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

Multiple Choice Questions

1. Who are the ancient dark divinities?
(a) The Vyalkasas.
(b) The Asisis.
(c) The Agnis.
(d) The Asuras.

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

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

4. The daughter of the sun is the _____ of Soma.
(a) Friend.
(b) Wife.
(c) Niece.
(d) Sister.

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

6. What is symbolic of primeval chaotic matter, the seed of the creator, and the sacrificial oblation?
(a) Milk.
(b) Water.
(c) Sky.
(d) Butter.

7. What is the name given to the cremation fire?
(a) Dharma.
(b) Yama.
(c) Aditi.
(d) Agni.

8. What are the instruments for ritual sometimes called?
(a) Game tools.
(b) Weapons.
(c) Machines.
(d) Storm elements.

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

10. What animal joins the horse in sacrifice?
(a) A dog.
(b) A bird.
(c) A goat.
(d) A donkey.

11. At the end of "The Birth of Agni", what does Agni turn into?
(a) A horse.
(b) A bull.
(c) A frog.
(d) A demon.

12. How many people restrain the horse of Tvastr during sacrifice?
(a) Two.
(b) Ten.
(c) Eight.
(d) Four.

13. Who are Agni's sons?
(a) The priests.
(b) The Maruts.
(c) The sages.
(d) The poets.

14. What is the path of death referred to, as in "The Boy and the Chariot"?
(a) The golden road.
(b) The water trail.
(c) The lonely road.
(d) The evil way.

15. In the hymn "Yama and the Fathers", who is being told to go away from the burning-ground where they live?
(a) Flesh-eating ghouls.
(b) Ants.
(c) Cold-blooded snakes.
(d) Mud daubers.

Short Answer Questions

1. The horses of Indra in "The Sacrifice of the Horse" are _____.

2. What is the inner membrane of the embryo called?

3. Who is sometimes Indra's enemy, yet helps him fight the serpent and steal the solar disc?

4. _____ is the cry that is made when an offering is presented to the gods.

5. The Invoker is what type of priest in "The Sacrifice of the Horse"?

(see the answer keys)

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