Ancient Indian History MCQs
Multiple Choice Quiz Questions (MCQs) on Ancient Indian History for General Studies and GK preparation of SSC, NDA, CDS, UPSC, UPPSC and State PSC Examinations.
11. Fourth Buddhist Council was held at?
[A] Kapilvastu
[B] Kashmir
[C] Sarnath
[D] Bodhgaya
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Kashmir]
Notes:
First Rajgir, Second vaishali, Third patliputra
Fourth Buddhist Council is the name of two separate Buddhist council meetings first in Sri Lanka and another at Sarvastivada school, in Kashmir around the First Century AD.
12. In Rigveda the rivers Ganga & Yamuna are mentioned as below
[A] Yamuna Once, Ganga Thrice
[B] Yamuna Thrice, Ganga Once
[C] Ganga Twice , Yamuna Once
[D] Yamuna Thrice, Ganga Twice
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Yamuna Thrice, Ganga Once]
Notes:
The rivers ganga ,Yamuna and saraswati had great prominence in Vedas. Ganga and Yamuna are mentioned together for the first time in Rig Veda. Yamuna is mentioned three times and Ganga is mentioned once in Rig veda.
13. In Greek texts, who among the following has been mentioned as Amitrochates?
[A] Bimbisara
[B] Bindusara
[C] Kautilya
[D] Ashoka
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Bindusara]
Notes:
Bindusara, also called Bindusara Maurya, Greek Amitrochates, is the second Mauryan emperor, who ascended the throne about 297 bce. Greek sources refer to him as Amitrochates.
14. Dashkumarcharitam was composed by whom?
[A] Bharavi
[B] Dandin
[C] Varahmihira
[D] Kalidas
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Dandin]
Notes:
Dashkumarcharitam was composed by Dandin, who was a Sanskrit author of prose romances and expounder on poetics in the
6th-7th century. The book, Dashkumarcharitam is a prose romance in Sanskrit that describes the adventures of ten young men, the Kumaras, all of whom are either princes or sons of royal ministers, as narrated by the men themselves.
15. Big landlords or warrior chiefs in the seventh century were acknowledged as which of the following by the existing kings?
[A] Brahmanas
[B] Samantas
[C] Chalukya
[D] Rashtrakutas
Show Answer
Correct Answer: B [Samantas]
Notes:
Samantas was a name given to big landlords or warrior chiefs in different regions of the Indian subcontinent, by the existing kings of the seventh century. They were expected to bring gifts for their kings or overlords, be present in their courts and also provide them with military support.
16. Which of the following was the extent of Indus Valley Civilization?
[A] Baluchistan, Sind, Punjab and Rajasthan
[B] Sind, Punjab and Kashmir
[C] Afghanistan, Sind, Punjab, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Kashmir
[D] None of these
Show Answer
Correct Answer: A [Baluchistan, Sind, Punjab and Rajasthan]
Notes:
The Indus Valley Civilization was not confined to these few sites. The influence of this culture extended to the Punjab, Sindh, North West Frontier Province (now in Pakistan), Baluchistan, Rajasthan, U.P., Gujarat and even some parts of south India.
17. Who among the following was the last in the succession of Jaina Tirthankaras?
[A] Parsvanatha
[B] Rishabha
[C] Mahavira
[D] Manisubrata
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Mahavira]
Notes:
The 24th and last tirthankara of present half-cycle was Mahavira. History records the existence of Mahavira and his predecessor, Parshvanath, the twenty-third tirthankara.
18. “Live well, as long as you live. Live well even by borrowings, for, once cremated, there is no ‘return.” This rejection of after-life is an aphorism of which of the following sects?
[A] Kapalika sect
[B] Sunyavada of Nagarjuna
[C] Ajivikas
[D] Charvakas
Show Answer
Correct Answer: D [Charvakas]
Notes:
The rejection of after-life is an aphorism of the Charvakas. Charvaka also known as Lokayata, is an ancient school of Indian materialism.
Charvaka holds direct perception, empiricism, and conditional inference as proper sources of knowledge, embraces philosophical skepticism and rejects ritualism, and supernaturalism.
19. Which one of the following is a Vedanga?
[A] Sruti
[B] Smriti
[C] Nirukta
[D] Samhita
Show Answer
Correct Answer: C [Nirukta]
Notes:
Nirukta means “explained, interpreted” and refers to one of the six ancient Vedangas, or ancillary science connected with the Vedas – the scriptures of Hinduism.
20. Which of the following name by Ashoka is generally referred in his inscriptions?
[A] Chakravarti
[B] Dharmadeva
[C] Dharmakirti
[D] Priyadarsi
Show Answer
Correct Answer: D [Priyadarsi]
Notes:
Priyadasi was an honorific epithets used by the Indian Emperor Ashoka in his inscriptions. Priyadasi means “He who regards others with kindness”, “Humane”. It is generally used in conjunction with the title “Devanampriya” (“Beloved of the Gods”).
