Class 12 History Chapter 3 — Kinship, Caste and Class: Early Societies (c. 600 BCE – 600 CE)
Welcome to HSLC Guru. This article provides complete English-medium ASSEB Class 12 History solutions for Chapter 3 (NCERT Theme 3) — Social Histories: Using the Mahabharata. The chapter traces how historians reconstruct the social fabric of early India — kinship, marriage, gender, varna and caste — by reading the Sanskrit epic Mahabharata alongside the Dharmasutras, Manusmriti, inscriptions and archaeological evidence (c. 600 BCE – 600 CE).
About the Chapter
This chapter uses the Mahabharata — one of the richest texts of the subcontinent — to study patterns of kinship, the rules of marriage, the ideal of patriliny, the varna order codified in the Dharmasutras and Manusmriti, and the place of women in society. It also examines how historians read texts critically, how the Critical Edition of the Mahabharata was prepared at the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute (BORI), Pune (1919–1966) under V. S. Sukthankar, and how social norms laid down by Brahmanas were often resisted, ignored or modified in practice.
Summary
The Mahabharata is a Sanskrit epic of about 100,000 verses (also called the Shatasahasri Samhita), composed and edited over roughly a thousand years (c. 500 BCE onward), with the central war narrative possibly going back to a real Kuru–Panchala conflict. Its present form was reached by c. 400 CE. Between 1919 and 1966, a team of scholars led by V. S. Sukthankar at the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Pune, prepared the Critical Edition by collating thousands of manuscripts in different scripts from across the subcontinent, identifying common verses and printing regional variations in the footnotes — a project that filled 13 thick volumes and revealed both a stable Sanskrit core and immense regional variation.
Historians use the epic to study kinship — particularly patriliny, the ideal that sons inherit their father’s resources and the throne. The Kuru lineage and the rivalry of the Kauravas and Pandavas illustrate this, but the epic itself records exceptions: rulers without sons, brothers succeeding brothers, and women like Satyavati shaping succession. Marriage rules sought to keep land and resources within the patrilineage. Brahmanical texts list eight forms of marriage, of which the first four (Brahma, Daiva, Arsha, Prajapatya) were “approved” and the last four (Asura, Gandharva, Rakshasa, Paishacha) were “condemned” though recognised. Rules of endogamy (marriage within the kin/varna group), exogamy (marriage outside the gotra) and polygyny (a man having more than one wife) shaped practice. The gotra rule, attached to Brahmanas after c. 1000 BCE, required that women take their husband’s gotra and that members of the same gotra could not marry.
The social order was organised around varnashrama dharma — four varnas (Brahmana, Kshatriya, Vaishya, Shudra) and four ashramas (Brahmacharya, Grihastha, Vanaprastha, Sannyasa). The Manusmriti (c. 200 BCE – 200 CE), the most important Dharmashastra, laid down occupations, status and punishments based on varna. Brahmanas devised strategies to enforce the system: claiming divine origin (the Purusha sukta of the Rigveda), advising kings to enforce varna rules, and persuading people that status was determined by birth. Yet many groups — forest dwellers like the Nishadas, “untouchable” Chandalas, non-Kuru and non-Sanskritic populations of the Deccan and the south — did not fit the four-varna grid; they were either declared mlechchhas, classed as mixed (sankirna) jatis, or absorbed as new jatis. Resources and power created another axis: a man’s class depended on land, cattle and trade as much as on his varna, and the Mahabharata records repeated tensions between Brahmanical norms and the reality of Kshatriya kings, wealthy Vaishyas and powerful chiefs of so-called low birth.
Gender is a central concern. Draupadi‘s polyandrous marriage to the five Pandavas, her humiliation at the dice game and her sharp questioning of dharma, and Gandhari‘s grief and curse after the war, show that women appear in the epic as both subordinated and as moral agents. The Manusmriti denied women independent property but recognised stridhana (gifts received at marriage) as a woman’s own. Daughters had no claim on the patrimony, but mothers of sons and chief queens carried significant influence. By reading the epic against the law-books and inscriptions, historians conclude that the rules were prescriptive ideals — they were contested, evaded and reshaped by ordinary people across the subcontinent.
সাৰাংশ (Assamese Summary)
মহাভাৰত প্ৰায় এক লাখ শ্লোকৰ এক বিশাল সংস্কৃত মহাকাব্য — ইয়াক শতসাহস্ৰী সংহিতাও বোলা হয়। ই খ্ৰীষ্টপূৰ্ব ৫০০ চনৰ পৰা খ্ৰীষ্টীয় ৪০০ চনৰ ভিতৰত ৰচনা হয়। ১৯১৯–১৯৬৬ চনত পুনাৰ ভাণ্ডাৰকাৰ ওৰিয়েণ্টেল ৰিচাৰ্চ ইনষ্টিটিউট (BORI)ত ভি. এছ. সুকঠাঙ্কৰৰ নেতৃত্বত হাজাৰ হাজাৰ পাণ্ডুলিপি সংগ্ৰহ কৰি মহাভাৰতৰ ক্ৰিটিকেল এডিচন প্ৰস্তুত কৰা হয়। ইতিহাসবিদসকলে এই মহাকাব্যৰ পৰা প্ৰাচীন ভাৰতৰ সমাজ — পিতৃতান্ত্ৰিকতা (পেট্ৰিলিনি), বিবাহৰ আঠ প্ৰকাৰ (ব্ৰাহ্ম, দৈৱ, আৰ্ষ, প্ৰাজাপত্য, আসুৰ, গান্ধৰ্ব, ৰাক্ষস, পৈশাচ), গোত্ৰ নিয়ম, এণ্ডোগেমি, এক্সোগেমি আৰু পলিগেইনিৰ বিষয়ে অধ্যয়ন কৰে। সমাজ চাৰিটা বৰ্ণ (ব্ৰাহ্মণ, ক্ষত্ৰিয়, বৈশ্য, শূদ্ৰ) আৰু চাৰিটা আশ্ৰমত বিভক্ত আছিল আৰু মনুস্মৃতিয়ে এই বৰ্ণাশ্ৰম ধৰ্ম প্ৰতিষ্ঠা কৰে। নিষাদ, চণ্ডাল, ম্লেচ্ছ আদি বহু গোষ্ঠী এই চাৰি বৰ্ণৰ বাহিৰত আছিল। দ্ৰৌপদী, গান্ধাৰীৰ ভূমিকাৰ মাজেৰে নাৰীৰ স্থিতি বুজা যায় — তেওঁলোকৰ স্ত্ৰীধনৰ অধিকাৰ আছিল কিন্তু পৈতৃক সম্পত্তিত নহয়। ব্ৰাহ্মণসকলে প্ৰণীত আদৰ্শ আৰু সাধাৰণ মানুহৰ অভ্যাসৰ মাজত প্ৰায়ে পাৰ্থক্য আছিল।
NCERT Textbook Questions and Answers
Q1. Explain why patriliny may have been particularly important among elite families.
Answer: Patriliny — tracing descent from father to son — was especially important for elite families because it secured the smooth transmission of land, throne, titles, cattle and political authority within the lineage. Among ruling Kshatriyas, the eldest son inherited the kingdom and continued the dynasty (e.g., the Kuru and Panchala lineages of the Mahabharata). Among rich Brahmana and Vaishya families, patriliny preserved property, ritual rights and family status. It also helped them perform shraddha rites for ancestors, since only sons could offer pinda. Where there was no son, problems of succession arose, as seen in the Kuru lineage itself — Vichitravirya died sonless and his nephews had to be born through niyoga.
Q2. Discuss whether kings in early states were invariably Kshatriyas.
Answer: The Dharmasutras and Dharmashastras insisted that only Kshatriyas could be kings, but historical evidence shows the rule was often broken. The Mauryas, who ruled one of the largest empires, were of obscure social origin — Buddhist sources describe them as Kshatriyas while Brahmanical sources call them low-born. The Shungas and Kanvas were Brahmanas. The Shakas, Kushanas and Indo-Greeks were “outsiders” treated as mlechchhas yet ruled large kingdoms; Rudradaman of the Shaka line called himself a mahakshatrapa and adopted Sanskrit. The Satavahanas were probably Brahmanas (Gautamiputra Satakarni called himself a “unique Brahmana”) yet performed Kshatriya functions. Hence, kingship was determined by power and resources, not strictly by varna.
Q3. Compare and contrast the dharma or norms mentioned in the stories of Drona, Hidimba and Matanga.
Answer: Drona and Ekalavya: Drona, a Brahmana teacher, refused to teach archery to Ekalavya, a Nishada, because the Brahmanical norm reserved Kshatriya skills for the upper varnas. When Ekalavya learnt on his own and surpassed Arjuna, Drona demanded his right thumb as guru-dakshina. The story upholds varna hierarchy. Bhima and Hidimba: Bhima, a Kshatriya, married Hidimba, a Rakshasi (forest-dweller), and their son Ghatotkacha became a great warrior who fought for the Pandavas. The story shows that, in practice, marriage and alliance with non-varna groups was tolerated. Matanga: Matanga, born of a Chandala woman but raised as a Brahmana, performed severe austerities to become a Brahmana but was refused by Indra because varna was determined by birth. Together, the stories show that the Brahmanical ideal was rigid in theory (Drona, Matanga) but flexible in social reality (Hidimba).
Q4. In what ways was the Buddhist theory of a social contract different from the Brahmanical view of society derived from the Purusha sukta?
Answer: The Purusha sukta of the Rigveda explained the four varnas as divinely created from the body of the primeval being Purusha — Brahmana from his mouth, Kshatriya from his arms, Vaishya from his thighs and Shudra from his feet — making the social order eternal, divine and unchangeable. The Buddhist Sutta Pitaka (Digha Nikaya, Aggañña Sutta) offered a contrasting view: human beings originally lived equally and happily, but as they grew greedy and possessive, they fell into disputes over property; they then collectively chose a leader (the Mahasammata, “Great Elect”) to maintain order in return for a share of grain. Society was thus seen as a human, contractual arrangement based on consent and necessity, not as a divine creation. This challenged the inevitability and sacredness of the varna hierarchy.
Q5. The above is an excerpt from the Mahabharata, describing Yudhisthira, the eldest Pandava, after he had been crowned king. Discuss the values expected of a king from this excerpt and from your own knowledge of the chapter.
Answer: The excerpt and the chapter together suggest that a king was expected to: (i) protect his subjects (raksha) and ensure justice; (ii) follow rajadharma — uphold varnashrama, defend Brahmanas, support the helpless; (iii) be generous with gifts (dana), conduct sacrifices like the Rajasuya and Ashvamedha, and reward learning; (iv) lead the army personally, be valiant and truthful; (v) respect elders and follow the advice of councillors and Brahmana priests; (vi) avoid excess in pleasures and be self-controlled. Yudhisthira is described as kind, just, truthful and devoted to dharma — the ideal king of the Brahmanical tradition.
Q6. This is a statement from the Mahabharata: “Whatever a wife earns through her own work belongs to her husband.” Discuss this in the context of the rights of women.
Answer: The statement reflects the patriarchal order where a woman, especially a wife, was placed under the authority of her husband, and her labour and earnings were considered his property. The Manusmriti declared that a woman should be under her father in childhood, her husband in youth and her son in old age. However, the law also recognised stridhana — gifts received at marriage from parents and kin — as the wife’s own property, which her husband could not claim except in emergencies. Daughters had no share in the patrimony, but the mother’s stridhana could be inherited by children, especially daughters. So women had limited but real economic rights. In the epic, queens like Draupadi own jewellery and slaves, and Gandhari and Kunti exercise moral and political authority over their sons — showing that ideology and practice did not always match.
Q7. Discuss whether the Mahabharata could have been the work of a single author.
Answer: The Mahabharata is unlikely to be the work of a single author. Tradition ascribes it to Vyasa, but the text itself describes how it grew from 8,800 verses (Jaya) to 24,000 (Bharata) and finally about 100,000 verses (Mahabharata) — the Shatasahasri Samhita. It includes many strands — heroic narrative, didactic sections like the Bhagavad Gita and Shanti Parva, genealogies, geography, philosophy and law — composed in different styles over nearly a thousand years (c. 500 BCE – c. 400 CE). The original story may have been composed by charioteer-bards (sutas), then written down by Brahmanas during the Maurya period, expanded between 200 BCE and 200 CE, and reworked till the Gupta age. The Critical Edition shows variations across regions and scripts. Therefore, multiple authorship spread over centuries is the only reasonable conclusion.
Q8. How important were gender differences in early societies? Give reasons for your answer.
Answer: Gender differences were extremely important and shaped almost every social institution. (i) Inheritance — sons inherited paternal property; daughters had only stridhana. (ii) Marriage — fathers chose grooms; women were “given” in kanyadana. (iii) Polygyny was permitted for men but polyandry was rare and exceptional (Draupadi). (iv) Education — Vedic study was largely closed to women and Shudras. (v) Public roles — kingship, priesthood and warfare were male preserves. (vi) Punishments — the Manusmriti prescribed harsher penalties for women who violated norms. Yet the epic also records women’s voices: Draupadi questioning the dice game, Gandhari cursing Krishna, Kunti negotiating succession. So gender hierarchy was central, but it was contested.
Q9. Discuss the evidence that suggests that Brahmanical prescriptions about kinship and marriage were not universally followed.
Answer: Several pieces of evidence show that Brahmanical norms were ideals, not facts: (i) Draupadi’s polyandry, condemned by Manusmriti, is recorded approvingly in the epic. (ii) Bhima’s marriage with Hidimba, a Rakshasi, breaks varna endogamy. (iii) The Satavahana queen Nayanika married a man of the same gotra in some inscriptions, breaking gotra exogamy. (iv) Niyoga (levirate) was accepted to produce heirs (Vichitravirya’s wives by Vyasa). (v) Matrilineal succession existed in parts of the south. (vi) Many ruling dynasties were not Kshatriyas. (vii) Stridhana and queens’ independent donations (recorded in inscriptions) show that women had economic power despite legal subordination. These cases prove that the rules were prescriptive ideals shaped by Brahmanas, not universal practice.
Q10. What were the strategies adopted by the Brahmanas to enforce the norms of varna order?
Answer: The Brahmanas adopted four main strategies: (i) Divine origin — they cited the Purusha sukta and other texts to claim that varnas were created by god, hence eternal and unchangeable. (ii) Royal enforcement — they advised kings (e.g., through the Manusmriti) to punish violators and uphold varna duties as the king’s first duty. (iii) Birth-based status — they argued that varna was determined by birth, not by occupation or merit, and prescribed elaborate rules of purity, marriage and food. (iv) Accommodation — they accepted new groups (forest tribes, foreign rulers, occupational groups) into the system as new jatis, often classed as sankirna (mixed) or as Kshatriyas through ritual purification, thereby extending varna influence without breaking its framework.
Q11. What evidence from the Mahabharata suggests that varna and jati distinctions were not absolute?
Answer: The epic itself records many crossings of varna and jati boundaries: Karna, raised by a charioteer (suta), proved a great Kshatriya warrior; Vyasa, son of Satyavati (a fisherwoman), composed the epic and fathered the Kuru princes; Vidura, son of a maid, became chief minister; Bhima married a Rakshasi; the Pandavas in exile lived among Brahmanas, hunters and forest-folk; Ghatotkacha, son of a Rakshasi, fought as a hero. Inscriptions confirm this fluidity — non-Kshatriya rulers (Mauryas, Satavahanas, Shungas), foreign kings adopting Sanskrit and Hindu rituals, and forest groups absorbed as new jatis. The boundaries were ideologically rigid but socially porous.
Q12. (Map work) On an outline map of India, mark the major sites or regions associated with the Mahabharata story — Hastinapur, Indraprastha, Kurukshetra, Panchala, Mathura, Magadha, Gandhara.
Answer: On the outline map: Hastinapur (near Meerut, UP) — Kuru capital; Indraprastha (Delhi region) — Pandava capital; Kurukshetra (Haryana) — battlefield; Panchala (north of the Ganga, present western UP) — Drupada’s kingdom and Draupadi’s birthplace; Mathura (UP) — Krishna’s birthplace; Magadha (south Bihar) — Jarasandha’s kingdom; Gandhara (north-west, Peshawar valley) — Gandhari’s homeland.
Short Answer Questions
Q1. What is the Critical Edition of the Mahabharata?
Answer: The Critical Edition is the scholarly text of the Mahabharata prepared by V. S. Sukthankar and a team at the Bhandarkar Oriental Research Institute, Pune, between 1919 and 1966. By collating thousands of manuscripts in different scripts, the team identified verses common to all and printed regional variations in the footnotes. It was published in 13 volumes.
Q2. What is patriliny?
Answer: Patriliny is the system of tracing descent from father to son, grandson and so on. Property, name and status pass through the male line.
Q3. What is gotra?
Answer: A gotra is a Brahmanical lineage group whose members are believed to be descended from a common ancestor (a Vedic seer). Two rules apply: (i) at marriage, the wife adopts her husband’s gotra; (ii) members of the same gotra cannot marry each other.
Q4. What is endogamy and exogamy?
Answer: Endogamy is marriage within a defined group (caste, varna, kin); exogamy is marriage outside one’s gotra or kin group. Brahmanical marriage required varna endogamy and gotra exogamy.
Q5. Define polygyny and polyandry.
Answer: Polygyny — a man having more than one wife at the same time (common among kings and the wealthy). Polyandry — a woman having more than one husband at the same time (rare; Draupadi is the famous example).
Q6. What is stridhana?
Answer: Stridhana refers to gifts (jewellery, clothes, sometimes land) received by a woman at her marriage from her parents and relatives. According to the Manusmriti, this property was hers and was inherited by her children, especially daughters.
Q7. Who were the Chandalas?
Answer: The Chandalas were a community placed at the bottom of the Brahmanical social order, considered “untouchable” because of their occupations (handling corpses, executions, scavenging). The Manusmriti prescribed that they live outside the village, eat from broken vessels and wear clothes of the dead.
Q8. Who was Manu and what is the Manusmriti?
Answer: Manu is a legendary law-giver. The Manusmriti (c. 200 BCE – 200 CE) is the most important Dharmashastra; it codifies rules of varnashrama, marriage, inheritance, kingship and crime in about 2,685 verses.
Q9. What is varnashrama dharma?
Answer: Varnashrama dharma is the Brahmanical ideal that combines the four varnas (Brahmana, Kshatriya, Vaishya, Shudra) with the four ashramas (Brahmacharya, Grihastha, Vanaprastha, Sannyasa). Each person had to perform the duties of his varna at every stage of life.
Q10. What were the Dharmasutras and Dharmashastras?
Answer: Dharmasutras (c. 600–300 BCE) and Dharmashastras (c. 200 BCE – 600 CE) are Sanskrit texts composed by Brahmanas laying down rules (norms) for social conduct, marriage, inheritance, kingship and ritual. The Manusmriti is the best-known Dharmashastra.
Q11. Who was Karna in the Mahabharata?
Answer: Karna was the son of Kunti and Surya, born before her marriage and abandoned. He was raised by a suta (charioteer) couple. Although he proved an outstanding warrior, he was insulted at the tournament because of his low birth — illustrating how birth, not merit, decided status.
Q12. Why is the Mahabharata also called the Shatasahasri Samhita?
Answer: Because it has about one lakh (one hundred thousand) verses — shatasahasri meaning “of a hundred thousand” and samhita meaning “compilation”.
Q13. What was niyoga?
Answer: Niyoga was a custom by which a sonless widow was permitted to bear a son with her husband’s brother or another man chosen by the elders, to continue the patriline. In the Mahabharata, Vyasa fathered Dhritarashtra and Pandu through niyoga with the wives of Vichitravirya.
Q14. Who were mlechchhas?
Answer: Mlechchhas were people who did not speak Sanskrit and did not follow Brahmanical norms — including foreigners (Shakas, Yavanas, Kushanas) and forest tribes. The term marked them as outside the four-varna order.
Q15. What is the Bhagavad Gita?
Answer: The Bhagavad Gita is a section of the Bhishma Parva of the Mahabharata, in which Krishna instructs Arjuna on dharma, karma and devotion on the eve of the Kurukshetra war. It is regarded as a key text of Hindu philosophy.
Long Answer Questions
Q1. Describe the eight forms of marriage mentioned in the Dharmasutras.
Answer: Brahmanical texts list eight forms. The first four were considered “approved” (right) and the last four “condemned” but recognised. (1) Brahma — the father gives his daughter, decked with ornaments, to a learned Brahmana; the highest form. (2) Daiva — the daughter is given to a priest as part of a sacrifice. (3) Arsha — the groom gives a cow and a bull to the bride’s father (a token gift). (4) Prajapatya — the father gives the bride saying “May you both perform your duties together”; no exchange. (5) Asura — the groom pays bride-price (“buys” the bride). (6) Gandharva — the bride and groom marry by mutual love and consent (love marriage). (7) Rakshasa — the bride is taken by force after defeating her kin (capture). (8) Paishacha — the man seduces the woman while she is asleep, intoxicated or unconscious; the worst form. Approved forms preserved patriliny and family honour; condemned forms were tolerated mainly because they actually occurred among Kshatriyas, traders and other groups.
Q2. Explain the varna and ashrama systems with their duties.
Answer: The varna system divided society into four hereditary groups. (i) Brahmanas — study and teach the Vedas, perform sacrifices, give and accept gifts. (ii) Kshatriyas — protect people, give gifts, perform sacrifices, study the Vedas, fight wars. (iii) Vaishyas — engage in agriculture, cattle-rearing and trade; perform sacrifices, study Vedas. (iv) Shudras — serve the other three varnas. The ashrama system divided a man’s life into four stages: Brahmacharya (student), Grihastha (householder), Vanaprastha (forest hermit) and Sannyasa (renunciation). Together they formed varnashrama dharma. The system was patriarchal — women and Shudras were excluded from the higher ashramas. The ideal was prescriptive; in practice, occupations and life-stages were not so neatly followed.
Q3. Discuss the role of women in the Mahabharata using Draupadi and Gandhari as examples.
Answer: Women in the epic were both subordinated to men and capable of remarkable agency. Draupadi, daughter of Drupada, was won by Arjuna at her swayamvara and married all five Pandavas — a polyandry that violated Brahmanical norms but is presented as virtuous. After the dice game in which Yudhisthira staked her, she was dragged to the assembly and questioned the legitimacy of her wager — challenging the patriarchal authority of the Kuru elders and demanding justice. Her humiliation became the moral cause of the war. Gandhari, princess of Gandhara and wife of Dhritarashtra, blindfolded herself for life out of devotion. After the war, when all her sons were killed, she cursed Krishna and the Yadava clan, predicting their destruction; her curse came true. Both women show that, while patriarchy denied women political authority and inheritance rights, queens commanded moral, ritual and emotional power that even kings and gods had to reckon with.
Q4. How did Brahmanas accommodate non-Kuru and non-Sanskritic people into the social order?
Answer: Beyond the Kuru-Panchala heartland, the subcontinent contained countless groups — forest dwellers, pastoralists, foreign rulers (Yavanas, Shakas, Kushanas), Dravidian-speaking populations of the south, and tribal communities of the Deccan and east. Brahmanas dealt with this diversity in several ways: (i) Mlechchha label — those who did not speak Sanskrit or follow varna norms were called mlechchhas and excluded. (ii) Sankirna jatis — mixed jatis were said to arise from inter-varna unions (e.g., Chandala from Brahmana woman and Shudra man) and assigned occupations and rank. (iii) New jatis — non-varna communities were absorbed as occupational jatis within the broad varna grid. (iv) Kshatriyahood for kings — powerful foreign rulers (like the Shakas under Rudradaman, Kushanas, Satavahanas) were accommodated as Kshatriyas through gifts, Sanskrit panegyrics and ritual purification (vratyastoma). (v) Forest peoples — groups like the Nishadas were given a place outside the varna order but were tied to Brahmanical society through tribute, service and shared myths.
Q5. How do historians use texts like the Mahabharata as a historical source? What problems do they face?
Answer: Historians treat the Mahabharata as a layered text reflecting the society in which each layer was composed. They examine: language (Sanskrit, then later regional accretions), authorship (charioteer-bards, then Brahmanas), genres (didactic, narrative, descriptive), date (c. 500 BCE – c. 400 CE), and audience (kings, priests, common people). They cross-check epic statements with the Dharmashastras, Buddhist and Jaina texts, inscriptions, coins and archaeology. Problems: (i) the text is composite, with many layers and interpolations; (ii) verses contradict each other; (iii) it is a Brahmanical-elite text and silences women, Shudras and tribal voices; (iv) regional variations are huge — even the Critical Edition could not eliminate them; (v) the line between myth, ideology and historical fact is hard to draw; (vi) translations into modern languages can distort meaning. Despite these difficulties, the epic remains an unmatched source for kinship, gender, varna and political ideas of the period.
Eight Forms of Marriage — Summary Table
| No. | Form | Description | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Brahma | Father gifts his decked daughter to a learned Brahmana | Approved |
| 2 | Daiva | Daughter given to a priest at a sacrifice as dakshina | Approved |
| 3 | Arsha | Groom gives a cow and a bull to the bride’s father | Approved |
| 4 | Prajapatya | Father gives daughter saying “perform dharma together” | Approved |
| 5 | Asura | Groom pays bride-price (“purchase” of bride) | Condemned but recognised |
| 6 | Gandharva | Mutual consent and love marriage | Condemned but recognised |
| 7 | Rakshasa | Bride seized by force after a fight | Condemned but recognised |
| 8 | Paishacha | Bride seduced when asleep, intoxicated or unconscious | Worst form, strongly condemned |
Multiple Choice Questions (MCQs)
1. The Mahabharata is also known as:
(a) Sahasra Samhita (b) Shatasahasri Samhita (c) Dasasahasri Samhita (d) Lakshasamhita
Answer: (b) Shatasahasri Samhita
2. The Critical Edition of the Mahabharata was prepared at:
(a) Asiatic Society, Kolkata (b) BORI, Pune (c) Sanskrit College, Varanasi (d) Deccan College, Pune
Answer: (b) BORI, Pune
3. The Critical Edition project was led by:
(a) R. C. Dutt (b) V. S. Sukthankar (c) D. D. Kosambi (d) Romila Thapar
Answer: (b) V. S. Sukthankar
4. The Critical Edition project lasted:
(a) 1909–1956 (b) 1919–1966 (c) 1925–1972 (d) 1900–1947
Answer: (b) 1919–1966
5. The Manusmriti was compiled approximately between:
(a) 600–500 BCE (b) 200 BCE – 200 CE (c) 400–600 CE (d) 600–800 CE
Answer: (b) 200 BCE – 200 CE
6. The hymn that explains the divine origin of varnas is the:
(a) Gayatri mantra (b) Purusha sukta (c) Nasadiya sukta (d) Hiranyagarbha sukta
Answer: (b) Purusha sukta
7. According to the Purusha sukta, the Kshatriya was created from:
(a) Mouth (b) Arms (c) Thighs (d) Feet
Answer: (b) Arms
8. The number of forms of marriage mentioned in the Dharmasutras is:
(a) Four (b) Six (c) Eight (d) Ten
Answer: (c) Eight
9. The marriage form in which bride-price is paid is:
(a) Brahma (b) Asura (c) Gandharva (d) Rakshasa
Answer: (b) Asura
10. The polyandrous wife of the five Pandavas was:
(a) Kunti (b) Madri (c) Draupadi (d) Subhadra
Answer: (c) Draupadi
11. Gandhari was the princess of:
(a) Panchala (b) Madra (c) Gandhara (d) Magadha
Answer: (c) Gandhara
12. The mother of the Pandavas Yudhishthira, Bhima and Arjuna was:
(a) Madri (b) Kunti (c) Gandhari (d) Satyavati
Answer: (b) Kunti
13. Karna was raised by a:
(a) Brahmana (b) Charioteer (suta) (c) Trader (d) Hunter
Answer: (b) Charioteer (suta)
14. The custom by which a widow bore a son with her husband’s brother is called:
(a) Niyoga (b) Pratiloma (c) Anuloma (d) Sati
Answer: (a) Niyoga
15. The capital of the Kuru kingdom was:
(a) Indraprastha (b) Hastinapur (c) Mathura (d) Kampilya
Answer: (b) Hastinapur
16. The Pandavas built their capital at:
(a) Hastinapur (b) Indraprastha (c) Kurukshetra (d) Magadha
Answer: (b) Indraprastha
17. Property received by a woman at marriage is called:
(a) Stridhana (b) Dakshina (c) Kanyadana (d) Dana
Answer: (a) Stridhana
18. A gotra rule states that:
(a) Members of the same gotra must marry each other (b) Members of the same gotra cannot marry each other (c) Wife retains her father’s gotra (d) Gotra can be changed at will
Answer: (b) Members of the same gotra cannot marry each other
19. According to the Manusmriti, the Chandalas had to live:
(a) In the king’s palace (b) Outside the village (c) In the temple (d) In the marketplace
Answer: (b) Outside the village
20. The author traditionally credited with the Mahabharata is:
(a) Valmiki (b) Vyasa (c) Kalidasa (d) Patanjali
Answer: (b) Vyasa
21. The Aggañña Sutta, which describes a social contract, belongs to:
(a) Brahmanical tradition (b) Buddhist tradition (c) Jaina tradition (d) Ajivika tradition
Answer: (b) Buddhist tradition
22. The Pandava prince who married the Rakshasi Hidimba was:
(a) Yudhishthira (b) Bhima (c) Arjuna (d) Nakula
Answer: (b) Bhima
23. The Satavahana queen who recorded her gifts in inscriptions was:
(a) Prabhavati (b) Nayanika (c) Kumaradevi (d) Tishyarakshita
Answer: (b) Nayanika
24. The Bhagavad Gita is a section of which parva of the Mahabharata?
(a) Adi Parva (b) Sabha Parva (c) Bhishma Parva (d) Shanti Parva
Answer: (c) Bhishma Parva
25. The Critical Edition of the Mahabharata was published in:
(a) 7 volumes (b) 10 volumes (c) 13 volumes (d) 18 volumes
Answer: (c) 13 volumes
Key Terms
| Term | Meaning |
|---|---|
| Mahabharata | Sanskrit epic of about one lakh verses; the Shatasahasri Samhita |
| Critical Edition | Scholarly text prepared by V. S. Sukthankar at BORI, Pune (1919–1966) |
| Patriliny | Descent traced from father to son |
| Matriliny | Descent traced through the mother |
| Gotra | Brahmanical lineage descended from a Vedic seer |
| Endogamy | Marriage within a defined group (caste, varna) |
| Exogamy | Marriage outside one’s gotra/kin group |
| Polygyny | A man having several wives |
| Polyandry | A woman having several husbands |
| Niyoga | Custom of bearing a son with the husband’s brother |
| Stridhana | Woman’s property received at marriage |
| Kanyadana | Gift of a daughter in marriage by her father |
| Varna | Four-fold ritual order: Brahmana, Kshatriya, Vaishya, Shudra |
| Jati | Birth-based occupational group, often subdivisions of varnas |
| Ashrama | Stage of life: Brahmacharya, Grihastha, Vanaprastha, Sannyasa |
| Varnashrama Dharma | Combined ideal of varna and ashrama duties |
| Manusmriti | Most important Dharmashastra (c. 200 BCE – 200 CE) |
| Dharmasutras / Dharmashastras | Sanskrit texts on social and ritual norms |
| Purusha sukta | Rigvedic hymn explaining the origin of the four varnas |
| Mlechchha | Person outside Sanskritic/Brahmanical culture |
| Chandala | “Untouchable” community at the bottom of the Brahmanical order |
| Suta | Charioteer-bard; reciter of the early epic |
| Sankirna jati | “Mixed” jati said to arise from inter-varna unions |
| Mahasammata | The “Great Elect” — the chosen ruler of the Buddhist social contract story |
| Kurukshetra | Battlefield of the Mahabharata war (Haryana) |