6.Chapter16.History.The Gupta Period.

Chapter 16.History.

The Gupta Period.

Keywords

Metallurgy : The study of metals

Physician : a person who practices medicine

Prashasti : words written in a phrase of somebody

Provinces : administrative units (states) or parts of a country

Sculpture : a person who carves of shapes of statues

Sovereignty : Supreme power

Surgeon : a person who performs operations/surgery

Persons : Gupta Kings

Sri Gupta : The Gupta period was established by him he ruled from 275CE to 280CE, but not much is known about him.

Ghatotkaccha Gupta : He ruled from 280CE to 319CE also not much is known about him.

Chandragupta-I: He ruled from 319CE to 335CE, he was the first important ruler of this dynasty He expanded the rule and their authority was established over almost north India. He assumed the title Maharajadhiraj.

Samundragupta : He was the next powerful ruler. He ruled from 335CE to 375CE. Samudragupta was known for his long military campaigns to north, east and south. He is also known as the Napolean of India. There are three main sources of information of the period of Samundragupta (i) Inscriptions of Ashoka’s pillar at Allahabad (ii) Eran edict (iii) Coins of Samudragupta

Chandragupta-II : He assumed the title of Vikramaditya. An inscription tells us about the victory campaigns of Chandragupta-II. He was not only a great warrior and an able administrator, but also a great patron of learning. He had many scholars, poets and artists and learning. The best nine were known as the Nav Ratna.

Do You Know?

The Gupta rulers had well-organised armies with elephants, chariots, cavalery and foot soldiers. Besides this, there were military leaders known as Samantas, who supplied troops to the kings wherever needed.

In 185 BCE, when the Mauryan empire collapsed due to the assassination of the last Mauryan king, small kingdoms emerged throughout India. In 275 CE the Gupta empire was made by Sri Gupta. The Gupta Empire has been considered as the Golden Age of Indian history.

Inside Questions

Q.1 The provinces were also known as?

Ans the provinces are also known as Bhuktis

Q.2 What is another name of the village headman?

Ans the village headman is also known Grameyak

Q.3 what was the main occupation of the villagers?

Ans the main occupation of the villagers was farming

Q.4 Name the five books written by Kalidasa?

Ans Abijana-Shakuntalam, Malaviagnimitran, Kumarsambhava, Raghuvamsa, Meghaduta.

Q.5 What is Metallurgy?

Ans the study of metals is known as metallurgy.

Q.6 What is the name of military leaders?

Ans the military leaders are known as Samantas.

Q.7 Bhuktis or Desh was governed by?

Ans Uparika-Maharaja or Bhogpati

Q.8 Who were in the council of ministers?

Ans Mantri, Sachiv, Sandhi- Vigrahik, Maha Senapati etc.

Q.9 Who was the last most powerful ruler of the Kushan’s?

Ans the last most powerful ruler was Vasudev.

Q.10 Who was Nagarjuna?

Ans Nagarjuna was the famous scholar of chemistry. The rust-free iron pillar at Mehrauli in the New Delhi has never got rusted till today. The composition of its alloy is a fine example of iron technology of Gupta period.

Text Book Questios/Answers

A. Tick ( ) the correct option.

1.Who was the last Kushan ruler?

(a) Vasudev                (b) Sri Gupta  (c) Kumargupta   (d) Vikramaditya

2.Who is known as the Napolean of India?

(a) Ghatotkaccha       (b) Chandragupta-II (c) Samundragupta    (d) Chandragupta

3.Who was the first person to prove that the earth moves around the Sun?

(a) Napolean             (b) Aryabhatta  (c) Nagarjuna            (d) Sushrut

4.Ajanta and Ellora caves are famous for their-

(a) Rock-cut temples  (b) architecture (c) inscriptions            (d) scenic beauty

5.Which one of the following did not prevail during the period of Chandragupta-II?

(a) Various branches of science were well developed

(b) Education was available to all people of the society.

(c) Agriculture was the main occupation of the people.

(d) Most of the people including the king followed Shaivism and Vaishnavism.

 B. Fill in the blanks

1. Kalidas was a renowned poet in the court of Chandragupta-II.

2. Panchtantra is a famous collection of tales written by Pt. Vishnu Sharma.

3. The rust-free Iron pillar is located at Mehrauli in New Dehli.

4. IN Gupta empire, taxation was the main source of revenue.

5. The main sources of entertainment of people in Gupta empire were celebration of festival and animal fighting.

C. Write True or False for the following statements.

1. Ghatotkaccha Gupta ruled from 280 CE to 319 CE. True

2. Chandragupta-II was a great warrior and an administrator. True

3. Bhuktis or desh were not governed by Uparika-maharaja. False.

4. Many sun temples were built in Gupta period.True 

5. Gupta period did not contribute at all to the field of literature.False

D. Answer the following questions in brief.

1. Who established the Gupta period and when?

Ans- Sri Gupta established the Gupta empire and in 275 CE.

2. What was the function of the gram panchayat in the Gupta period?

Ans- The village administration was under the village headman (Grameyak). The gram panchayat looked after the needs of the villagers.

3. Which items were exported during the Gupta period?

Ans- They included pearls, diamonds, precious stones, garments, ivory products, indigo etc.

4. Who was Aryabhatta? What was his contribution?

Ans- Aryabhatta was a great scientist and mathematician of Gupta period. It was he who first proved that the earth moves around the sun and not vice-versa. He also wrote Aryabhattiyam on Mathematics.

5. Name two famous epics which were translated into Tamil during the Gupta period.

Ans- The two epics that were translated in Tamil during the Gupta period were Ramayana and Mahabharata.

E. Answer the following questions.

Q.1. Give three main sources of information about the period of Samudragupta.

Ans- There are three main sources of information of the period of Samundragupta.

(i) Inscriptions of Ashoka’s pillar at Allahabad

(ii) Eran edict

(iii) Coins of Samudragupta

Samudragupta was known for his long military campaigns to north, east and south of India.

Q.2. How was trade carried on the Gupta period?

Ans- Trade was carried on by land and river routes. Important places, like Peshawar (Pakistan), Mathura and Kaushambi (UP), Tamralipti (Bengal), Bharukaccha (Gujrat) and Ujjaini (MP) were all connected by roads. The river, namely Ganga, Brahmaputra, Kaveri, Krishna, and Godavari, provided waterways. Brahmadesh (Myanmar), Java, Sumatra, Bali, Champa (Vietnam) and Kamboja (Cambodia) were some of the countries with which the foreign trade was carried on.

Q.3.Highlight agriculture as an important occupation of the people.

Ans- Agriculture was the main occupation of the people. The farmers were the owners of the land. For providing irrigational facilities, wells, tanks, canals were constructed. The main crops were wheat, rice, pulses, barley, sugarcane, cotton, jute, vegetables, etc.

Q.4.Who was kalidasa? Why is he remembered even today?

Ans- Gupta period was the golden period for Sanskrit literature. He was one of the nine gems of the royal court. His most famous works are – Abhijana-Shakuntalam, Malavikagnimitram, Kumarsambhava, Raghuvamsa, Meghaduta and many others. Bhasa wrote 17 plays during this period. Vishakhdatta’s Mudrarakshas (play) is also well-known.

Q.5.What is the contribution of the Gupta period in the field of science and technology?

Ans- The contribution of the Gupta period in the field of science and technology has been no less. Astronomy, astrology, mathematics, medicine, chemistry and many other branches of science were well-developed during this period.

Ans Aryabhatta was a great scientist and mathematician of Gupta period. It was he who first proved that the earth moves around the sun on its axis and not vice-versa. He had written a book Aryabhattiyam on mathematics. The book explains the concept of square roots, place value of the digits, introduction of zero, decimal system and also about triangles and circles. Even the eclipses could be easily predicted.

Charak, a physician wrote Charak Samhita and Sushrut, a surgeon wrote Sushrut Samhita. Their contribution in the field of medical science is very significant during the period.

Nagarjuna was the famous scholar of chemistry. The rust-free Iron Pillar at Mehrauli in New Delhi has never got rusted till today. The composition of its alloy is a fine example of iron technology of Gupta period.

Map Skills

Mark and label the following on the outline of the political map of India.

(a) Important places of trade – Mathura, Kaushambi, Bharukaccha, Ujjaini.

(b) Rivers – Ganga, Brahmaputra, Kaveri, Krishna, Godavari.

(c) Ajanta and Ellora caves.