Mahabharata-Upinder Singh Flashcards

1
Q

when did delhi fall into power politics for the first time? and how?

A

mahabharata

yudhistra & bros demanded city of indraprashta, banks of yamuna

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
2
Q

what was mahabharata?

A

story of two feuding factions of the bharata people fighting for kurukshetra, land of the kurus
kurukshetra-thaneshwar, delhi, upper gangetic doab

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
3
Q

who was the author of mahabharat

A

by tradition it was krishna davaipayana vyas

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
4
Q

how did the pandavas obtain their share of the kingdom and when

A

pandavas, kunti and draupad-went to dhritarashta for their share of the kingdom
dhrit, in order to avoid war, he split the kingdom into hastinapura(kaurava) and khandava forest region (pandava)

at the end of the adi parva

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
5
Q

how did pandavas rule the khandava forest

A

they founded city indraprashta-new heaven

yudhishtra ruled and cultivated -dharma, artha, kama

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
6
Q

what happened in the burning of the khandava forest? and when did it take place?

A

at the end of the adi parva, when krishna & arjun were in a drunken haze, agni (brahmin) asked them to help him burn down the forest
they do.
6 survive-ashvasenaa(son of serpant king), maya (demon), 4 shargaka birds

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
7
Q

how did maya express his thanks to arjun and when

A

at the beginning of the sabha parva

maya built a golden pillared hall w studded precious stones for arjun

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
8
Q

how did maya express his thanks to arjun and when

A

at the beginning of the sabha parva

maya built a golden pillared hall w studded precious stones for arjun

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

what did the excavations at purana quila reveal?

A

in 1954-55 under b b lal, sherds of pgw was found which indicated settlement as old as 1000 bc up until early centuries ad
in 1967-70, under bb lal. bk thapar and mc joshi, nbpw was found which indicated settlement from 4th/3rd bc medieval periods
these excavations do not confirm nor deny the mahabharata but they do confirm settlement from ancient times(1000 bc)

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
9
Q

what did the ain i akbari entail

A

written by abul fazl
synopsis of the mahabharat
delhi was first called indrapat
humayun restored indrapat and named in dinpanah
indicares-strong tradition connected indraprashta w the site of purana wuila
there was a village named indrapat within purana quila till the 19th century

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
10
Q

what did tarikh i firuz shahi entail

A

by shams siraj afif

indraprashta was the headquarters of pargana

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
11
Q

what did the stone inscription at naraina indicate

A

talks about nadayana- a village located to the west on indraprastha

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
12
Q

how is nigambodh related to the mahabharat

A

on the banks of yamuna

(i) where yudhistra perfomed ashwamedha (horse sacrifice) for political paramountcy
(ii) nili chatri temple, near it, is where yudhistra built a temple

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

what does the mahabharat say about decline of indraprastha under yudhistra’s successors?

A

fly fell in his food

transferred his court to hastinapura and left the city in hands of dhritrashta’s only surviving son

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
13
Q

what does the vishnu purana say about decline of indraprastha under yudhistra’s successors?

A

a massive flood in ganga led to shift of capital from hastinapura to kaushambi under the reign of nichakshu
this suggests that the capital mustve moved from indraprashta to hastinapura at soem point

How well did you know this?
1
Not at all
2
3
4
5
Perfectly
14
Q

what do the buddhist jataka tales say about decline of indraprastha under yudhistra’s successors?

A

indraprashta was the capital of a line of kings claiming to be of yudhitthila gotra

15
Q

what happened to kurukshetra when indraprashta lost importance

A

it lost importance too

centre of political gravity shifted further east to patliputra

16
Q

tilpat

A

in faridabad
could be tilprashta which was one of the five kingdoms demanded by the pandavas
bb lal excavations in 1950 unearthed pgw, nbpw levels

17
Q

sihi

A

acc to locals, this is where janmeyjana performed his snake sacrifice
janmey was the son of parikshit who was killed by a snake bite
hence he sought to avenge his death and wanted to destory all the snakes in the wrold but he did not succeed(adi parva)
BUT acc to the mahabharatm snake sacrifice took place in takshila
HOWEVER large quanitites of old iron slag have been found here believe to be the remains of bones of snakes sacrificed in the fire

18
Q

bisrakh

A

ghaziabad
acc to locals this is the birthplace of ravana
‘proof’-no, of medival shiva lingas all over + headless sculpture of nandi

19
Q

how did people live in bhorgarh

A

late harappan pottery was found

period II- people lived in roundish huts supported by wooden posts

20
Q

how did people live in mandoli

A

break in occupation bw late harappan period and the pgw peiod
pgw- houses rammed in mud floors and post holes