Board Paper of Class 12-Science 2015 English (SET 2) - Solutions

1. For four days, I walked through the narrow lanes of the old city, enjoying the romance of being in a city where history still lives − in its cobblestone streets and in its people riding asses, carrying vine leaves and palm as they once did during the time of Christ.

2. This is Jerusalem, home to the sacred sites of Christianity, Islam and Judaism. This is the place that houses the church of the Holy Sepulchre, the place where Jesus was finally laid to rest. This is also the site of Christ's crucifixion, burial and resurrection.

3. Built by the Roman Emperor Constantine at the site of an earlier temple to Aphrodite, it is the most venerated Christian shrine in the world. And justifiably so. Here, within the church, are the last five stations of the cross, the 10^th station where Jesus was stripped of his clothes, the 11^th where he was nailed to the cross, the 12^th where he died on the cross, the 13^th where the body was removed from the cross, and the 14^th, his tomb.

4. For all this weighty tradition, the approach and entrance to the church is nondescript. You have to ask for directions. Even to the devout Christian pilgrims walking along the Via Dolorosa − the Way of Sorrows − first nine stations look clueless. Then a courtyard appears, hemmed in by other buildings and a doorway to one side. This leads to a vast area of huge stone architecture.

5. Immediately inside the entrance is your first stop. It's the stone of anointing: this is the place, according to Greek tradition, where Christ was removed from the cross. The Roman Catholics, however, believe it to be the spot where Jesus' body was prepared for burial by Joseph.

6. What happened next? Jesus was buried. He was taken to a place outside the city of Jerusalem where other graves existed and there, he was buried in a cave. However, all that is long gone, destroyed by continued attacks and rebuilding; what remains is the massive − and impressive − Rotunda (a round building with a dome) that Emperor Constantine built. Under this, and right in the centre of the Rotunda, is the structure that contains the Holy Sepulchre.

7. "How do you know that this is Jesus' tomb?" I asked one of the pilgrims standing next to me. He was clueless, more interested, like the rest of them, in the novelty of it all and in photographing it, than in its history or tradition.

8. At the start of the first century, the place was a disused quarry outside the city walls. According to the gospels, Jesus' crucifixion occurred 'at a place outside the city walls with graves nearby ......'. Archaeologists have discovered tombs from that era, so the site is compatible with the biblical period.

9. The structure at the site is a marble tomb built over the original burial chamber. It has two rooms, and you enter four at a time into the first of these, the Chapel of the Angel. Here the angel is supposed to have sat on a stone to recount Christ's resurrection. A low door made of white marble, party worn away by pilgrims' hands, leads to a smaller chamber inside. This is the 'room of the tomb', the place where Jesus was buried.

10. We entered in a single file. On my right was a large marble slab that covered the original rock bench on which the body of Jesus was laid. A woman knelt and prayed. Her eyes were wet with tears. She pressed her face against the slab to hide them, but it only made it worse.

On the basis of your understanding of this passage answer the following questions with the help of the given options:

Answer the following questions briefly:

(i) A large grave (para 3)

(ii) Having no interesting features/dull (para 4)

1. We often make all things around us the way we want them. Even during our pilgrimages we have begun to look whatever makes our heart happy, gives comfort to our body and peace to the mind. It is as if external solutions will fulfil our needs, and we do not want to make any special efforts even in our spiritual search. Our mind is resourceful − it works to find shortcuts in simple and easy ways.

2. Even pilgrimages have been converted into tourism opportunities. Instead, we must awaken our conscience and souls and understand the truth. Let us not tamper with either our own nature or that of the Supreme.

3. All our cleverness is rendered ineffective when nature does a dance of destruction. Its fury can and will wash away all imperfections. Indian culture, based on Vedic treatises, assists in human evolution, but we are now using our entire energy in distorting these traditions according to our convenience instead of making efforts to make ourselves worthy of them.

4. The irony is that humans are not even aware of the complacent attitude they have allowed themselves to sink to. Nature is everyone's Amma and her fierce blows will sooner or later corner us and force us to understand this truth. Earlier, pilgrimages to places of spiritual significance were rituals that were undertaken when people became free from their worldly duties. Even now some seekers take up this pious religious journey as a path to peace and knowledge. Anyone travelling with this attitude feels and travels with only a few essential items that his body can carry. Pilgrims traditionally travelled light, on foot, eating light, dried chickpeas and fruits, or whatever was available. Pilgrims of olden days did not feel the need to stay in special AC bedrooms, or travel by luxury cars or indulge themselves with delicious food and savouries.

5. Pilgrims traditionally moved ahead, creating a feeling of belonging towards all, conveying a message of brotherhood among all they came across whether in small caves, ashrams or local settlements. They received the blessings and congregations of yogis and mahatmas in return while conducting the dharma of their pilgrimage. A pilgrimage is like penance or sadhana to stay near nature and to experience a feeling of oneness with it, to keep the body healthy and fulfilled with the amount of food, while seeking freedom from attachments and yet remaining happy while staying away from relatives and associates.

6. This is how a pilgrimage should be rather than making it like a picnic by taking a large group along and living in comfort, packing in entertainment, and tampering with environment. What is worse is giving a boost to the ego of having had a special darshan. Now alms are distributed, charity done while they brag about their spiritual experiences!

7. We must embark on our spiritual journey by first understanding the grace and significance of a pilgrimage and following it up with the prescribed rules and rituals − this is what translates into the ultimate and beautiful medium of spiritual evolution. There is no justification for tampering with nature.

8. A pilgrimage is symbolic of contemplation and meditation and acceptance, and is a metaphor for the constant growth or movement and love for nature that we should hold in our hearts.

9. This is the truth!

On the basis of your understanding of the above passage answer the questions that follow with the help of the given options:

(a) How can a pilgrim keep his body healthy?

(i) By travelling light

(ii) By eating small amount of food

(iii) By keeping free from attachments

(iv) Both (i) and (ii)

(b) How do we satisfy our ego?

(i) By having a special darshan

(ii) By distributing alms

(iii) By treating it like a picnic

(iv) Both (i) and (ii)

Answer the following as briefly as possible:

Read the passage given below :

It is surprising that sometimes we don't listen to what people say to us. We hear them, but we don't listen to them. I was curious to know how hearing is different from listening. I had thought both were synonyms, but gradually, I realised there is a big difference between the two words.

Hearing is a physical phenomenon. Whenever somebody speaks, the sound waves generated reach you, and you definitely hear whatever is said to you. However, even if you hear something, it doesn't always mean that you actually understand whatever is being said. Paying attention to whatever you hear means you are really listening. Consciously using your mind to understand whatever is being said is listening.

Diving deeper, I found that listening is not only hearing with attention, but is much more that that. Listening is hearing with full attention, and applying our mind. Most of the time, we listen to someone, but our minds are full of needless chatter and there doesn't seem to be enough space to accommodate what is being spoken.

We come with a lot of prejudices and preconceived notions about the speaker or the subject on which he is talking. We pretend to listen to the speaker, but deep inside, we sit in judgement and are dying to pronounce right or wrong, true or false, yes or no. Sometimes, we even come prepared with a negative mindset of proving the speaker wrong. Even if the speaker says nothing harmful, we are ready to pounce on him with our own version of things.

What we should ideally do is listen first with full awareness. Once we have done that, we can decide whether we want to make a judgement or not. Once we do that, communication will be perfect and our interpersonal relationship will become so much better. Listening well doesn't mean one has to say the right thing at the right moment. In fact, sometimes if words are left unspoken, there is a feeling of tension and negativity. Therefore, it is better to speak out your mind, but do so with awareness after listening to the speaker with full concentration.

Let's look at this in another way. When you really listen, you imbibe not only what is being spoken, but you also understand what is not spoken as well. Most of the time we don't really listen even to people who really matter to us. That's how misunderstandings grow among families, husbands and wives, brothers and sisters.

(a) On the basis of your reading of the above passage make notes on it, using heading and sub-headings. Use recognizable abbreviations (wherever necessary − minimum four) and a format you consider suitable. Also supply an appropriate title to it.

(b) Write a summary of the passage in about 80 words.