With reference to ancient India, consider the following statements : 1. The concept of Stupa is Buddhist in origin. 2. Stupa was generally a repository of relics. 3. Stupa was a votive and commemorative structure in Buddhist tradition. How many of the statements given above are correct?
- (a) Only one
- (b) Only two ✓ UPSC's answer
- (c) All three
- (d) None
Why the answer is (b)
• Statement 1 is wrong: burial mounds over the remains of chieftains and holy men existed in Vedic and pre-Buddhist India; Buddhism adopted and elaborated the stupa rather than inventing it.
• Statement 2 is correct: stupas typically enshrined relics of the Buddha or of revered monks in a casket within the dome (e.g. the relic caskets at Sanchi and Piprahwa).
• Statement 3 is correct: stupas were votive (built to earn merit) and commemorative (marking events and places of the Buddha's life), circumambulated by devotees.
• Hence two statements, option (b).
Why the other options are wrong
- (a) Only one
- Both statements 2 and 3 are correct.
- (c) All three
- Statement 1 is wrong: stupas predate Buddhism.
- (d) None
- Statements 2 and 3 are correct.
Asked in the GS Paper I of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2023, held on 28 May 2023. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.