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⁞ History : Themes In Indian History I

NCERT Books ➤ Class 12 ➤

Class 12 History : Themes In Indian History I Chapter 3. Kinship, Caste And Class Early Societies (c. 600 BCE - 600 CE) Summary, Explanation, Question Answers (NCERT Solutions)

Kinship Caste And Class (3. Kinship, Caste And Class Early Societies (c. 600 BCE - 600 CE)) CBSE class 12 History : Themes In Indian History I Chapter 3. Kinship, Caste And Class Early Societies (c. 600 BCE - 600 CE) summary with detailed explanation of the lesson Kinship Caste And Class along with meanings of difficult words. Given here is the complete explanation of the lesson, along with summary, explanation and questions and answers of each topic of lesson 3. Kinship, Caste And Class Early Societies (c. 600 BCE - 600 CE).

History : Themes In Indian History I (Chapter 3. Kinship, Caste And Class Early Societies (c. 600 BCE - 600 CE)) Solution
 Answer In 100-150 Words

1. Explain why patriliny may have been particularly important among elite families.

Answer :


Patriliny is the system through which descent from father to son and grandson is traced. The principle of patriliny would have been essential for the elite families for the following reasons:

Continuity of dynasty:
As per the dharamshastra, it was belief that the son carried forward the dynasty. That was the main reason that the families wish for the son and not for the daughters. A couple of Rig-Veda also substantiates this view. In this couplet, a father at the time of the marriage of his daughter wishes that she should have best sons with the grace of Lord Shiva.

Inheritance:
In Royal families. The acquisition of thrones was included in the inheritance. After the death of the king, his elderly son was supposed to inherit the throne. After the death of parents, the property was equally divided among all the sons to avoid disputes in between the family. Most of the royal families followed patriliny since 600 B.C. But sometimes this system had the exception,
(a) The brother of king ascended the throne in case the former had no son.
(b) Relatives also claimed inheritance of the throne.
(c) In some special cases, women also ascended the throne like Prabhavati Gupta.


All Questions of History : Themes In Indian History I Chapter 3. Kinship, Caste And Class Early Societies (c. 600 BCE - 600 CE)
Answer In 100-150 Words
1. Explain why patriliny may have been particularly important among elite families.
2. Discuss whether kings in early states were invariably Kshatriyas.
3. Compare and contrast the dharma or norms mentioned in the stories of Drona, Hidimba and Matanga.
4. In what ways was the Buddhist theory of a social contract different from the Brahmanical view of society derived from the Purusha sukta?
5. The following is an excerpt from the Mahabharata, in which Yudhisthira, the eldest Pandava, speaks to Sanjaya, a messenger:

Sanjaya, convey my respectful greetings to all the Brahmanas and the chief priest of the house of Dhritarashtra. I bow respectfully to teacher Drona … I hold the feet of our preceptor Kripa … (and) the chief of the Kurus, the great Bhishma. I bow respectfully to the old king (Dhritarashtra). I greet and ask after the health of his son Duryodhana and his younger brother ... Also greet all the young Kuru warriors who are our brothers, sons and grandsons … Greet above all him, who is to us like father and mother, the wise Vidura (born of a slave woman) ... I bow to the elderly ladies who are known as our mothers. To those who are our wives you say this, “I hope they are well-protected”… Our daughters-in- law born of good families and mothers of children greet on my behalf. Embrace for me those who are our daughters … The beautiful, fragrant, well-dressed courtesans of ours you should also greet. Greet the slave women and their children, greet the aged, the maimed (and) the helpless …

Try and identify the criteria used to make this list – in terms of age, gender, kinship ties. Are there any other criteria? For each category, explain why they are placed in a particular position in the list.

Write a short essay (about 500 words) on the following:
6. This is what a famous historian of Indian literature, Maurice Winternitz, wrote about the Mahabharata: “just because the Mahabharata represents more of an entire literature … and contains so much and so many kinds of things, … (it) gives(s) us an insight into the most profound depths of the soul of the Indian folk.” Discuss.
7. Discuss whether the Mahabharata could have been the work of a single author.
8. How important were gender differences in early societies? Give reasons for your answer.
9. Discuss the evidence that suggests that Brahmanical prescriptions about kinship and marriage were not universally followed.

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