Kathmandu Extra Questions and Answers

Short Answer Type Questions

1. Where did the writer stay in Kathmandu? Which two different places of
worship did he visit and with whom?
Answer: The writer, Vikram Seth, stayed in a cheap room in the center of
Kathmandu town. He visited the Pashupatinath temple, sacred to Hindus, and the
Baudhnath stupa, the holy shrine of the Buddhists. He went with his
acquaintances Mr. Shah’s son and nephew.
2. What is written on the signboard outside the Pashupatinath temple? What
does the proclamation signify?
Answer: Outside the Pashupatinath temple, the signboard announces: “Entrance
for the Hindus only”. It signifies the rigid sanctity that this place of worship
associates with and the dogmatic discrimination practiced saving this place from
being treated like a tourist destination.
3. What does the author imply by ‘febrile confusion’ in the Pashupatinath
temple?
Or
What made the atmosphere in and around the Pashupatinath temple full of
‘febrile confusion’?
Answer: The author makes this remark to show the hectic and feverish activity
that causes utter chaos. Around the temple, there is a huge crowd of priests,
hawkers, tourists, and even cows, monkeys and pigeons. Inside the temple, there
are a large number of worshippers who elbow others aside to move closer to the
priest. Together, they create utter confusion.
4. Why did the policeman stop the Westerners wearing saffron-colored clothes
from entering the Pashupatinath temple?
Answer: The policeman stopped the saffron-clad Westerners from entering the
Pashupatinath temple as the entry of non- Hindus is banned in this temple and he
didn’t believe that they were Hindus, despite their saffron clothes.
5. How does the author describe the fight that breaks out between the two
monkeys around the temple of Pashupatinath?
Answer: The author describes the fight that breaks out between two monkeys in
which one chases the other. The monkey being chased jumps onto a shivalitiga,
then runs screaming around the temples and finally goes down to the holy river,
Bagmati.
6. What activities are observed by the writer on the banks of the Bagmati river?
Answer: The writer observes some polluting activities on the banks of river
Bagmati. He notices some washerwomen washing clothes, some children taking a
bath and a dead body being cremated on the banks of this sacred river. He also
observes someone throwing a basketful of wilted flowers and leaves into the
river.
7. What is the belief at Pashupatinath about the end of Kaliyug?
Answer: There is a small shrine on the banks of the holy Bagmati in the
Pashupatinath temple. Half of this shrine protrudes from a stone platform. It is
believed that when the shrine will emerge completely from the platform, the
goddess in the shrine will escape and that will mark the end of the Kaliyug.
8. What are the author’s observations about the streets in Kathmandu?
Answer: The author finds the streets in Kathmandu ‘vivid, mercenary and
religious’. Extremely narrow and busy, these streets have many small shrines and
some images clad in flowers. Stray cows roam about mooing at the sound of the
motorcycles. Vendors sell their wares shouting loudly and radios are played at a
loud pitch. In addition, the horns of the cars and the ringing of the bicycle bells
increase this din.
9. What picture of the Baudhnath stupa does the author portray?
Answer: The author gives a brief but vivid picture of the Boudhanath stupa. He
admires the serenity and calmness of this shrine. There are no crowds even on
the road surrounding the stupa which has some shops run by the Tibetan
immigrants. The stupa has an immense white dome with silence and stillness as
its distinctive features.
10. Describing the streets around the Baudhnath stupa, why does the narrator
say this is a haven of quietness in the busy streets around?
Answer: The narrator observes a sense of stillness at the Buddhist shrine, the
Boudhanath stupa. Its immense white dome is ringed by a road with small shops
selling items like felt bags, Tibetan prints, and silver jewelry. The quietness of the
stupa stands out amidst the busy business activities that go around it. Thus, the
narrator regards this place as a haven of quietness in the busy streets around.
11. The writer says, “All this I wash down with Coca-Cola”. What does all this’
refer to?
Answer: All this’ refers to the eatables that the writer enjoys on the road
surrounding the Boudhanath stupa. It includes a bar of marzipan and a roasted
corn-cob that he enjoys along with the fizzy, carbonated drinks, Coca-Cola.
Besides, he also gets some comics with love-stories and a copy of the Reader’s
Digest magazine to indulge himself mindlessly.
12. Which is the longer route from Kathmandu to Delhi? Which route does the
author opt for?
Answer: The longer route from Kathmandu to Delhi is to first reach Patna by bus
and train. Then go past Benaras, sail on the Ganges and reach Allahabad. Then
cross the Yamuna and finally reach Delhi via Agra. The shorter option taken by the
author is to fly via air, straight from Kathmandu to Delhi.
13. Why does Vikram Seth decide to buy a ticket directly for the homeward
journey?
Answer: Vikram Seth has been away from home since quite some time. He is
feeling very exhausted and homesick. Though his enthusiasm for travelling
tempts him to take a longer route to reach back home, his exhaustion and
homesickness impel him to buy an air-ticket directly for the homeward journey to
Delhi.
14. What difference does the author note between the flute seller and the
other hawkers?
Or
How is the flute player’s way of selling flutes different from that of the other
hawkers around?
Answer: The author points out that while other hawkers shout loudly to attract
the customers for their wares, the flute seller plays upon his flute slowly and
meditatively. He does not indulge in excessive display nor does he show any
desperation to sell his flutes. Although the flute player does not shout, the sound
of the flute is distinctly heard above the noise of the traffic and of the hawkers.
15. What does Vikram Seth compare to the quills of a porcupine?
Or
Where did Vikram Seth find the flute seller? What did he compare his flutes to?
Answer: Vikram Seth found a flute seller in Kathmandu standing in a corner of the
square near his hotel. He held a pole in his hand which had an attachment at the
top. In this attachment, around fifty to sixty flutes were stuck that bulged out in
all directions. The author compares these protruding flutes to the sharp, stiff and
standing quills of a porcupine.
16. Name five kinds of flutes.
Or
Listening to the music of the flute in the square, the author is reminded of
various kinds of flutes. Which kinds does he describe?
Answer: As the author listens to the music of the flute being played by the flute
seller, he is reminded of different kinds of flutes. He mentions certain kinds of
them like the ‘cross-flutes’, the ‘reed new’, the recorder, the Japanese
‘shakuhachi’ and the Hindustani ‘bansuri’. Other flutes are distinguished by their
tonal quality like ‘the clear or breathy flutes’ of South America and the ‘high-
pitched’ flutes of China
17. What is the impact of the music of the flute on Vikram Seth?
Answer: The music of the flute has a hypnotic effect on Vikram Seth. He finds it
difficult to ‘tear’ himself away from the square where this music is being played
by the flute seller. It has the power to draw him into the commonality of all
mankind and he is moved by its closeness to the human voice.
18. Why does the author describe the music of the flute as “the most universal
and most particular of sounds”?
Answer: The music of the flute, according to the author, is the most ‘universal’
because this musical instrument, made of hollow bamboo is found in every
culture in the world. But at the same time, its sound is the most ‘particular’
because each flute, though played in an almost similar manner, emits a distinct,
unique, and individual kind of music.
19. What did the saffron-clad Westerners want?
Answer: The saffron-clad Westerners wanted to go inside the temple of
Pashupatinath. But the policeman stopped them. He did not let them go inside
the temple because they were not Hindus. The entrance was only for Hindus in
the temple.
20. How did the author want to return to Delhi? What made him change his
mind?
Answer: From Kathmandu, the author wanted to go Patna by bus or train. Then
he would sail the Ganga though Benaras to Allahabad. Then he would sail the
Yamuna through Agra to Delhi. But the author was already very tired. So he
decided to return to Delhi by air.
21. Describe how the flute seller sells his wares?
Answer: The flute seller has tied fifty or sixty flutes on a pole. He does not shout
out his wares. From time to time, he selects a flute and plays on it. He plays
slowly and thoughtfully. Sometimes, he makes a sale. But his attitude is carefree.
22. To hear any ‘flute is to be drawn into the commonality of all mankind.’
Explain.
Answer: The flute is found in each culture in one form or the other. Thus the
sound of the flute draws a person into the commonality of mankind.
Long Answer Type Questions
1. How does the author describe the flute seller? What does he say about the
flute music?
Answer: The author finds a flute seller in a corner of the square near his hotel.
There is a pole in his hand. There is an attachment at the top of the pole. Fifty or
sixty flutes are stuck on it. These flutes protrude in all directions. The author
compares these flutes to the quills of a porcupine. These flutes are made-of
bamboo: From time to time, he stands the pole on the ground. Then he selects a
flute and plays on it for a few minutes. The sound rises clearly above the noise of
the traffic and the hawkers’ cries.
He plays the flute slowly and thoughtfully. He does not shout out his wares.
Occasionally someone buys a flute from him. But the flute seller’s attitude is
carefree. The author likes his attitude. He imagines that this has been his pattern
of life for years. The author finds it difficult to come away from there. He has
always been attracted by the flute music: He says that the flute is a very common
musical instrument. It is found in almost all cultures. It is the common link of all
mankind.
2. Compare and contrast the atmosphere in and around the Baudhnath shrine
with that in the Pashupatinath Temple.
Answer: The Pashupatinath Temple, sacred to Hindus, and the Baudhnath shrine
of the Buddhists stand in contrast with regard to their ambiance. The noisy
confusion of the Hindu Temple is opposite to the tranquillity that reigns supreme
in the Baudhnath shrine. In the Pashupatinath temple, utter chaos is created by a
large number of unorganized worshippers who try to push each other to reach
closer to the priest and the deity. At Baudhnath stupa, there aren’t many people
inside the structure.
The atmosphere at Pashupatinath Temple is made noisy by the heterogeneous
crowd consisting of priests, hawkers, devotees, and tourists. The animals like
cows and dogs freely move around and the pigeons to contribute to the
confusion. Even monkeys play about and fight in the premises of the temple.
Confusion is also created by some Westerners who wish to enter the temple.
The Boudhanath stupa, on the contrary, gives a feeling of stillness and silence.
Although there are small shops on the road around the temple, run by Tibetan
immigrants, there is neither noise nor chaos. The author is so fascinated by the
serenity in and around the temple that he calls it ‘a haven of stillness’ standing
quietly amidst the busy streets.
3. How does the author describe Kathmandu’s busiest streets?
Answer: The author presents the busiest streets of Kathmandu as ‘vivid,
mercenary and religious’. It is a place with the beautiful, vivid, landscape, and a
lot of religious activity goes on all the time. Besides the famous places like the
Pashupatinath temple and the Baudhnath stupa, Kathmandu also has small
shrines and deities-It is ‘mercenary’ as it is a tourist place and a lot of business –
flourishes in the narrow streets. One can find fruit sellers, flute sellers, and
hawkers selling postcard photographs. As in any other tourist place, there are
shops selling various things like cosmetics from western countries, rolls of film,
chocolates, antique things of Nepal, and copper pots and pans.
There is a bedlam of noises created by radios playing film songs, sounds of car-
horns, bells of bicycles and vendors shouting to invite the customers. There are
also the cows bellowing as they hear the sounds of motorcycles. Thus, the streets
of Kathmandu are full of noise and din.
4. “ To hear any flute is to be drawn into the commonality of all mankind.” Why
does the author say this?
Answer: The author hears the music of a flute played by a flute seller in a square
near his hotel in Kathmandu and is reminded of the various kinds of music
produced by various types of flutes found in various cultures. However, the flute
is universal because almost every culture has flutes, though each has a different
tone and pitch.
The author further describes the variety of flutes named differently as the
shakuhachi in Japan and the bansuri in India. They have different fingering
methods and ranges of sound. The Indian bansuri has a deep sound, the South
American flute emits clear, breathy sound and the Chinese flute gives out loud,
high-pitched melodies.
Despite the variety of flutes and the variations in their music, the author
emphasizes that the music of all the flutes closely resembles the human voice. To
produce music, every flute needs pauses and breaths in the same manner in
which phrases and sentences are uttered in the human voice. These pauses and
breaths are generated through fingering of the holes of a flute. This characteristic
feature of the flutes gives the author a feeling of being “drawn into the
commonality of mankind”, which gives him a sense of universality and harmony.
5. What ideas do you get about the author from the extract “Kathmandu”?
Answer: The extract “Kathmandu” taken from Vikram Seth’s travelogue,
‘Heavenly Lake’, brings forth certain traits of his personality. As a traveller, Seth
displays a keen sense of observation, and as a person with a fine aesthetic sense,
his ability to capture the vivid details comes to the fore.
The pictures of the temples of Kathmandu and its crowded streets become alive
with his vivid descriptions. Though indirectly, he also appears to be a lover of
serenity and tranquillity when he terms the stupa as a ‘haven of quietness’. He
also shows his concern as an environmentalist who does not approve of the
polluting activities carried on the banks of the Bagmati river. Vikram Seth’s
fondness for travelling is obvious by the fact that although tired, he still
contemplates taking a longer route back home to Delhi.
His fondness for music is brought forth when we find him so enchanted by the
music of the flute that he has to force himself to leave the square where the flute
is being played by the seller.
His choice of reading reveals that when tired, he prefers to read light and popular
stuff. Like a typical traveller, he indulges himself with the eatables he finds
available in the bazaar of Kathmandu.
Thus, the author emerges as a man with a profound fondness for travelling, love
for music, a keen sense of observation, reflective mind, and an ability to portray
places and people minutely and realistically.
6. The author has drawn powerful images and pictures. Pick out three examples
each of
(i) the atmosphere of febrile confusion outside the temple of Pashupatinath
(ii) the things he sees
(iii) the sounds he hears
Answer: (i) Some examples of the atmosphere of ‘febrile confusion’ outside the
Pashupatinath Temple:
• A huge crowd outside the temple that includes human beings, animals and
birds
• Some Westerners in the saffron attire like Hindus trying to intrude into the
temple and the policeman opposing them
• Two monkeys fighting, one chasing the other and jumping on a Shivalinga
and then running to the river Bagmati
(ii) Some examples of the things that the writer sees:
• Women washing clothes on the banks of Bagmati river
• Children bathing in the river
• A corpse being cremated at the banks of the Bagmati
• A basket with withered flowers, leaves and old offerings being dropped into
the river
• The Tibetan immigrants selling things on the road around the Baudhnath
stupa
• The hawkers selling the postcards and other wares in the streets
(iii) Some examples of the sounds that the writer hears:
• The blaring horns of the traffic
• The sweet and hypnotic sounds of the flute
• The loud voices of the hawkers.
• The mooing of stray cows
 • The film songs blaring out from the radios
• The sound of car horns
• The ringing of bicycle bells
7. Where does the author find the flute seller and what are his observations
about him? What draws the author to the music of the flute?
Answer: The author finds a flute seller along with many other hawkers in a corner
of the square near his hotel in Kathmandu. But the flute seller’s style of selling his
ware differs absolutely from that of the other vendors. He does not shout to
attract the customers nor does he show any kind of desperation to sell.
He carries a pole with about fifty to sixty flutes attached at the top. The author
compares these flutes protruding in all directions to the sharp quills of a
porcupine. Most of the flutes on the poles are of the varieties of ‘recorders’ and
‘cross-flutes’. The flute seller, instead of hawking loudly, places the pole on the
ground every now and then, selects a flute and plays upon it slowly and in a
meditative manner without ever resorting to excessive display.
The sound of the flute is distinct and clear and can be heard even above the noise
created by the traffic horns and the shouts of the hawkers. He does not seem to
run a very brisk business and it appears as if playing the flute is his chief activity
and selling of flutes is incidental to it.
The mesmerising music of the flute draws the author to it. He is left spell-bound
by its hypnotic notations. The impact is so deep that he has to force himself to
leave the square where the flute is being played. This music is etched in his
memory and he carries it with him to his home in India.