
Answer:
In 1707 Aurangzeb died. After his death, 13 rulers of the Mughal dynasty ruled India. They were known as Later Mughals. During their rule, the dynasty’s power began to decline. As the Central administration became weak, regional rulers started becoming more and more autonomous. The Later Mughals failed to prevent foreign attacks. Although the Mughal Empire was breaking up, the Mughal rulers tried to maintain their status and glory. They continued symbolically. In 1857, the British dethroned the last Mughal ruler Bahadur Shah Safar II. With this, the Mughal rule ended. The Mughal capitals were Agra (Babur), FatehpurSikri, Lahore (Akbar), Shajahanabad (Shah Jahari).

Question 18.
What were the aims of the Mughal rulers in getting the Chronicles written?
Answer:

• One of the aims was to let people know the policies of the state.
• Another aim. was to let the enemies of the country know that their efforts were bound to fail and they would be defeated.
• A third aim was to leave the records of the Mughal rule to future generations.

Question 19.
What does ‘zulh-e-kul’ mean? What were the steps taken by Akbar for this?
Answer:
Zulh-e-kul means complete peace. The Chronicles point out that in the Mughal Empire there were Hindus, Jains, Zorashtrians, Buddhists, Muslims, and Christians. The Emperor, Akbar, was a tolerant person and he extolled the virtues of unity, peace, and stability. He worked with all communities to ensure peace and justice. Thus zulh-e-kul was jan important feature of Akbar’s rule.

• Abul Fazl points out that it was the base of an enlightened rule.
• It helped all the religious groups to have their faith and (nodes of worship. But it did not allow the different groups to fight or jeopardise the security of the country. ,
• Akbar made special efforts to put Zulh-e-kul into practice. It was executed through state policy. He asked all the officials to follow this policy. He also introduced and social and religious reforms to facilitate zulh-e-kul.
• Akbar stopped taking religious taxes. There were taxes for taking bath in the holy places like Prayag and Banaras. Non-Muslims had to pay Jizya. All these were stopped by Akbar as they were religious taxes.

Question 20.
Who introduced jarokha darshan? What was its purpose?
Answer:
Akbar introduced this. The day of the Emperor started with prayers. Then he would appear in a balcony which faced eastward. Jharoka is this balcony. All kinds of people – soldiers, traders, artisans, agriculturists, women with sick children – waited for this darshan of the Emperor* This is called jharoka darshan. This was a way of getting the support of the people and increasing the acceptability of the government.

Question 21.
From where did the Mughals get the idea of ‘divine light’ (Divya Prakasam)?
Answer:
Mughals believed in the theory of divine kingship. They believed and propagated that their authority came directly from God. The court historians explained the legend of Queen Alanqua to propagate this divine kingship theory and divya prakasam. Alanqua was taking rest in her camp. She was conceived by the rays of the sun. Her son had bequeathed this divine right to all the future kings. Thus the Mughal king also got this divine light.

Question 22.
What does Abul Fazl say about picture painting. Was it different from the opinion of the Ulamas? Explain.
Answer:
Abul Fazl qualified picture painting as a magical art. He believed that it had the power to give life to even inanimate things.

Pictures showing the Emperor, the court, and people created constant conflicts between the rulers and the ulamas. These ulamas based their objection on the Koran and Hadith. The ulamas said that making pictures of people is against Islamic law. By making pictures, the artist is questioning the authority of God to create things. They believed that the power of creation belonged entirely to God.

Question 23.
Who was Jahanara? What were her contributions to the architectural field?
Answer:
Jahanara was the daughter of Shah Jahan. She was in charge of the gardens and buildings. Shah Jahan made a new capital known as Shahjahanabad.
Jahanara was the one who planned many of the buildings in the new capital. Here a two-storeyed inn with a fine sit-out and garden needs special mention. She was the one who planned the Chandni Chowk Bazar, the main center in Shajahanabad.

Question 24.
Describe the processes involved in preparing manuscripts.
Answer:
Many people were involved in the preparation of a manuscript. They included paper manufacturers, copywriters, guilders (beautifiers), artists (who drew pictures) and binders (those who bound the manuscripts in book form).

• Paper manufacturers prepared the sheets.
• Scribes or calligraphers copied the text. ‘
• Gilders made the pages look fine.
• Artists drew pictures.
• Binders arranged the pages and bound them neatly. The completed manuscript became a valuable thing, a thing of beauty and scholastic treasure. The beauty of the manuscripts showed that the Mughal emperors loved knowledge and beauty.

Question 25.
Akbar is considered the greatest of the Mughal rulers. Why?
Answer:
Humayun was the father of Akbar. After Humayun’s death in 1556, Akbar became the ruler. Akbar is considered the greatest Mughal ruler. Here are the reasons:

• He not only expanded his empire but also unified it. He made the empire the biggest, strongest and richest at that time.
• He succeeded in extending the boundaries of the Mughal Empire up to the Hindukush Mountain Range.
• He was able to resist the expansion schemes of the Uzbeks in Central Asia and the Safavid dynasty of Iran.

Question 26.
Who was Gulbadan Begum? What were her contributions?
Answer:
When Akbar asked Abul Fazl to write the history of his rule, he also asked his aunt Gulbadan to help. He asked her the record the memoirs of Babur and Humayun. Akbar thought that this would help Abul Fazl in his work. Gulbadan Began accepted this challenge and wrote a book titled ‘Humyun-nama’. It was the description of Humayun and his rule. It looks into the private life of the Mughals. It is not a book of praise-singing. She has written here about the fights and confrontations among the kings and princes. She has also shown how the elderly ladies of the family helped in solving such disputes.

Question 27.
Different kinds of greetings were in existence in the Mughal court. Describe them.
Answer:
Different kinds of greetings were in existence in the Mughal Court to show respect for authority. It showed the status of each one in the court.

• Deep Prostration: This was shown to those with the highest power.
• ‘Sijda’: In this a person knelt and touched his forehead on the floor.
• During Shah Jahan’s time, he first introduced ‘zaminbos’ (kissing the ground) and later ‘chartaslim’. Another greeting was kornish. Here the subject places his right palm on his forehead and bows. By bowing his head, the seat of intellect and wisdom, he is showing his respect for the authority.

Question 28.
What were the special features of the Mughal Lordship?
Answer:
The Mughal lords came from different backgrounds. Members were chosen from different religious and Class and Tribal groups. There were Mughals, Afghans, Turks, Persians, Indian Muslims and Rajputs in this assembly.

Question 29.
How did the word ‘Mughal’ originate? Is it something the Mughals themselves chose? Explain:
Answer:
Mughal comes from Mongol. Today that name reminds us of the greatness of an Empire. It was not a name that was chosen by the rulers themselves. Through their fathers, the Mughals were the successors of Timur, the ruler of Turkey. They called themselves Timurids. Through his mother, the first Mughal ruler, Babur, had relations with ChengizKhan, the ruler of Mongols. Babur spoke Turkish. He actually considered the Mongols as ‘uncivilized’.

Question 30.
Who were the writers of the Mughal Chronicles? What ware the things they stressed in their writing?
Answer:
The writers of the Mughal Chronicles were court (palace) historians. They stressed matters connected to the ruler, his family, the court, nobles and lords, wars, administrative arrangements and so on. Their – historical writings were about the Emperors. Thus. we have Akbarnama, Shah Jahannama and Alangirnama (Alangir was a title of Aurangzeb).

Question 31.
What was the administrative language of the Mughals? Why did they choose that language?
Answer:
Persian was the administrative language. People who were well-versed in it got power and status. The Emperor, his family members and the elite of the court spoke in Persian. It was used at all levels of the administration. Therefore even accountants, clerks and other officials learned it. People who came from different parts of the subcontinent also used Persian.

Question 32
Who were the successors of Akbar?
Answer:
His successors were three able rulers – Jahangir (1605-27), Shah Jahan (1628-58) and Aurangzeb (1658-1707).

Question 33.
What were the three special features of Mughal theory „ about kingship?
Answer:
a) Divine Right of Kings.
b) Zulh-e-kul.
c) Social contract.

Question 34.
Shah Jahan was very much interested in architecture.
– Evaluate this statement.
Answer:
Shah Jahan was greatly interested in architecture. He built some beautiful and imposing buildings. In 1648 he moved his capital from Agra to Shahjahanabad. He built the Red Fort, Juma Masjid, Chandni Chowk (an extensive maidan with rows of trees) to include in his new capital Shahjahanabad. The new capital was exquisite enough to show the pomp and greatness of the Mughal Empire.

Question 35.
The center of the Mughal Court was the king. Justify.
Answer:
The Chronicles show that the administration of the Empire was fully vested in the ruler. He was the supreme authority in administration, judiciary, and military. Others had to simply obey his orders.

Question 36.
When did Mughal Rulers take titles? Did they give titles to others?
Answer:
Mughal Emperors took many fancy titles. Such titles included common titles like Shahanshah (King of Kings or Rajadhiraja), and special titles like Jehangir (One who conquers the world) and Shah Jahan (King of the World). They took these titles on coming to the throne. These titles indicate that the Mughal emperors had control even beyond the boundaries of their country. Contemporary history talks about diplomatic relations and also conflicts that existed between the Mughal rulers and their neighbors. The reasons for the conflicts were regional interests.

Question 37.
Who were the inmates of the ‘Harem’ of the Mughal rulers? How many types of wives did the rulers have?
Answer:
The household of the rulers was called harem. Harem is a Persian word meaning a holy place. It included the ruler’s wives, concubines, close and distant relatives including mother, step-mothers, foster-mothers, sisters, daughters, daughters-in-law, aunts, children, maid servants, and slaves.
The mughal rulers had two types of wives – begums and aghas.

Begums came from royal families. They came with a lot of dowry (mahar) by way of things, ornaments and money. They received preferential treatment in their husband’s household. They were given greater consideration by their husbands. The other wives (aghas) were not from royal families.

Question 38.
The Mughal aristocrats were the pillars of the Empire. Do you agree?
Answer:
The Mughal aristocrats were definitely the supporting pillars of the empire, the main pillar being the ruler. They were the officials and collectively they were called the aristocrats. They were the ruling class. Considering the importance they had during the Mughal period, some historians called the Mughal rule as ‘Rule by the Aristocrats’ or, to use the official name ‘oligarchy’.

Question 39.
Do you think there was a close relationship between the aristocrats (officials) and the Mansabdari system?
Answer:
There was a close relationship between the aristocrats (officials) and the Mansabdari system. Akbar was the one who introduced the mansabdari system. He did it to organize a strong and efficient army. The civil duties of the mansabdars were combined with their military service.

• In this system each official was given the status of mansab. The person who got it was a mansabdar.
• The status of mansabdar had two aspects – zat and zawar. Zat was a private title. It showed the position of the person in the administrative chain and his salary. Zawar shows the number of cavalrymen a mansabdar had to keep under him.

Question 40.
The Mughal administration had adequate arrangement for keeping the records and exchange information. Evaluate this statement.
Answer:
The Mughal rulers gave important consideration for maintaining records. All royal orders (farman) were presented in the royal court. All applications and documents were preserved by a group of palace scribes. These scribes or writers were called ‘waqianavis’. They worked under the ‘mir bakshi’ (head of the military). The agents of the aristocrats and the regional authorities recorded all the processes of the royal court under the heading “News from the Exalted Court” or “Akbarat”.

The times and dates of the Royal Court have been recorded here. ‘Akbarat’ has all the details regarding the attendance in the Court, the assigning of jobs and titles, the diplomatic missions, the gifts received and even the enquiries the Emperor made about the health of the officials. This information is quite valuable in writing the life histories and activities of rulers and aristocrats. The Mughal postal system helped in exchanging communication. It was through the royal post that news and official documents were sent all over the country.

There were runners to carry the post and to pass information to the Emperor quickly. It is reported that there were 4000 runners in the country. They carried the papers in the form of scrolls carried in bamboo boxes. They worked all the time with hardly any rest. This postal system (by runners) helped the king to get information from faraway places in record time.

Question 41.
Describe the features of the Mughal Provincial , Administration Do you think it was easy to control the Provinces? Justify.
Answer:
The Mughal Empire was divided into many Provinces. They were called subas. Provincial Administration was a miniature model of the Central administration. In the Provinces also there were Ministers and officials to help them. The head of the provincial administration was called Subedar (Provincial Governor). He was appointed by the Emperor. The Subedar had to report directly to the Emperor.

• Each province was divided into districts, called sirkars. They were under officials called faujdars (commandants). There were plenty of footmen and gun-carrying soldiers in every district.
• The sirkars were divided into parganas (sub-districts). The officials in charge of parganas were known as qanungo, chaudhuri, and quazi. Qanungo kept the revenue records. Choudhari collected the revenues. Qazi handled judicial matters.
• Parganas were divided into villages. They were administered by gramasabhas.

Question 42.
Kandahar was a problem for the Mughal rulers. Evaluate this statement.
Answer:
Kandaharwas an important military and commercial city. This was a fort-city and there were conflicting claims about this between the Mughals and the Safavids of Iran. Initially, Kandahar was under Humayun. Two years after the death of Humayun Iran took possession of that city. In 1595 Akbar recaptured it. Although the Safavids had diplomatic ‘ relations with the Mughals, they continued to claim Kandahar. In 1613, Shah Jahan sent a diplomatic representative to the Court of Shah Abbas in Iran. The idea was to let the Mughals continue to have power over Kandahar. But the mission failed. In 1622, the Persian Army attacked Kandahar. The Mughal army was not battle-ready to defend the place. They were forced to give up Kandahar to Safavids. All efforts to recapture it later failed.

Question 43.
Describe the important considerations that influenced Mughal relations with the Ottomans.
Answer:
The main considerations were religious and economic. The Mughals wanted to ensure easy access to their traders and pilgrims in areas under Ottoman Turks. They especially wanted to ensure freedom to travel in Hijaz which was part of Ottoman Arabia. Mecca and Medina are located there. The Mughal emperors had both religious and trade interests in these places.

Question 44.
Critically examine the relations between Akbar and the Jesuits.
Answer:
Akbar was keen on knowing about Christianity. So he sent his messengers to Goa to invite Jesuit priests to the Mughal Court. In 1580, the first Jesuit group reached Fatehpur Sikri and spent nearly two years there. They talked to Akbar about Christianity. They also talked to Ulamas about the good aspects of the Christian religion.

Two more Jesuit groups were sent to India. They reached in the Lahore Mughal Court in 1591 and 1595. The Jesuits have recorded certain things from their private observations. They throw light on the character and thoughts about the Emperor. When there were public meetings, the Jesuits were given seats quite close to Akbar. He had very cordial relations with them

You can Download Through the Eyes of Travellers Questions and Answers, Notes, Plus Two History Chapter Wise Questions and Answers Kerala Chapter 5 help you to revise complete Syllabus and score more marks in your examinations.

Kerala Plus Two History Chapter Wise Questions and Answers Chapter 5 Through the Eyes of Travellers (Perceptions of Society)

Question 1.
The book of AIBiruni.
Answer:
Kitab-ul-Hind

Question 2.
Ibn Battuta’s home country.
Answer:
Morocco

Question 3.
What does Ulak mean?
Answer:
Horse Post (Mail)

Question 4.
The traveller who argued that in India there was no private land ownership.
Answer:
Bernier

Question 5.
The person who talked about Oriental Despotism:
Answer:
Montesquieu

Question 6.
The language in which Bemierwrote his book:
Answer:
English

Question 7.
The scholar who wrote Rihla and made it into book form:
Answer:
Ibn Juzayy

Question 8.
Travellers had different aims. Mention any four.
Answer:

1. Look for a  job
2. Escape from natural disaster
3. Merchants, traders, soldiers, pilgrims, priests.
4. Spirit of adventure

Question 9.
Mention the names of three travellers that visited. India between the 11^th and 17^th centuries.
Answer:

1. Al-Biruni came to India from Uzbekistan in the 11^thcentury.
2. Ibn Battuta came from Morocco in the 14^th century.
3. Francois Bemierfrom France came in the 17^th century.

Question 10.
Where did Al-Biruni live? How did he reach Gazni?
Answer:
AI-Biruni was born at Khwarisnr in Uzbekistan. Khwarism was an important centre of knowledge and so he got the best education possible. He was a linguist – a scholar in many languages. He knew Syriac, Arabic, Persian, Hebrew and Sanskrit. He was not familiar with Greek. But he had read the books of Plato and other Greek philosophers through Arabic translations.

In 1017 Sultan Mahmud Gazni attacked Khwarism. He made many people prisoners and took them to Gazni. Al-Biruni was one of them. Although he came to Gazni as a prisoner, he began to like the place. He entered the services of Mahmud Gazni and remained in Gazni until he died at the age of 70.

Question 11.
What were the two special features of Al-Biruni’s writing?
Answer:
Since he was a linguist, he was able to compare many languages and make correct translations. He translated many Sanskrit books. He translated the Sanskrit grammar book by Patanjali into Arabic. He translated the books of Euclid, the Greek Mathematician, into Sanskrit for use by his Brahmin friends.

Question 12.
Al-Biruni himself has specified the reasons behind his writing. What are they?
Answer:

1. As a help to those who wanted to discuss religious issues with Hindus.
2. As a storehouse for those who like to live with Hindus.

Question 13.
Ibn Battuta was a fearless traveller. Do you agree with this statement? Justify your answer.
Answer:
In those days travels were risky. There were robbers everywhere. Battuta himself was attacked by robbers a number of times. He gave preference to travel with his friends in a caravan. But this did not protect him from robbers. When he was going from Multan to Delhi, his caravan was attacked by robbers. Many of his co-travellers were killed. Ibn Battuta was severely wounded.

Ibn Battuta was an Enthusiastic and determined traveller: Difficulties along the way and the attacks from robbers did not stop him. Before he returned to Morocco, he travelled extensively in North Africa, West Asia, Central Asia, the Indian subcontinent, and China. It is believed that he reached even China.

Question 14.
Ai-Biruni faced some problems in understanding and writing about India. Point them out.
Answer:
Al-Biruni was conscious of the problems involved in understanding strange countries. He has mentioned three things that proved difficult:

1. The first problem was language – Sanskrit was quite different from Arabic and Persian languages. It was not easy to translate the concepts from one language into another.
2. The second problem was the differences in religions and rituals.
3. The third problem was the secluded people who were interested only in their things. They looked at foreigners with suspicion and were not willing to mingle with them freely.

Question 15.
What was the attitude of Al-Biruni to the Varna System? Give his arguments against untouchability.
Answer:
Al-Biruni accepted the Class distinctions as put forward by Brahmins. But he did not approve of the untouchability practised by them. He said that things that were impure would always try to get back their purity and succeed. For example, the sun purifies the air. The salt in sea-water prevents it from getting polluted. Without this natural purification, life would be impossible on this earth. He argued that untouchability is against natural laws.

The ideas of Al-Biruni exercised a powerful influence in the study of Sanskrit books. The rules regarding Varna System were formulated favouring the Brahmins. In real life, Varna was not so strict. For example, the antyaja (who were born outside the Varna System) were expected to work for the agriculturists and zamindars for small wages. Although they were socially suppressed, they were included in the economic activities.

Question 16.
Ibn Battuta has said that in India there was an excellent transport and communication system. Justify.
Answer:
The country had taken special measures to encourage traders. Along most trade routes, there were guest houses and inns. The postal system in India surprised Ityi Battuta. This helped the merchants to send their goods to distant places and also to repay-their debts. The postal system was efficient. From Sindhi it took only a few days for goods to reach Delhi. The news sent by the spies would reach the Sultan in just five days.

Ibn Battuta has said that there were two types of posts in India -the horse post and the footmen post. Horse post was called ‘uluq’. Royal horses were posted every 4 miles and his helped in making communication fast. The footmen-post was called ‘dawa’. ‘Dawa’ means 1/3 of a mile. Within a mile, there were 3 camps for the footmen.

Question 17.
There were serious differences between the observations of Ibn Battuta and Bernier. What are they?
Answer:

Question 18.
How do you look at the observation of Bernier Wlfo thought that the Oriental world is inferior and worse than the Western world? Justify your answer with examples.
Answer:
Bernier presented India on the model of the binary opposition. This way India was presented as directly opposite to Europe. He also presented the differences between India and Europe on a comparative scale. India was at the lowest rung of the ladder. In short, Bernier felt that India was inferior and worse than the. Western countries.

Question 19.
How did the words Hindu, Hindustan and Hindavi come into existence?
Answer:
The word Hindu came from an old Persian word. In the 6-5 centuries BC, this word was used to indicate the region lying east of the River Sindhu.

The Arabs continued using this expression. They called this region Al-Hind and the people ‘Hindi’. Later, the Turks started calling the people Hindu and their land as Hindustan and their language Hindavi. None of these was indicative of any religion. The word Hindu was used to indicate somebody’s religion much later.

Question 20.
Why did Bernier think that the royal ownership of land is highly destructive?
Answer:
He thought like that because:

1. Landowners could not pass on their land to their heirs.
2. They were not interested in maintaining or improving the land.
3. It prevented the landowners who wanted to bring prosperity to their land from taking positive steps and make long term investments.
4. It caused destruction of agriculture.
5. It led to the suppression of farmers.
6. It adversely affected the living standards of people.

Question 21.
What is the opinion of Bernier about the Middle Class? Can you agree with his argument?
Answer:
Bernier says that there was no Middle Class in India. There were only 2 classes – the poor and the rich. The poor were the majority and they were suppressed by the ruling minority. There were too poor and too rich people, but there was no middle state. Bernier did not have a good impression about the Mughal Empire. He assessed the Mughal King as follows:

1. The king was the king of beggars and uncultured people.
2. The Mughal cities and towns were in a state of ruin and the air there was polluted.
3. The fields were full of bushes and marshlands which caused diseases.

Question 22.
How did Bernier assess the Mughal Empire?
Answer:
Bernier said that the sole reason for the bad condition in the country was the royal ownership of the land. But modem historians do not agree with him. There is no indication in the Mughal documents that the land belonged to the lung. For example, Abdul Fasal, who was a scholar and historian during the reign of Akbar, said the land taxes were a reward for the sovereignty (supreme authority) of the king.

The king charged taxes from his subjects in return for the protection given to them. It was not taxes for the land owned by the ruler. Land tax was often high. That might be reason why the Europeans travellers thought that all the land belonged to the king. In fact, it was neither tax nor land tax. It was a tax on the crops.

Question 23.
Do you think the description of the cities by Bernier was an oversimplification of things? Why?
Answer:
In the 17^th century, 15% of Indians lived in cities. This was more in proportion than the people living in cities in Western Europe. In spite of that the Mughal cities were called camp towns by Bernier. Camp Towns are those that depend on the capital city for existence. During the Mughal rule, the capital was often shifted. Bernier says that when the capital was moved to a new city, it developed fast, but when the capital was moved from there, the city got ruined. Cities did not have strong social and economic bases. They relied on royal protection.

There is some kind of contradiction in what Bernier says about cities. He says the manufacturing sector was in ruin. But he says there were large scale exports of products. Bernier’s is an oversimplification of things. At that time there were manufacturing cities, trade cities, port cities, holy cities, and pilgrimage centres. Their existence shows the prosperity of the trading and working communities.

Among the merchant and trading communities, there were strong bonds, often blood relations. They had organized themselves into organizations based on caste and profession. In Western India, these trading communities were called Mahajans. Their top leader was Seth. The topmost one in the city was called nagarseth.

In the city, there were doctors (Hakim, Vaidyas), teachers (Pandits, Mullah), advocates (Vakil), Artists, Musicians and calligraphers. Some of them were working for the king. But most of them worked for the people in bazars and markets.

Question 24.
Ibn Battuta says there was distinction even among slaves. Based on this statement, assess the situation of the women slaves in the country.
Answer:
Battuta’s descriptions make it clear that there were discriminations even among slaves. Under the Sultan many women slaves served. Some of them were experts in dance and music. Once, Battuta had an opportunity to enjoy their performance, during the wedding celebrations of the Sultan’s sister.

Women slaves also worked as spies of the Sultan. The Sultan employed them to secretly observe the activities of his nobles. Slaves, both men and women, were generally employed for household work. Ibn Battuta says that to carry palanquins slaves were used. The price of women slaves bought for domestic work was very little. Most families could afford one or two of them.

European travellers often spoke highly of the behaviour shown to women. They did that to show the differences between the treatment given here to women and the treatment of women in European countries. Bemierwrote extensively about the practice of Sati. Bemierpoints out that all women did not observe Sati in the same manner. Some jumped into the pyre happily. But some had to be forced into the pyre.

Question 25.
“The descriptions of Bernier influenced Western theorists.” Examine the validity of this statement.
Answer:
Since the time of the writings of Bernier, they have influenced Western theorists. These descriptions were used by the French Philosopher Montesquieu to develop his concept of Oriental Despotism. This theory argues that the Eastern (Oriental) Kings had full authority over their subjects. The subjects often lived in poverty. All land belonged to the ruler. There . was no private property. Except the King and the lords, all lived difficult lives.

This concept was further developed by Karl Marx in the 19^th century. The concept he developed is called Asiatic Production Process. Marx argued that even before colonization, in India and in other parts of Asia, the ruling class acquired the profits coming from extra production. This helped in developing village communities that had self-governing powers and were considered equals.

But these communities, in spite of their autonomous status, were supervised by the Centre. Till the extra profits flowed into their hands, the rulers respected the autonomous village communities. Marx considered the system of production in Asia as stunted and unfit for growth.

Question 26.
Bernier attitude was a comparison between the East and the West. Prepare an essay containing is views and descriptions about India.
Answer:
Things to be considered:

1. The non-progressive East
2. Problem of land ownership
3. Middle Class
4. Village Communities
5. Mughal Nation
6. Cities
7. Sati

Ibn Battuta and Bemierwrote their travel notes with their different views. Ibn Battuta was attracted by the newness and strangeness of things. He wrote about all the things that interested and impressed him. But Bernier’s descriptions were quite different. He gave more importance to negative things. He was interested in the contrasts he found between the things in Europe, especially in his country, France, and here, he wanted to influence the rulers to take just decisions.

Bernier presented India on the model of the binary opposition. This way India was presented as directly opposite to Europe. He also presented the differences between India and Europe on a comparative scale. India was at the lowest rung of the ladder. In short, Bernier felt that India was inferior and worse than the Western countries.

Bernier talked about land ownership in India. There was no private ownership of land here. The land here belonged to the king. The king divided the land among his lords. This was not good as people did not take an interest in developing the land and invest in the land for long term purposes.

Bernier says that there was no Middle Class in India. There were only 2 classes – the poor and the rich. The poor were the majority and they were suppressed by the ruling minority. There were too poor and too rich people, but there was no middle state. Bernier did not have a good impression about the Mughal Empire and its rulers.

The village communities were poor. They were often mistreated by the cruel landlords. Since there was no private land, people were not willing to work hard. Taxes were heavy. On the whole life in the village was unpleasant.

Bernier thought that the Mughal rulers were more interested in their comfort and luxury. They were not much worried about the welfare of the subjects. To Bernier Indian cities were Camp Towns. But his views are contracted by modem historians Bemier himself wrote to say that there were large scale exports from the country. Naturally from camp towns, they could not have exported a lot of things. For that, they would need manufacturing cities, trade cities and port cities. One touching description in Bernier’s writing is the description of Sati.

The widow in his description was a girl of about 12. He witnessed this piteous incident J in Lahore. This is what he wrote: “In Lahore, I saw a girl of 12 giving up her life in the pyre of her husband. She came to the pyre like a dead person. She was trembling with fear. She was crying piteously. I can’t describe the pain she must have been experiencing then. With the help of an old woman, 4 Brahmins performed the rituals. That woman forced the girl to sit on the pyre. To prevent her from running away her hands and legs were tied. That poor girl was burnt alive.”

We must admit that Bernier was often prejudiced against the East. But his descriptions offer us valuable information about the society and its ways of life at the time of his visit to India.