Balbharti Maharashtra State Board Class 6 English Solutions Chapter 4.2 The Story of Gautama’s Quest Notes, Textbook Exercise Important Questions and Answers.
Maharashtra State Board Class 6 English Solutions Chapter 4.2 The Story of Gautama’s Quest
Class 6 English Chapter 4.2 The Story of Gautama’s Quest Textbook Questions and Answers
1. Complete the following sentences with reference to the passage.
Question a.
Gautama, the Buddha, was born over two thousand five hundred years ago, as ……………… .
Answer:
a. Gautama, the Buddha, was born over two thousand five hundred years ago, as Prince Siddharth.
Question b.
The king was determined to prevent his beloved son from ………….. .
Answer:
b. The king was determined to prevent his beloved son from renouncing the world.
Question c.
For six years did Gautama practise …………….. .
Answer:
c. To this day, we venerate this tree as the Bodhi Tree.
Question d.
He realised that making the body suffer was not ………….. .
Answer:
d. Siddharth renounced worldly life in quest of the Truth of life.
Question e.
To this day, we venerate this tree as …………… .
Answer:
Gautama found out the cause of sorrow is desire. The cure of sorrow is to give up all desires and adopt Right – Living.
2. Write short notes on the following.
Question a.
Prince Siddharth’s protected life.
Answer:
When Siddharth was born, it was prophesied that the infant would either grow to be a great Emperor or a renunciate who would usher comforts to lost souls. King Raja Shuddhodana was determined to prevent his son from renouncing the world. He surrounded the Prince with every imaginable luxury and comfort in the magnificent palaces. Thus, changing palaces depending on the season of the year. Prince Siddharth lived his secluded, protected life in the beautiful atmosphere of the royal mansions.
Question b.
The four signs that Prince Siddharth beheld.
Answer:
At the age of twenty-nine, Siddharth went out to see his kingdom and meet his subjects when he beheld what the Buddhist books call the ‘four signs’ – which reflected the impermanence of the world. He saw an old man, a diseased man, a dead man and a monk – and he was exposed to a vision of dukkha the world sorrow. From here began Gautama’s journey in quest of the Truth of Life.
Question c.
The message in the vision.
Answer:
The message in the vision was to convey to Buddha that he should not torture his body to starvation in quest of the Truth of Life. It is illustrated by the beautiful example of the sitar. The vision said that the sitar had to be tuned low nor high. If the string of a sitar is overstretched, it will break and lose its ability to make music. Similarly, an overslack string too would not create music. In other words, we should not go to extremes in our efforts to achieve our goals.
Question d.
Sujata’s offering:
Answer:
A beautiful girl named Sujata appeared before Gautama as he was trying to get up to take a bath in the river but couldn’t due to weakness. Sujata was carrying a golden bowl filled with sweetened milk and rice. Seeing the weakened ascetic, she offered the bowl of milk and rice at his feet. Buddha accepted her offerings. The first meal after many days of starvation refreshed him and infused a new strength in him. He realized that making the body suffer was not the way to enlightenment and truth.
3. Read aloud a paragraph of your choice from the passage.
Question 1.
Read aloud a paragraph of your choice from the passage.
4. Visit a library: Read stories about Gautama Buddha. Relate one story in the class.
Question 1.
Visit a library: Read stories about Gautama Buddha. Relate one story in the class.
Class 6 English Chapter 4.2 The Story of Gautama’s Quest Additional Important Questions and Answers
Answer in one or two sentences.
Question 1.
When and where was Gautama Buddha born?
Answer:
Gautama Buddha was born over two thousand five hundred years ago on the sacred day of Vaishakh Purnima at Lumbini, situated near the city of Kapilavastu.
Question 2.
What was prophesied at the birth of Gautama Buddha?
Answer:
It was prophesied at the birth of Gautama that the infant would either grow to be a great Chakravarti (an emperor) or a Sannyasi (a renunciate) who would bring comfort to lost souls.
Question 3.
What was the king determined to do?
Answer:
The king was determined to prevent his beloved son from renouncing the world.
Question 4.
Who was the prince married to? What was the name of his son?
Answer:
The prince was married to one of the most beautiful girls of the realm – Princess Yashodhara, the daughter of the Koliyan king. Their son’s name was Rahul.
Question 5.
How did the life of Siddharth change at the age of twenty-nine?
Answer:
At the age of twenty-nine, Siddharth went out to see his kingdom and to meet his subjects. He witnessed what the Buddhist books call the ‘four signs’ – witnesses to the impermanence of the world. This changed Siddharth’s life.
Question 6.
What was the impact of the ‘four signs’ on Siddharth?
Answer:
Siddharth saw an old man, a diseased man, a dead man and a monk and these witnesses to the impermanence of the world moved him, and there entered into his heart a vision of dukkha, the world – sorrow.
Question 7.
Why did Buddha renounce worldly life?
Answer:
To find the answer to the unanswerable question, “What is the way out of the world – sorrow?” He renounced worldly life and set out in quest of the Truth of Life.
Question 8.
What answer did Gautam Buddha get to his query: “What is the cause of sorrow”?
Answer:
The cause of sorrow is desire and the cure for sorrow is to give up all desires and adopt Right Living. This was the answer Gautama found to his query.
Question 9.
Why do we venerate the Bodhi Tree?
Answer:
Born under a tree/ as Buddha received illumination under a tree and so to this day we venerate this tree as the Bodhi Tree.
Question 10.
Complete the web diagram with qualities essential to succeed in what we have set out to achieve.
Answer:
Read the following extract and complete the activities.
Question 1.
Complete the following sentences with reference to the extract.
Answer:
- For six years, did Gautama practise intense asceticism.
- He realised that making the body suffer was not the way to enlightenment and truth.
Question 2.
What does the passage highlight?
Answer:
The passage highlights the intensity with which Gautama practised ascetism in his quest of the truth of life. It also talks about its impact on him and the willpower he displayed.
Question 3.
When did Gautama realise that making the body suffer was not the way to enlightenment and truth?
Answer:
When Buddha accepted Sujata’s offering of milk and rice, it refreshed him and infused a new strength in him. He then realized that making the body suffer was not the way to enlightenment and truth.
Question 4.
Pick out proof from the extract: Gautama in his quest for truth had become extremely weak.
Answer:
His strong, athletic body was reduced to a bag of bones.
Question 5.
Explain the lines: ‘Tune the sitar neither low nor high. The string overstretched breaks/
Answer:
The above lines convey the message that we should not go to any extreme ends in whatever we attempt. We should always take a middle path, i.e. neither going overboard nor remaining too indifferent.
Question 6.
‘I shall not give up until I attain to enlightenment’. What does this line tell us about Buddha?
Answer:
The above line tells us that Gautama Buddha was very determined. It reflects his immense willpower as he set out in quest of the truth of life.
Question 7.
Buddha accepted her offerings. (Add a question tag)
Answer:
Buddha accepted her offerings, didn’t he?
Question 8.
The cause of sorrow is desire. (State the word class of the underlined words and state its kind)
Answer:
sorrow, desire – Abstract nouns
Question 9.
Why is willpower essential to succeed in life?
Answer:
If we are determined and if we persist and never give up, we will definitely emerge as a winner.
Language Study.
Question 1.
He was born on the sacred day of Vaishakh Purnima at Lumbini, situated near the city of Kapilavastu. (State the word class of the underlined words) .
Answer:
Nouns
Question 2.
The king was determined to prevent his beloved son from renouncing the world. (Form Wh-question to get the underlined part as the answer)
Answer:
What was the king determined to do?
Question 3.
He saw an old man, a diseased man, a dead man and a monk. (Pick out the describing words)
Answer:
Describing words: old, diseased, dead
Question 4.
For six years did Gautama practise intense asceticism. (Pick out the action word)
Answer:
practise – action word
Question 5.
I shall not give up until I attain enlightenment. (State the word class of the underlined word)
Answer:
until – Conjunction
Question 6.
When she saw the weakened ascetic, she offered the bowl at his feet. (Pick out the Preposition)
Answer:
at – preposition
Question 7.
Buddha accepted her offering. (Rewrite the sentence starting with: Her offering)
Answer:
Her offering was accepted by Buddha.
Question 8.
It refreshed him and infused a new strength in him. (Use not only …. but also)
Answer:
It not only refreshed him but also infused a new strength in him.
Question 9.
Gautama had longed for enlightenment. (Pick out the verb and state its tense)
Answer:
had longed – Past perfect tense
Question 10.
The cause of sorrow is desire. (Separate the subject and predicate)
Answer:
The cause of sorrow: Subject is desire: Predicate
Question 11.
Word building.
Answer:
| Noun | Adjective | Verb |
| prevention | preventive | prevent |
| imagination | imaginable | imagine |
| beauty | beautiful | beautify |
| illumination | illuminated | illuminate |
| strength | strong | strengthen |
Make sentences using the following phrases.
- to prevent: We should do all we can to prevent the growth of social stigma.
- to renounce: He renounced all worldly pleasures and left in search of truth.
- to witness: I witnessed a very serious accident.
- to attain: We should try to attain excellence in all we set out to do.
- to serve no purpose: Arguments serve no purpose and so we should avoid it.
- to achieve: We should achieve great heights through hard work and persistent efforts.
- to torture: We should never show cruelty towards animals or torture them in any way.
- to infuse a new strength: His words infused a new strength in my goal of life.
- to venerate: We venerate forces of nature as they are our providers.
Student’s Activity.
Question a.
Write a paragraph on:
Answer:
Qualities essential for Success
Question b.
Write an essay of about 100 words on:
Answer:
Willpower – Essential for Success
The Story of Gautama’s Quest Summary in English
The lesson ‘The Story of Gautama’s Quest’ narrates his journey from his birth two thousand five hundred years ago till the time he attained enlightenment under the Bodhi tree. Son of King Shuddhodana, Gautama would either be a great emperor or a renunciate who would bring comforts to many – thousands of lost souls – this was what was prophesied at his birth.
Despite the best efforts of the king, eventually the prophecy came true when Gautama witnessed the four signs – witnesses to the impermanence of the world. He renounced the comforts of the palace, the worldly life. He left his wife Yashodhara and son Rahul, and set out on a journey – A journey in quest of the Truth of Life.
The lesson goes on to narrate the severe hardships which Gautama underwent for six years. He displayed immense will-power. He hardly ate a grain of rice but refused to give up until he attained enlightenment. Along the way, Gautama saw a vision. It changed his approach. He then decided to follow the middle path and stopped torturing his body to starvation.
As he accepted the offering of milk and rice from Sujata, he felt refreshed and infused with strength. He realised that making the body suffer was not the way to enlightenment and truth.
Gautama’s long wait, the quest for truth, ended when that night he found answer to his question. The cause of sorrow was desire, the urge to possess. The cure for the same was to give up all desires and adopt right living. A circle was complete. Born under a tree, the Buddha received illumination also under a tree – A tree venerated even today.
Introduction:
This lesson throws light on Gautama’s journey in quest of the truth of life – the journey (the quest) which begins with a question: What is the cause of sorrow? The quest ends when he finds the answer that the root cause of all sorrows is desire. The cure for all sorrows is to give up all desires and adopt right living.
Glossary:
- sacred (adj) – holy
- prophesied (v) – to reveal by divine something inspiration
- renunciate (n) – one who formally gives up
- renounce (verb) – to formally give up
- magnificent (adj) – extravagant and beautiful
- mansion (n) – a large, palatial house
- secluded (adj) – a place which is not visited
- realm (n) – field of activity
- impermanence (adj) – not lasting definitely
- unanswerable (adj) – question which couldn’t be answered
- quest (v) – search
- illumination (n)- enlightenment
- attainment (n) – acquire something
- intense (adj) – severe
- asceticism (n) – avoiding pleasures of life and leading a simple life for religious purpose
- succession (n) – happening one after another
- athletic (adj) – strong and healthy
- willpower (n) – strong determination
- vision (n) – something which is seen in a dream and which conveys some truth or knowledge.
- stimulant (n) – motivate or encourage
- starvation (n) – suffer from lack of food
- ascetic (n) – one who abstains oneself from
- infused (v) – ushered in (here)
- desire (n) – to want something strongly
- venerate (v) – respect deeply