A New Combined History & Civics for Class 8 ICSE Solutions Social and Religious Reform Movements

A New Combined History & Civics for Class 8 ICSE Solutions Social and Religious Reform Movements.

These Solutions are part of A New Combined History & Civics for Class 8 ICSE Solutions  Here we have given. A New Combined History & Civics for Class 8 ICSE Solutions Social and Religious Reform Movements.


EXERCISES

I. Answer the following questions in 40-50 words each :

Question 1.
Name any three movements started for the reform of Indian society.
Answer:
Three movements are Religious Reforms movement, Social Reforms movement and work in the field of Education movement were the main topics of the movements in the 19th century by great social reformers and saints like Raja Ram Mohan Roy, Swami Vivekanand, Swami Dayanand, Ram Krishna Paramhansa and Mrs Annie Besant, etc.

Question 2.
Why did Sir Syed Ahmed Khan oppose the Congress ?
Answer:
Sir Syed Ahmed Khan was a great scholar and reformer of society. Being a muslim, he was against the Hindu dominated congress, as he wanted the equal share of Muslim members. So, he also organised Anglo-Muslim Associations to oppose the congress and support the British Government. However, he prepared the Muslims to meet the challenge and to be educated and wise.

Question 3.
Describe any three steps taken by the Brahmo Samaj in reforming the Hindu society.
Answer:
It was founded by Raja Ram Mohan Roy in A.D. 1828. He was the first to attempt to reform the Hindu Society. e.g.

  1. Abolition of Sati system.
  2. Propogation of widow marriage.
  3. Opposition of child marriage and ‘polygamy’.

Question 4.
Narrate the role of Veeresalingam in the spread of social reform.
Answer:
Veeresalingam was a South Indian reformer of Andhra Pradesh who was  Born in A.D. 1848. He started Telugu journal in A.D. 1876 to social reform. He laid stress on woman education and dignity. He was known as a social reformer and nationalist.

Question 5.
Name the movements associated with the names of Jyotiba Phule and Shri Narayana Guru.
Answer:
Jyotiba Phule was the founder of Satya Shodhak Samaj in 1848 in Maharashtra for the upliftment of the oppressed classes. He opened many schools. He condemned the caste structure. He was also given the name of ‘Mahatma’. Shri Narayana Guru fought for the uplift of oppressed people, especially for the Ezhavas, his own caste. He was a great scholar of Sanskrit. He founded the Shri Narayana Dharma Paripalana Yogam and advocated the principle of “One God and One Religion”.

II. Answer the following questions in not more in 80-100 words each :

Question 1.
Estimate the reform work done by Raja Ram Mohan Roy in the social and religious fields in the 19th century.
Answer:
Raja Ram Mohan Roy was a great social and religious reformer. He established Brahmo Samaj in A.D. 1828. He preached on equality of mankind and insisted on to worship one God without useless rituals. He condemned the caste system and untouchability. He followed the principles and ideals of Vedas and Upanishad and translated the Vegas into Bengali. He made his best efforts to stop Sati system and polygamy. He favoured widow-marriage. He favoured the teaching of English language for increasing knowledge. He 
laid the foundation of an English School, the Hindu College and the Vedanta College.

Question 2.
Who was Swami Ramkrishna Paramhansa ? What were the basic principles of his teachings ?
Answer:
Ram Krishna Paramhansa was a great saint of Bengal. He was scholar of ancient Sanskrit literature. He believed in salvation through meditation and devotion. Swami Vivekanand (1863-1902), the great disciple of Swami, greatly helped to communicate the teachings of his Guru, who discarded caste-system, rituals and superstitions. The basic thoughts of his teachings were to cultivate the spirit of liberty, equality and free-thinking. He also represented India and the principles of his Guru in Chicago in A.D. 1893 and glorified the Hindu religion. He also founded Ram Krishna Mission in A.D. 1896. Today, various branches of this mission are established all over the world.

Question 3.
Write a brief note on the work and teachings of Swami Dayanand and the Arya Samaj.
Answer:
Swami Dayanand was a great reformer from a rich Brahmin family of Kathiawar state, Gujrat. He was also an excellent Sanskrit scholar and fond of Vedas. He founded the Arya Samaj in A.D. 1875, to revive Hinduism and reorganize the Hindu Society. He also believed in one God. His immortal work “The Satyarth Prakash”, is still guiding the people with his teachings; Arya Samaj opened many D.A.V. Schools and Colleges. Besides this Gurukul Kangri at Haridwar tried to revive the Gurukul system of education of ancient India.

Question 4.
Describe the contribution of Vivekanand to the awakening of the Indian people.
Answer:
Swami Vivekanand was a great personality who involved himself with deep passion to reform the Indian people by awakening their knowledge and attention towards the welfare of the society. Through Ramkrishna Mission, he strongly tried to condemn caste system, ritual ceremonies, superstitions in the religious aspects. The principles of humanism as the spirit of equality, liberty and free-thinking. Under his guidance, Ramkrishna Mission opened educational institutions, orphanages, hospitals, and libraries. He explained the importance of social welfare rather than personal salvation and essential oneness of all religions as gateways to proper life style for ideal living.

Question 5.
What steps were taken to elevate the status of women In society ?
Answer:
Sati system was prohibited by the British Government in A.D. 1829. Various laws were passed against killing the young daughters in A.D. 1795, 1802 and 1804. Women education was promoted by opening many schools for . them. Child marriage was banned but remarriage of widows was supported in A.D. 1856. Women also were given the right to inherit the property.

III. Describe the following :

Question 1.
What were the five evils that invested the Hindu Society in the 18th century ?
Answer:
Five evils were Sati system, Child marriage, killing of young girls, torture of widows, illiteracy particularly of girls, etc.

Question 2.
In what parts of the country, did the following movements become popular ? Brahmo Samaj, Prarthana Samaj, Arya Samaj, Ramkrishna Mission.
Answer:
The movements took place in various states as follows:
Movement                                 State
Brahmo Samaj                        Bengal
Prarthana Samaj                      Maharashtra
Arya Samaj                             Gujrat
Ramkrishna Mission               Bengal

Question 3.
Whose names are associated with the following Abolition of Sati System; Gramodyog Sangh; Back to the Vedas; Hindu High School, Benaras; Anglo-Oriental College, Aligarh.
Answer:

A New Combined History & Civics for Class 8 ICSE Solutions Social and Religious Reform Movements 1

IV. Match the statements in Column ‘A’ and Column ‘B’
A New Combined History & Civics for Class 8 ICSE Solutions Social and Religious Reform Movements 2
A New Combined History & Civics for Class 8 ICSE Solutions Social and Religious Reform Movements 3

Answer:
A New Combined History & Civics for Class 8 ICSE Solutions Social and Religious Reform Movements 4

Practice Questions

A. Fill in the blanks.

  1.  1. Ram Mohan Roy is known as the Father of Indian Renaissance.
  2. Sati was banned by lord Bentinck with the support of progressive Indians like Brahmo samaj
  3. The first Indian school for girl was established in Calcutta 1849 by Drink Water Bethune with the support of Vidysagar
  4. Vidya Sagar was a great champion of widow remarriage which was legalized by Lord Dalhousie.
  5. Swami-Dayanand founded the Arya Samaj in 1857.
  6. The most ardent follower of Ramakrishna Paramahansa was Narendranath, later known as Datta
  7. The Prarthana Samaj was founded by R. G Bhandarkar and Mahadev Govind Ranada
  8. Sir SyedAhmed Kan founded the Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College at Aligarh in 1857.
  9. The Sikh reformers launched the Akali Movement against the corrupt management of the gurudwaras.

B. Match the following
A New Combined History & Civics for Class 8 ICSE Solutions Social and Religious Reform Movements 5
A New Combined History & Civics for Class 8 ICSE Solutions Social and Religious Reform Movements 6
Answer:
A New Combined History & Civics for Class 8 ICSE Solutions Social and Religious Reform Movements 7

C. Answer the following questions.

Question 1.
Mention three religious principles (based on Vedic philosophy) propagated by Raja Ram Mohan Roy.
Answer:
Three religious principles propagated by Raja Ram Mohan Roy were

  1. There is only one god who is the creater and preserver of the universe.
  2. All men are children of the one god of all human beings and therefore equal.
  3. It was not necessary to worship idols and perform rituals and sacrifices. God could be reached through prayer and devotion.

Question 2.
Mention the social reforms advocated by the Brahmo Samaj.
Answer:
The social reforms advocated by the Brahmo Samaj are

  • Sati Practice
  • Caste distinctions and untouchability
  • Child Marriage
  • Poloygamy

Question 3.
What were Ram Mohan Roy’s views on modern education?
Answer:
Raja-Mohan Roy was a great champion of Modem western education. He believed it would serve as an instrument for the spread of progressive ideas and accelerate the pace of social
change. He believed that the salvation of India lay in adopting western principles of reason and humanism and acquiring the knowledge of Modem science.

Question 4.
Briefly discuss Ram Mohan Roy’s achievements in the field of education.
Answer:
Raja Mohan Roy opened an English medium school which combined traditional Indian learning with western knowledge. He assisted David Hare, a Scottish watchmaker, to establish the Hindu college in Calcutta. He also founded the Vedanta college which offered courses of study in Indian learning and Western sciences.

Question 5.
How did Ram Mohan Roy’s propagate his ideas?
Answer:
Ram Mohan Roy did not however believe in blindly aping the west, north did he believe in blindly relying on India’s own past. The ideal situation would be to balance the best of the East and the West and reconstruct society accordingly.

Question 6.
Briefly discuss Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar’s role in the following areas of social reform:
(1) Education of women
(2) Remarriage of widows
Answer:

  1.  Education of Women : Vidyasagar was a staunch
    supporter of women’s education and helped Drink water Bethune to establish the first Indian school for girl in Calcutta in 1849. As inspector of school he opened thirty five schools for girls.
  2. Remarriage of Widows : The great misery and sufferings of the Hindu widows in Bengal pained him deeply. He started a bold movement advocating the remarriage of widows. His efforts bore fruit. Lord Dalhousie passed the widow Remarriage Act in 1856. The first legal Hindu Widow remarriage was celebrated in Calcutta in December 1857, with the support of Vidyasagar.

Question 7.
What effect would social regeneration have on India’s future?
Answer:
Due to social regeneration there was rise of nationalism and the growth of the national movement.

Question 8.
Who founded the Arya Samaj? Mention the social reforms advocated by Arya Samaj.
Answer:
Swami Dayanand founded a society known as Aiya Samaj in 1875.
The Social reforms advocated by Arya Samaj are on the following practices

  • Caste system and untouchability
  • Child marriage
    The samaj supported and encouraged
  • Education for Women  Widow remarriage

Question 9.
Write short notes on the following:
(1) Ramakrishna Paramahansa
(2) Reforms among Sikhs and Parsees
(3) Prarthana Samaj
(4) Swami Vivekanada
Answer:

  1. Ramakrishna Paramahansa : He was a priest in a  temple of Goddess Kali at Dakshineshwar near Calcutta. He had not got any formal education but had a clear understanding of Vedantic Philosophy. His teachings were simple, but had a deep impact on the people. He regarded all religions at different paths to.reach the one true God. According to him, service to humanity was service to God.
  2. Reforms among Sikhs and Parsees :
    • Sikhs The Singh Sabha was set up in Amritsar and Lahore for the religious and social reforms among Sikhs. It set up the Khalsa college in Amritsar and opened many schools and promoted the Gurumukhi script and Punjabi literature.
    • Parsees : In reform movement among the parsees an association was set up and it started a movement against religious orthodoxy. Modem ideas and changes
      were introduced to elevate the position of the parsee women. Education of woman, raising the marriageable age of girls and widow remarriage were some of the major concerns of the reforms
  3. Prarthana Samaj : It was founded in Bombay Under the supervision of R.G Bhandarkar and Mahade Govind Ranade. It worked on the same lines as the Brahmo Samaj and worked for the abolition of caste system, polygamy, child marriage.
  4. Swami Vivekananda : Swamiji proclaimed the essential unity of all religions and emphasized the importance of religious tolerance, brotherhood, peace and harmony among Indians. He condenmed the caste system social and economic inequalities, superstitions and ritualism and urged Indians to act responsibly

Question 10.
Why was Ramakrishna Mission founded and by whom? What were the main ideals of this Mission?
Answer:
Ramakrishna Mission was founded by Swami Vivekananda to propagate the teachings and ideals of Ramakrishana Paramahansa.
The main ideals of this Mission are

  1. Selfless social service
  2. Spread of education.
  3. Removal of ignorance
  4. Social inequalities

Question 11.
Who was Sir Syed Ahmed Khan? Mention the social reforms advocated by him.
Answer:
Sir Syed Ahmed Khan played a significant role in awakening the Muslims to the need to change with the times. He believed that only through western education and knowledge of English, the Muslim community could progress and scientific temper be developed. His greatest achievement was the foundation of Mohammedan Anglo-Oriental College at Aligarh in 1875. This College later on grew into the Aligarh Muslim University. To introduce social reforms he focused on the backward condition of the women. He advocated the removal of education for women and opposed polygamy.

Question 12.
Briefly mention the reform movement in South India.
Answer:
Veeresalingam, a prominent social reformer in south India, was deeply disturbed by the deplorable condition of Women in general and widow remarriage and education for women in particular. Sri Narayan Guru carried on a lifelong struggle against the caste system. His crusade was based on the principle of one caste, one religion, one god for mankind.

D. State whether the following are true or false.

  1. Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar supported William Bentinck to ban sati.
    False
    Reason Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar supported William Bentinck on Hindu widow Remarriage Act.
  1. Raja Ram Mohan Roy propagated widow remarriage.
    True
  1. Dayanand Saraswati believed that the Vedas were the fountainhead of all knowledge and truth.
    True
  1. Swami Vivekananda was inspired by western ideas and philosophies.
    False.
    Reason Swami Vivekananda was inspired by Indian ideas and philosophies.
  1. Ramakrishna Paramahansa was a priest in the temple of Goddess Lakshmi at Calcutta.
    True
  1. The Parsees were the first to take to Western education.
    True

 

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