Read the passage and answer the question:
One of the most influential teachers of the time was the Buddha. Over centuries, his message spread across the subcontinent and beyond-through Central Asia to China, Korea and Japan, and through Srilanka, across to Myanmar, Thailand and Indonesia. Siddhartha, as the Buddha was named at birth, was the son of a chief of the Sakya clan. He came to be known as the Buddha or the Enlightened one. He taught ‘dhamma’ or ‘the path of righteous living’.
Choose the statements which are true in the context of Buddhism.
(A) Buddha attained enlightenment at Sarnath.
(B) Mahaprajapati Gotami was first woman ordered as a ‘Bhikkuni’.
(C) ‘Hagiography’ is a biography of a ruler of a kingdom.
(D) Relics of Buddha are kept in mounds known as ‘Stupa’.
(E) ‘Sangha’ is an organisation of monks who too became teachers of ‘Dhamma’.
Choose the correct answer from the options given below :
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → (B), (D), (E) Only
(A) Buddha attained enlightenment at Sarnath. Incorrect. The Buddha attained enlightenment at Bodh Gaya. Sarnath is where he gave his first sermon.
(B) Mahaprajapati Gotami was first woman ordered as a ‘Bhikkuni’. Correct. The Buddha’s foster mother, Mahapajapati Gotami, was the first woman to be ordained as a bhikkhuni. Women were admitted into the sangha through the mediation of Ananda.
(C) ‘Hagiography’ is a biography of a ruler of a kingdom. Incorrect. A hagiography is a biography of a saint or religious leader, not of a ruler. It often praises the saint’s achievements and tells us about the beliefs of the followers of that tradition.
(D) Relics of Buddha are kept in mounds known as ‘Stupa’. Correct. Places where relics of the Buddha, such as his bodily remains or objects used by him, were buried were mounds known as stupas.
(E) ‘Sangha’ is an organisation of monks who too became teachers of ‘Dhamma’. Correct. The Buddha founded a sangha, an organisation of monks who too became teachers of dhamma. They led a simple life, with only the essential requisites for survival.
Note: It seems that there is a mistake in the original NTA paper, which prints ‘ordered as a Bhikkuni’ in statement (B) when it should read ‘ordained as a bhikkhuni’.
NCERT (2026-27): “6. Followers of the Buddha … Soon there grew a body of disciples of the Buddha and he founded a sangha, an organisation of monks who too became teachers of dhamma. These monks lived simply, possessing only the essential requisites for survival, such as a bowl to receive food once a day from the laity. As they lived on alms, they were known as bhikkhus. Initially, only men were allowed into the sangha, but later women also came to be admitted. According to Buddhist texts, this was made possible through the mediation of Ananda, one of the Buddha’s dearest disciples, who persuaded him to allow women into the sangha. The Buddha’s foster mother, Mahapajapati Gotami was the first woman to be ordained as a bhikkhuni. Many women who entered the sangha became teachers of dhamma and went on to become theris, or respected women who had attained liberation.… 7.1 Why were stupas built? … There were other places too that were regarded as sacred. This was because relics of the Buddha such as his bodily remains or objects used by him were buried there. These were mounds known as stupas.… 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.” |