Which of the following statements are correct?
(A) Biography of a saint or a religious leader is called Hagiography
(B) Biography of a saint or a religious leader is called Topography
(C) Hagiographies inform us about the beliefs of the followers of a particular tradition
(D) Nobody recorded the histories of saints and religious leaders
(E) Written sources do not help us in knowing history
Choose the correct answer from the options given below:
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 2
The correct answer is Option (2) → (A) and (C) only
A. Biography of a saint or a religious leader is called Hagiography Correct. A hagiography is a biography of a saint or religious leader. It often praises the saint’s achievements and may not always be literally accurate.
B. Biography of a saint or a religious leader is called Topography Incorrect. Topography is the lie of the land of a region: the mix of fertile plains, dry tracts, hilly regions and forests that made up the varied topography of Mughal India. It describes land, not the life of a saint; that is a hagiography.
C. Hagiographies inform us about the beliefs of the followers of a particular tradition Correct. Even when they are not literally accurate, hagiographies are important because they tell us about the beliefs of the followers of that tradition.
D. Nobody recorded the histories of saints and religious leaders Incorrect. Their lives were recorded: the hagiographies of the Buddha were written down at least a century after his time, to preserve memories of the great teacher.
E. Written sources do not help us in knowing history Incorrect. The Buddha’s teachings have been reconstructed by editing, translating and analysing the Buddhist texts, and historians have rebuilt details of his life from hagiographies. Written sources are among the main sources of history.
NCERT (2025-26): “How do we know about the Buddha's teachings? … These have been reconstructed by carefully editing, translating and analysing the Buddhist texts mentioned earlier. Historians have also tried to reconstruct details of his life from hagiographies. Many of these were written down at least a century after the time of the Buddha, in an attempt to preserve memories of the great teacher.… 3.1 The spread of Jainism … Hagiography is a biography of a saint or religious leader. Hagiographies often praise the saint’s achievements, and may not always be literally accurate. They are important because they tell us about the beliefs of the followers of that particular tradition. 1. Peasants and Agricultural Production … But rural India was not characterised by settled peasant production alone. Several kinds of areas such as large tracts of dry land or hilly regions were not cultivable in the same way as the more fertile expanses of land. In addition, forest areas made up a substantial proportion of territory. We need to keep this varied topography in mind when discussing agrarian society.…” |