Grade-6 English, The Story of the River Ganga

 

The Story of the River Ganga

 

 

Q.1 Why do people release the ashes of their loved ones who die in the river Ganga?

Ans- People release the ashes of their loved ones who die in the river Ganga so that their souls attain salvation.

 

Q.2 Why has the Ganga become the cause of environmental concern?

Ans- The Ganga become the cause of environmental concern because of increasing pollution.

 

Q.3 What is salvation?

Ans- Salvation is the rest of the soul after death.

 

Q.4 What made Ganga a holy river?

Ans- According to legends, the Ganga was in heaven but was brought down to the earth. This made it a holy river.

 

Q.5 What were the names of King Sagar’s wives?

Ans- King Sagar had two wives; Kesini was his first wife and Sumati was the second wife.

 

Q.6 Who was Anshuman?

Ans- Anshuman was the kind and brave grandson of King Sagar and Kesini. He was the son of Asamanjas.

 

Q.7 What is aswamedha yagya?

Ans- Aswamedha yagna is a yagna (sacrifice) done to establish the boundary of an empire. In this yagna, a horse is released and allowed to trot wherever he wants to go. Stopping the horse meant challenging the king’s authority and a fight would begin. But anyone who let the horse pass would be protected by the king.

 

Q.8 Why did king Sagar perform ashwamedha yagya?

Abs- King Sagar performed ashwamedha yagya to establish the boundary of his empire and let people know who was the king of the land.

 

Q.9 Why were the Gods unhappy with the sixty-thousand sons of king Sagar?

Ans- The Gods were unhappy with the sixty-thousand sons of king Sagar because they were very cruel.

 

Q.10 Who stole the horse of aswamedha yagya and how?

Ans- Indra, the king of Gods, came down to earth disguised as a demon. He stole the horse of sacrifice and hid it.

 

Q.11 Where did the sixty-thousand sons of king Sagar find the horse?

Ans-  The sixty-thousand sons of King Sagar found the horse at the place where Kapila Muni was doing meditation.

 

Q.12 How did they turn into ashes?

Ans- They ran shouting towards Kapil Muni, upon finding the horse near him. The Muni, disturbed from his prayers, opened his eyes and glared at them. This turned them into ashes.

 

Q.13 Who did King Sagara sent to find out the horse and the sixty-thousand sons.

Ans- The king Sagara sent his grandson Anshuman to find out the horse and the sixty-thousand sons.

 

Q.14 What did Anshuman see in the Kapil Muni’s ashram?

Ans- Anshuman saw the horse and sixty-thousand heaps of ashes in Kapil Muni’s ashram.

 

Q.15 What did the king of birds, Garuda tell Anshuman?

Ans- The king og birds, Garuda told Anshuman to take away the horse to finish the yagya. He also told him about what happened to his uncles.

 

Q.16 What was must to send the souls of Anshuman’s uncles to heaven?

Ans- To send the souls of Anshuman’s uncles to the heaven, it was must to wast their ashes in the Ganga.

 

Q.17 Name the kings who could not succeed in finding the way to bring the Ganga down to the earth?

Ans- King Sagara, king Anshuman and king Dilip coils not succeed in finding the way to bring the Ganga down to the earth.

 

Q.18 Why did the king Bhagirath left his kingdom to his ministers?

Ans- King Bhagirath left his kingdom to his ministers because;

He was troubled by the unfinished task of the ashes.

He had no son who could become the next king.

 

Q.19 What were the two boons (wishes) that Brahma granted to king Bhagirath?

Ans- The two boons that Brahma granted to the king Bhagirath were:

Ganga for salvation of his ancestors.

A son who takes the family forward.

 

Q.20 Why did Brahma ask Bhagirath to take help from Shiva?

Ans- Brahma asked Bhagirath to take help from Shiva because the earth was not strong enough to bear the flow of the Ganga.

 

Q.21 Why was Ganga very proud? What did she plan to do with Shiva?

Ans- Ganga was very proud as he was the favourite of Gods. She planned to sweep away even Shiva by her force.

 

Q.22 What did Shiva do to teach Ganga a lesson?

Ans- Shiva stopped Ganga’s flow by his matted hair to teach her a lesson.

 

Q.23 Why did Bhagirath pray to Shiva once again? How did he finally succeed in bringing the Ganga down and perform holy rites of his ancestors?

Ans- Bhagiratha prayed once again to please Shiva and allow the Ganga to flow gently.

The waters of the Ganga divided into seven streams. Three flowed to east and three to west. One stream followed the chariot of Bhagiratha. The stream that followed Bhagiratha was so beautiful that all the Gods assembled to see it. Bhagiratha then performed the holy rites for his sixty thousand ancestors. Their souls could finally go to heaven.

 

Q.24 What lesson do you learn from the story of King Bhagirath and the river Ganga?

Ans- The lesson that we can learn from this story is that if we want to achieve something, all we need is a sincere effort. Nothing is impossible for those who are dedicated and persistent towards their goals.