The Sahajiya Cult, which can be traced back to 10th and 11th centuries, is usually associated with:
- A.early Bhakti traditions
- B.a kind of early Sufism
- C.early Upanishadic philosophy
- D.Buddhism
Correct answer
Explanation
The correct answer is D, Buddhism. The Sahajiya cult grew out of late Tantric Buddhism in eastern India, especially Bengal, and is often called Sahajayana, a branch of Vajrayana. 'Sahaja' means natural or spontaneous: its followers held that the highest truth is reached through simple, natural experience within the body rather than through ritual, learning or renunciation. Its teachers, the Siddhacharyas, expressed these ideas in the Charyapada, mystical songs in early Bengali-Assamese-Odia that are among the oldest specimens of those languages. A Vaishnava Sahajiya movement developed in Bengal much later, after Chaitanya, drawing on this older Buddhist tradition. Option A is wrong because the early Bhakti traditions were the Alvar and Nayanar movements of Tamil South India. Option B is wrong because Sufism reached India later and has its own orders such as the Chishti and Suhrawardi. Option C is wrong because Upanishadic philosophy belongs to the late Vedic age, many centuries earlier. Exam tip: Sahajiya and Charyapada — Tantric Buddhism of eastern India, around the 10th–11th centuries.
Practice Questions
View allWhich one of the following was not included in the terms and conditions of Subsidiary Alliance System of Lord Wellesley?
- A.The British would protect their ally.
- B.The ally was free to enter into agreements with other rulers or engage in warfare.
- C.In the territory of the ally, a British armed contingent would be stationed.
- D.The ally would have to provide resources for the maintenance of the British armed contingent.
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Under the Subsidiary Alliance, introduced by Lord Wellesley (Governor-General 1798–1805), the Indian ruler gave up exactly this freedom: he could not make war, sign treaties or even employ other Europeans without the Company's consent, and he had to keep a British Resident at his court.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following statements about the Sayyid brothers during the period of Later Mughals is not true?
- A.They brought Jahandar Shah to power.
- B.They wielded administrative power.
- C.They followed a tolerant religious policy.
- D.They reached an agreement with King Shahu.
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Jahandar Shah won the throne in 1712 with the help of Zulfiqar Khan, and the Sayyid brothers, Abdullah Khan and Husain Ali Khan, helped his nephew Farrukhsiyar defeat and kill him in 1713.
Read the full explanation →Who were Alvars ?
- A.Those who immersed in devotion to Vishnu
- B.Devotees of Shiva
- C.Those who worshipped abstract form of God
- D.Devotees of Shakti
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The Alvars were twelve Tamil poet-saints, active roughly between the 6th and 9th centuries, whose name means 'those who are immersed' in devotion to Vishnu.
Read the full explanation →Who was the author of the Gwalior Prashasti of Mihira Bhoja ?
- A.Nagabhata
- B.Vatsaraja
- C.Baladitya
- D.Kakkuka
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The Gwalior Prashasti is a Sanskrit eulogy of the Gurjara-Pratihara king Mihira Bhoja (Bhoja I, about 836–885 CE), and its composer was the poet Baladitya.
Read the full explanation →Consider the following pairs : Inventions — Inventors I. Flying shuttle loom — John Kay II. Water frame — James Hargreaves III. Spinning jenny — Richard Arkwright How many of the pairs given above are correctly matched?
- A.One
- B.Two
- C.All the three
- D.None
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Only the first pair is right: John Kay invented the flying shuttle.
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