Daily Current Affairs (MCQ) | Date 09.06.22

Q1. Consider the following statements

1. Mesopotamians called Indus Valley Meluha
2. Indus Valley Civilization were the first people in Indian history to go for international trade

Which of the above statements is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2

Answer (c)

Explanation:

Trade and Commerce in Indus Valley Civilization

1. They were the first people in Indian history to go for international trade. They traded with Mesopotamia, Sumeria, Greece, Egypt and Mongolia. They also imported several items from different places-

   

   

2. Indus Valley seals were found in Mesopotamia at Tell-Asmar which is evidence for the established trade Mesopotamians called Indus Valley as Meluha.
3. Internal trade: They also traded with South India and imported pearls and The Khetri mines in Rajasthan provided copper.

Q2. Consider the following statements

1. Brāhmaṇas, Āraṇyakas, and Upaniṣads are prose commentaries on the Vedas
2. These are part of the Sruti Literature

Which of the above statements is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2

Answer (c)

Explanation:

Vedic Literature: It can be divided into two parts- Shruti and Smirti Brahmanas, Aranyakas and Upanishads are attached to Vedas, as such they are part of sruti literature.

Smritis consists of 6 vedangas, 4 upavedas, 6 darshanas, shastras (niti smrutis) agams(shakta, shaiva and Vaishnava)18 puranas and ethihaasas(ramayan mahabhaarat and bhagavat)

The earliest literature of the subcontinent is of a sacred character and dates from about 1400 BC in the form of the Rigveda. This work stands at the beginning of the literature of the Veda, or Hindu sacred writings (Non-Sacred verses are very rare in the Rigveda). The language of the Rigveda, which is a compilation of hymns to the high gods of the Aryan religion, is complex and archaic. It was simplified and codified in the centuries from 1000 to 500 BC, which saw the development of prose commentaries called the Brāhmaṇas, Āraṇyakas, and Upaniṣads.

Q3. Which of the following is correctly matched?

Select the answer from codes given below

1. 1 and 3 only
2. 3 only
3. 1 and 2 only
4. 1, 2 and 3

Answer (b)

Explanation:

Upanishads numbering 108 are also known as Vedanta (last chapter of Vedas). They (Brahmanas, Aranyakas and Upanishads) are parts of every Veda. They deal with Metaphysics.

Q4. Consider the following statements

1. Till Gupta empire, Pali remained the official language of Buddhists
2. Milandopanha contains a discussion between Nagasena and Kanishka

Which of the above statements is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2

Answer (d)

Explanation:

Statement 1 is incorrect as with the reign of Kanishka itself during 4th council there was a transition to Sanskrit. The Gupta Empire came much later.

Up to the first century A.D., Pali remained the official language of Buddhists. Later, Sanskrit became prominent due to the influence of Mahayana Buddhism during the 4th Buddhist Council.

The Milinda Pañha ( Questions of Milinda) is a Buddhist text which dates from sometime between 100 BCE and 200 CE. It purports to record a dialogue between the Buddhist sage Nāgasena, and the Indo-Greek king Menander I (Pali: Milinda) of Bactria, who reigned in the 2nd century BCE.

Q5. Which of the following is correctly matched?

Select the answer from codes given below

1. 1 and 2 only
2. 2 and 3 only
3. 1 and 3 only
4. 1, 2 and 3

Answer (b)

Explanation:

The earliest surviving kāvya literature was written by a Buddhist, aśvaghoṣa, said to have been a contemporary of the Kuṣāṇa (Kushān) king Kaniṣka (1st-century AD). Aśvaghoṣa's work also marks a shift away from the Pāli of the Theravāda branch of Buddhism back to the more and more accepted Sanskrit of the Mahāyāna branch. Two works are extant, both in the style of mahākāvya: the Buddhacarita (“Life of the Buddha”) and the Saundarānanda (“Of Sundarī and Nanda”).

Bhāravi (6th century) probably hailed from the south during the reign of the Pallava dynasty. He took up a Mahābhārata theme in his Kirātārjunīya (“arjuna and the Mountain Man”), recounting the Pāṇḍava prince arjuna’s encounter and ensuing combat with a wild mountaineer who in the end proves to be the god Śiva.

Pair 1 is not correctly matched

The Tolkāppiyam was written by Tolkapiyyar. It is a Tamil book on grammar.

Q6. In Sangam literature, Tolkappiyam and the anthologies classify poems by theme into akam (“interior”) and Puram (“exterior”). Consider the following statements with regard to the Sangam age Literature

1. Akam poems are highly structured love poems
2. Puram are heroic poems on war, death, personal virtues, the ferocity and glory of kings, and the poverty of poets

Which of the above statements is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2

Answer (c)

Explanation:

In the Tolkāppiyam and the anthologies, poems are classified by theme into akam (“interior”) and puṟam (“exterior”), the former highly structured love poems, the latter heroic poems on war, death, personal virtues, the ferocity and glory of kings, and the poverty of poets.