Indian Culture MCQs

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Sri Narayana Guru preached the doctrine of ‘One caste, One religion, One God.’ Its worth note that one of his athiest disciples, Sahadaran Ayyapan, changed into ‘no religion, no caste and no God for mankind.

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The 13th century saint of Andhra, Acharya Nimbarka is known for propagating the Vaishnava Theology of Dvaitadvaita (duality in unity) also known as Bhedabheda (Difference in Non-difference). According to him, the Brahmans, the souls and the world are identical yet distinct. Even after merger, they remain distinct. He was the founder of Sanak Sampradaya of Vaishnavism. The works attributed to him are Vedanta Parijata Saurabha (a short story on Brahma Sutras) , Dashashloki, Shri Krishnastava raja and Madhvamukavardhana.

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Guru Nanak dev was a Nirguna Bhakti saint and social reformer, born at Rai Bhoi Ki Talvandi near Lahore in April 15, 1469 AD. He was the first Sikh Guru and the founder of Sikhism.The verses composed by him were collected in the Adi Granth, written in Gurmukhi script..

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Nabakalebara is a festival observed in the Shree Jagannath Temple at Puri. It marks a symbolic recreation of wooden forms of the four deities of Jagannath, Balabhadra, Subhadra and Sudarshana at Jagannath temple. The occasion occurs every 12th or 19th year of the previous Nabakalebara. The event was in news because Department of Economic Affairs says that coins minted in July 2015, have Lord Jagannath”s depiction incorrect, and calls for more designs.

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Huyen Langlon is an Indian martial art that originated in Manipur. The name comes from the Meitei language, where “huyen” means “war” and “langlon” means “knowledge” or “art”.

There are two main components to the sport:

• Thang-ta: Armed combat
• Sarit sarak: Unarmed fighting

The primary weapons used in Huyen Langlon are the thang (sword) and ta (spear). Other weapons include the shield and the axe. According to local legends, the art form originated from Tin Sidaba, the creator of the Meitei people. The British banned the art during the Anglo-Manipur War in 1891, but it was reintroduced by Maharaja Churachand in 1934.

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The doctrine of Advaita, or non-dualism, was advocated by Adi Shankaracharya. The doctrine states that there is no difference between the individual soul and Brahman, or the Supreme God. Shankara believed that the soul merges with Brahman and that liberation is achieved through self-realization.
Shankara was born in Kerala in the eighth century. He was a prominent Hindu philosopher who started a Hindu revivalist movement in the ninth century. However, his doctrines were too abstract for the general public to understand.
Advaita is a school of Hinduism. All Vedanta schools state that Brahman is both the efficient and material cause of all existence.

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Chapchar Kut is a traditional festival of Mizoram. It is celebrated in the month of March-April after completion of the Jhum operation i.e., jungle-clearing for agriculture. It is one of three annual festivals of the Mizos tribe celebrated to mark three different stages of the agricultural cycle. The festival is to be celebrated to thank the gods for saving the people from harm during the clearing of forest on hill slopes for Jhum cultivation at the beginning of a year. This festival is said to have involved in 1450-1700 A.D. in a village called Suaipui in Mizoram.

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The Haji Ali Dargah can only be reached during low tide as it is situated about 500 yards into the sea. The mosque is built over the tomb of Saint Haji Ali. According to legend, he died on a pilgrimage to Mecca and his casket reached Bombay. It contained a note that said it should be buried wherever it landed.

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The Lepakshi temple, also known as Veerbhadra temple is located in the tiny hamlet of Anantapur District of Andhra Pradesh. It is a paragon of excellent architecture and art. It is famous as it has largest Nandi.

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Dandiya are the featured dances of Navratri evenings in Gujarat. Dandiya is the traditional folk dance form of Gujarat & Rajasthan India, and is associated with scenes of Holi, and lila of Krishna and Radha at Vrindavan.