On this page, you will find NCERT Class 6 History Chapter 10 Notes Pdf free download. CBSE Class 6 Social Science Notes History Chapter 10 SST Traders, Kings and Pilgrims will seemingly help them to revise the important concepts in less time.
Traders, Kings and Pilgrims Class 7 Notes Social Science History Chapter 10
CBSE Class 6 History Chapter 10 Notes Understanding the Lesson
1. South India was famous for gold, spices, especially pepper and precious stones. Traders carried many of these goods to Rome in ships across the sea.
2. Pepper was particularly valued in the Roman Empire. It was known as black gold.
3. Roman gold coins were found in South India which express that there was quite a lot of Roman trade.
4. Traders explored several sea routes. There were sea routes in Arabian Sea and the Bay of Bengal. Sailors took advantage of the monsoon winds to cross the seas quickly. They required sturdy ships for long journeys.
5. The southern half of the subcontinent is marked by a long coastline including hills, plateaus and river valleys.
6. Amongst the river valleys, Kaveri was the most fertile.
7. Chiefs and kings who controlled the river valleys and the coasts became rich and powerful.
8. Sangam poems mention the ‘muvendar’. This is a Tamil word which means three chiefs, used for the heads of three ruling families-Cholas, Cheras and Pandyas who became powerful in south India around 2300 years ago.
9. Each of the three chiefs had two centres of power. One inland and one on the coasts. Out of six cities, two were very important: Puhar or Kaveripattinam, the port of Cholas, and Madurai the capital of the Pandyas.
10. The chiefs did not collect regular taxes. They demanded and received gifts from the people. This was used for family, soldiers and poets. Sangam poets were often rewarded with precious stones, gold, horses, elephants, chariots, and fine cloth.
11. Around 200 years ago, in western India, there was a powerful dynasty known as the Satavahanas. The most important ruler was Gautamiputra Shri Satakami. We know about him by an inscription composed by his mother, Gautami Balashri. He and other Satavahana rulers were known as lords of the Dakshinapatha.
12. The silk was a highly valued fabric in most societies. Making silk is a complicated process.
13. Techniques of making silk were first invented in China around 7000 years ago. Some people from China who went to distant lands on foot, horseback, and on camels carried silk with them. The paths they followed came to be known as the Silk Route.
14. Some Kings also tried to control large portion of the route and benefited from taxes, tributes and gifts by the traders. In return, they often protected the traders who passed through their kingdoms from attacks by robbers.
15. Sometimes, Chinese rulers sent gifts of silk to rulers in Iran and West Asia, and from there the knowledge of silk spread further west. People living along the route often demanded payments for allowing traders to pass through.
16. The best known are Kushanas who were the rulers controlling the Silk Route. Kushanas ruled over Central Asia and north-west India around 2000 years ago. Their two major centres of power were Peshawar and Mathura. Taxila was also included in their kingdom.
17. During the rule of Kushanas, a branch of the Silk Route extended from Central Asia to the seaports at the mouth of the river Indus. The silk was shipped westwards to the Roman Empire.
18. Kushanas were amongst the earliest rulers of the subcontinent to issue gold coins.
19. Kanishka was the most famous Kushna ruler, who ruled around 1900 years ago. A famous poet Ashvaghosha lived in his court. He wrote biography of the Buddha named Buddhacharita. Now they began writing in Sanskrit.
19. A new form of Buddhism now developed which is known as Mahayana Buddhism. Statues of the Buddha were made in Mathura and Taxila. Worship of Bodhisattvas became very popular and spread throughout Central Asia, China, and later to Korea and Japan.
20. Apart from western and southern India, Buddhism also spread throughout Central Asia, China and later to Korea and Japan.
21. In western and southern India, dozens of caves were hollowed out of hills for monks to live in. These caves were made by the orders of kings and queens, some by merchants and some by farmers. These caves were often located near passes through the Western Ghats. Probably traders also halted in these cave monasteries during travels.
22. Buddhism also spread to Sri Lanka, Myanmar, Thailand, and Indonesia.
23. Fa-Xian, who is one of the best known Chinese Buddhist pilgrims came to the subcontinent about 1600 years ago. Xuan Zang and I-Qing came around 1400 years ago. They visited places associated with the life of the Buddha as well as famous monasteries.
24. This was also the time when the worship of certain deities became popular. It became a central feature of later Hinduism. These deities included Shiva, Vishnu and goddesses such as Durga.
25. Idea of Bhakti became very popular at this time. Bhakti is generally understood as a person’s devotion to his or her chosen deity. Anybody whether rich or poor, belonging to the so-called ‘high’ or ‘low’ castes, men or women, could follow the path of Bhakti.
26. The idea of Bhakti is present in Bhagavad Gita. In Bhagavad Gita, Krishna (the God) asks Arjuna (his devotee and friend) to abandon all dharmas and take refuge in him, as only he can set Arjuna free from every evil. Those who followed the system of Bhakti emphasized devotion and individual worship of a god or goddess rather than the performance of elaborate sacrifices.
27. According to this system of belief, if a devotee worships the chosen deity with a pure heart, the deity will appear in the form in which he or she may desire. So, the deity could be thought of as a human being, lion, tree or any other form. Once this idea gained acceptance, artists made beautiful images of these deities.
28. About 2000 years ago, Christianity emerged in West Asia, Jesus Christ was born in Bethlehem, which was then part of the Roman empire. Christ’s teachings were that he was the saviour of the world. Bible is the holy book of Christianity.
Traders, Kings and Pilgrims Class 7 CBSE Notes Important Terms
Trader: Businessman who sells or purchase items for getting profits.
Muvendar: This is a Tamil word which means three chiefs-Cholas, Cheras and Pandyas.
Route: The path which used for commuting.
Silk: Silk is a fabric which is made from cocoon of silkworms.
Kushanas: Kushanas were the rulers, ruled over Central Asia and north-west India around 2000 years ago.
Mahayana: A form of Buddhism developed during the Kushana.
Theravada: Old form of Buddhism.
Bodhisattva: A person who attain enlightenment.
Pilgrim: Those who undertake journey for the purpose of worship.
Bhakti: Bhakti is a way of worship under Hinduism. Under Bhakti, devotion is expressed to the chosen deity.
Notes of History Class 6 Chapter 10 Time Period
About 7000 years ago: Discovery of silk making in China.
About 2300 years ago: Reign of the Cholas, Cheras and Pandyas.
About 2000 years ago: Growing demand of silk in the Roman Empire.
About 1900 years ago: Ruling time of Kanishka.
About 1600 years ago: Fa-Xian, a Chinese pilgrim came to India.
About 1400 years ago: Xuan Zang came to India.