History (Part-2) (CDS-Solved Paper)

A stupa is a mound-like or hemispherical structure containing relics that is used as a place of meditation. Buddhist sources claim that during the 3rd century BCE, the Mauryan Emperor Ashoka the Great ordered these eight stupas to be opened, further distributed the relics of the Buddha into 84,000 portions, and had stupas built over them all over the expanding Buddhist world.

They were located on trade routes in order to propagate Buddhism. However, there was no evidence of them being located in rural areas. Hence, stupas were located in rural areas is incorrect. Hence, option (c) is not correct

Kabir  was a 15th century Indian mystic poet  and  saint, whose writings influenced Hinduism’s  Bhakti movement  and his verses are found in Sikhism’s scripture  Guru Granth Sahib. His early life was in a Muslim family, but he was strongly influenced by his teacher, the Hindu Bhakti leader Ramananda. Literary works with compositions attributed to Kabir include Kabir Bijak, Kabir Parachai, Sakhi Granth, Adi Granth Sahib and Kabir Granthawali (Rajasthan). Hence, all the statements are true.

The term ‘Barbarian’ originated from the  Greek (barbaros) which in turn originated from the incomprehensible languages of early  Anatolian  nations that were heard by the Greeks as ‘bar..bar.’
In  Ancient Greece, the Greeks used the term towards those who didn’t speak Greek and follow classical Greek customs.
In  Ancient Rome, the Romans used the term towards non-Romans such as the Germanics, Celts, Gauls, Iberians, Thracians, Illyrians, Berbers, Parthians, and Sarmatians. Hence, both the statements are correct.

Hujwiri was known as Datta Ganj Baksh. Hujwiri comments that before he settled in Lahore some sufis believed in theories that he calls brahmanical. According to Hujwiri, they wrongly believed the ‘annihilation (fand)’ signifies loss of essence and destruction of the personality and that subsistence indicates the subsistence of God in man. Hence, option (d) is not correct.

Francisco Pelsaert  was a Dutch merchant who worked for the  Dutch East India Company. He explained about the conditions of farmers and agriculture in the Mughal era. He said that the Mughal period was marked by agriculture stagnation if not slump. The per capita yield was declining and the average man in Mughal period probably had less to eat than before.

‘Ginan’ is the name to the literary genre developed by the Khojas who are a branch of the Ismaili sect. The  Khojas  are a group of diverse people who converted to Islam in South Asia.
The word  ‘Khoja’ derives from Khwaja, a Persian honorific title of pious individuals from Central Asia, South Asia and the Middle East. Ginans  are devotional hymns or poems recited by Shia Ismaili Muslims (Khojas).

The  Nalayira Divya Prabandham  is a collection of 4,000 Tamil  verses (Naalayiram in Tamil  means ‘four thousand’) composed  by the 12 Alvars. It was compiled in its present form by Nathamuni during the 9th – 10th centuries.

‘Silsila’  is an  Arabic  word meaning chain, link, connection often used in various senses of  lineage. In particular, it may be translated as ‘spiritual genealogy’ where one Sufi Master transfers his khilfat to his spiritual descendant.

The origins of Sufism can be traced to the lifetime of the Prophet Muhammad, whose teachings attracted a group of scholars who came to be called ‘Ahle Suffe’, the People of Suffe, from their practice of sitting at the platform of the mosque of the Prophet in Medina.

They engaged themselves in discussions concerning the reality of ‘Being’, and in search of the inner path and devoted themselves to spiritual purification and meditation. These individuals were the founders of Sufism.

Four important Silsilas are: Chishti Silsila, Kadri Silsila and Soharvardi Silsila and Nakshbandi Silsila. Hence, all the statements are correct.

Purusha Sukta is hymn of the Rigveda, dedicated to the purusha the ‘cosmic being.’ It is also found in the Shukla Yajurveda Vajasena Samhita (31) some scholars state that certain verses of Purusha Sukta are later interpolation of the Rigveda.

In September 1920, at a special session in Calcutta, the Congress approved a Non- cooperation Movement under leadership of Gandhiji. Most of the South Indian states participated in it except Karnataka.

In Assam, strike in tea plantation, steamer services and Assam Bengal Railways has been organised. There were some non-Brahmin lower-caste participation in Madras and Maharashtra.

The movement was withdrawn in 1922 by Mahatma Gandhi with Chauri Chaura incident in which violent mob burnt a police station in United province. Hence, only statement (2) is correct.