Some historians suggest that the Alvars and Nayanars initiated a movement of protest against the caste system and the dominance of Brahmanas or at least attempted to reform the system. The importance of the traditions of the Alvars and Nayanars was sometimes indicated by the claim that their compositions were as important as the Vedas. You (Vishnu) manifestly like those "servants" who express their love for your feet, though they may be born outcastes, more than the Chaturvedins who are strangers and without allegiance to your service.
The lines left out of the passage name the anthology in which the compositions of the 12 Alvars were compiled by the tenth century. Which anthology was it?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Nalayira Divyaprabandham
Option (1) Tevaram — Incorrect. The Tevaram is the collection of poems by the Nayanars Appar, Sambandar and Sundarar, devotees of Shiva. It was compiled in the same century, which is why it is easy to mix up.
Option (2) Bijak — Incorrect. The Bijak is a compilation of verses linked with Kabir in north India, centuries later. It has nothing to do with the Tamil Alvars.
Option (3) Nalayira Divyaprabandham — Correct. By the tenth century the songs of the 12 Alvars, devotees of Vishnu, were brought together in the Nalayira Divyaprabandham, the "Four Thousand Sacred Compositions". It was often called the Tamil Veda.
Option (4) Adi Granth — Incorrect. The Adi Granth holds the compositions of Baba Guru Nanak and his successors, gathered in Punjab.
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