Devotional Paths To The Divine - Class 7 History - Extra Questions

Why do you think many teachers rejected prevalent religious beliefs and practices?

Many teachers rejected prevalent religious beliefs and practices because these were based on social differences, excess ritualism and outward display piety.


Describe the beliefs and practices of the Nathpanthis, Siddhas and Yogis.

  • They advocated renunciation of the world.
  • They believed that the path to salvation lay in meditation and devotion to the formless God and the realisation of oneness with it.
  • To achieve this they advocated intense training of the mind and body through practices like yogasansas, breathing exercises and meditation.
  • They did not believe in the ritual and other aspects of conventional religion and the social order.


Why do you think ordinary people preserved the memory of Mirabai?

Mirabai was a Rajput princess married into the royal family of Mewar. But she had no interest in the worldly affair. She was an ardent devotee of Krishna and wanted to devote her time to the worship of her lord. She had no belief in princely status and other norms of high-class society. Her devotion to her deity was supreme. Hence, she left the royal palace and began to lead a simple life with ordinary people.


Very Short Answer Type Question.
What was the job of religious teachers?

Religious teachers moved from one place to another to offer instruction and advice to the people who met on the way.


For either the Virashaivas or the saints of Maharashtra, discuss their attitude towards caste.

The attitude of the Virashaivas towards caste:
They believed in the equality of all human beings. They were against Brahmanical ideas about caste and the treatment of women. They wished for a society where people of all backgrounds could live in harmony without any feelings of high and low, rich and poor.


Find out whether in your neighbourhood there are any dargahs, gurudwaras or temples associated with saints of the Bhakti tradition. Visit any one of these and describe what you see and hear.

Students are suggested to do this exercise themselves.
Sample- There is a gurudwara in my neighbourhood. People who come hear worship the Guru Granth Sahib. On daily basis shabad (words from the holy book) are sung.


Name the set of compilation of Alvars' songs.

Divya Prabandham.


Name any two saints of Maharashtra.

Namdev and Tukaram


Name any two great Sufis of Central Asia.

Ghazzali and Rumi.


For any of the saint-poets whose compositions have been included in this chapter, find out more about their works, noting down other poems. Find out whether these are sung, how they are sung, and what the poets wrote about.

Sample for this question is as follows:
The dohas of sant kabirdas are still sung and are also included in the school syllabus. Kabir was a mystic poet and his poems (dohas) were in vernacular hindi. In his dohas, Kabir rejected the hypocrisy and misguided rituals in various religious practices of his day.


How many Alvars were there?

There were 12 Alvars. 


What are namghars?

They are houses of recitation and prayer, a practice that continues even today.


What is abhang?

It is a Marathi devotional hymn.


Name the two sets of compilations of Nayanar's songs.

Tevaram and Tiruvachakam


There are severed saint-poets whose names have been mentioned but their works have not been included in the chapter. Find out more about the language in which they composed, whether their compositions were sung and what their compositions were about.

Students are suggested to do this exercise themselves.
[Hint: You can search the internet for the subcontinental Bhakti and Sufi literature of various saints and Sufi masters. Also, you can discuss with your history teacher.]


Write a brief note on new religious developments in north India.

During the thirteenth century, a new wave of the Bhakti movement began in north India. This was an age when Islam, Brahmanical Hinduism, Sufism, various strands of Bhakti, and the Nathpanths, Siddhas, and Yogis influenced one another. Ordinary people such as craftspersons, peasants, traders, etc. showed their interest in listening to these new saints. Kabir and Baba Guru Nanak did not approve of orthodox religious beliefs. Tulsidas and Surdas accepted existing beliefs and practices but wanted to make religion accessible to all. Tulsidas conceived of God in the form of Rama. His Ramacharitmanas is a unique creation. Surdas was an ardent devotee of Krishna. His compositions compiled the Sursagara, Sursaravali and Sahitya Lahari, express his devotion. Shankaradeva of Assam emphasised devotion to Vishnu and composed poems and plays in the Assamese. He began the practice of setting up namghars or houses of recitation and prayer. Saints like Dadu Dayal, Ravidas and Mirabai are worth-mentioning here. Mirabai was a Rajput princess and was married into the royal family of Mewar in the 16th century. She became a disciple of Ravidas, an untouchable saint. She devoted her life to Lord Krishna. She composed a number of bhajans expressing her intense devotion. A unique feature of most of the saints is that their works were composed in regional languages and could be sung. Therefore, they became very popular among the common mass.


Write in brief about the ideas of Shankara and Ramanuja.

  • Shankara, born in Kerala in the eighth century, was a very influential thinker of India. He was an advocate of Advaita or the doctrine of the oneness of the human soul and the Supreme Soul which is formless and is the Ultimate Reality.

  • Ramanuja was born in Tamil Nadu in the eleventh century, and he was highly influenced by the philosophy of the Alvars. He thought that the path to salvation was through intense devotion to Lord Vishnu because the grace of the Lord helps devotees attain permanent bliss (freedom and happiness).


What do you mean by Khanqahs? What purpose did it serve?

Khanqahs were houses of rest for travelers especially kept by a religious order. Sufi masters usually held their assemblies here. Devotees of all descriptions including members of the royalty and nobility, and ordinary people flocked to these Khanqahs. Here, they discussed spiritual matters, sought the blessings of the saints in solving their worldly problems or simply attended the music and dance sessions.


Who were the Nayanars and Alvars? Write about them in brief.

The Nayanars and Alvars led religious movements in south India during the seventh to ninth centuries. The Nayanars were devotees of Shiva while the Alvars were the devotees of Vishnu. They came from all castes including those considered 'untouchable like the Pulaiyar and the Panars. They preached the love of Shiva or Vishnu as the path to salvation. They went from place to place composing beautiful poems in praise of the deities enshrined in the villages they visited and set them to music. There were 63 Nayanars who belonged to different caste backgrounds. There were 12 Alvars who came from equally divergent backgrounds.


Class 7 History Extra Questions