1. Which two empires took over India's trade interests in the West following the fall of the Roman empire?
2. The rise of which empire in the seventh century expanded trade between the West, India, Southeast Asia and China?
3. The Dvadasashreni, originally a trade guild, later emerged as a sub-caste of which varna?
4. Which religion, patronized largely by mercantile sections, received a setback in north India due to the decline of long-distance trade?
5. Consider the following statements regarding restrictions on travel in some Dharmashastras of this period:
(I) Travel beyond the area where the munja grass grows was prohibited.
(II) Travel across the salt seas was considered polluting.
(III) These bans were strictly enforced on all castes without exception.
Which of the above is/are correct?
6. Which literary work by Harisena reflects growing geographical knowledge of Southeast Asia during this period?
7. Stories of Indian merchants' adventures in Southeast Asian waters became the basis for which well-known story?
8. Consider the following pairs of Indian merchant guilds active in Southeast Asian trade:
(I) Manigraman
(II) Nandesi
Which of the pairs given above correctly represent guilds mentioned as engaging in trade with Southeast Asia?
9. The Buddhist temple of Borobudur is located in which country?
10. The Hindu temple of Angkor Wat is located in which country?
11. Which port in Bengal served as the chief Indian port for sailing to Java and Sumatra?
12. Which term did a fourteenth-century Javanese writer use to refer to India?
13. Products from Africa and West Asia generally did not travel beyond which region of South India?
14. Which region provided the teakwood forming the basis of a strong Indian shipbuilding tradition for the China trade?
15. The main seaport for foreign trade in China during this period was known to Arab travellers by which name?
16. Which Chola ruler sent a naval expedition against Malaya to overcome interference in trade with China?
17. Consider the following statements regarding the decline of Indian shipping in China trade:
(I) Indian ships gradually gave way to bigger and faster Arab and Chinese ships.
(II) The Chinese used the mariner's compass, an invention that later travelled to the West.
(III) Chinese ships of the period carried over a thousand passengers each.
Which of the above is/are correct?
18. In the thirteenth century, the Chinese government tried to restrict the export of which commodities due to the favourable trade balance for India?
19. According to the Rajatarangini, ordinary people in Kashmir had to be content with rice and which bitter-tasting wild vegetable, in contrast to courtiers' fried meat and cooled wine?
20. What was the standard land-revenue demand from the peasant during this period, as noted by commentators on the Dharmashastras?
21. The term used for the forced labour that peasants had to render during this period is:
22. Consider the following statements regarding the condition of the peasantry during this period:
(I) Peasants had to pay additional cesses such as grazing tax and tax on ponds, over and above land revenue.
(II) Some land grants gave grantees the right to levy fixed or unfixed taxes on peasants.
(III) In some regions such as central India and Orissa, villages with artisans and cultivators were granted to donees, tying them to the soil like serfs.
Which of the above is/are correct?
23. In the Chalukyan empire, a millionaire merchant referred to by which term had huge bell-hung banners hoisted over his house?
24. Vastupala and Tejahpala, reputed to be among the richest merchants of their time, served as ministers in which region?
25. The revenue assignment granted by a ruler to officers and supporters during this period was called:
26. In which region did a family hold the hereditary office of mahamantri for four generations, as noted for this period?
27. Consider the following statements regarding the class of samantas/ranaks/rauttas during this period:
(I) They assumed administrative powers such as awarding punishments and exacting fines, earlier considered royal privileges.
(II) They assumed the right to sublet land to followers without the ruler's prior permission.
(III) Their origins were uniform, all being descended from defeated rajas.
Which of the above is/are correct?
28. Which feature of European feudalism is explicitly noted as absent in the corresponding Indian societal structure of this period?
29. What term do some historians prefer over "feudal" to describe Indian society of this period, considering feudalism a specifically European feature?
30. According to some smriti writers of this period, following the disappearance of Kshatriyas and the sinking of Vaishyas to Shudra status, which caste alone remained the dvija (twice-born) section?
31. The Rajput clans, traditionally numbering how many, trace their genealogy to the solar and lunar families of the Kshatriyas mentioned in the Mahabharata?
32. Consider the following statements regarding the origin of the Rajputs:
(I) Some scholars consider them of mixed origin, descended from foreigners such as Shakas and Hunas along with indigenous tribes and Brahmans.
(II) Many Rajput clans trace their genealogy to the solar and lunar Kshatriya families of the Mahabharata.
(III) Modern scholarship rejects any process of social groups acquiring Kshatriya status through legitimization.
Which of the above is/are correct?
33. The sage credited in the agnikula legend with producing four Rajput clans from a sacrificial fire is:
34. Consider the following pairs of Rajput clans associated with the agnikula legend:
(I) Pratiharas
(II) Solanki or Chalukyas
(III) Parmar or Pawar
(IV) Chahamans or Chauhan
Which of the above clans are correctly identified as originating from the agnikula legend?
35. The Gurjar-Pratiharas, reputed to originate from Gurjar stock, were linked by genealogists to which mythological figure who served as Rama's door-keeper?
36. The caste that began to be mentioned more prominently from this period, originally comprising people from different castes working in royal establishments, is the:
37. Which historian is credited with the observation regarding "the gradual elevation of the social position of the Shudras" during this period?
38. Which pastoral nomadic tribe originally from Sind moved to Punjab and became agriculturist-warriors, classified as Shudras but considering themselves on par with Rajputs?
39. Consider the following statements on the Brahman-Rajput relationship during this period:
(I) Brahmans played an important role in legitimizing Rajput political power through genealogies.
(II) Rajputs, as champions of expansionist Hinduism, built grand temples and endowed Brahman priests with land grants.
(III) A mixed Brahman-Kshatriya status was sometimes sought by claiming descent through a Brahman mother.
Which of the above is/are correct?
40. According to the law-giver Yagyavalkya, a Brahman could take food with which of the following professionals?
41. The marriage of a high-caste man with a lower-caste woman, considered "according to norm," was termed:
42. The marriage of a low-caste man with a high-caste woman, considered "against norm," was termed:
43. The term used for untouchables, who formed a fifth social grade outside the four-fold varna system, was:
44. In some parts of the country, which community was required to hit a wooden board on a stick while walking so upper-caste people would avoid contact with them?
45. Consider the following statements regarding slavery during this period:
(I) Prisoners of war and debtors unable to pay their debts could be sold into slavery.
(II) There were systematic slave raids similar to those conducted by the Turks.
(III) A female slave bearing a child to her master became free.
Which of the above is/are correct?
46. A slave who saved his master's life became free and was entitled to a share of the master's property — this reward system reflects which broader attitude noted in the text?
47. Between which ages did smriti writers of this period recommend girls be given away in marriage by their parents?
48. Consider the following statements regarding conditions under which remarriage of women was allowed during this period:
(I) If the husband had deserted her or died.
(II) If the husband had adopted the life of a recluse or was impotent.
(III) If the husband had become an outcaste.
Which of the above is/are correct?
49. Which tenth-century Arab traveller noted that Indian princes allowed their women to be seen unveiled by all men present at court, including foreigners?
50. Which Arab writer noted that wives of kings sometimes burnt themselves on their husbands' funeral pyres, exercising their own option in the matter?
51. Which queen ruled Kashmir for fifty years and withstood all intrigues against her?
52. Prabhavati Gupta, who ruled for at least thirteen years as mother of the yuvaraja, belonged to which dynasty?
53. Consider the following statements regarding the property rights of women during this period:
(I) A widow was entitled, with some reservations, to her sonless husband's entire estate.
(II) Daughters had the right to succeed to the properties of a widow.
(III) Women's property rights declined as feudal society grew stronger.
Which of the above is/are correct?
54. According to the Rajatarangini, which Kashmiri king introduced a general dress, including a long coat, befitting a king?
55. Consider the following statements regarding dress during this period, based on foreign travellers' accounts:
(I) Chau Ju Kua noted that in Gujarat, both men and women wore double earrings and close-fitting clothes with hoods.
(II) Marco Polo noted that in Malabar, men and women, including the king, wore only a loin-cloth.
(III) The profession of the tailor was highly developed and widespread in Malabar.
Which of the above is/are correct?
56. Which traveller remarked that what the king of Malabar wore in gold, gems and pearls was "worth more than a city's ransom"?
57. Which animals were regarded as lawful food according to the leading smriti writer of the period, among others listed?
58. A kind of Indian polo, regarded as a royal pastime, was popular among which class during this period?
59. Which Buddhist centre of learning in Bihar was the most famous, receiving a grant of 200 villages and drawing students from as far as Tibet?
60. Consider the following pairs of Buddhist centres of learning located in Bihar during this period:
(I) Nalanda
(II) Vikramsila
(III) Uddandapur
Which of the above are correctly identified as Buddhist viharas located in Bihar?
61. Which Arab astronomer studied at Banaras for ten years during the ninth century?
62. Kamandaka's Nitisara was a notable contribution to the study of which subject, popular among the nobility?
63. The Lilawati, a standard mathematics text for a long time, was written during this period by:
64. Consider the following statements regarding the state of science in India during this period:
(I) Surgery declined and eventually became the profession of barbers, as dissection was viewed as fit only for people of low castes.
(II) Astronomy was gradually pushed into the background by astrology.
(III) India made significant advances in horse breeding, ending its dependence on imported horses.
Which of the above is/are correct?
65. Which Central Asian scholar, who lived in India for about ten years in the early eleventh century, criticized the insular attitude of Brahman scholars toward sharing knowledge?
66. According to tradition, which Pandya-court Saivite preacher instigated the execution of large numbers of Jain monks at Madurai?
67. Which rulers were noted as patrons of Buddhism, its decline in eastern India following after the tenth century?
68. The most famous leader of the Nath-Panthi yogis, who practised tantra and denounced the caste system, was:
69. Which Gujarat dynasty patronized Jainism and built some of the most magnificent Jain temples, such as Dilwara at Mt. Abu, during this period?
70. The colossal Jain image at Sravana Belgola, about 18 metres high and cut out of granite, was set up under the patronage of which dynasty?
71. Consider the following statements regarding the Jain doctrine of the four gifts that helped popularize Jainism:
(I) Learning
(II) Food
(III) Medicine
(IV) Shelter
Which of the above are correctly listed among the Jain doctrine of the four gifts?
72. In eastern India, which consort of Buddha became a chief object of worship in her own right?
73. The bhakti saints of south India who worshipped Vishnu were known as:
74. The bhakti saints of south India who worshipped Siva were known as:
75. Which woman saint is mentioned among the bhakti movement's Alvars in south India?
76. Which acharya led the collection and systematization of the Alvars' teachings, declaring them equivalent to the Vedas?
77. Which twelfth-century movement, founded by Basava and his nephew Channabasava at the Kalachuri court in Karnataka, opposed the caste system and allowed widow remarriage?
78. Consider the following statements regarding the Lingayat (Vir Saiva) movement:
(I) It strongly opposed the caste system.
(II) It rejected fasts, feasts, pilgrimages and sacrifices.
(III) It supported child marriage as a religious duty.
Which of the above is/are correct?
79. Which philosopher, born in Kerala probably in the ninth century, formulated the doctrine of advaitavada or non-dualism?
80. Sankara's philosophy of non-dualism, holding that God and the created world are one, is also known by which name?
81. Which eleventh-century acharya emphasized that the path of prapatti, or total surrender to God, was open even to Shudras and Dalits?
82. Consider the following pairs of acharyas and their approximate periods in the bhakti tradition following Ramanuja:
(I) Madhvacharya – tenth century
(II) Ramananda – north India
(III) Vallabhacharya – north India
Which of the above pairs are correctly matched as followers of the tradition established by Ramanuja?
83. Consider the following statements regarding the twin forms of Hindu revival during this period:
(I) One form emphasized renewed Vedic worship, accompanied by a literary and intellectual movement.
(II) The other was a popular movement based on tantra in north India and bhakti in south India.
(III) Both tantra and bhakti upheld strict caste distinctions in access to worship.
Which of the above is/are correct?
