Meera, a research scholar in Chennai, is studying religious life in the subcontinent between the eighth and eighteenth centuries. She has gathered three kinds of material. The first is a collection of songs once sung by a poet-saint in a regional language, now printed from manuscripts kept for centuries in a monastery. The second is a long verse account of the same saint's life, composed in Tamil and copied by hand over many generations. The third is a set of temple sculptures carved during the same centuries. Her supervisor asks her to weigh what each kind of material can and cannot tell her.
Her supervisor tells Meera that, read together, her sources give insight into the religious scene of this period. Which pair of words best describes that scene?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 1
The correct answer is Option (1) → Dynamism and diversity
Option (1) Dynamism and diversity — Correct. The songs, life stories and sculptures of this period show a <strong>scenario characterised by dynamism and diversity</strong>: beliefs kept changing and took many forms.
Option (2) Stability and continuity — Incorrect. These traditions were <strong>fluid</strong>. Devotees elaborated, modified or even dropped ideas over time, so the scene kept changing.
Option (3) Orthodoxy and Vedic revival — Incorrect. The period saw new devotional songs in regional languages and many new forms of worship, which points to change and variety.
Option (4) Royal patronage and court control — Incorrect. Poet-saints spoke to ordinary people in their own languages. The sources show popular devotion spreading among common people.
NCERT (2026-27): “Bhakti- Sufi Traditions Changes in Religious Beliefs and Devotional Texts . eighth to eighteenth century) … “As we will see, these sources provide us with insights into a scenario characterised by dynamism and diversity. Let us look at some elements of these more closely.” |