1. How did interactions between Muslim and Hindu communities in India change over time? B) Both communities endured violent conflict until shared cultural experiences encouraged tolerance. [I'll add a note below in connection with this point, after running through the other questions.]
2. How did the Delhi sultanate affect Hindu society? C) It introduced Turkish, Persian, and Arab social and artistic influences to the area.
3. Which of the following is an example of how the Delhi sultanate changed society in India? A) Many lower caste Hindus converted to Islam because the religion did not recognize a caste system.
4. What was Guru Gobind Singh’s motivation behind giving all Sikh men the last name of Singh? D) He believed that having a common name removed barriers of caste between people and promoted tolerance.
5. Which of the following does the Taj Mahal signify about the Mughal Empire? A) It reflects Persian influences on Indian culture.
6. Which characteristics of the Mughal Empire does the Taj Mahal reflect? D) Blending of Hindu and Muslim cultures.
... Now, here's that bonus thought I promised, in regard to ethnic conflict between Muslim and Hindu communities in India. Looking at more recent history and social interactions in India, Brown University professor Ashutosh Varshney published a great study in 2003 called, Ethnic Conflict and Civic Life: Hindus and Muslims in India (Yale University Press). Varshney's thesis, for which he provides much evidence, is that when opposing ethnic groups are involved in the everyday affairs of societal associations together -- such as shopping in the same markets, children attending the same schools, playing in the same soccer leagues, etc -- these associations tend to reduce occasions of violence between ethnic communities. It's when different ethinc communities live in very divided ways from one another that they have a greater tendency to erupt in violence against one another.
