Unit Test (Solutions): Turning Tides: 11th and 12th Centuries

M.M: 30
Attempt all questions.

• Question numbers 1 to 5 carry 1 mark each.
• Question numbers 6 to 8 carry 2 marks each.
• Question numbers 9 to 11 carry 3 marks each.
• Question numbers 12 & 13 carry 5 marks each.

Q1. Fill in the blank:
 The Hindu Shāhis controlled the __________, a major mountain pass through the Hindu Kush range. (1 Mark)
Ans: Khyber Pass.

Q2. What title did Mahmūd of Ghazni use? (1 Mark)
 (i) Raja
 (ii) Sultan
 (iii) Emperor
 (iv) Maharaja
Ans: (ii)
Explanation: Mahmūd used the title 'Sultan', which means authority or power in Arabic.

Q3. Who was the famous scholar who translated Patanjali's Yogasūtras into Arabic? (1 Mark)
Ans: Al-Bīrūnī.

Q4. True or False:
 The Eastern Gangas initiated construction of the Jagannātha temple at Puri and the Sun temple at Konark. (1 Mark)
Ans: True.

Q5. Fill in the blank:
 The capital of the Hoysalas was __________ and Dvārasamudra. (1 Mark)
Ans: Velāpura (Belur).

Q6. Why did Rājendra Chola I take the title 'Gangaikoṇḍachola'? (2 Marks)
Ans: Rājendra Chola I expanded his empire into parts of Odisha and Bengal. The title 'Gangaikoṇḍachola' means "the Chola who seized Gangā", which he adopted after his successful conquest of these northern regions.

Q7. What happened to Nālandā's famous library after Bakhtiyār Khiljī's attack? (2 Marks)
Ans: Nālandā's library had lakhs of manuscripts spread over three multi-storey buildings. After the attack, the library is said to have burned for months. Tibetan scholars fled with manuscripts to Tibet to preserve them.

Q8. Describe King Bhoja's contribution to water management. (2 Marks)
Ans: King Bhoja founded the town of Bhojpur and built a vast lake called Bhojtal for irrigation and water management. He also built the Bhojeshwar Temple and made his capital, Dhārā a centre of learning.

Q9. Describe the outcome of the two Battles of Tarain between Pṛithvīrāja III and Muhammad Ghūrī. (3 Marks)
Ans: The First Battle of Tarain in 1191 resulted in victory for Pṛithvīrāja III, who defeated Muhammad Ghūrī. However, in the Second Battle of Tarain in 1192, Muhammad Ghūrī returned with a larger army and defeated Pṛithvīrāja III. After the defeat, Pṛithvīrāja III was executed by Muhammad Ghūrī.

Q10. What were the main motives behind Mahmūd of Ghazni's campaigns in India? (3 Marks)
Ans: Mahmūd had two main motives for his Indian campaigns. Firstly, he wanted to plunder the enormous wealth that temples had accumulated over centuries. Secondly, he had religious motives, as he wanted to spread his version of Islam and destroy non-Muslim places of worship. His campaigns involved destruction, the slaughter of civilians, and the capture of prisoners who were sold as slaves in Central Asia.

Q11. Explain the teachings of Basaveśhvara and his contribution to society. (3 Marks)
Ans: Basaveśhvara founded the Lingāyat movement at Kalyāṇī in Karnataka. He rejected caste distinctions and ritualism, teaching instead personal devotion and the equal spiritual potential of all men and women. He wrote short poems called vachanas in Kannada. He established an anubhava maṇḍapa, which means "pavilion of experience", where people from all backgrounds could discuss moral values and religion freely.

Q12. Describe the major achievements of Rājarāja Chola I during his reign. (5 Marks)
Ans: Rājarāja Chola I ruled from 985 to 1014 and made several important achievements. He conquered parts of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, and northern Sri Lanka, expanding the Chola Empire significantly. He also conquered the Maldives, which were known as the "islands of the sea". In architecture, he built the magnificent Bṛihadīśhvara temple at Thanjavur, also called Rājarājeśhvaram. He showed religious tolerance by facilitating the construction of a Buddhist vihāra at Nāgapaṭṭinam for the Śhrīvijaya Empire, demonstrating his diplomatic relations with Southeast Asian kingdoms.

Q13. Explain the significance of the Angkor Wat temple and its connection to Indian culture. (5 Marks)
Ans: Angkor Wat temple in Cambodia was built in the 12th century by Khmer king Sūryavarman II. It is the largest religious monument in the world and was originally dedicated to Viṣhṇu. The temple shows strong Indian cultural influence through its inscriptions in Old Khmer and Sanskrit, and its bas-reliefs depicting stories from the Rāmāyaṇa and Mahābhārata. The temple's architecture features five huge śhikharas that symbolise Mount Meru, and it shares many features with South Indian temples. Later, it was converted into a Buddhist temple, showing the continued religious and cultural connections between India and Southeast Asia.