Indian Culture MCQs

Notes:
To pay a befitting tribute to the man of letters, Nobel Laureate, Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore, on his 150th birth anniversary, the Government of India has set up a ‘Tagore Centre for the Study of Culture and Civilization’ (TCSCC) at the Indian Institute of Advanced Study (IIAS), Shimla. The objectives of the Centre include: to encourage the study of Tagore’s work; support translations of Tagore’s work into other Indian languages; promote comparative study of his work with poets, artists and writers in other parts of India and the world; study the elements of his Humanist philosophy and his cosmopolitanism; and explore his concerns regarding the relationship between science and society.

Notes:
Bharatendu Harishchandra (1850 – 1885) lived only for 34 years but he was such a great writer that he is known as father of modern Hindi literature as well as Hindi theatre. His pen name was “Rasa”. The title “Bharatendu” was conferred on him at a public meeting by scholars of Kashi in 1880 for his role in the development of Hindi Literature. Government of India confers the Bharatendu Harishchandra Awards since 1983 to promote original writings in Hindi mass communication.

Notes:
Madai festival is a popular festival of Chhattisgarh. The festival reflects the rich culture and tradition of the state. The Madai Festival is celebrated by people belonging to the Gond Tribe.

Notes:
Siddhendra Yogi from Bhamakalapam dance drama developed the classical dance of Kuchpudi. The play Bhamakalpam deals with the Hindu God, Lord Krishna and his companions Satyabhama and Rukmini.

Notes:
The Devadasi system, which involves dedicating girls to a deity, predates the Vijayanagar era. This tradition, prevalent in South India, had Devadasis performing music and dance in temples. While their status varied over time, foreign travelers like Paes and Nuniz noted Devadasis’ respected position in Vijayanagar society.

Notes:
The Adi Granth was compiled by the fifth Sikh Guru, Guru Arjan. The name of his father was Guru Ram Das. He was arrested under the orders of the Mughal Emperor Jahangir. He was asked to change his religion to Islam. He denied and for this reason he was executed in 1606 CE. He was the first sikh guru ro be martyred in the Sikh faith.

Notes:
The new category of classical language was created in 2004 and Tamil was declared first classical language of India. Classical languages in India refer to those languages that have been given the status of classical languages by the government of India. This status is given to languages that have a long literary history and have made a significant contribution to the cultural heritage of India. The classical languages of India are Sanskrit, Tamil, Telugu, Kannada, and Malayalam. These languages have a rich history and have been instrumental in the development of many aspects of Indian culture, including literature, art, and music.

Notes:
Punj or Drum dance is a dance that belongs to Manipur. The Pung cholom is a Manipuri dance. It is the soul of Manipuri Sankirtana music and classical Manipuri dance.

Notes:
“Dree Festival” which is a crop harvest festival is observed in Arunachal Pradesh. The Apatanis, who inhabit a tranquil pine clad valley called Ziro at the core of Lower Subansiri District of Arunachal Pradesh, are famous for their unique practice of wet rice cultivation.

Notes:
The Gathas are 17 Avestan hymns believed to have been composed by Zarathushtra himself. They are most sacred of the texts of Zorastrianism. They form the core of the Zoroastrian liturgy. They are arranged in five different modes or metres.