Which statements are incorrect among the following statements? 

(A) Sanskrit was a barrier for Al-Biruni to understand the Indian society in a well manner.
(B) Al-Biruni attempted to suggest that social divisions were unique in India.
(C) Ibn Battuta described Delhi as a dull city with less population.
(D) Francois Bernier described Indian society as consisting of undifferentiated masses of impoverished people.
(E) Abdur Razzaq described Calicut (present-day Kozhikode) a familiar nation.

Choose the correct answer from the options given below:

(B), (C), (E) Only

The correct answer is Option (2) → (B), (C), (E) Only

GIVEN STATEMENTS:

(A) Sanskrit was a barrier for Al-Biruni to understand the Indian society in a well manner. (CORRECT)
(B) Al-Biruni attempted to suggest that social divisions were unique in India. (INCORRECT)
(C) Ibn Battuta described Delhi as a dull city with less population. (INCORRECT)
(D) Francois Bernier described Indian society as consisting of undifferentiated masses of impoverished people. (CORRECT)
(E) Abdur Razzaq described Calicut (present-day Kozhikode) a familiar nation. (INCORRECT)

Explanation:

The travellers often compared what they saw in the subcontinent with practices with which they were familiar. Each traveller adopted distinct strategies to understand what they observed. Al-Biruni, for instance, was aware of the problems inherent in the task he had set himself. He discussed several “barriers” that he felt obstructed understanding. The first amongst these was language. According to him, Sanskrit was so different from Arabic and Persian that ideas and concepts could NOT be easily translated from one language into another.

Al-Biruni tried to explain the caste system by looking for parallels in other societies. He noted that in ancient Persia, four social categories were recognised: those of knights and princes; monks, fire-priests and lawyers; physicians, astronomers and other scientists; and finally, peasants and artisans. In other words, he attempted to suggest that social divisions were not unique to India. At the same time he pointed out that within Islam all men were considered equal, differing only in their observance of piety. In spite of his acceptance of the Brahmanical description of the caste system, Al-Biruni disapproved of the notion of pollution.

Ibn Battuta found cities in the subcontinent full of exciting opportunities for those who had the necessary drive, resources and skills. Ibn Battuta described Delhi as a vast city, with a great population, the largest in India. Daulatabad (in Maharashtra) was no less, and easily rivalled Delhi in size.

Francois Bernier described Indian society as consisting of undifferentiated masses of impoverished people, subjugated by a small minority of a very rich and powerful ruling class. Between the poorest of the poor and the richest of the rich, there was no social group or class worth the name. Bernier confidently asserted: “There is no middle state in India.”

The travelogue of Abdur Razzaq written in the 1440s is an interesting mixture of emotions and perceptions. On the one hand, he did not appreciate what he saw in the port of Calicut (present-day Kozhikode) in Kerala, which was populated by “a people the likes of whom I had never imagined”, describing them as “a strange nation”.