Page-5 of GS-I: Indian Literature

Upanishadas are often called Vedanta. Why?

The main motto of the Upanishads is “Knowledge Awards Salvation”. Upanishads are called Vedanta (the end of the Veda) firstly, because they denote the last phase of the Vedic period and secondly, because they reveal the final aim of the ..

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Examine the various kinds of Sutras as a part of Kalpa tradition of ancient Indian literature.

Kalpa means Ritual Canon. It contains the sacrificial practice and systematic sutras. There are three kinds of Sutras which form part of Kalpa: Śrautasūtras, which are based on the Shruti, and teach the performance of the great sacrifices, requiring three ..

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With reference to women, despite being one of the earliest and most authoritative law texts, there are several contradicting verses in manusmriti. Discuss the stand of Manu giving your arguments.

Contrary to the common belief that Manusmriti is anti-women, it holds women in high esteem. According to it, the land where women are honoured becomes the favourite abode of gods. There is one shloka which mentions “Na stree svaatantryam arhati”, ..

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Differentiate between the Purva and Agama texts of Jainism.

The canonical literature of Jainism is claimed to have started from Adinatha, the first tirthankara. It is said that these teachings were forgotten and revived by the Tirthankaras from time to time. The teachings of the Tirthankaras before Mahavir are ..

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Throw light on the contribution of Basaveshwara and Vachana Sahithya on Indian culture, literature and religion.

Basaveshwara was a part of the Bhakti movement and one of the main proponents of Veerashaivism. The pre-Basaveshwara society was embedded with idol worship, superstitious beliefs, evil spirits and believed in sacrifices of animals to be made to the deities. ..

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Abhinavgupta had created some great works of importance on almost all fields such as intellectual, moral, religious and spiritual. However, they are not finding recognition as they should have got? What do you think are the reasons and what can be done to address the problems? Discuss citing relevance of Abhinavagupta's teaching to contemporary society and world.

Abhinavagupta wrote Abhinavabharati, a commentary of Naṭyasastra of Bharata. He introduced a ninth rasa called Santam which denotes the peace or tranquillity. These total nine rasas make the Navarasa. His other works comprises of various currents of intellectual thinking such ..

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