Q1. The Anguttara Nikaya, which lists the sixteen Mahajanapadas, is a text belonging to which tradition?
(a) Brahmanical
(b) Jain
(c) Buddhist
(d) Ajivika
Q2. Which of the following Mahajanapadas was located south of the Vindhyas, on the banks of the Godavari river?
(a) Asmaka
(b) Avanti
(c) Chedi
(d) Matsya
Q3. Bimbisara of the Haryanka dynasty is credited with annexing which Mahajanapada to expand Magadha’s eastern territories?
(a) Vajji
(b) Kashi
(c) Anga
(d) Malla
Q4. The ‘Second Urbanisation’ in Indian history is associated with which of the following regions?
(a) Indus and Saraswati river basins
(b) Deccan plateau and Krishna-Godavari delta
(c) Middle and lower Gangetic plains
(d) Brahmaputra valley and northeast India
Q5. Ajatashatru used a war machine called mahasilakantaka in his war against which state?
(a) Avanti
(b) Kosala
(c) Vajji confederacy
(d) Gandhara
Answers with explanations
Ans 1 — (c) Buddhist The Anguttara Nikaya is one of the five Nikayas of the Sutta Pitaka in the Pali Canon, the foundational scripture of Theravada Buddhism. It is a key primary source for the political geography of the Mahajanapada period.
Ans 2 — (a) Asmaka Asmaka (also Assaka) was the only Mahajanapada located south of the Vindhyas, situated on the banks of the Godavari river. All other Mahajanapadas were in the northern subcontinent. This distinction is frequently tested in UPSC Prelims.
Ans 3 — (c) Anga Bimbisara annexed Anga (present-day Bhagalpur and Monghyr in Bihar), which gave Magadha control over important riverine trade routes leading to the Bay of Bengal. Kashi was annexed later by Ajatashatru.
Ans 4 — (c) Middle and lower Gangetic plains The Second Urbanisation (c. 600–300 BC) was centred on the Gangetic plains, driven by iron technology, agricultural surplus, and long-distance trade. It contrasts with the First Urbanisation of the Indus Valley (c. 2600–1900 BC), which was located in the northwestern river systems.
Ans 5 — (c) Vajji confederacy Ajatashatru fought a sixteen-year war against the Vajji confederacy. He deployed two innovative weapons — the mahasilakantaka (a catapult for hurling large stones) and the rathamusala (a chariot with a rotating mace or scythe) — which overcame the confederacy’s defensive fortifications.
