While travelling to India, he faced the barrier of language as he belonged to Khwarizm. Still he cited Indian texts, the Vedas, Bhagvad Gita, Manusmriti, etc., to provide an understanding of Indian society. Who was he?
Answer & explanation
Correct answer: option 3
The correct answer is Option (3) → Al-Biruni
Al-Biruni, born in 973 in Khwarizm, counted language as the first of the barriers to understanding India, yet he often cited passages from the Vedas, the Bhagavad Gita, the Manusmriti and other works of Brahmanas to provide an understanding of Indian society.
NCERT (2026-27): “1.1 From Khwarizm to the Punjab … Al-Biruni was born in 973, in Khwarizm in present-day Uzbekistan. Khwarizm was an important centre of learning, and Al-Biruni received the best education available at the time.… 4.1 Overcoming barriers to understanding … 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.… 4.1 Overcoming barriers to understanding … What is interesting is that even though he was aware of these problems, Al-Biruni depended almost exclusively on the works of Brahmanas, often citing passages from the Vedas, the Puranas, the Bhagavad Gita, the works of Patanjali, the Manusmriti, etc., to provide an understanding of Indian society.…” |