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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What are the sisters that embrace the pressing stones?
(a) Other stones.
(b) Gems.
(c) Fingers.
(d) Dirt.

2. Who repairs the errors committed in the course of the horse sacrifice?
(a) Brahmins.
(b) Yaskas.
(c) Haruts.
(d) Hotrs.

3. The word for heart mind and life-spirit is _____.
(a) Coeur.
(b) Karma.
(c) Hama.
(d) Manas.

4. _____ is the cry that is made when an offering is presented to the gods.
(a) "Agni!".
(b) "Visvakarman!".
(c) "Soma!".
(d) "Vasat!".

5. An Asura is a form of high ____.
(a) Devotion.
(b) Catechism.
(c) Divinity.
(d) Priesthood.

6. What is the female element in the oblation ritual called?
(a) The air taker.
(b) The fourth element.
(c) The boneless one.
(d) The sky maker.

7. The traditional _____ in the Rig Veda is the tale of the king and the priest.
(a) Gale.
(b) Glue.
(c) Gloss.
(d) Glamour.

8. What is the sky divided into in "A Spell to Turn Back the Departing Spirit"?
(a) Two planes.
(b) Six quadrants.
(c) Four quarters.
(d) Three levels.

9. What are the human and demonic enemies of the invading Indo-Aryans?
(a) Atmans.
(b) Saramas.
(c) Panis.
(d) Agnus.

10. What are said to have more powers than the Fathers in heaven?
(a) The horses of heaven.
(b) The goats of heaven.
(c) The Mothers of heaven.
(d) The children of heaven.

11. The long-haired ascetic is an early precursor of the Upanisadic _____.
(a) Yama.
(b) Soma.
(c) Yogi.
(d) Sacrifice.

12. What turns into a plant that is used as a substitute for the Soma plant in the hymn, "Soma and Indra and the Eagle"?
(a) A leaf.
(b) A dragon scale.
(c) A feather.
(d) A seed.

13. How many corners does the earth have in "A Spell to Turn Back the Departing Spirit"?
(a) Three.
(b) Four.
(c) Two.
(d) One.

14. The Invoker is what type of priest in "The Sacrifice of the Horse"?
(a) Brahmin.
(b) Yaman.
(c) Hotr.
(d) All-maker.

15. Vivavsan is a name for the _____.
(a) Heavens.
(b) Sun.
(c) Moon.
(d) Earth.

Short Answer Questions

1. The author calls the unknown god the _____.

2. All fires die out when Siva is wrongly accused in "The Birth of Agni" and he departs from the _____.

3. Indra splits open a _____ to release trapped cows.

4. What is the piece of wood attached crosswise at the top of the stake used in the horse sacrifice?

5. When Agni becomes priest, his _____ are both flame and prayer.

(see the answer keys)

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