UPSC CSE Prelims
Bhakti & Sufi Movements Previous Year Questions (PYQs)
Showing solved Previous Year Questions for Chapter: Bhakti & Sufi Movements
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With reference to the cultural history of medieval India, consider the following statements:
- Siddhas (Sittars) of Tamil region were monotheistic and condemned idolatry.
- Lingayats of Kannada region questioned the theory of rebirth and rejected the caste hierarchy.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Detailed Explanation:
Answer: Option 3 — Both 1 and 2
✅ Statement 1 – Correct: The Siddhas (Sittars) of Tamil Nadu were part of a monotheistic devotional movement that emerged during medieval India. They believed in a formless supreme reality and strongly opposed idol worship, ritualism, and temple-centric practices. Their philosophy emphasized direct spiritual experience over external religious symbols.
✅ Statement 2 – Correct: The Lingayat movement, founded by Basavanna in 12th-century Karnataka, was a radical social-religious reform movement. Lingayats rejected the theory of rebirth and the associated karmic cycle that perpetuated caste hierarchy. They advocated social equality, opposed Brahmanical dominance, and rejected caste-based discrimination. They believed in liberation (aikya) immediately upon death rather than through cycles of rebirth.
Consider the following statements:
- ‘Bijak’ is a composition of the teachings of Saint Dadu Dayal.
- The Philosophy of PushtiMarg was propounded by Madhvacharya.
Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
Detailed Explanation:
❌ Statement 1 – Incorrect: 'Bijak' is a compilation of the teachings of Saint Kabir, the 15th-century mystic poet and philosopher, not Dadu Dayal. Dadu Dayal's teachings are compiled in 'Dadu Dayal ki Bani'.
❌ Statement 2 – Incorrect: The philosophy of Pushti Marg (Path of Grace) was propounded by Vallabhacharya (1479-1531), not Madhvacharya. Madhvacharya established the Dvaita (dualistic) philosophy, emphasizing duality between the soul and God.
Consider the following Bhakti Saints:
- Dadu Dayal
- Guru Nanak
- Tyagaraja
Who among the above was/were preaching when the Lodi dynasty fell and Babur took over?
Detailed Explanation:
✅ Statement 2 – Correct: Guru Nanak (1469-1539) was actively preaching when Babur defeated Ibrahim Lodi in the First Battle of Panipat (1526), marking the fall of the Lodi dynasty.
❌ Statement 1 – Incorrect: Dadu Dayal (1544-1603) was born 18 years after the fall of the Lodi dynasty.
❌ Statement 3 – Incorrect: Tyagaraja (1767-1847), a Carnatic music composer, lived more than two centuries later.
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With reference to the religious history of medieval India, the Sufi mystics were known to pursue which of the following practices?
- Meditation and control of breath
- Severe ascetic exercises in a lonely place
- Recitation of holy songs to arouse a state of ecstasy in their audience
Select the correct answer using the codes given below:
Detailed Explanation:
✅ Statement 1 – Correct: Sufi mystics practised meditation (muraqaba) and breath control (habs-i-dam) techniques to attain spiritual concentration and self-purification.
✅ Statement 2 – Correct: Many Sufis engaged in ascetic practices (khalwa) involving seclusion in lonely places (khanqahs), fasting, and self-denial to detach from worldly desires.
✅ Statement 3 – Correct: Sama (musical assemblies) involving recitation of devotional songs (qawwali) and poetry (ghazals) were central to Sufi practice to induce spiritual ecstasy (wajd) and divine connection.