View a FREE sample

This test consists of 5 short answer questions, 10 short essay questions, and 1 (of 3) essay topics.

Short Answer Questions

1. How many corners does the earth have in "A Spell to Turn Back the Departing Spirit"?

2. An Asura is a form of high ____.

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

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

5. What are the four social classes in Indian civilization called?

Short Essay Questions

1. What is the sacred grass in "The Hymn of Man" and what is it used for?

2. In "The Creation of the Sacrifice", what is the significance of weaving?

3. What is the meaning of the horse carrying the body in "Requiem for a Horse"?

4. What is the distinction between food that is for the gods and food that is for the dead fathers?

5. What is the state of clarity of the early stages of creation in "The All-maker", according to the author, and why?

6. What is the function of the goat in "The Funeral Fire"?

7. What are the meanings of the recurrent epithet, "Knower of creatures"?

8. What is the back story about the priest of the oblation's getting angry in "The Birth of Agni", and what does the priest do that is mentioned in this hymn?

9. What is the sacrificial horse identified with?

10. What is the significance of the membrane in "The Gods Coax Agni Out of the Waters"?

Essay Topics

Write an essay for ONE of the following topics:

Essay Topic 1

Who are the demons in the Rig Veda? Where do they live? Why do they live there? How do they interact with the gods? What is Sarama's role in relation to the demons?

Essay Topic 2

Who are the Asvins? Who bore them, and out of what part of her body? What are their deeds?

Essay Topic 3

Describe how Soma is symbolic. What is it made from? What is its function? Who uses it? Why?

(see the answer keys)

This section contains 694 words (approx. 3 pages at 300 words per page) View a FREE sample