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This test consists of 15 multiple choice questions and 5 short answer questions.

Multiple Choice Questions

1. What is the female element in the oblation ritual called?
(a) The sky maker.
(b) The air taker.
(c) The boneless one.
(d) The fourth element.

2. Sarasvati is the goddess of _____.
(a) Love.
(b) Weather.
(c) Food.
(d) Speech.

3. At the end of "The Birth of Agni", what does Agni turn into?
(a) A bull.
(b) A frog.
(c) A horse.
(d) A demon.

4. The long-haired ascetic is an early precursor of the Upanisadic _____.
(a) Yama.
(b) Soma.
(c) Yogi.
(d) Sacrifice.

5. _____ are seers as well as poets.
(a) Demi-gods.
(b) Sages.
(c) Painters.
(d) Priests.

6. All fires die out when Siva is wrongly accused in "The Birth of Agni" and he departs from the _____.
(a) Black Hills.
(b) Gray Mountains.
(c) Pine Forests.
(d) High Desert.

7. How many of the horse's thirty-six ribs are distributed to the universe in ritual sacrifice?
(a) Thirty-four.
(b) Ten.
(c) Twenty-two.
(d) One.

8. Savitr is the _____ and the embodiment of twilight.
(a) Divine obstetrician.
(b) Sacred sage.
(c) Indoctinated ally of Indra.
(d) Holy sepulchre.

9. The Soma stalk mixes with water to form the juice of _____.
(a) Immortality.
(b) Learning.
(c) Nothingness.
(d) Death.

10. What is the male element of the newborn sun or fire?
(a) Bones.
(b) Eyes.
(c) The flames.
(d) Heat.

11. What does the word 'tapas' mean?
(a) Heat.
(b) Death.
(c) Cold.
(d) Longing.

12. Who is a kavi?
(a) A sacrifical martyr.
(b) A poet or a saint.
(c) A snake handler.
(d) A guardian or keeper.

13. Who are Agni's sons?
(a) The Maruts.
(b) The sages.
(c) The poets.
(d) The priests.

14. _____ is the cry that is made when an offering is presented to the gods.
(a) "Visvakarman!".
(b) "Vasat!".
(c) "Soma!".
(d) "Agni!".

15. What word is often identified with the soul?
(a) Sound.
(b) Fire.
(c) Breath.
(d) Water.

Short Answer Questions

1. Who carries Indra to heaven to bring Soma to men and gods?

2. What is the piece of wood attached crosswise at the top of the stake used in the horse sacrifice?

3. Susna is the demon of _____.

4. What is another English term for what means 'little ship' in Sanskrit?

5. Vivavsan is a name for the _____.

(see the answer keys)

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