Indian Culture MCQs

Notes:
Lal Ded, better known as Lalla Yogeshwari, ranks as a great mystic poetess of the 14th century. She was an ardent practitioner of Kashmir Shaivism that is also known as Trika Shastra founded by Vasu Gupta.

Notes:
Rajgir, the ancient capital of the Magadhan empire in Bihar is held sacred by both Buddhists and Jains for its association with the Buddha and Mahavir. Department of Tourism, Bihar holds a colourful festival of dance and music, Rajgir Mahotsav or Dance Festival every year in Rajgir.

Notes:
The lamentation of the Roman writer Pliny in the 1st century A.D refers to heavy drain of Gold from Roman into India in payment of her imports from India. He writes that the drain of Gold is in return for unproductive luxuries. The Roman gold and silver were steadily drained into South India in exchange not only for spices, but also muslin, silk and other costly luxuries.

Notes:
The Saraswati Samman is awarded for outstanding literary works in any Indian language included in the 8th Schedule of the Indian Constitution. This schedule recognizes 22 languages, including Hindi, Bengali, Tamil, and others, reflecting India’s linguistic diversity. Established in 1991 by the K. K. Birla Foundation, the award aims to promote and honor literary excellence across various Indian languages.

Notes:
Kumbha (Kumbha means pot) Mela is a sacred Hindu pilgrimage that takes place at the following four locations of India: 

1. Prayag (near the city of Allahabad, in the state of Uttar Pradesh) at the confluence of three rivers Ganga (Ganges), Yamuna and Saraswati 
2. Haridwar (in the state of Uttarakhand) where the river Ganga enters the plains from Himalayas 
3. Ujjain (in Madhya Pradesh), on the banks of Ksipra river, and 
4. Nasik (in Maharashtra) on the banks of Godavari river. 

The pilgrimage occurs four times every twelve years, once at each of the four locations. Each twelve-year cycle includes the Maha (great) Kumbh Mela at Prayag, attended by millions of people, making it the largest pilgrimage gathering around the world.

Notes:
A fire temple in Zoroastrianism is the place of worship for Zoroastrians, often called dar-e mehr (Persian) or agiyari (Gujarati). In the Zoroastrian religion, fire together with clean water (see aban), are agents of ritual purity.

Notes:
Durga Vahini is the women’s wing of the Vishva Hindu Parishad, a right-wing Hindu nationalist organisation in India. The wing was founded in 1991 by Sadhvi Rithambara as a part of a larger movement to mobilize Hindu women for the protection and promotion of Hindu culture. The group trains women in self-defense and other tactical skills as part of its ideology to build a Hindu nation.

Notes:
Tera Tali is a famous folk dance of Rajasthan. It is Performed by the ‘Kamar’ tribe. The women folk sit on the ground while performing the Tera Tali.

Notes:
Gwalior Gharana is one of the oldest Khyal Gharanas of Hindustani classical music. The rise of the Gwalior Gharana started with the reign of the great Mughal emperor Akbar.The favorite singers of this patron of the arts, such as Miyan Tansen, first amongst the vocalists at the court, came from the town of Gwalior.

Notes:
The Kathasaritsagar ( or Ocean of the Streams of Stories) is a famous 11th-century collection of Indian legends, fairy tales and folk tales as retold in Sanskrit by Somadeva, a Shaiva Brahmin.