3.2.The Song of Songs - My English Book - Std 8 - Marathi and Semi-English Medium - Maharashtra Board

SECTION 1 — Chapter Information / पाठ परिचय

मराठी टीप: हा पाठ शालेय परीक्षेत येतो. हे पाठ्यपुस्तक इयत्ता ८ वी साठी आहे — MSBSHSE च्या मार्गदर्शक तत्त्वांनुसार तयार केलेले.

SECTION 2 — About the Story / कथेविषयी

This chapter is a famous historical story based on the Mughal Emperor Akbar and his court musician, Tansen. It describes the deep respect Tansen had for his Guru, Sant Haridas. The story shows that music sung purely out of devotion to God is much more beautiful and divine than music sung for kings.  

मराठी टीप: ही कथा सम्राट अकबर आणि तानसेन यांच्या जीवनावर आधारित आहे. राजाला खुश करण्यासाठी गायलेल्या गाण्यापेक्षा देवाची भक्ती म्हणून गायलेले गाणे किती श्रेष्ठ असते, हे या कथेतून समजते.

SECTION 4 — Summary / सारांश

Emperor Akbar praised Tansen for having the most wonderful voice in the world. However, Tansen humbly said that his teacher, Sant Haridas, sang far better. Since Sant Haridas refused to come to the court, Akbar went to his hut in the forest as a humble lover of music. Haridas refused to sing, saying he was too old. To make him sing, Tansen sang but made a deliberate mistake. Exasperated, Haridas took the tanpura and sang the correct note beautifully. Akbar was mesmerised. Tansen explained that while he sings for the Emperor, his Guru sings only for God, making his music truly divine.  

मराठी सारांश: जेव्हा अकबर तानसेनच्या गाण्याचे कौतुक करतो, तेव्हा तानसेन सांगतो की त्याचे गुरु संत हरिदास त्याच्यापेक्षा खूप छान गातात. अकबर स्वतः एका सामान्य रसिकासारखा जंगलात त्यांना भेटायला जातो. गुरुजी गायला नकार देतात, तेव्हा तानसेन मुद्दाम चुकीचे गातो. चिडून गुरुजी स्वतः गाऊ लागतात आणि त्यांचे गाणे ऐकून अकबर मंत्रमुग्ध होतो. देवाला समर्पित केलेली कला नेहमीच श्रेष्ठ असते, हे तानसेन अकबराला पटवून देतो.

SECTION 5 — Characters / पात्रे

Emperor Akbar (सम्राट अकबर): He was a great ruler who truly loved and appreciated art. Unlike other emperors, he did not get enraged easily. He was humble enough to visit a poor hermit's hut just to listen to good music. मराठी टीप: अकबर हा कलेचा जाणकार आणि नम्र राजा होता. चांगल्या संगीतासाठी तो स्वतःचा अहंकार बाजूला ठेवून जंगलात गेला.  

Tansen (तानसेन): He was a master musician in Akbar's court. He was very humble and respected his Guru immensely. He was clever enough to make a deliberate mistake to persuade his Guru to sing. मराठी टीप: तानसेन हा अकबराच्या दरबारातील महान गायक होता, पण तो अतिशय नम्र होता. गुरुजींकडून गाणे गाऊन घेण्यासाठी त्याने हुशारीने युक्ती वापरली.  

Sant Haridas (संत हरिदास): He was Tansen's music teacher and lived the austere life of a hermit in the forest. He sang free and unasked for, offering his music only to God. मराठी टीप: संत हरिदास हे तानसेनचे गुरु होते. ते संन्याशासारखे साधे जीवन जगायचे आणि फक्त ईश्वरासाठीच गायचे.  

SECTION 6 — Central Theme and Values / केंद्रीय भाव आणि मूल्ये

6A. Theme Table / विषय सारणी

6B. Values / मूल्ये

• Respect for Teachers (गुरूंचा आदर) — Both Tansen and the Emperor show deep respect for the Guru by travelling to his humble hut.  

• Simplicity (साधेपणा) — Sant Haridas possesses the greatest musical talent but lives a simple, austere life of a hermit.  

6C. Central Message / केंद्रीय संदेश

Art that is created out of pure devotion and freedom is always superior to art created for money or under the command of a ruler.

मराठी टीप: सत्तेसाठी किंवा पैशांसाठी केलेल्या कलेपेक्षा, ईश्वराच्या भक्तीसाठी मुक्त मनाने केलेली कला नेहमीच श्रेष्ठ आणि दैवी असते.

SECTION 7 — Vocabulary in Context / शब्दसंग्रह

SECTION 8 — Practice Questions / सराव प्रश्न

Read the following extract carefully and answer the questions (Types 1 to 6):

TYPE 1 — True/False (1M each · 5 questions)  

1. State True or False: 'Sant Haridas was Emperor Akbar's music teacher.' Answer: False.  

2. State True or False: 'Sant Haridas lived the austere life of a hermit.' Answer: True.  

3. State True or False: 'When they reached, Sant Haridas was sleeping.' Answer: False.  

4. State True or False: 'Sant Haridas immediately agreed to sing.' Answer: False.  

5. State True or False: 'Tansen made a deliberate mistake while singing.' Answer: True. मराठी टीप: उताऱ्यातील माहितीवरूनच उत्तर द्या. (True म्हणजे बरोबर, False म्हणजे चूक).  

TYPE 2 — Choose the Correct Alternative (1M each · 5 questions)

1. Who was Sant Haridas? a) Tansen's brother b) Akbar's minister c) Tansen's music teacher d) A king

   Answer: c  

2. What kind of life did Sant Haridas live? a) Luxurious life b) Austere life of a hermit c) Life of a soldier d) Life of a king

   Answer: b  

3. What was Sant Haridas busy with when they arrived? a) Singing songs b) Teaching music c) His daily chores d) Reading a book

   Answer: c  

4. What reason did Sant Haridas give for not singing? a) He had a sore throat b) He was long past the age for singing c) He did not like the emperor d) He wanted money

   Answer: b  

5. What did Tansen do to make his Guru sing? a) He ordered him b) He cried c) He made a deliberate mistake d) He offered him gold

   Answer: c

   मराठी टीप: चुकीचे पर्याय गाळून उताऱ्यात दिलेली अचूक माहिती निवडा.  

TYPE 3 — Answer in One Word/Phrase (1M each · 4 questions)

1. Who was the man Tansen had spoken of? Answer: Sant Haridas.  

2. What kind of mistake did Tansen make? Answer: A deliberate mistake.  

3. Who could not persuade Sant Haridas? Answer: His favourite pupil (Tansen).  

4. What kind of life did the music teacher live? Answer: Austere life (of a hermit). मराठी टीप: उत्तर एका शब्दात किंवा वाक्यांशात द्या. पूर्ण वाक्य लिहिण्याची गरज नाही.  

TYPE 4 — Complete the Sentences (1M each · 4 questions)

1. Complete the sentence: 'He had been Tansen's music ________.' Answer: teacher  

2. Complete the sentence: 'He lived the austere life of a ________.' Answer: hermit  

3. Complete the sentence: 'When Tansen and the emperor reached his hut, he was busy with his daily ________.' Answer: chores  

4. Complete the sentence: 'I'm long past the age for ________.' Answer: singing मराठी टीप: उताऱ्यात काळजीपूर्वक शोधून रिकाम्या जागी योग्य तोच शब्द भरा.  

TYPE 5 — Answer in 2-3 Sentences (2M each · 5 questions)

1. How did Emperor Akbar go to meet Sant Haridas? (From chapter) Answer: Emperor Akbar agreed that he would not go as the Emperor of Hindustan. Instead, he went to Sant Haridas's hut dressed simply as a humble lover of music.

   मराठी टीप: राजा म्हणून न जाता, अकबर एका सामान्य संगीत प्रेमीसारखा गुरुजींच्या झोपडीत गेला.  

   
   

2. Why did Sant Haridas refuse to sing at first? (From extract) Answer: When asked to sing, Sant Haridas smiled but firmly refused. He gave the reason that he was now long past the age for singing.

   मराठी टीप: आपले वय झाले आहे आणि आपण आता गात नाही, असे सांगून गुरुजींनी गायला नकार दिला.  

   
   

3. How did Tansen trick his Guru into singing? (From extract) Answer: Tansen offered to sing before his Guru, but while singing, he purposely made a deliberate mistake. Hearing the wrong note made his Guru so exasperated that he took the tanpura and sang the correct note himself.

   मराठी टीप: तानसेनने गाताना मुद्दाम चूक केली, त्यामुळे चिडून गुरुजींनी स्वतः योग्य सुरात गाऊन दाखवले.  

   
   

4. What was Akbar's reaction to Haridas's music? (From chapter) Answer: Akbar listened to Sant Haridas as if he was completely hypnotised. He realized that he had certainly never heard anything so beautiful like it before in his life.

   मराठी टीप: अकबर ते गाणे ऐकून पूर्णपणे मंत्रमुग्ध (hypnotised) झाला.  

   
   

5. Why was Tansen's music not as good as his Guru's, according to Tansen? (From chapter) Answer: Tansen explained that he sang at the command of the Emperor of Hindustan. However, his Guru sang freely from the depths of his soul only for God, which made his music truly divine.

   मराठी टीप: तानसेन राजाच्या आज्ञेवरून गातो, पण गुरुजी ईश्वरासाठी मनापासून गातात, त्यामुळे त्यांचे गाणे जास्त सुंदर आहे. 

    

TYPE 6 — Answer in 4-5 Sentences (3M each · 3 questions)

1. How was Emperor Akbar different from other rulers of that time? (From chapter) Answer: When Tansen said his Guru would not come even if the Emperor summoned him, any other ruler would have been deeply enraged. But Akbar was different. He did not show arrogance or anger. Instead, he humbly agreed to travel to the forest himself as a simple lover of music to hear the great master sing. मराठी टीप: इतर राजांसारखा अकबराने राग मानला नाही. तो स्वतःचा मोठेपणा विसरून एका संगीतप्रेमीसारखा जंगलात गेला.  

   
   

2. Describe the effect of Sant Haridas's music on the listeners. (From chapter)

   Answer: When Sant Haridas sang, his beautiful music spread across the entire forest. The music was so magical that it felt like the first glimmer of dawn or the sweet fragrance of jasmine. Both Emperor Akbar and Tansen listened to him in absolute silence, as if they were totally hypnotised by the divine sound. मराठी टीप: गुरुजींचे संगीत पहाटेच्या प्रकाशासारखे आणि मोगऱ्याच्या सुगंधासारखे जंगलात पसरले. अकबर आणि तानसेन मंत्रमुग्ध होऊन ऐकत राहिले.  

   
   

3. Explain the difference between Tansen's singing and Sant Haridas's singing. (From chapter)

   Answer: The main difference lies in the purpose of their singing. Tansen sings at the command of an earthly king, the Emperor of Hindustan. In contrast, Sant Haridas sings unasked for and is completely free. He sings only for God, who is the Master of even kings. Because his music springs from the depths of his soul, it is far more beautiful and divine than Tansen's music. मराठी टीप: तानसेन सत्तेच्या आज्ञेने राजासाठी गातो, तर गुरुजी मुक्त मनाने केवळ ईश्वरासाठी गातात. त्यामुळे गुरुजींची कला अधिक दैवी (divine) आहे.  

   
   

TYPE 7 — Word Meanings / Vocabulary in Context (1M each · 5 questions)

(Note: Drawn from the whole chapter)

1. The word 'exquisite' means... Answer: very fine and pleasing. मराठी अर्थ: अतिशय सुंदर / उत्कृष्ट. मराठी टीप: राग दरबारीचे सूर अतिशय सुंदर (exquisite) होते.  

2. The word 'summoned' means... Answer: called or ordered to be present. मराठी अर्थ: बोलावणे पाठवणे. मराठी टीप: राजाने आज्ञा देऊन बोलावले (summoned) तरी ते येणार नाहीत, असे तानसेन म्हणाला.  

3. The word 'austere' means... Answer: simple and without luxury. मराठी अर्थ: साधे / संन्याशासारखे. मराठी टीप: गुरुजी जंगलात अतिशय साधे (austere) जीवन जगत होते.  

4. The word 'deliberate' means... Answer: done purely on purpose. मराठी अर्थ: मुद्दाम केलेली. मराठी टीप: तानसेनने गाताना मुद्दाम (deliberate) चूक केली.  

5. The word 'divine' means... Answer: of or like God. मराठी अर्थ: दैवी / ईश्वरीय. मराठी टीप: ईश्वरासाठी गायलेले गाणे नेहमीच दैवी (divine) असते.  

TYPE 8 — Personal Response (2M each · 2 questions)

(Note: Drawn from the whole chapter)

1. Do you think a teacher is greater than a king? Why?

   Answer: Yes, I firmly believe a teacher is greater than a king. A king only rules over a piece of land and commands his people, but a true teacher guides the soul, shares divine knowledge, and lives a pure life dedicated to art or learning.

   मराठी टीप: 'होय, शिक्षक राजापेक्षा मोठा असतो', असे सांगून, राजा फक्त राज्यावर राज्य करतो पण शिक्षक ज्ञानाने मनावर राज्य करतो, हे इंग्रजीत मांडा.

   
   

2. What kind of music do you like to listen to when you are tired?

   Answer: When I am completely exhausted and tired, I like to listen to soft, classical, or soothing instrumental music. Gentle music calms my mind, removes all my stress, and helps me relax completely.

   मराठी टीप: थकल्यावर तुम्हाला कोणते संगीत आवडते (उदा. शांत, शास्त्रीय किंवा जुनी गाणी) आणि त्याने तुम्हाला कसा आराम मिळतो, ते सांगा.

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