VIKASH GROUP OF CBSE SCHOOLS

CLASS: VI
SUBJECT: HISTORY
CHAPTER- 6 (New Questions and Ideas)

Technical Terms

Buddha: The wise one

Ahimsa: The Jain rule of ‘ahimsa’ means not hurting or killing living beings. According to
Mahavira, each living being “longs to live”.

Atman: The individual soul which remains permanent in the universe even after we die was
called ‘atman’ by the thinkers.

Buddhism: The religion founded by the Buddha (Gautama/Siddhartha) was Buddhism.

Jainism: The religion founded by Vardhamana Mahavira is called Jainism.

Karma: Our actions have been referred to by Buddha as ‘Karma’. Buddha said our ‘Karma’ –
good or bad – affects us both in this life and the next life.

Tanha: The desire for more things have been described by the Buddha as thirst or ‘tanha’.

Upanishads: The word literally means ‘approaching and sitting near’.

Viharas: The monasteries where monks lives were called ‘Viharas’.

Important Dates

Around 2500 years ago (about 500 BC) – Upanishadic thinkers preached.

Around 2500 years ago (about 500 BC) – Mahavira and the Buddha preached.

Around 1500 years ago (about 500 AD) – the Jaina texts were written down.

NOTES

Anagha’s school trip

● Anagha was going for the first time on a school trip. She was going from Pune to Varanasi by
train.

The story of the Buddha

● Siddhartha (Gautama), who founded Buddhism, was born about 2500 years ago. He belonged to
a ‘gana’ called the ‘Sakya gana’ and was a Kshatriya.

● He left his home in search of knowledge. He meditated and got enlightened in Bodh Gaya in
Bihar. He preached for the first time in Sarnath.. He passed away at Kusinara at the age of 80.

● Other thinkers also wanted to know about life after death and about sacrifices. Their ideas were
recorded in the Upanishads, part of the later Vedic texts.

● Teachings of Buddha: Buddha taught that life is full of suffering and unhappiness. This is
caused because we have cravings and desires (which cannot be fulfilled).

● Sometimes, even if we get what we desire, we are not satisfied (permanently) and want (or
desire) even more and more (or other things). Buddha described this as thirst or tanha.

● Buddha taught that thirst or tanha or constant craving could be removed by following
moderation in everything. He also taught people to be kind and to respect the lives of others,
including animals.

● Buddha believed that the result of our actions (called Karma), whether good or bad, affect us
both in this life and the next. He taught in the language of the ordinary people, Prakrit.

Upanishads

The term Upanishad means “a sesson”, sitting at the feet of a master who imparts
learning.there are 108 Upanishads but many of which are later additions.the earlier
Upanishads are in prose and in the form of Q.s and Ans. The later Upanishads are in
verse form. The Taittiya,Isha,
Aitareya,chandogya, katha are some of the important Upanishads.

● Various thinkers tried to find Ans to difficult Q.s. These thinkers were of the view that there was
the atman or the individual soul and the Brahma or the universal soul. Upanishads give much
importance to Brahma, the universal soul.
● Gargi ,Maitreya and katyani were women thinkers.

● Satyakama Jabala was a slave thinker. he was disciple of Gautama,a Brahmin.

● He was a great thinker and contributed much to the Upanishads. Shankararacharya came
later. A great exponent of the Upanishad,he propounded the theory of Advaita.
 JAINISM:

Jainism was founded by Vardhamana Mahavira of the Vajji Gana-sangha. He left home at the
age of 30 and went to live in the forest. For many years, he led a hard and lonely life but finally
attained enlightenment.

● The founder of Jainism was Vardhamana Mahavira. He was in the Vajji ‘sangha’. He also led
a life similar to that of Buddha. He said that those who wish to know the truth must leave their
homes. He spoke of ‘ahimsa’. He taught in Prakrit.

● Jainas had to lead very simple lives, begging for food, being honest and men had to shed their
clothes. The Jainism teachings were written for the first time about 1500 years ago.

● The rules for the Buddhist ‘Sangha’ were written down in a book called the Vinaya Pitaka.

● Followers of Mahavira. Who were known as jainas had to lead very simple lives,begging for
food.

● The word jaina comes from the term jaina,meaning conqueror.

● Jainism spread to different parts of north India,and to Gujarat,Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.

● Monks of Buddhism and Jainism started living in monasteries known as ‘Viharas’. The earliest
‘Viharas’ were made of wood and then brick.

Teachings of Mahavira:
● Mahavira believed that a person’s position in life depends on the karma of his previous life.
● He preached ahimsa. He instructed his followers not to lie, steal or kill. His followers were
known as ‘Jains’, who led simple lives and begged for food. The teachings of Mahavira and his
followers were transmitted orally for several centuries.

● The Sangha: Both Mahavira and Buddha felt that only those who gave up worldly life and
became monks could gain true knowledge. They set up organizations called Sanghas where these
monks spent much of their time on religious studies and meditation.

● Monasteries: Jain and Buddhist monks went from place to place, and therefore, the need for
more permanent shelters was felt. As a result, monasteries were built, which were known as
Viharas.
● Four Ashramas: In Upanishadic times, the life of an upper-caste man was divided into four
stages called Ashramas. These were Brahmacharya, Grihastha, Vanaprastha and Sanyasa.
Brahmin, Kshatriya and Vaishya men were expected to lead their lives according to them, but
this was not followed rigidly.

HOTS QUESTIONS

Q.1 Describe the ways in which the Buddha tried to spread his message to the people?

Ans: The Buddha tried to spread his message to the people in the following ways:

1. He conveyed his teaching in the Prakrit language, which was the language of the common
masses.

2. He encouraged his followers to think over his messages, instead of blindly following them.
This helped his ideals spread further. The encouragement of free-thinking meant that people
could come to conclusions based on his ideas, on their own.

Q.2 What were the Questions Upanishadic thinkers wanted to Answer?

Ans: The Upanishadic thinkers wanted to find Answers to the following Questions-

1. What happens after death?

2. Is there any life after death?

3. Why should sacrifices be performed?

4. Is there something permanent in the Universe, which lasts even after death?

Q.3 What were the main teachings of Mahavira?

Ans: The following are the main teachings of Mahavira:

1. Those who wish to know the truth must leave his/her home.

2. Those who are on the path of truth must adhere to the principles of Ahimsa (Non-violence),
very strictly.

3. One must not hurt or kill any other living being, as life is dear to all.

Q.4 Why do you think Anagha’s mother wanted her to know the story of the Buddha?

Ans: Anagha was travelling to Varanasi on a school trip. Sarnath is a place in Varanasi, where
Buddha taught for the first time after attaining enlightenment in Bodh Gaya. The story and
 message of Buddha were inspiring, and hence Anagha’s mother wanted her to know the story of
Buddha.

Q.5 Do you think it would have been easy for slaves to join the Sangha? Give reasons for
your Ans.

Ans: Everyone except men had to take permission from his/her master before joining the
Sangha. Children had to take permission from their masters, servants had to take permission
from the Kings, the wives from their husbands and the slaves from their masters.

It wouldn’t have been easy for the slaves to join the sangha because:

1. Slaves had little to no rights.

2. It was not necessary that a slave would get a kind master

3. Since society, in general, depended on slaves to do their tasks for them, there was no incentive
for masters to give permission for their slaves to join the Sangha.

Q.6.Write in short the life story of Vardhamana Mahavira.

Ans: Vardhamana Mahavira was a Kshatriya prince of the Lichchhavis, a group that was part of
the Vajji Sangha.

● At the age of thirty, Mahavira left home and went to live in a forest. For twelve years he led a
hard and lonely life, at the end of which he attained enlightenment.

● The teachings of Mahavira and his followers were written down at a place called Valabhi, in
Gujarat, about 1500 years ago.

Q.7.What were the reasons for less popularity of Jainism?

Ans: It was very difficult for most men and women to follow main principles (or rules) strictly
as desired by the founders and preachers of Jainism.

● Nevertheless, thousands left their homes to learn and teach the new way of life, preached by
Jainism. Many more remained behind and supported those who became monks and nuns
providing them with food.

● Jainism was supported mainly by traders. Farmers (the main portion of India’s population), who
had to kill insects to protect their crops, found it more difficult to follow the rules.

Q. 8.Why did Kisagotami meet Gautam Buddha?

Ans: There was a woman named Kisagotami, who suffered from the loss of her son. She came to
Gautam Buddha to ask his help to bring her son back to life.
Q. 10.Why was Panini famous?
Ans: Panini was a grammarian, who prepared a grammar for Sanskrit. He arranged the vowels
and consonants in a special order. He used these to write down the rules of the language in short
formulae, around 3000 of them.

Q.11.Write something about Gargi.

ANS : Gargi was one of the few scholarly women who contributed to the development of the
Upanishads. She was the daughter of the sage Vachaknu, and her aptitude for academics was
evident from a young age. She has written several hymns in which she Q.s the genesis of all
things.

Q.12) What does the Buddhist sangha get from Vinaya Pitaka?

ANS- There were different branches for men and women, according to Vinaya Pitaka. The
sangha was open to all men. Children, on the other hand, had to obtain permission from their
parents, and slaves from their masters. Those who worked for the monarch had to obtain his
permission, whereas debtors had to obtain the consent of creditors. Women were required to
obtain permission from their husbands.

Q.13) Did the Buddhist sanghas become involved in everyday life? What distinguished
them from other sanghas?

ANS- Other sanghas were groups of people who made choices on policy and day-to-day
management issues. The Buddhist Sangha was a group of persons who separated themselves
from everyday life and dedicated their time to the pursuit of truth.

Q.14) Make brief notes about Shankaracharya.

ANS- Shankaracharya had a significant impact on the development of Hinduism through his
outstanding reinterpretations of Hindu classics such as the Upanishads and Vedanta. He was born
around 788 AD in the village of Kaladi on the banks of the Purna River in Kerala.