NCERT Class 10 English – First Flight – Chapter 8: The Sermon at Benares
Complete Exercises, Short Answers, and Explanations
Thinking about the Text
Q1. When her son dies, Kisa Gotami goes from house to house. What does she ask for? Does she get it? Why not?
Answer: She asks for medicine to bring her dead son back to life. No one can give it because death is natural and irreversible.
Q2. Kisa Gotami again goes from house to house after she speaks with the Buddha. What does she ask for, the second time around? Does she get it? Why not?
Answer: She asks for mustard seeds from a house where no one has ever died. She does not get it because every family has faced death.
Q3. What does Kisa Gotami understand the second time that she failed to understand the first time? Was this what the Buddha wanted her to understand?
Answer: She understands that death is common to all and no one can escape it. Yes, this was the lesson Buddha wanted her to realize.
Q4. Why do you think Kisa Gotami understood this only the second time? In what way did the Buddha change her understanding?
Answer: The Buddha guided her to see the truth herself through experience. When she saw every house had faced death, she realized the truth deeply.
Q5. How do you usually understand the idea of ‘selfishness’? Do you agree with Kisa Gotami that she was being ‘selfish in her grief’?
Answer: Selfishness means thinking only about oneself. Yes, she was selfish in her grief because she wanted to save her son without accepting the reality of others’ suffering.
Thinking about Language
I. Replace the following old expressions with modern English.
| Old Expression | Modern Form |
|---|---|
| give thee medicine for thy child | give you medicine for your child |
| Pray tell me | Please tell me |
| Kisa repaired to the Buddha | Kisa went to the Buddha |
| there was no house but someone had died in it | every house had someone who had died |
| kinsmen | relatives |
| Mark! | Listen carefully! |
II. Break the sentence with semicolons into simple sentences.
Original: For there is not any means by which those who have been born can avoid dying; after reaching old age there is death; of such a nature are living beings.
Simple Sentences:
1. All who are born must die.
2. When people grow old, death follows.
3. All living beings are mortal.
The single sentence with semicolons reads more smoothly and rhythmically.
Speaking
Q1. Do the Buddha’s ideas about grief still hold meaning today?
Answer: Yes, they do. The Buddha’s teachings about accepting loss and impermanence still guide people today. Modern therapy uses similar principles of acceptance and awareness.
Writing
Q1. Teaching someone to understand a new or difficult idea.
Answer: Teaching new ideas requires patience. The teacher should use examples and real-life situations. When people relate learning to experience, understanding becomes easier and long-lasting.
Q2. Helping each other to get over difficult times.
Answer: Supporting others during hardships builds strength and trust. Listening, comforting, and encouraging hope are the best ways to help someone overcome pain.
Q3. Thinking about oneself as unique, or as one among billions of others.
Answer: Every person is unique in personality and experience, yet also part of humanity. Realizing both helps balance pride with humility and connects us with others.
Poem – For Anne Gregory (W.B. Yeats)
Text Questions and Simple Answers
Q1. What does the young man mean by “great honey-coloured / Ramparts at your ear”? Why does he say that young men are “thrown into despair” by them?
Answer: He means her golden hair. Men admire her beauty and fall in love with her looks, not her character, so they feel despair when they can’t win her love.
Q2. What colour is the young woman’s hair? What does she say she can change it to? Why would she want to do so?
Answer: Her hair is yellow. She says she can dye it brown or black to show that she wants to be loved for who she is, not for her appearance.
Q3. Objects have qualities which make them desirable to others. Give examples.
Answer: A car with good mileage, a phone with high speed, or a dress with fine design. If selling something, we highlight its comfort, style, or performance.
Q4. Do we love others for their qualities or for themselves alone?
Answer: True love is for the person, not their looks or wealth. Parents love children selflessly, while public love for celebrities is based on fame. Real love values the heart, not outer qualities.
Q5. Can we separate a person from their appearance or actions?
Answer: No, both are connected. As people grow and change, relationships also evolve. Love deepens when we accept both the person and their nature.