Some Harappan graves contain pottery and ornaments. What does this indicate about the belief of the people of Harappan Civilisation?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → They believed in the concept of after life.
Option (1) They were rich and prosperous people. — Incorrect. Pottery and ornaments in a grave tell us what was buried with the dead, not that the people were rich. Even the differences between burials only raise the question of social differences, to which the answer is “We are not sure”.
Option (2) They believed in not using the used things of their ancestors. — Incorrect. The goods were placed in the grave for the dead person’s own use later, not because the living refused to use them.
Option (3) They believed in the concept of after life. — Correct. Some graves contain pottery and ornaments, perhaps indicating a belief that these could be used in the afterlife.
Option (4) They were God-fearing people. — Incorrect. The grave goods point to a belief in life after death; they say nothing about the worship of a god or fear of one.
NCERT (2026-27): “4.1 Burials … At burials in Harappan sites the dead were generally laid in pits. Sometimes, there were differences in the way the burial pit was made – in some instances, the hollowed-out spaces were lined with bricks. Could these variations be an indication of social differences? We are not sure. Some graves contain pottery and ornaments, perhaps indicating a belief that these could be used in the afterlife. Jewellery has been found in burials of both men and women. In fact, in the excavations at the cemetery in Harappa in the mid-1980s, an ornament consisting of three shell rings, a jasper (a kind of semi-precious stone) bead and hundreds of micro beads was found near the skull of a male. In some instances the dead were buried with copper mirrors. But on the whole, it appears that the Harappans did not believe in burying precious things with the dead.…” |