Past board exam questions
CBSE 2026 board paper · 3 marks
What lesson on death and suffering did the Buddha teach Kisa Gotami ?
(The Sermon at Benares)
(Answer in about 40-50 words.)
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(Content 2 – at least two value points; Expression 1)
The Buddha taught Kisa Gotami that death is inevitable: every person who is born must die one day and no one is immortal. Death does not differentiate between the rich and the poor or the wise and the foolish. Since it is a natural process, one must not lament over it; a wise person never grieves over death.
CBSE 2026 board paper · 3 marks
Though he knew it was impossible, why did Buddha ask Kisa Gotami to bring mustard seeds from a house untouched by death ?
(The Sermon at Benares)
(Answer in about 40-50 words.)
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(Content 2 – at least two value points; Expression 1)
The Buddha knew that death is universal and unavoidable, but Kisa Gotami, blinded by grief, would not have accepted this if he had merely told her. So he gave her a practical task: going from house to house, she found that no household was untouched by death, since the living are few and the dead are many. Realising this truth herself helped her understand the reality of life, accept her son’s death and overcome her selfish grief.
CBSE 2026 board paper · 3 marks
Why did Kisa Gotami, in her grief, fail to realize the universality of death and what does she ask for despite the impossibility of reviving the dead ?
(The Sermon at Benares)
(Answer in about 40-50 words.)
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(Content 2 – at least two value points, at least one from each aspect; Expression 1)
Kisa Gotami had lost her only son. Her grief and motherly attachment blinded her to the reality that all mortals must die; she saw his death as an exceptional tragedy that had befallen her alone. So she carried the dead child from house to house asking her neighbours for medicine to cure him and bring him back to life.
CBSE 2026 board paper · 3 marks
According to Buddha, who are wise men ?
(The Sermon at Benares)
(Answer in about 40-50 words.)
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(Content 2 – any two points; Expression 1)
According to Buddha, the wise are those who understand that death is inevitable – all mortals, like ripe fruits and earthen vessels, must die. Knowing the terms of the world, they accept the cycle of life and death calmly and do not grieve excessively over loss. They control sorrow through wisdom, realise that attachment leads to suffering, and so obtain peace of mind.
CBSE 2026 board paper · 3 marks
What did the Buddha want Kisa Gotami to understand when he asked her to get a handful of mustard seeds from a house where no one had lost a loved one ?
(Answer in about 40-50 words.)
Show answer
(Content 2 – at least two value points; Expression 1)
The Buddha wanted Kisa Gotami to understand that death is inevitable: every person who is born must die one day and no one is immortal. Death does not differentiate between the rich and the poor or the wise and the foolish. Since it is a natural process, one must not lament over it; the wise do not grieve.
CBSE 2026 board paper · 3 marks
Buddha’s teachings were influenced by his early life as a prince. Justify.
(A Sermon at Benares)
(Answer in about 40-50 words.)
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(Content 2 – at least two value points; Expression 1)
As a prince, Siddhartha Gautama lived in luxury and comfort and was shielded from pain and suffering. Later, when he saw a sick man, an aged man, a funeral procession and a monk begging for alms, he realised the human suffering of sickness, ageing and death. This contrast between his privileged life and others’ suffering led him to seek enlightenment and shaped his teachings on suffering and detachment.
CBSE 2026 board paper · 3 marks
Why did Kisa Gotami, despite her desperate efforts to find a solution for her grief, ultimately become weary and hopeless ?
(The Sermon at Benares)
(Answer in about 40-50 words.)
Show answer
(Content 2 – at least two value points; Expression 1)
When her only son died, Kisa Gotami went from house to house seeking medicine to bring him back to life. The Buddha asked her to bring mustard seed from a house where no one had died. She went from house to house all day but found no such house; at last, tired, she sat down by the wayside, weary and hopeless, and watching the flickering lights of the city realised that death is common to all.
CBSE 2026 board paper · 3 marks
How according to the Buddha can one obtain peace of mind ?
(The Sermon At Benaras)
(Answer in about 40-50 words.)
Show answer
(Content 2 – at least two value points; Expression 1)
According to the Buddha, one can obtain peace of mind by understanding the nature of grief and sorrow and accepting that death is inevitable for all who are born. Lamenting only brings more pain and harms the body. One who draws out the arrow of lamentation, complaint and grief, lets go of worldly attachments and cultivates wisdom and compassion becomes free from sorrow and is blessed.
