QUESTION

Hard

Art & Culture

Prelims 2023

With reference to ancient Indian History, consider the following pairs: 

Literary work: Author 

  1. Devichandragupta: Bilhana 
  2. Hammira-Mahakavya: Nayachandra Suri 
  3. Milinda-panha: Nagarjuna 
  4. Nitivakyamrita: Somadeva Suri

How many of the above pairs are correctly matched?

Select an option to attempt

Explanation

  • Statement 1 is incorrect: Devichandraguptam is attributed to Vishakhadatta, a Sanskrit playwright. Bilhana was a poet who lived much later. 

  • Statement 2 is correct: Hammira-Mahakavya was written by Nayachandra Suri, a Jain scholar and poet.

  • Statement 3 is incorrect: Milinda-Panha is a dialogue between Buddhist philosopher Nagasena and Indo-Greek King Milinda, focusing on Buddhist concepts like non-self (anatta) and nirvana. Nagasena belonged to the Hinayana tradition, while Nagarjuna, often confused with him, was a Mahayana scholar. For clarity in UPSC, refer to the Milinda-Panha philosopher as Nagasena.

  • Statement 4 is correct: Nitivakyamrita was written by Somadeva Suri.

Thus, statements 2 and 4 are correct.

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