NCERT Solutions Class 7 Social Science Chapter 9 The Making of Regional Cultures

NCERT Solutions for Class 7 of Social Science History of chapter 9 The Making of Regional Cultures

Let’s recall 

1. Match the following:

Anantavarman – Kerala 

Jagannatha – Bengal 

Mahodayapuram – Orissa 

Lilatilakam – Kangra 

Mangalakavya- Puri

Miniature – Kerala 

Answer: 

Anantavarman – Orissa 

Jagannatha – Puri 

Mahodayapuram – Kerala 

Lilatilakam – Kerala 

Mangalakavya- Bengal 

Miniature – Kangra 

2. What is Manipravalam? Name a book written in that language. 

Answer: 

(i)Manipravalam literally means “diamonds and corals” referring to the two languages, Sanskrit and Malayalam.  

(ii)Lilatilakam, a fourteenth-century text on grammar and poetics, was written in the language. 

3. Who were the major patrons of Kathak? 

Answer: 

(i)Under the Mughal emperors and their nobles, Kathak was performed in the court, where it acquired its present features and developed into a form of dance with a distinctive style. 

(ii)Subsequently, it developed in two traditions or gharanas: one in the courts of Rajasthan (Jaipur) and the other in Lucknow. 

(iii)In Lucknow, under the patronage of Wajid Ali Shah, the last Nawab of Awadh, it grew into a major art form.  

(iv)By the third quarter of the nineteenth century, it was firmly entrenched as a dance form not only in these two regions, but in the areas of present-day Punjab, Haryana, Jammu and Kashmir, Bihar and Madhya Pradesh.

4. What are the important architectural features of the temples of Bengal? 

Answer: 

(i)The temples of Bengal began to copy the double-roofed 

(dochala) or four-roofed (chauchala) structure of the thatched huts. 

(ii)This led to the evolution of the typical Bengali style in temple architecture. 

(iii)In the comparatively more complex four-roofed structure, four triangular roofs placed on the four walls move up to converge on a curved line or a point. 

(iv)Temples were usually built on a square platform.  

(v)The interior was relatively plain, but the outer walls of the temples were decorated with paintings, ornamental tiles or terracotta tablets. 

Let’s discuss 

5. Why did minstrels proclaim the achievements of heroes? 

Answer:

(i)Stories about heroes were recorded in poems and songs, which were recited by specially trained minstrels. 

(ii)These preserved the memories of heroes were expected to inspire others to follow their example. 

(iii)Ordinary people were also attracted by these stories of dramatic situations, and a range of strong emotions – loyalty, friendship, love, valour, anger, etc. 

6. Why do we know much more about the cultural practices of rulers than about those of ordinary people? 

Answer: 

(i) We know much more about the cultural practices of rulers because their achievements were recorded, and their artistic works were safely preserved in the palaces for the centuries. 

(ii) For example, stories about heroic kings were recorded in poems and songs and were recited by specially trained minstrels; these preserved the memories of heroes. 

(iii) But the ordinary people were busy in earning their livelihood and did not have enough resource to preserve their cultural products and artistic creations. 

7. Why did conquerors try to control the temple of Jagannatha at Puri? 

Answer: 

Conquerors try to control the temple of Jagannatha at Puri due to the following reasons: 

(i) This temple gained in importance as a centre of pilgrimage. 

(ii) Its authority in social and political matters also increased. 

(iii) The Conquerors who conquered Orissa felt that if they occupy this temple, then, it would be easy to make their rule acceptable to the local people. 

8. Why were temples built in Bengal? 

Answer: 

(i)Temples were built in Bengal by powerful individuals or groups to both demonstrate their power and proclaim their piety.  

(ii)Many of the modest brick and terracotta temples were built with the support of several “low” social groups, such 

as the Kolu (oil pressers) and the Kansari (bell metal workers).  

(iii)The coming of the European trading companies created new economic prosperity; many of such “low” social groups prospered and improved their social and economic position. 

(iv)They proclaimed their status through the construction of temples.  

(v)When local deities, once worshipped in thatched huts in villages, gained the recognition of the Brahmanas, their images began to be housed in temples.