Art & Culture Test 2

Solution: a)

Mahayana, (Sanskrit: “Greater Vehicle”) movement that arose within Indian Buddhism around the beginning of the Common Era and became by the 9th century the dominant influence on the Buddhist cultures of Central and East Asia, which it remains today. It spread at one point also to Southeast Asia, including Myanmar (Burma) and Sri Lanka, but has not survived there. The movement is characterized by a grandiose cosmology, often complex ritualism, paradoxical metaphysics, and universal ethics.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Mahayana

Solution: d)

Satyameva Jayate is a mantra from the ancient Indian scripture Mundaka Upanishad. Following the independence of India, it was adopted as the national motto of India in 26 January 1950. It is inscribed in script at the base of the national emblem. The emblem and the words “Satyameva Jayate” are inscribed on one side of all Indian currency. The emblem is an adaptation of the Lion Capital of Ashoka which was erected around 250 BCE at Sarnath, near Varanasi in the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. It is inscribed on all currency notes and national documents.

Solution: c)

The fundamental tenet of Jain doctrine is that all phenomena are linked in a universal chain of cause and effect. Every event has a definite cause. By nature each soul is pure, possessing infinite knowledge, bliss, and power; however, these faculties are restricted throughout time by the soul’s contact with matter. This matter, which produces the chain of cause and effect, of birth and death, is karma, an atomic substance and not a process, as it is in Hinduism and Buddhism. To be free from the shackles of karma, a person must stop the influx of new karmas and eliminate the acquired ones.

https://www.britannica.com/topic/Jainism#ref59017

Solution: b)

Despite these vicissitudes, Buddhism did not abandon its basic principles. Instead, they were reinterpreted, rethought, and reformulated in a process that led to the creation of a great body of literature. This literature includes the Pali Tipitaka (“Three Baskets”)—the Sutta Pitaka (“Basket of Discourse”), which contains the Buddha’s sermons; the Vinaya Pitaka (“Basket of Discipline”), which contains the rule governing the monastic order; and the Abhidhamma Pitaka (“Basket of Special [Further] Doctrine”), which contains doctrinal systematizations and summaries.

Solution: c)

This literature includes the Pali Tipitaka (“Three Baskets”)—the Sutta Pitaka (“Basket of Discourse”), which contains the Buddha’s sermons; the Vinaya Pitaka (“Basket of Discipline”), which contains the rule governing the monastic order; and the Abhidhamma Pitaka (“Basket of Special [Further] Doctrine”), which contains doctrinal systematizations and summaries. These Pali texts have served as the basis for a long and very rich tradition of commentaries that were written and preserved by adherents of the Theravada community.

The Mahayana and Vajrayana traditions have accepted as Buddhavachana (“the word of the Buddha”) many other sutras and tantras, along with extensive treatises and commentaries based on these texts. Consequently, from the first sermon of the Buddha at Sarnath to the most recent derivations, there is an indisputable continuity—a development or metamorphosis around a central nucleus—by virtue of which Buddhism is differentiated from other religions.

Answer – a

Mimamsa philosophy is basically the analysis of interpretation, application and the use of the text of the Samhita and Brahmana portions of the Veda. According to Mimamsa philosophy Vedas are eternal and possess all knowledge, and religion means the fulfilment of duties prescribed by the Vedas. This philosophy encompasses the Nyaya-Vaisheshika systems and emphasizes the concept of valid knowledge. Its main text is known as the Sutras of Gaimini which have been written during the third century BC. The names associated with this philosophy are Sabar Swami and Kumarila Bhatta.

Answer – a

A unique architectural development in the Mughal time was the beautiful gardens developed around the tombs and other buildings. The Shalimar Gardens in Kashmir and Lahore were developed by Jahangir and Shah Jahan respectively.

Answer – b

• Mughal architecture began in the reign of Akbar. The crowning achievements of his reign was the building of his new capital city of Fatehpur, 40 km from Agra.
• The Arch of the BulandDarwaja is the most imposing gateway in the world.
• The tomb of Saint Salim Chisti isexquisite in its beauty. Jodha Bai Palace is a fine example of ancient Indian architecture.
• The Jama Masjid was built with the influence of the Persian style.
• The Dewan-i-Amm andthe Dewan-i-Khas are famous for their planning and decoration. The Ibadat Khana andPanch Mahal are another notable buildings.
• The Panch Mahal is a pyramidal structure infive storeys. It was built on the pattern of a Buddhist Vihara.

Answer – c

• In India there were many writers of the English literature. The Indians started writingwork in English after 1835, when English was made the medium of instruction.
• Michael Madhu Sudan Dutta, Taradutta, Sarojini Naidu and RavindranathTagore made important contribution in the field of English Poetry.
• Surendra NathBanerjee, Firoze Shah Mehta and Jawahar Lal Nehru showed interest in Englishprose
• Bharatendu Harishchandra was one of the earliest to produce dramas in Hindi whichwere basically translations of texts written in Sanskrit and other languages.

Answer – b

• Architectural edifices in the Indian sub-continent, as elsewhere in the world, were constructed by wealthy people. They were, in descending order, rulers and nobles and their families, merchants, merchant guilds, rural elite and devotees of a cult.
• By the twelfth century India was already familiar with monumental constructions in grandiose settings. Certain techniques and embellishments were prevalent and popular, such as trabeation, brackets, and multiple pillars to support a flat roof or a small shallow dome. While arches were shaped in wood and stone, these were unable to bear the weight of the top structure. Now, however, the archuate form of construction was introduced gradually in which arches could support the weight of the domes. Such arches needed to be constructed with voussoirs (series of interlocking blocks) and fitted with keystones. The domes, resting on pendentives and squinches enabled spanning of large spaces leaving the interiors free of pillars.
• In spite of the obvious Saracenic, Persian and Turkish influences, Indo-Islamic structures were heavily influenced by prevailing sensibilities of Indian architectural and decorative forms.
• The study of Indo-Islamic architecture is conventionally categorised into the Imperial Style (Delhi Sultanate), the Provincial Style (Mandu, Gujarat, Bengal, and Jaunpur), the Mughal Style (Delhi, Agra, and Lahore) and the Deccani Style (Bijapur, Golconda).

Answer – a

• The earliest tradition of Indian music may be traced to Sama Veda which contained theslokas that were put to music. Chanting of Vedic hymns with prescribed pitch and accentstill form a part of religious rituals.
• The earliest text dealing exclusively with performing artsis Bharata’s Natyashashtra (compiled between second century BC and second centuryAD) which has six chapters on music.
• Another major text is Matanga’s Brihaddesi compiledbetween eight and ninth century AD. In this work ragas were first named and discussed atgreat length.

Answer – d

• Kashmir’s Gulraj is usually a folklore and Pandyani of MadhyaPradesh is a narrative put to music
• Rajasthani folksongs such as Mand and Bhatiali of Bengal are popular all over India.
• Ragini is a popularform of folk songs of Haryana

Answer – a

• Gangadhara, in Gujarat, wrote Lilavati Karamdipika, Suddhantadipika , and Lilavati Vyakhya. These were famous treatises which gave rules for trigonometrical terms like sine, cosine tangent and cotangent. Faizi, at the behest of Akbar, translated Bhaskara’s Bijaganit. Akbar ordered to make Mathematics as a subject of study, among others in the education system
• Akbar had a special interest in producing good breeds of domestic animals like elephants and horses. Jahangir, in his work – Tuzuk-i-jahangiri – recorded his observations and experiments on breeding and hybridization.
• The Mughals knew the technique of production of gunpowder and its use in gunnery, another application of Chemistry. The Indian craftspersons learnt the technique in evolved suitable explosive composition. The work Sukraniti attributed to Sukracarya contains a description of how gunpowder can be prepared using saltpeter, sulphur and charcoal in different ratios for use in different types of guns

Answer – c

• The first two ‘varnas’ exploited the most numerous and productive Vaishya varna, whereas the three in unision exploited the Shudras. The three higher ‘varnas’ were also entitled to the sacred (upanayana) thread ceremony and were known as ‘dvijas’ (twice-born).
• Jajmani system developed during the early medieval period and continued till
  modern times in the rural society. In this system the service castes rendered services to the land-owning peasant castes as well as to the high and dominant castes and were entitled to traditionally fixed shares of the produce and in some cases to a small plot of land. Thus, the leather-workers, the barbers, the priests, the garland makers, the ploughmen, and various types of smiths worked for the high castes or dominant landowning groups and were paid in kind on certain occasions or in the form of a land allotment

Answer – a

• According to Abul Fazl, the author of the Ain-i-Akbari, there were as many as fourteen silsilahs in India during the sixteenth century. Each order had its own khanqah, which served as a shelter for the Sufi saints and for destitutes, and later developed as a centre of learning.
• The sufis were also influenced by the Christian and Buddhist monks regarding the establishment of their khanqahs and Khanqah the institutions (abode of Sufis) set up by the Sufis in northern India took Islam deeper into the countryside. Mazars (tombs) and Takias (resting places of Muslim saints) also became the centres for the propagation of Islamic ideas
• Ajmer, Nagaur and Ajodhan or Pak Pattan (now in Pakistan) developed as important centres of Sufism.
• They preached the unity of God and self-surrender unto Him in almost the same way as the votaries of the Nïrgun Bhakti movement did. Music attracts everybody, irrespective of language. Slowly such music attracted the Hindus who started visiting the dargahs in large number. The Hindu impact on Sufism also became visible in the form of siddhas and yogic postures.

Answer – c

• The stone statuaries found at Harappa andMohenjodaro are excellent examples of handling threedimensional volumes. In stone are two male figures—one is a torso in red sandstone and the other is abust of a bearded man in steatite—which areextensively discussed.
• In bronze we findhuman as well as animal figures, the best example of theformer being the statue of a girl popularly titled ‘DancingGirl’. Amongst animal figures in bronze the buffalo withits uplifted head, back and sweeping horns and the goatare of artistic merit.

Answer – c

• The Mauryan pillar capital found at Sarnath popularlyknown as the Lion Capital is the finest example of Mauryansculptural tradition. It is also our national emblem. It iscarved with considerable care—voluminous roaring lionfigures firmly standing on a circular abacus which is carvedwith the figures of a horse, a bull, a lion and an elephantin vigorous movement, executed with precision, showingconsiderable mastery in the sculptural techniques. Thispillar capital symbolises Dhammachakrapravartana (thefirst sermon by the Buddha)
• Monumental images of Yaksha, Yakhinis and animals,pillar columns with capital figures, rock-cut caves belongingto the third century BCE have been found in different partsof India. It shows the popularity of Yaksha worship andhow it became part of figure representation in Buddhistand Jaina religious monuments.

Answer – c

• Stupa-1 at Sanchihas upper as well as lower pradakshinapatha orcircumambulatory path. It has four beautifully decoratedtoranas depicting various events from the life of the Buddhaand the Jatakas.
• The traditional centre, Mathura, remained the main artproduction site whereas Sarnath and Kosambi also emergedas important centres of art production. Many Buddhaimages in Sarnath have plain transparent drapery coveringboth shoulders, and the halo around the head has verylittle ornamentation whereas the Mathura Buddha imagescontinue to depict folds of the drapery in the Buddha imagesand the halo around the head is profusely decorated.

Answer – d

• Chalukya king, Mangalesha,patronised the excavation of the Badami The inscription in Cave No.4mentions the date 578–579 CE, describes thebeauty of the cave and includes the dedicationof the image of Vishnu.Paintings in this cave also depict palacescenes
• When the Pandyas rose to power, they too patronised Tirumalaipuram caves and Jaina caves at Sittanvasalare some of the surviving examples. In Tirumalaipuram, contours of figures are firmlydrawn and painted in vermilion red on a lighterbackground. The body is rendered in yellow with subtlemodelling.
• Though Chola paintings are seen in Nartamalai, themost important are those in Brihadeswara temple. Thepaintings were executed on the walls of the narrow passagesurrounding the shrine. Two layers of paint were foundwhen they were discovered. The upper layer was paintedduring the Nayak period, in the sixteenth century.

Answer – d

• Deogarh temple was built in the early sixthcentury CE, about a hundred years or so after thesmall temples in Sanchi and Udaigiri.
• This temple is in the panchayatana style ofarchitecture where the main shrine is built on a rectangularplinth with four smaller subsidiary shrines at the fourcorners (making it a total number of five shrines, hencethe name, panchayatana). The tall and curvilinear shikharaalso corroborates this date.

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• There are three mainreliefs of Vishnu on the temple walls:Sheshashayana on the south, NaraNarayan on the east andGajendramoksha on the west.