Navigating through the English Language and Literature curriculum for Class 10 requires a profound appreciation of philosophical prose, spiritual teachings, and the universal realities of human existence. Chapter 8 of First Flight, “The Sermon at Benares” (adapted from Betty Renshaw’s Values and Voices), stands as one of the most intellectually and emotionally enriching chapters in the CBSE syllabus. It introduces students to the life of Prince Siddhartha Gautama, his spiritual enlightenment as the Buddha, and his first sermon delivered at the holy city of Benares. Through the poignant story of Kisa Gotami and the mustard seeds, the text conveys timeless truths about the inevitability of death, the universality of sorrow, and the path to inner peace. To help students master every aspect of this unit, this comprehensive solutions guide offers textbook-accurate, highly structured, and pedagogically sound responses aligned with the latest CBSE evaluation standards.
Every question presented in the official NCERT textbook—including analytical thinking questions, philosophical reflections on grief and selfishness, vocabulary exercises on mortality and lamentation, and an expanded set of board-level FAQs—has been solved with exhaustive detail. Key scoring terms, philosophical metaphors (such as ripe fruits falling, earthen vessels breaking, and the city lights flickering), and core Buddhist concepts have been highlighted to provide students with the exact textual evidence required by board examiners. By reviewing these model answers, students will gain clarity on how to structure long-answer evaluation responses (5–6 marks) and secure top marks in their board examinations.
NCERT Class 10 English The Sermon at Benares Solutions
The chapter opens with the biographical background of Siddhartha Gautama (563 BC – 483 BC), who was shielded from the sufferings of the world in his early royal life. At the age of twenty-five, four sights—a sick man, an aged man, a funeral procession, and a monk begging for alms—deeply moved him, prompting him to renounce his royal luxuries and seek enlightenment. After seven years of wandering and meditating for seven days under the Bodhi tree at Bodh Gaya, he attained enlightenment and became known as the Buddha (the Awakened or the Enlightened One).
He preached his first sermon at Benares, the holiest city on the banks of the sacred River Ganges. The core narrative focuses on Kisa Gotami, a grief-stricken mother whose only son had died. Unable to accept her loss, she carried the dead child to all her neighbors begging for medicine. A neighbor directed her to the Buddha, who asked her to bring a handful of mustard seeds from a house where no one had lost a child, husband, parent, or friend. Her fruitless search through the village led her to the profound realization that death is common to all mortals and that clinging to selfish grief only prolongs suffering. Below are the complete and detailed solutions for every section of the chapter.
Thinking about the Text (Page No. 135)
Question 1
When her son dies, Kisa Gotami goes from house to house. What does she ask for? Does she get it? Why not? (Page No. 135) [BOARD EXAM FAVORITE]
Answer:
When her only son dies, grief-stricken Kisa Gotami carries the dead child in her arms from house to house, asking for medicine to bring her son back to life.
No, she does not get it. Her neighbors pity her deep anguish, but they tell her that her request is impossible because the child is already dead, and no medicine on Earth has the power to restore life to a deceased person.
Question 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? (Page No. 135) [BOARD EXAM FAVORITE]
Answer:
After speaking with the Buddha, Kisa Gotami goes from house to house a second time asking for a handful of mustard seeds. The Buddha had placed one crucial condition: the mustard seeds must come from a house where no one had ever lost a child, husband, parent, or friend to death.
No, she does not get it. While every household was willing to offer her mustard seeds, she could not find a single home that had not been touched by bereavement. In every house, someone replied with sorrow that their loved ones had already died, lamenting that “the living are few, but the dead are many.”
Question 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? (Page No. 135) [BOARD EXAM FAVORITE]
Answer:
The second time, Kisa Gotami realized the universal truth that death is common to all living beings and that human life is fragile and transient.
Sitting weary and hopeless by the wayside watching the city lights flicker and extinguish, she reflected on the fate of human beings whose lives flicker up and are extinguished just like the lamps. She realized that she had been selfish in her grief, thinking only of her personal loss when every single household suffers from the pain of bereavement.
Yes, this was precisely what the Buddha wanted her to understand. Instead of lecturing her theoretically, the Buddha wisely used practical experience to guide her to self-realization.
Question 4
Why do you think Kisa Gotami understood this only the second time? In what way did the Buddha change her understanding? (Page No. 135)
Answer:
Kisa Gotami understood the universal reality of death only the second time because the first time she was blinded by maternal grief, emotional shock, and personal denial. She saw only her individual loss and could not perceive the wider world.
The Buddha changed her understanding through a brilliant pedagogical method:
- He did not offer empty sympathy or theological arguments.
- He sent her on a realistic mission to discover the reality of human suffering for herself.
- When she knocked on every door and heard stories of grief from every family, she realized that death is an inevitable, universal law of nature. This active personal discovery transformed her perspective from selfish despair to spiritual enlightenment.
Question 5
How do you usually understand the idea of ‘selfishness’? Do you agree with Kisa Gotami that she was being ‘selfish in her grief’? (Page No. 135) [BOARD EXAM FAVORITE]
Answer:
Selfishness is usually understood as being excessively concerned only with one’s own interests, desires, or advantage, without caring about the feelings or needs of others.
In the context of the story, Kisa Gotami was indeed “selfish in her grief”, but not in a malicious or cruel way. Her selfishness was the natural outcome of overwhelming maternal love and emotional attachment. She wanted her child to live while forgetting that every human being is mortal. By desperately wishing to reverse death for her child alone, she had blinded herself to the fact that death spares no one. Once she recognized that countless families bear the same sorrow, she surrendered her selfish grief to attain peace.
Vocabulary and Grammar Exercises Explained
The language of “The Sermon at Benares” features rich philosophical terminology and poignant expressions related to mortality, bereavement, and spiritual awakening.
Exercise 1: Words of Grief and Mortality (Page No. 136)
Understand and explain the meaning of key terms used in the Buddha’s sermon:
Answer:
- Mortal: Subject to death; living beings that must eventually die. Context: The life of mortals in this world is troubled and brief.
- Afflicted with: Suffering from pain, distress, or disease. Context: The world is afflicted with death and decay.
- Lamentation: The passionate expression of intense grief or sorrow; weeping. Context: He who seeks peace must draw out the arrow of lamentation.
- Bereaved: Deprived of a close relative or friend through their death. Context: Neither father can save his son, nor kinsmen their bereaved relations.
- Slaughter: The killing of animals for food, or violent killing. Context: Mortals are led to death like an ox led to the slaughter.
Exercise 2: Metaphors of Mortality in the Sermon (Page No. 137)
Identify the literary metaphors used by the Buddha to illustrate the inevitability of death:
Answer:
- Ripe Fruits: Just as ripe fruits are in constant danger of falling early in the morning, so are all mortals in constant danger of death from the moment of birth.
- Earthen Vessels: Just as all earthen pots made by a potter end in being broken into pieces, so is the fragile and finite life of every mortal.
- Flickering City Lights: Just as city lights flicker for a moment and then extinguish into total darkness, so do human lives shine briefly before passing away.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) – Class 10 English Chapter 8
Question 1: What was Gautama Buddha’s original name, and why did he leave his palace?
Answer:
Gautama Buddha’s original name was Siddhartha Gautama. He was a prince of Northern India. At the age of twenty-five, while hunting, he witnessed a sick man, an aged man, a funeral procession, and an ascetic begging for alms. These sights of human suffering moved him so deeply that he renounced his royalty, family, and palace to seek spiritual enlightenment.
Question 2: What is the significance of the title “The Sermon at Benares”?
Answer:
A sermon is a religious or spiritual discourse. The title refers to the Buddha’s first public discourse delivered at Benares, the most sacred city on the banks of the Ganges. The sermon reflects the Buddha’s profound wisdom regarding the transient nature of life and how to overcome worldly suffering.
Question 3: Why did the Buddha ask Kisa Gotami for mustard seeds specifically from a house where no one had died?
Answer:
The Buddha wanted Kisa Gotami to realize on her own that death is an inevitable, universal reality. By sending her to every home, he enabled her to witness firsthand that every family has experienced the death of a loved one, helping her overcome her personal, isolated grief.
Question 4: What comparison did the Buddha make between human life and an ox led to slaughter?
Answer:
The Buddha compared human beings to an ox being led to the slaughterhouse, emphasizing that just as an ox cannot escape its fate, no mortal can escape death, sickness, or decay.
Question 5: According to the Buddha, how does weeping or grieving affect a person?
Answer:
According to the Buddha, weeping and grieving cannot bring a dead person back to life. Instead, excessive lamentation only increases one’s physical and mental pain, ruins health, makes the body sick and pale, and takes a person further away from inner peace.
Question 6: How can one attain true peace of mind according to the sermon?
Answer:
A person can attain true peace of mind by drawing out the “arrow of lamentation, complaint, and grief.” By accepting the inevitability of death, conquering sorrow, and freeing the mind from attachment, one becomes free from suffering and attains blessed peace.
Question 7: What happened to Siddhartha Gautama under the Bodhi tree?
Answer:
After wandering for seven years, Siddhartha sat down under a sacred fig tree (later named the Bodhi Tree, the Tree of Wisdom) and vowed to stay until enlightenment came. After seven days of deep meditation, he attained supreme spiritual enlightenment and became the Buddha.
Question 8: Why is death called “common to all” in this chapter?
Answer:
Death is called “common to all” because it is a universal, non-negotiable law of nature. Regardless of whether someone is rich, poor, young, old, wise, or foolish, every mortal who is born must inevitably die.
Mastering the NCERT Solutions for Class 10 English Chapter 8, “The Sermon at Benares”, provides students with the philosophical vocabulary, textual evidence, and analytical clarity needed for high-scoring board exam answers. Review the symbolism of the mustard seeds, the Buddha’s metaphors on mortality, and the structured answers above to excel in your CBSE Board Examinations.