1.Which of the following is NOT correct regarding king Harshavardhana?
A. Harshavardhana ruled nearly about 1400 years ago
B. Xuan Zang spent a lot of time at Harsha’s court
C. Harshavardhana’s court poet was Harishena
D. Harshacharita is a biography written on Harshavardhana
Solution
The correct answer is Harshavardhana’s court poet was Harishena.
Key Points
- Banabhatta was the court poet of king Harshavardhana. Banabhatta wrote Harshvardhan’s biography Harshacharita in Sanskrit.
- Harshavardhana was born in 590 AD.
- He belonged to the Vardhana dynasty.
- He ruled North India from 606 AD to 647 AD.
- Kannauj city, present-day Uttar Pradesh was his capital.
- The Chinese Traveller Xuanzang visited the king and wrote about his reign.
- Emperor Samudragupta’s court poet was Harisena.
Additional Information
- Harshavardhana was defeated by the south Indian emperor Pulkesin II of the Chalukya Dynasty in the Battle of Narmada.
- Harsha is widely believed to be the author of three Sanskrit plays “Ratnavali, Nagananda and Priyadarshika “
- The Chinese traveller Hiuen Tsang visited India during his reign.
- Harshavardhana established a large centre of knowledge which was called Bhadra Vihar at Kannauj.
- Banabhatta’s Harshacharita and an account of Hieun Tsang was the major source of information about Harsha’s period
2. Samudragupta’s mother belonged to which of the following gana?
A. Koliya
B. Lichchhavi
C. Sakya
D. Vajji
Solution
Correct Answer Lichchhavi
Samudragupta was the son of the Gupta king Chandragupta I and Queen Kumaradevi, who came from a Licchavi family.
Key Points:Samudragupta:
- Samudragupta (335-376 AD) was the great ruler of the Gupta dynasty, he was the successor of Chandragupta I.
- The most important source of information about the conquests of Samudragupta is the ‘Allahabad Pillar’ or ‘Prayag Prasasti’.
- So far the rulers of Dakshinapatha were concerned, Samudragupta maintained a submissive attitude towards them.
- There were twelve rulers who surrendered to Samudragupta after being defeated.
- He then allowed all of them to rule again.
- On accepting the subjugation of Samudragupta, all the South Indian kings were freed and also offered their daughters in marriage.
- They brought tribute, followed his orders, and attended his court.
Samudragupta was the son of the Gupta king Chandragupta I and Queen Kumaradevi, who came from a Licchavi family. His fragmentary Eran stone inscription states that his father selected him as the successor because of his “devotion, righteous conduct, and valour”.
3. Who among the following visited India during the reign of Harshavardhana?
A. Fa Hien
B. Xuan Zang (Hsuan Tsang)
C. Marco Polo
D. Ibn Battuta (Abu Abdullah Muhannad ibn Battutah)
Solution
Correct answer is Xuan Zang (Hsuan Tsang).
Key Points
- Hiuen-Tsang visited India during Harshavardhana’s rules.
- Huen Tsang or Xuanzang was a Chinese Buddhist Traveler who belongs to the early Tang times of China.
- He studied in Nalanda University.
- During his stay in India, he visited various places of northern and southern India.
Additional Information
- Fa Hien visited India in the early fifth century during the reign of Chandragupta II and entered here from the northwest and reached Pataliputra.
- Marco Polo landed on the Coromandel Coast of India in AD 1292 after a two-year trip by sea across the Indian Ocean on his way home from China.
- Ibn Battuta, was a Berber Maghrebi scholar and explorer who travelled extensively in the lands of Afro-Eurasia.
4. During the reign of which of the following Pallavas, Hiuen Tsang visited the Pallava capital Kanchi?
A. Mahendravarman I
B. Mahendravarman II
C. Narasimhavarman II
D. Narasimhavarman I21% answered correctly
Solution
The correct answer is Narasimhavarman I.
Key Points
Narasimhavarman I:
- Narasimhavarman I, also known as Mamalla Narasimhavarman, ruled from around 630 to 668 CE.
- He was the son and successor of Mahendravarman I.
- Narasimhavarman I was a powerful ruler who conducted successful military campaigns, including against the Chalukyas.
- It was during his reign that Hiuen Tsang, the Chinese Buddhist monk and traveler, visited the Pallava capital of Kanchi.
- Hiuen Tsang’s accounts provide valuable insights into the political, social, and cultural conditions of the time.
Additional Information
- Mahendravarman I:
- Mahendravarman I was a prominent ruler of the Pallava dynasty who ruled from around 600 to 630 CE.
- He was known for his patronage of art, literature, and architecture.
- During his reign, the foundation of the rock-cut temples of Mamallapuram (also known as Mahabalipuram) was laid.
- Mahendravarman II:
- Mahendravarman II, also known as Mahendravarman Pallava, ruled from around 668 to 672 CE.
- He was the son and successor of Narasimhavarman I.
- Mahendravarman II is known for his patronage of art and architecture, particularly the Shore Temple at Mamallapuram.
- Narasimhavarman II:
- Narasimhavarman II, also known as Rajasimha Pallava, ruled from around 700 to 728 CE.
- He was a prominent ruler of the Pallava dynasty and is remembered for his military conquests and architectural achievements.
5. Which of the following was known as an organisation of merchants in the inscriptions of the Pallavas?
A. Nagaram
B. Sangathana
C. Ur
D. Sabha
Solution
The correct answer is Nagaram.
Key Points
- The inscriptions of the Pallavas mention a number of local assemblies.
- These assemblies functioned through subcommittees, which looked after irrigation, agricultural operations, making roads, local temples, etc.
- The Nagaram was an organisation of merchants.
- It is likely that these assemblies were controlled by rich and powerful landowners and merchants.
- There were three types of places during this time:
- Ur – This is the place where the peasants lived and were headed by a headman who collected and paid the taxes.
- Sabha – Land granted to Brahmins and was also called Agrahara villages.
- Nagaram – Where merchants and traders resided
Additional Information
- The founder of the Pallava Dynasty was Simha Vishnu.
- The Pallava kings were great patrons of art and architecture and this society was based on Aryan culture.
- The Pallava kings worshipped Shiva and Vishnu.
- The Pallava capital was Kanchipuram.
6. Who among the following was the first ruler of the Gupta dynasty to adopt the grand title of Maharaj-adhiraja?
A. Skandagupta
B. Samudragupta
C. Chandragupta I
D. Vishnugupta
Solution
The correct answer is Chandragupta I.
Key Points
- Chandragupta I was the first ruler of the Gupta dynasty to adopt the title of Maharajadhiraja.
- Chandragupta I was a son of the Gupta king Ghatotkacha, and a grandson of the dynasty’s founder Gupta, both of whom are called Maharaja in the Allahabad Pillar inscription.
- He was also the father of Samudragupta, his next successor.
- Chandragupta I married the Lichchhavi princess Kumaradevi.
- Lichchhavi is the name of an ancient clan that was headquartered at Vaishali in present-day Bihar during the time of Gautama Buddha.
Additional Information
- Gupta Dynasty:
- The founder of the Gupta dynasty was Sri Gupta.
- He was succeeded by Ghatotkacha. These two were called Maharajas.
- The next ruler was Chandragupta I and he was the first to be called Maharajadhiraja.
- Chandragupta, I was succeeded by Samudragupta in about 330 A.D., who reigned for about fifty years.
- He was a great military genius and is said to have commanded a military campaign across the Deccan, and also subdued the forest tribes of the Vindhya region.
- Samudragupta’s successor Chandragupta II, also known as Vikramaditya, conquered the extensive territories of Malwa, Gujarat and Kathiawar.
- Some famousevents during the rule of Gupta Kings:
- The famous Chinese pilgrim, Fahien visited India during the reign of Chandragupta II.
- Out of his nine years of stay in India, he spent six years in the Gupta empire.
- Chandragupta II waged war against the Saka satraps of western India.
- Rudrasimha III, the last ruler of the Saka satrap was defeated, dethroned, and killed. His territories in western Malwa and the Kathiawar Peninsula were annexed into the Gupta Empire.
- Kumaragupta laid the foundation of Nalanda University.
7. Who among the following was the successor of Chandragupta I?
A. Vikramaditya
B. Samudragupta
C.Chandragupta II
D. Ghatotkacha
Solution
The correct answer is Samudragupta.
Key Points
- Samudragupta (335AD-380 AD)
- Chandragupta I, was succeeded by his son Samudragupta.
- Samudragupta was the greatest king of the Gupta dynasty.
- The most detailed and authentic record of his reign is preserved in the Prayaga Prasasti/Allahabad pillar inscription, composed by his court poet Harisena.
- Samudragupta’s military campaigns justify the description of him as the Napoleon of India by V.A. Smith.
- Titles: Kaviraja, Param Bhagavat, Ashvamedha- parikrama, Vikram Sarva-rajochchhetta only Gupta ruler had the title of Sarva-raj-ochchhetta.
- Allahabad pillar inscriptions mention the title Dharma Prachar Bandhu, i.e. he was the upholder of Brahmanical religion.
Additional Information
- Chandragupta II
- Chandragupta II, also called Vikramaditya, powerful emperor (reigned c. 380–c. 415 ce) of northern India.
- Ghatotkacha
- Ghatotkacha was the second ruler of the Gupta Dynasty. He was the successor of his father Sri Gupta. He ruled between 280 AD to 319 AD.
- Vikramaditya
- Vikramaditya ruled over parts of India in the 1st century BCE, and popular culture credits him with starting the Vikrama Samvat era in 57 BCE.
8. ‘Prayag Prashasti’ was composed in ________.
A. Prakrit
B. Pali
C. Hindi
D. Sanskrit
Solution
The correct answer is Sanskrit.
Key Points
- Prayag is an ancient name of Allahabad as it is the meeting place or ‘Sangam’ of rivers Ganga, Yamuna, and Sarasvati.
- Prashasti means “in praise of someone”.
- Prayag Prashasti is the name given to the Allahabad Pillar.
- It is an Ashokan Stambh and has 4 different inscriptions.
Additional Information
- Harisena, also Harishena or Hirisena, was a 4th-century Sanskrit poet, panegyrist, and government minister.
- He was an important figure in the court of the Gupta emperor, Samudragupta.
- His most famous poem, written c. 345 CE, describes the bravery of Samudragupta and is inscribed on the Prayag–Prasasti inscription (Allahabad Pillar Inscription).
- Thus, we can say that Harisena wrote Prayag Prashasti.
9. Which of the following titles was held by Samudragupta, a ruler of the Gupta Dynasty?
A. Jahan Panah
B. Sahib-e-Qiran
C. Kaviraja
D. Mahendraitya
Solution
The correct answer is Kaviraja.
Key Points
- Samudragupta was the second emperor of the Gupta Empire of ancient India and is regarded among the greatest rulers of the dynasty.
- As a son of the Gupta emperor Chandragupta I and the Licchavi princess Kumaradevi, he greatly expanded his dynasty’s political and military power.
- Samudragupta was the first significant ruler of the Gupta Dynasty.
- Samudragupta was not power-hungry. But like Napoleon, he was never defeated nor sent to exile or jailed.
- Gupta King Samudragupta loved to play the Indian lute and love poems. He not only penned many poems himself but also patronized the poets. Due to these, he was titled Kaviraj or King of Poets.
Additional Information
- Jahanpanah was a fortified city built by Muhammad bin Tughlaq to combat the Mongol attacks. The city has now been ruined but still, people can find walls and a few structures built inside the fort. Jahanpanah means Refuge of the world.
- This imperial title means “The Lord of the Auspicious Conjunction in Persianized Arabic and refers to a ruler whose horoscope features particular conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn, portending a reign of world conquest and justice.
- Kumargupta was the successor of Chandragupta II and he assumed the title “Mahendraditya”. He expanded the empire further by acquiring provinces of Western India. He enjoyed a reign of about forty years from 414 AD to 455 AD.
10. Who among the following Gupta rulers is known as the ‘Napoleon of India’?
A. Vishnugupta
B. Skandagupta
C. Samudragupta
D. Chandragupta I
Solution
The correct answer is Samudragupta.
Key Points
- Samudragupta:
- He ruled from 335 AD to 380 AD.
- Samudragupta was the greatest king of the Gupta dynasty.
- The most detailed and authentic record of Samudragupta’s reign is preserved in the Prayaga Prasasti/Allahabad pillar inscription, composed by his court poet Harisena.
- Samudragupta’s military campaigns justify the description of him as the Napoleon of India by V.A. Smith.
- He assumed titles such as Kaviraja Param Bhagavat Ashvamedha– parakrama Vikram Sarva-rajochchhetta only Gupta ruler had the title of Sarva-raj-ochchhetta.
Additional Information
- Vishnugupta
- Vishnugupta was the last known ruler of the Gupta Dynasty.
- After the reign of Skandgupta, the Gupta dynasty started to decline.
- The successors of Skandgupta were unable to consolidate the position of the empire.
- The successors of Skandgupta were very less known rulers and Vishnugupta was one among them, and he was also the last ruler of the Gupta Dynasty.
- Skandagupta
- Skandagupta repulsed the ferocious Hunas’ attacks twice.
- The heroic deed entitled him the title Vikramaditya (Bhitari Stone Inscription).
- He was the last ruler of the Gupta dynasty.
- Chandragupta I:
- He was the first Gupta ruler to assume the title of Maharajadhiraja.
