Daily Quiz: UPSC Prelims Marathon – November 20

Surendranath Banerjee is also known as RastraGuru. He was born in 1848 and in 1868, he competed in the Indian Civil Service Examination along with RC Dutt. He cleared the exam in 1869, but was debarred because of age dispute. Later he cleared the exam in 1871 and got appointed as Assistant magistrate in Bengal. Later he established the Indian national Association which was Pro-british. He remained the leader of the INC and in the evening of his life supported the British empire. He was knighted by the Government and also served as minister for local self-government from 1921 to 1924. He was an open critic of Mahatma Gandhi, who was then only in rising stage of his political career.

All the pairs are correctly matched

Tripitakas ( three baskets ) comprises the three main categories of texts that make up the Buddhist canon

1. Vinaya-pitaka – contains the rules of communal life for monks and nuns

2. Sutta-pitaka – collection of sermons of the Buddha

3. Abhidhamma-pitaka – contains interpretations and analyses of Buddhist concept

Statement 1 is correct. Music had also developed under the Mughals. Akbar patronized Tansen of Gwalior. Tansen composed many ragas.

Statement 2 is correct. From the time of Akbar, the Hindus, particularly the Rajputs were included

in the nobility. For example, mention may be made about Raja Man Singh, Raja Birbal and Raja Todar Mal. Later, the Marathas also joined the Mughal service and rose to the position of nobles.

Statement 3 is incorrect. Muslim rulers in India charged a pilgrimage tax on unbelievers travelling to various Hindu pilgrimage sites. Akbar eliminated this tax in 1564. Jizya was also abolished by the Mughal emperor Akbar.

Source: TN History 11ths std: Page No:  240

Mohiniyattam literally interpreted as the dance of ‘Mohini’, the celestial enchantress of the Hindu mythology, is the classical solo dance form of Kerala. References of Mohiniyattam can be found in the texts Vyavaharamala written in 1709 by Mazhamagalam Narayanan Namputiri and in Ghoshayatra, written later by great poet Kunjan Nambiar.

Mohiniyattam is characterized by graceful, swaying body movements with no abrupt jerks or sudden leaps. It belongs to the lasya style which is feminine, tender and graceful.  The movements are emphasized by the glides and the up and down movement on toes, like the waves of the sea and the swaying of the coconut, palm trees and the paddy fields.

The GI protected paintings are : Mysore Traditional Paintings, Thanjavur Paintings, Madhubani Paintings, Cheriyal Scroll Paintings, Kangra Paintings.

Warli painting doesn’t have any GI protection. Thus statement 1 is incorrect.

Detailed Learning:

Thanjavur painting is a classical South Indian painting style, which was inaugurated from the town of Thanjavur and spread across the adjoining and geographically contiguous Tamil country. It has been recognized as a Geographical indication by the Government of India in 2007-08.Thanjavur paintings are characterised by rich, flat and vivid colors, simple iconic composition, glittering gold foils overlaid on delicate but extensive gesso work and inlay of glass beads and pieces or very rarely precious and semi-precious gems.

Madhubani painting originated in a small village, known as Maithili, of the Bihar .Initially, the womenfolk of the village drew the paintings on the walls of their home, as an illustration of their thoughts, hopes and dreams. With time, the paintings started becoming a part of festivities and special events, like marriage. Slowly and gradually, the Madhubani painting of India crossed the traditional boundaries and started reaching connoisseurs of art, both at the national as well as the international level.

All the statements are correct.

The medieval Bhakti movement was the direct result of the influence of the spread of Islam in India. Monotheism or belief in one God, equality and brotherhood of man and rejection of rituals and class divisions are the distinctive characteristics of Islam. These Islamic ideas created a profound impact on the religious leaders of this period. Moreover, the preaching of Sufi teachers shaped the thinking of Bhakti reformers like Ramananda, Kabir and Nanak.

The importance of the Bhakti movement was very great. Various preachers spoke and wrote in the regional languages. So, the Bhakti movement provided an impetus for the development of regional languages such as Hindi, Marathi, Bengali, Kannada, etc the caste system was condemned by the Bhakti saints, the lower classes were raised to a position of great importance. The importance of women in society was also increased because the Bhakti movement gave equal importance to them.

Source: TN History 11ths std: Page No:  200

Statement/Pair (3) is not correct. Tulsidas was a worshipper of Rama and composed the

famous Ramcharitmanas, the Hindi version of Ramayana.

Amir Khusrau’s famous work Tughlaq Nama deals with the rise of Ghyiasuddin Tughlaq.

Eight eminent scholars known as Ashtadiggajas were at Krishna Deva Raya’s  royal

court. Allasani Peddanna was the greatest and he was called His important works include

Manucharitam and Harikathasaram.

Ain-i-Akbari  and  Akabar Nama authored by Abul Fazl.