Q. In the context of medieval India, the term ‘Paibos’ refers to which of the following?
Answer: A form of paying respect to the King.
Notes: The term Paibos literally means prostration and kissing the monarch’s feet. Balban insisted on 'Sijda' and ‘Paibos’ from his nobles in order to emphasise that they were not his equals. These two ceremonies were of Iranian origin and considered un-Islamic. However, not much objection was raised at a time when the Delhi Sultanate was only a Islamic state left standing in the face of the Mongol onslaught. The rational for starting such practices was that Balban wanted to make kingship a serious business in the eyes of people, ulama and nobles etc. One of the reasons behind frequent change of Sultans was that nobles did not take the office of Sultan seriously and any ambitious noble would dream of becoming a Sultan. Along with court ceremonies, Balban undertook many steps to give an exalted position to the office of Sultan.

This question is part of 40000+ General Studies MCQ Series Course on GKToday Android app. Question Number: 82 in General Studies Mock Test - 51 in above course in App.