Select the strategies adopted by Brahmanas to enforce the norm of 'right occupation':
(A) They asserted through hymns in Rigveda that Varna was of divine origin.
(B) They advised kings to ensure that these norms were followed within their kingdoms.
(C) They attempted to persuade people that their status was determined by their merit.
(D) They never attempted to enforce anything, it was just that people chose their occupation.
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 4
The correct answer is Option (4) → (A) and (B)
The Dharmasutras and Dharmashastras laid down the ideal occupations of the four varnas, and the Brahmanas evolved two or three strategies to enforce these norms.
(A) They asserted through hymns in Rigveda that Varna was of divine origin. Correct. One strategy was to assert that the varna order was of divine origin; to justify it, Brahmanas cited the Purusha sukta, a hymn of the Rigveda in which the four social categories emanate from the body of the primeval man.
(B) They advised kings to ensure that these norms were followed within their kingdoms. Correct. The second strategy was to advise kings to ensure that the norms were followed within their kingdoms.
(C) They attempted to persuade people that their status was determined by their merit. Incorrect. They tried to persuade people that their status was determined by birth, not by merit.
(D) They never attempted to enforce anything, it was just that people chose their occupation. Incorrect. The Brahmanas did try to enforce the norms, through these strategies and through stories in the Mahabharata and other texts; people did not freely choose their occupations.
NCERT (2026-27): “3.1 The “right” occupation … The Brahmanas evolved two or three strategies for enforcing these norms. One, as we have just seen, was to assert that the varna order was of divine origin. Second, they advised kings to ensure that these norms were followed within their kingdoms. And third, they attempted to persuade people that their status was determined by birth. However, this was not always easy. So prescriptions were often reinforced by stories told in the Mahabharata and other texts. A divine order? … To justify their claims, Brahmanas often cited a verse from a hymn in the Rigveda known as the Purusha sukta, describing the sacrifice of Purusha, the primeval man. All the elements of the universe, including the four social categories, were supposed to have emanated from his body:…” |