Class 12 Through the Eyes of Travellers: Perceptions of Society Mock Test (CBSE)

Topics in Through the Eyes of Travellers: Perceptions of Society

• Al-Biruni and the Kitab-ul-Hind
• Ibn Battuta's Rihla
• François Bernier: a doctor with a difference
• Making sense of an alien world: Al-Biruni and the Sanskritic tradition
• Ibn Battuta and the excitement of the unfamiliar
• Bernier and the degenerate East
• Women: slaves, sati and labourers

Through the Eyes of Travellers: Perceptions of Society practice questions with answers

1. Q1Multiple choice·1 mark
   Which of the following Sanskrit texts was translated into Arabic by Al-Biruni to help bridge cultural gaps and make Indian scientific and philosophical traditions accessible?

   1. (a)Charaka Samhita
   2. (b)The Rigveda
   3. (c)Patanjali's work on grammar
   4. (d)Natya Shastra
   Show answer and step marks

   1. Correct option: (c) Patanjali's work on grammar+1

   Answer: (c)
2. Q2Multiple choice·1 mark
   Ibn Battuta was fascinated by everyday items in India that were completely unfamiliar to him and his readers. Which two plant-based products did he describe with great astonishment in his travelogue, the Rihla?

   1. (a)Tea and coffee
   2. (b)Potato and tomato
   3. (c)Rubber and tobacco
   4. (d)Coconut and paan
   Show answer and step marks

   1. Correct option: (d) Coconut and paan+1

   Answer: (d)
3. Q3Short answer·2 marks
   Explain François Bernier's view on the crown ownership of land in the Mughal Empire and how it formed the basis of his perception of the "degenerate East".
   Show answer and step marks

   1. Bernier held that the key difference between Mughal India and Europe was the lack of private property in land: he believed the emperor owned all land and distributed it among nobles.+1
   2. Since holders could not pass land to their children, they did not invest in production; this, he argued, ruined agriculture, oppressed the peasants and prevented an 'improving' landlord class, so the East appeared stagnant and inferior to Europe.+1

   Answer: Bernier believed the Mughal emperor owned all land, unlike Europe's private property; with no secure inheritance, holders did not invest, so agriculture was ruined, peasants oppressed and no improving landlords arose, making the East seem degenerate.
4. Q4Short answer·3 marks
   Describe the condition of women in medieval Indian society as highlighted by foreign travellers, with special reference to slavery, sati, and labour.
   Show answer and step marks

   1. Women's labour was crucial in agricultural and non-agricultural production, and women of merchant families took part in trade and even mercantile disputes in court, so they were not confined to their homes.+1
   2. Bernier described sati in detail, noting that while some widows seemed to embrace death cheerfully, others, such as a young widow he saw in Lahore, were forced onto the pyre.+1
   3. Ibn Battuta noted that slaves, including female slaves, were openly sold in markets and given as gifts; they did domestic work, and some in the Sultan's service were musicians, dancers or spies on nobles.+1

   Answer: Women worked in fields and crafts and some took part in trade; Bernier described sati, some widows going willingly and others forced; Ibn Battuta recorded female slaves sold in markets and used in domestic work, entertainment and spying.
5. Q5Short answer·3 marks
   Analyze Al-Biruni's purpose behind writing the Kitab-ul-Hind and the linguistic and cultural barriers he identified in understanding Indian society.
   Show answer and step marks

   1. Explained that Al-Biruni wrote Kitab-ul-Hind as a help to those who wanted to discuss religious, philosophical, and social matters with Hindus.+1
   2. Highlighted the linguistic barrier, noting that Sanskrit was extremely difficult to master and fundamentally different from Arabic and Persian.+1
   3. Discussed the barrier of difference in religious beliefs, cultural practices, and the self-absorption of the local populace.+1

   Answer: He wrote it as a help to those who wanted to discuss religious and philosophical questions with Hindus; the barriers were Sanskrit, very different from Arabic and Persian, differences in religious beliefs and practices, and the self-absorption and insularity of the local people.

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