UPSC Previous Year Questions (Prelims): Vedic Period | History for UPSC CSE PDF Download

Correct Answer is Option (b)

1. Asmaka – Godavari
This is correctly matched. Asmaka was located in the southern part of the Indian subcontinent (present-day Telangana/Maharashtra) and was situated on the banks of the Godavari River.
2. Kamboja – Vipas (Beas)
Incorrect. Kamboja was a north-western region, likely around present-day Afghanistan and parts of Central Asia. The Vipas (modern Beas) river flowed in the Punjab region, not associated with Kamboja.
3. Avanti – Mahanadi
Incorrect. Avanti was located in western Madhya Pradesh, particularly around Ujjain. The major rivers in this region were the Narmada and Shipra. Mahanadi flows in eastern India (Chhattisgarh and Odisha), and thus, this pair is incorrectly matched.
4. Kosala – Sarayu
This is correctly matched. Kosala was located in eastern Uttar Pradesh with its capital at Ayodhya, which lies on the banks of the Sarayu River.

Correct Answer is Option (c)

• Option a is not correct. Kavyalankara is a book about poetry that is linked to the scholar Bhamaha.
• Option b is also incorrect. Natyashastra is an ancient Indian text about the performing arts, which is credited to Bharata Muni.
• Option c is correct. The Madhyama-vyayoga play is one of the thirteen plays that are traditionally associated with Bhasa. It is a one-act play that tells a story from the Mahabharata and focuses on the reunion of the Pandava brothers.
• Option d is incorrect. Mahabhashya is a commentary on Panini’s grammar, and it is attributed to Patanjali.

Correct Answer is (b) 2only

• Statement 1 is not correct. The Upanishads include parables and stories that help explain important philosophical ideas.
• Statement 2 is correct. The Upanishads were written before the Puranas.

Correct Answer is Option (c)

• It is a Sanskrit play written byVishakhadatta.
• This narrates the heroic deeds of Chandragupta in which he rescues the wife of his elder brother from the Shaka ruler. Hence pair 1 is incorrect.

• Hammira Mahakavya is a 15th-century Indian Sanskrit epic poem written by the Jain scholar Nayachandra Suri.
• It is a legendary biography of the 13th-century Chahamana king Hammira.
• It tells about the Chahamana dynasty rulers. Hence pair 2 is correct.

• It is the composition of dialogues between the Buddhist monk Nagasena and King Milinda.Hence pair 3 is incorrect.
• Milinda panha refers to "Questions of Milinda". It is written in the Pali language.

• The Nitivakyamrita is a work on ethics, politics, and social norms written in Sanskrit.
• It was authored by Somadeva Suri, a renowned Jain monk and scholar. Hence pair 4 is correct. 
• The "Nītivākyāmr̥ta" is composed in the form of verses (shlokas) and contains teachings on various aspects of life including virtue, duty, conduct, and governance. It is an important work in the canon of Jain literature and is still studied for its profound insights into life and morality.

Correct Answer is Option (b)

1. Nettipakarana is related to Buddhism’s Pali Canon. Hence, option 1 is incorrect.
   • The Nettipakaraṇa is a mythological Buddhist scripture, sometimes included in the Khuddaka Nikaya of Theravada Buddhism's Pali Canon.
   • The main theme of this text is Buddhist Hermeneutics through a systematization of the Buddha's teachings. 
2. Parishishtaparvan was written by Hemachandra which describes the establishing Chandragupta’s connections with Jainism. Hence, option 2 is correct.
   • According to the Parishishtaparvan, Jayasimha spotted Hemachandra while passing through the streets of his capital.
   • The king was impressed with an impromptu verse uttered by the young monk
   • Acharya Hemachandra was an Indian Jain scholar, poet, mathematician, and polymath who wrote on grammar, philosophy, prosody, mathematics, and contemporary history.
   • Noted as a prodigy by his contemporaries, he gained the title kalikalasarvajna, "the knower of all knowledge in his times".
3. The Avadanashataka or “Century of Noble Deeds” is an anthology in Sanskrit which contains some collection of Buddhist narratives compiled from the second to fifth centuries CE. Hence, option 3 is incorrect.
4. Trishashthilkshana Mahapurana is a major Jain text composed largely by Acharya Jinasena during the rule of Rashtrakuta. Hence, option 4 is correct.

Correct Answer is Option (b)

Bhavabhutiwas a famous Sanskrit playwright who wrote famous plays like Mahaviracharita, Malatimadhava, etc.

• He is believed to be the court poet ofKing Yashovarmanof Kannauj.

Hastimallawrote 8 plays including Vikrant Kaurava and Subhadra Harana.

• He was a noted Kannada poetand playwright in the Hoysala Empire.

Kshemeshvarais also a playwright in the ancient period. 

Correct Answer is Option (b)

• During Vedic age, there was a lot of emphasis on rituals and sacrifices. This type of excessive ritualism produced a natural reaction in the form of Sramana religion, which protested against the divine origin of the Vedas and efficacy of the sacrifices. 
• Sramanaswere recruited from all people irrespective of caste and creed. Their teachers were anti-Vedic and anti-Brahmanic and they challenged Vedic learning and Vedic rituals. So, 2 is wrong. By elimination we are left with correct answer “b” 
• Sree Narayana Gum had become a ‘Parivrajaka’ (one who wanders from place to place in quest of Truth), so, #1 is correct.

Correct Answer is Option (c)

All the gold jewelry found at Harappan sites was recovered from hoards. So, the second statement is wrong, which eliminated B and D. But then depending on which history book you refer to, Harappans were aware or unaware about the horses. So the experts were divided between option A and options C. UPSC chose ‘C’ as the official answer- meaning Harappans did not know about the horses.

Correct Answer is Option (c)

Lokayata and Kapalika do not form of Six systems of Indian philosophy

Correct Answer is Option (a)

The pose ‘Tribhanga’ is the favorite posture of Lord Krishna. We have often seen Lord Krishna standing in tribhanga posture before his cow ‘Kamdhenu’ or whenever he is playing his flute. He is often called Tribhana Murari.

Correct Answer is Option (c)

The early Vedic Aryans indulged in Image Worship and Yajnas.

Correct Answer is Option (c)

‘Rita’ refers to regulation order by nature and was related to the conduct of the Vedic Gods and Humans, somewhere related to the moral and physical law. Statement 2 is correct. ‘Rita’ was later replaced by ‘Dharma’and was a more sophisticated form of principles of law. As per Chanakya, ‘Dharma’ was the promotion of one’s own security, happiness as well as social order.

Correct Answer is Option (c)

Atharvaveda is a book of magical formulas. It contains charms and spells to ward off evil and disease.

Correct Answer is Option (c)

Aryanis in fact a linguistic term indicating a speech group of Indo-European origin and is not an ethnic term.

Correct Answer is Option (a)

Sapta Sindhu plays a prominent part in the hymns of the Rigveda, and consequently in early Vedic religion.

Correct Answer is Option (c)

A complete Yuga starts with the Satya Yuga (Krita), via Treta Yuga and Dvapara Yuga into a Kali Yuga.

Correct Answer is Option (d)

Mimansa means investigation or enquiry. The primary enquiry is into the nature of dharma based on close theology of the Vedas. It has two divisions, Purva Mimansa and Uttar Mimansa. The Purva Mimansa explains the Dharma as a"virtue", "morality"or"duty".Dharma is the essentially ritualism, and there is a great significance of the Karma or action in attaining Dharma. Mimansa system of philosophy stresses on the doctrine of "karma". It says that liberation is possible by means of performing "Karma."

Correct Answer is Option (a)

OtherBrahmavadini are Vishwawara, Sikta, Nivavari, Ghosha, and Maitreyi.

Correct Answer is Option (d)

The name of India is a corruption of the word Sindhu. Sindhu is the name of the Indus River, mentioned in the Rigveda. Neighboring Arabs, Iranians uttered 's' as 'h' and called this land Hindu. Greeks pronounced this name as Indus.