NCERT Solutions for Class 6 History Chapter 7 Ashoka, The Emperor Who Gave Up War

NCERT Solutions for Class 6 Social Science History Chapter 7 Ashoka, The Emperor Who Gave Up War contains the answers to the exercise questions. These solutions are easy and accurate that helps with the questions asked in the examinations. The Class 6 History Chapter 7 solution covers all the questions of the chapter in detail. These solutions are prepared by our subject experts in very easy language. All our Class 6 NCERT solutions are updated as per the latest CBSE Syllabus and Guidelines.

NCERT Solutions for Class 6 Social Science History Chapter 7

Question 1: Make a list of occupation of people who lived within the Mauryan Empire.

Answer: The following were the occupations of those people who lived within the Mauryan Empire:

  • Farming
  • Handicrafts
  • Trading
  • Herding
  • Hunting and gathering

Question 2: Complete the following sentences:

(a) Officials collected __________from the area under the direct control of the ruler.

(b) Royal princes often went to the provinces as __________.

(c) The Mauryan rulers tried to control ____________and ___________which were important for transport.

(d) People in forested regions provided the Mauryan officials with _____________.

Answer: (a) Officials collected Taxes from the area under the direct control of the ruler.

(b) Royal princes often went to provinces as governors.

(c) The Mauryan rulers tried to control roads and rivers which were important for transport.

(d) People in forested regions provided the Mauryan officials with elephants, timber and honey.

Question 3: State whether true or false:
(a) Ujjain was the gateway to the north-west
(b) Chandragupta’s idea was written down in the Arthashastra
(c) Kalinga was the ancient name of Bengal
(d) Most Ashokan inscriptions are in the Brahmi script

Answer: (a) False
The Mauryan province of Taxila was the gateway to the north-west.

(b) False
Arthashashtra is Sanskrit which means economic science. The Ideas of Kautilya, otherwise knowns as Chanakya, were written down in Arthashashtra.

(c) False
Kalinga refers to the coastal region between the Godavari and Mahanadi rivers, in what is modern-day Orissa, not Bengal.

(d) True
Brahmi Script is the parent language of Hindi and many other north Indian languages. Ashokan inscriptions were written in Brahmi script.

Question 4: What were the problems that Ashoka wanted to solve by introducing dhamma?

Answer: The problems Ashoka wanted to solve by introducing dhamma were:

  • Communalism (He wanted communal harmony within his state).
  • Violence or killing of animals (He wanted animal protection or Ahimsa or Non-violence).
  • Cruelty (He liked mercy or kindness towards slaves and servants).
  • To maintain peace in families and among neighbours.
  • Respecting one’s elders.
  • Treating all creatures with compassion.
  • Giving gifts to brahmins and monks.
  • Show respect to other religions too.
  • Try to understand the main ideas of other religions.

Question 5: What were the means adopted by Ashoka to spread the message of dhamma?

Answer: Ashoka adopted the following means to spreads his message of dhamma:

  • He appointed officials, known as Dhamma Mahamatta who went from place to place to spread the message of dhamma.
  • He got his messages inscribed on rocks and pillars to spread the to the common people.
  • He also instructed his officials to read his message to those who could not read it themselves.

Question 6: Why do you think slaves and servants were ill-treated? Do you think the orders of the emperor would have improved their condition? Give reasons for your answer.

Answer: The slaves were mostly prisoners of war and servants did unskilled and low-grade jobs. They had to do anything their master ordered. They were treated like animals. All these facts are enough to say that slaves and servants were ill-treated by their masters.

Yes, after the Emperor’s order to follow dhamma, the condition of the slaves and servants would have improved in the following manner:

  • They would have been treated in a better manner.
  • They would have received proper wages for their work. 
  • They would have got the right to participate in all social gatherings and religious functions.
  • Those who mistreated the slaves or servants would have been punished by the emperor.

Question 7: Write a short paragraph explaining Roshan why the lions are shown on our currency notes. List at least one other object on which you see them.

Answer: The Ashoka pillar in Sarnath has 4 lions on top. Lord Buddha gave his first sermon after attaining enlightenment in Sarnath. The four lions are related to Buddhism and signify peace and friendship. During our independence struggle, the Buddhist ideals of non-violence inspired the freedom movement. These lions on our symbol signify truth, peace, friendliness.

The lion symbol is an emblem of the Supreme Court of India, CBI, Police and almost all government departments. It is also seen on our passports as well.

Question 8: Suppose you had the power to inscribe your orders, what four commands would you like to issue?

Answer: I would like to issue the following four orders:

  • Everyone should respect the elders and elders should love their youngers.
  • Everyone should respect the other’s religion. One should try to understand the main ideas of another’s religion and respect it.
  • Be kind to your servants and employees.
  • Be loyal to your motherland.

Extra Questions

VERY SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

1. Who was Chanakya?
Answer: Chanakya (or Kautilya) was a wise man who served Chandragupta Maurya.

2. Who lived in the Mauryan cities?
Answer: Merchants, officials, and craftspersons lived in Mauryan cities.

3. Giue one point of difference between empires and kingdoms.
Answer: Empires need more resources than kingdoms do as they are larger,

4. Give one point of information given by the Arthashastra
Answer: The Arthashastra tells that the northwest of the Mauryan empire was important for blankets, and south for stones,

5. What all was given as tribute by people in forested areas?
Answer: People living in the forested areas gave elephants, timber, honey, wax, etc. as a tribute.

6. What was special about Ashoka as a ruler?  [V. Imp.]
Answer: Ashoka was the first ruler who tried to take his message to his subject through inscriptions.

7. What change came upon Ashoka after the Kalinga war?[V. Imp.]
Answer: Ashoka saw that there was a lot of violence in the war and many people were killed. So he decided he would not fight any more wars,

8.What was the purpose of Ashoka’s ‘dhamma’?  [V. Imp.]
Answer: Ashoka wished to instruct his subjects, for which he introduced his ‘dhamma’.

9. Name some countries where Ashoka spread his ‘dhamma’.
Answer: Ashoka’s ‘dhamma’ reached Syria, Egypt, Greece and Sri Lanka among other sounds.          ,

10. Where has the Rampurwa Bull been placed now?
Answer: The Rampurwa Bull is now In the Rashtrapati Bhavan.                    •

SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

1. Write a short note to describe the Mauryan people.

Answer: The Mauryan cities had mainly merchants, officials and craftspersons. In the village farmers and herders lived. In forested areas, people gathered forest produce and hunted animals for food. People in different parts of the empire used various different languages. They also probably ate diverse kinds of food and the same can be said about the clothes they wore.

2. How was Ashoka unique? [V. Imp.]

Answer: Ashoka was the most famous Mauryan ruler. He was known to take his message amongst the people through inscriptions. His inscriptions were in the people’s language Prakrit. Ashoka also remains the only king in history who gave up war after winning one. This he did after he observed the violence in the Kalinga war. Ashoka then became a Buddhist and got the idea of the ‘dhamma’.

LONG ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS

1. Describe governance in the Mauryan empire. [V. Imp.]


Answer: The Mauryan empire consisted of severed different parts which were ruled over differently.

  • The Empire’s capital. The areas adjacent to Pataliputra, the capital of the empire, were under the direct control of the emperor. Officials were supposed to collect taxes from the inhabitants in strict obedience of the ruler’s order.
  • The Provincial capitals. There were provinces with their own capitals, e.g. Taxila and Ujjain in the northwest and central India respectively. There was obviously some amount of control from the emperor in Pataliputra: Royal princes were sent as governors.
  • Other areas. In the other areas, the Mauryans controlled roads and rivers, , which were vital for transport. Resources, whatever available, were collected as a tribute.

Class 6 History Chapter 7 NCERT Questions and Answers

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