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Answer key for the exercises in the lesson, Exercises, I., , Fill in the blanks., 1. Alexander was a king from Macedonia., 2. The last Nanda king from Magadha was, Dhanananda., 3. The Greek general defeated by Chandragupta, was Seleukos Nikator., 4. The Arthashastra was written by Chanakya., 5. The Kalinga War became a turning point in, Ashoka’s life., , II. True or false?, 1. After the Kalinga war, Ashoka adopted the, policy of ahimsa. (T), 2. Ashoka forced his people to follow Buddhism., (F), 3. The Mauryan king was assisted by a council, called the mantriparishad. (T), 4. In the Mauryan Empire, the village was, administered by officials called sthanikas. (F), 5. In the Mauryan Empire, the village enjoyed a, certain level of independence. (T), III. Answer in brief., 1. Why could Alexander not continue his, campaign to conquer India?, • His battle weary soldiers refused to cross, the river Beas., 2. What regions were taken over by, Chandragupta after the defeat of Seleukos?, • Kabul, • Herat, • Kandahar, • Baluchistan, 3. What were shrenis?, Shrenis or trade guilds, • emerged during the period of the, Mauryas., • were like an association for each trade., • had rules and regulations., • some even acted as bankers., • members had to abide by the rules of, their guild., , NGASS 6 TM fin.indd 66, , 4. Name the branches that formed the, Mauryan Army., The army had six branches, • the cavalry, • infantry, • chariots, • elephants, • transport, • navy, 5. What are the possible reasons for the, decline of the Mauryan Empire?, Many reasons are given for the decline of, the empire, • The administration might have become, less efficient., • It might also have become financially, difficult to manage such a vast empire., • The army could have become weak due to, the pacifist policy followed by Ashoka., • The final blow to the kingdom came with, the attack of the Sungas., IV. Answer in detail., 1. Describe how Chandragupta turned a small, kingdom into a mighty empire., • Chandragupta, with the help of Chanakya,, first attacked and conquered the outer, parts of the Nanda kingdom conquering, Punjab, Malwa and Saurashtra., • Then he captured Pataliputra, the capital, of Magadha., • Later he extended his empire up to, the river Indus, taking back parts of, Alexander’s empire., 2. Describe the impact of the Kalinga War on, Ashoka. Discuss Ashoka’s dhamma., • Ashoka was horrified at the bloodshed in, the battlefield of Kalinga., • Thousands of soldiers and common, people were killed and this horrific, tragedy shocked him., • He vowed never to wage war again., • Soon after this, Ashoka became a, Buddhist., , 15-Sep-17 2:10:26 PM

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• He decided to adopt the policy of ahimsa., Ashoka carved his policy of dhamma—a, person’s duty to live according to certain, religious and social codes—on pillars, caves, and rocks. Ashoka’s dhamma could be, practised by, • obeying one’s parents, • being, liberal, to, one’s, friends,, acquaintances, relatives and ascetics, • abstaining from killing and practising, ahimsa or non-violence, • being moderate in expenditure and in, acquiring possessions, • cultivating compassion, truthfulness,, purity, gentleness and virtue, • treating servants with care and, • showing reverence to teachers and, gentleness to all., 3. Explain the features of administration in, the Mauryan Empire., Administration of the Mauryas, • Knowledge from the edicts of Ashoka, • The monarch was advised on policy, matters by a privy council known as the, mahamantriparishad., • These policies were carried out by the, council of ministers or mantriparishad., • Some of the other officers were adhyakshas, or uperintendents, yuktas or subordinate, officers, pradeshikas or provincial officers, and rajjukas or district officers., • They were responsible for a variety of, duties, which included the collection of, taxes and revenues., • To enable better administration, the empire, was divided into smaller units or provinces,, which in turn were divided into districts,, which were further made up of villages., • The empire was divided into four, provinces: Magadha, Ujjain, Taxila and, Swarnagiri and were administered by, viceroys who were usually princes., • The provinces were further divided into, administrative districts called janapadas, and were managed by officials called, sthanikas., • Each district consisted of groups of five, to ten villages. Gopas or ganardhans, maintained records of all the resources of, the villages under them., , NGASS 6 TM fin.indd 67, , • Each village was administered by the, gramin. He regulated land and water rights, and collected taxes and fines. Villages, enjoyed a certain level of autonomy and, their day to day affairs were managed by, the elders., • The most complex and well organized, system of urban government was the, administration of the imperial city of, Pataliputra. The city was divided into six, groups. The Nagarika or the city governor, was responsible for the maintenance, of law and order and hygiene. He also, controlled trade and supervised prisons, and cremation grounds., 4. Write a note on the nature of trade and, industry during Mauryan times., • Trade and industry were very important, occupations of the people., • Both inland and overseas trade was part, of the economy., • Weights and measures were standardised, and trade was regulated strictly., • Conveniences were provided on the roads, and security was improved to make trade, routes safe., • Textiles, wooden and ivory objects,, perfumes, jewellery from semi-precious, stones and shining black pottery were, some of the items bought and sold., • Commercial ties were maintained with, the Greek kingdoms of Central Asia and, the Middle East. Overland trade with, West Asia passed through the cities of, northwest., • A royal highway was built from Takshashila, to Pataliputra and this road was rebuilt a, number of times. Today this serves as the, Grand Trunk Road., , Multiple Choice Questions, 1. a, 6. d, , 2. c, 7. b, , 3. b, 8.c, , 4. c, , 5. a, , Values that enrich, •, •, •, , Subscribing to social issues in the community, Caring for the environment one lives in, Caring for the welfare of his subjects, , 15-Sep-17 2:10:26 PM