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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Vena is the seer identified with the _____.
(a) Sunbird.
(b) Planet Venus.
(c) Chariot.
(d) Soma.

2. The Maruts are referred to as _____ in "The Cows in the Cave".
(a) The dark ones.
(b) The elite ones.
(c) The quick ones.
(d) The small ones.

3. The Rbhus are the _____ of the gods.
(a) Craftsmen.
(b) Horsemen.
(c) Translators.
(d) Housekeepers.

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

5. Who is a kavi?
(a) A poet or a saint.
(b) A guardian or keeper.
(c) A sacrifical martyr.
(d) A snake handler.

6. Susna is the demon of _____.
(a) Day.
(b) Flood.
(c) Drought.
(d) Night.

7. _____ are seers as well as poets.
(a) Sages.
(b) Demi-gods.
(c) Painters.
(d) Priests.

8. The horses of Indra in "The Sacrifice of the Horse" are _____.
(a) Two dapple grays.
(b) Two grey donkeys.
(c) Two roan mares.
(d) Two bay stallions.

9. Varuna and Mitra are keepers of the _____.
(a) Pressing stones.
(b) Moral law.
(c) Soma.
(d) Sticks.

10. In the hymn, "In Praise of Generosity", fortune is described as _____.
(a) Freedom.
(b) Easy.
(c) Fickle.
(d) Death.

11. What is thought of as a symbol of rain and fertility?
(a) The female frog.
(b) The rain cloud.
(c) The lioness.
(d) The goose egg.

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

13. Who is "Destruction" in the "Burial Hymn"?
(a) The male personification of evil.
(b) Karma.
(c) The female personification of disorder.
(d) Indra's sister.

14. What is the piece of wood attached crosswise at the top of the stake used in the horse sacrifice?
(a) The knob.
(b) The corbel.
(c) The cleft.
(d) The weft.

15. Saryanavat is the name of the _____ where Soma plants are found.
(a) Mountains.
(b) Marshes.
(c) Plain.
(d) River.

Short Answer Questions

1. What is the female element in the oblation ritual called?

2. What turns into a plant that is used as a substitute for the Soma plant in the hymn, "Soma and Indra and the Eagle"?

3. How many of the horse's thirty-six ribs are distributed to the universe in ritual sacrifice?

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

5. What word denotes mankind, the eponymous ancestor of mankind, or the brother of Yama?

(see the answer keys)

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