Important Questions Chapter 8 English Class 10 CBSE Board

The Sermon at Benares

Short Questions with Answers

Question 1: Who was Gautama Buddha before he became enlightened?
Answer: He was a prince named Siddhartha Gautama.

Question 2: What sight made Prince Siddhartha leave his palace?
Answer: He saw a sick man, an aged man, a funeral procession, and a monk.

Question 3: Where did Buddha attain enlightenment?
Answer: He attained enlightenment under a peepal tree, later called the Bodhi Tree.

Question 4: Who was Kisa Gotami?
Answer: She was a woman who lost her only son and went to Buddha for help.

Question 5: What did Buddha ask Kisa Gotami to bring?
Answer: A handful of mustard seeds from a house where no one had died.

Question 6: Why could Kisa Gotami not collect the mustard seeds?
Answer: Because every family had experienced the death of a loved one.

Question 7: What did Kisa Gotami realize after her search?
Answer: She realized that death is common to all and she was selfish in her grief.

Question 8: What does Buddha compare human life to?
Answer: He compares it to ripe fruits that may fall anytime and to earthen vessels that break eventually.

Question 9: What advice did Buddha give about grieving?
Answer: He said that grieving and lamentation bring no peace; one should overcome sorrow to find peace.

Question 10: What title did Siddhartha Gautama take after enlightenment?
Answer: He became known as the Buddha, the Enlightened One.

Long Questions with Answers

Question 1: Describe the early life of Gautama Buddha before he left his palace.
Answer: Gautama Buddha, born as Siddhartha Gautama, was a prince in northern India. At twelve, he studied Hindu scriptures and later married a princess. They had a son and lived in royal luxury for ten years, shielded from worldly sufferings.

Question 2: What incidents changed Siddhartha’s life and made him seek enlightenment?
Answer: While hunting, Siddhartha saw a sick man, an aged man, a funeral procession, and a monk. These sights deeply moved him and made him realize the sufferings of life. He left his palace in search of enlightenment to understand sorrow.

Question 3: Explain how Siddhartha attained enlightenment.
Answer: Siddhartha wandered for seven years in search of truth. He finally sat under a peepal tree, vowing not to rise until he achieved enlightenment. After seven days of meditation, he attained enlightenment and named the tree Bodhi Tree, becoming the Buddha.

Question 4: Narrate the story of Kisa Gotami and her dead son.
Answer: Kisa Gotami lost her only son and, in grief, carried him to neighbors, asking for medicine. People thought she had lost her senses. A man guided her to the Buddha. She requested medicine, and Buddha told her to bring mustard seeds from a house untouched by death. She failed, realizing death is universal.

Question 5: Why did Buddha ask Kisa Gotami to bring mustard seeds from such a house?
Answer: Buddha wanted her to realize that death is inevitable and universal. His condition for the mustard seeds was a way to teach her that no family is free from death and grief.

Question 6: What lesson did Kisa Gotami learn after failing to get mustard seeds?
Answer: She learned that death is common to all and no one escapes it. She realized her grief was selfish, as she wanted her son back while ignoring the universal truth of mortality.

Question 7: How does Buddha compare the life of mortals?
Answer: Buddha compares life to ripe fruits that are always in danger of falling and to earthen vessels that eventually break. He emphasizes that just as these are destined to end, mortals are destined to die.

Question 8: What does Buddha say about lamentation and grief?
Answer: Buddha explains that lamentation and grief bring no peace of mind. Instead, they increase suffering and harm the body. True peace comes only when one overcomes sorrow and draws out the “arrow” of grief.

Question 9: What message does Buddha give about the nature of human life and death?
Answer: Buddha says that life is troubled, short, and full of pain. All beings are subject to death—young or old, foolish or wise. Since death is unavoidable, the wise do not grieve but accept the law of nature.

Question 10: How is Buddha’s sermon at Benares still relevant today?
Answer: Buddha’s sermon teaches acceptance of death and overcoming grief, which are timeless lessons. Even today, people face loss and sorrow, and his wisdom about detachment, peace, and selflessness continues to guide humanity.