Discuss Al-Biruni’s understanding | Class 12 History - Themes in Indian History - II Chapter Through the Eyes of Travellers, Through the Eyes of Travellers NCERT Solutions

Write a note on the Kitab-ul-Hind.

Read this excerpt from Bernier:

Numerous are the instances of handsome pieces of workmanship made by persons destitute of tools, and who can scarcely be said to have received instruction from a master. Sometimes they imitate so perfectly articles of European manufacture that the difference between the original and copy can hardly be discerned. Among other things, the Indians make excellent muskets, and fowling- pieces, and such beautiful gold ornaments that it may be doubted if the exquisite workmanship of those articles can be exceeded by any European goldsmith. I have often admired the beauty, softness, and delicacy of  their paintings.

List the crafts mentioned in the passage. Compare
these with the descriptions of artisanal activity in
the chapter.

Do you think Ibn Battuta’s account is useful in arriving at an understanding of life in contemporary urban centres? Give reasons for your answer.

What were the elements of the practice of sati that drew the attention of Bernier?

On an outline map of the world mark the countries visited by Ibn Battuta. What are the seas that he may have crossed?

Discuss the extent to which Bernier’s account enables historians to reconstruct contemporary rural society.

Analyse the evidence for slavery provided by Ibn Battuta.

Compare and contrast the perspectives from which Ibn Battuta and Bernier wrote their accounts of their travels in India.

Discuss the picture of urban centres that emerges from Bernier’s account.

How were the lives of forest dwellers transformed in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries?

Discuss the ways in which panchayats and village headmen regulated rural society.

On an outline map of the world, mark the areas which had economic links with the Mughal Empire, and trace out possible routes of communication.

Examine the role played by zamindars in Mughal India.

Discuss the ways in which the Alvars, Nayanars and Virashaivas expressed critiques of the caste system.

What do you think was the significance of the rituals associated with the mahanavami dibba?

What were the distinctive features of the Mughal nobility? How was their relationship with the emperor shaped?

To what extent do you think caste was a factor in influencing social and economic relations in agrarian society?

How were the water requirements of Vijayanagara met?

Fig. 7.33 is an illustration of another pillar from the Virupaksha temple. Do you notice any floral motifs? What are the animals shown? Why do you think they are depicted? Describe the human figures shown.

Discuss, with examples, the distinctive features of Mughal chronicles.

On an outline map of India, plot three major sufi shrines, and three places associated with temples (one each of a form of Vishnu, Shiva and the goddess).

How were the water requirements of Vijayanagara met?

Discuss the major features of Mughal provincial administration. How did the centre control the provinces?

On an outline map of the world, mark the areas which had economic links with the Mughal Empire, and trace out possible routes of communication.

Describe the major teachings of either Kabir or Baba Guru Nanak, and the ways in which these have been transmitted.

What do you think was the significance of the rituals associated with the mahanavami dibba?

Examine the evidence that suggests that land revenue was important for the Mughal fiscal system.

What were the concerns that shaped Mughal policies and attitudes towards regions outside the subcontinent?

What impression of the lives of the ordinary people of Vijayanagara can you cull from the various descriptions in the chapter?