CBSE Class 10 First Flight Chapter 10: The Sermon at Benares - NCERT Solutions

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NCERT Solutions PDF Class 10 PDF

This chapter, 'The Sermon at Benares', from CBSE Class 10 First Flight, delves into profound themes of life, death, and impermanence through the story of Kisa Gotami and the Buddha's teachings. The NCERT Solutions provided here guide students through the narrative, focusing on Kisa Gotami's journey from grief to understanding. The solutions explain her initial desperate search for a cure for her deceased son, her encounter with the Buddha, and her eventual realization about the universal nature of death. They also explore the Buddha's compassionate method of teaching, using Kisa's experience to illustrate the inevitability of loss and the importance of accepting life's transient nature. These solutions are designed to help students grasp the philosophical underpinnings of the story and prepare effectively for their exams by clarifying complex ideas and narrative progression.

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Quick info

BoardCBSE
ClassClass 10
SubjectFirst Flight
Session2026
LanguageEnglish
TypeNCERT Solutions
ChapterChapter 10

Chapter summary

Chapter 10, 'The Sermon at Benares', focuses on the story of Kisa Gotami and the Buddha's teachings on impermanence. The NCERT Solutions cover her grief over her son's death, her quest for a magical cure, and her eventual understanding of death's universality after the Buddha's intervention. The solutions also address the archaic language used in the text, helping students translate older phrases into modern English, thereby enhancing comprehension of the historical narrative.

Learning outcomes

  • Understand the theme of impermanence and the inevitability of death.
  • Analyze Kisa Gotami's emotional journey from grief to acceptance.
  • Explain the Buddha's method of teaching through practical experience.
  • Interpret the meaning of archaic phrases in the context of the story.
  • Appreciate the transient nature of human life.

Topics covered

Paper topics

  • The Sermon at Benares
  • Kisa Gotami's grief
  • The Buddha's teachings
  • Impermanence of life
  • Acceptance of death
  • Understanding loss
  • Archaic language translation
  • Narrative analysis

Important topics

  • The Buddha's method of teaching
  • The theme of impermanence
  • Kisa Gotami's realization
  • Understanding death as inevitable
  • Interpreting archaic language

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Questions and Solutions

Q.1

When her son dies, Kisa Gotami goes from house to house. What does she ask for? Does she get it? Why not?
Solution: Following the tragic death of her only son, Kisa Gotami, consumed by grief, goes from one house to another. Her desperate plea is for medicine that can bring her son back to life. However, she does not receive what she asks for because no such medicine exists to revive the dead. Her initial hope is based on a misunderstanding of the finality of death.

Q.2

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?
Solution: After her encounter with the Buddha, Kisa Gotami embarks on another journey through the village. This time, her request is different: she asks for a handful of mustard seeds. She is unable to fulfill this request because the Buddha has set a specific condition for obtaining the seeds – they must come from a house where no one, not even a child, has ever died. Such a house, she discovers, does not exist in the world.

Q.3

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?
Solution: The second time around, Kisa Gotami comes to understand the profound truth that death is an inevitable and universal part of human existence. She realizes that life is transient and no one can escape the clutches of death. This realization is precisely what Gautama Buddha intended for her to grasp. He used her personal tragedy as an opportunity to teach her a fundamental lesson about the nature of life and mortality.

Q.4

Why do you think Kisa Gotami understood this only the second time? In what way did the Buddha change her understanding?
Solution: Kisa Gotami likely understood the truth about death only the second time because her initial grief was so overwhelming that it blinded her to the broader reality. She was consumed by her personal loss and unable to see that death is a common human experience. The Buddha skillfully changed her understanding by guiding her through a practical exercise. By sending her to find a house untouched by death, he broadened her perspective beyond her own suffering, allowing her to witness the universal nature of loss and mortality, thereby helping her accept the inevitable.

Q.1 (Thinking about language)

This text is written in an old-fashioned style, for it reports an incident more than two millennia old. Look for the following words and phrases in the text, and try to rephrase them in more current language, based on how you understand them.
  • give thee medicine for thy child.
  • Pray tell me.
  • Kisa repaired to the Buddha.
  • there was no house but someone had died in it.
  • kinsmen
  • Mark!
Solution: Here are the phrases rephrased in more current language:
  • give thee medicine for thy child. - They will 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. - There was no house in which someone had not died.
  • kinsmen - Relatives
  • Mark! - Listen! / Look!
These rephrased sentences help in understanding the meaning of the older style of English used in the text.

Common mistakes

  • Focusing solely on Kisa's grief without understanding the broader lesson.
  • Misinterpreting the Buddha's request for mustard seeds as a literal cure.
  • Struggling with the older vocabulary and sentence structures.
  • Failing to connect Kisa's personal tragedy to the universal experience of death.

Revision tips

  • Reread the story, focusing on Kisa Gotami's emotional state at each stage.
  • Pay close attention to the Buddha's instructions and Kisa's subsequent actions.
  • List the archaic phrases and their modern equivalents to improve language comprehension.
  • Discuss the central message of impermanence with classmates or teachers.

Practice MCQs

Q1. What was Kisa Gotami's initial request when she went from house to house after her son's death?

Q2. What condition did the Buddha set for Kisa Gotami to obtain the medicine?

Q3. What crucial understanding did Kisa Gotami gain after her second round of visits?

Q4. The phrase 'give thee medicine for thy child' can be rephrased in modern English as:

Q5. What does the word 'kinsmen' mean in the context of the text?

Frequently asked questions

What is the main theme of 'The Sermon at Benares' in Class 10 First Flight?

The main theme is the impermanence of life and the inevitability of death. It teaches acceptance of loss and understanding that all living beings are subject to death.

Who is Kisa Gotami and what is her story in this chapter?

Kisa Gotami is a woman who loses her only son. Overwhelmed by grief, she desperately seeks a cure, only to learn from the Buddha that death is a universal reality.

How did the Buddha help Kisa Gotami understand the nature of death?

The Buddha asked Kisa to collect mustard seeds from houses where no one had ever died. This task made her realize that every family has experienced death, thus teaching her its universality.

What is the purpose of the 'Thinking about language' section?

This section helps students understand and rephrase archaic words and phrases from the story into modern English, improving their comprehension of the text's historical context.

Are these NCERT Solutions for Class 10 First Flight Chapter 10 helpful for exams?

Yes, these solutions provide clear explanations of the story's themes, character development, and language, aiding students in grasping complex concepts for exam preparation.

Important links

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