In which one among the following texts does the term kshetra-patni ('mistress of the field') originate ?
- (a) Rigveda
- (b) Atharvaveda ✓ UPSC's answer
- (c) Ashtadhyayi
- (d) Arthashastra
Why the answer is (b)
• The Atharvaveda contains agricultural charms and hymns, and it is here that the term kshetra-patni, 'mistress of the field', appears as a personification of the cultivated field.
• The phrase reflects the later-Vedic shift to settled agriculture, when fields (kshetra) became valued, named and even deified property.
• The Rigveda speaks of kshetra in a few hymns but does not use this expression; its economy was still largely pastoral.
• Panini's Ashtadhyayi is a grammar and Kautilya's Arthashastra a treatise on statecraft; neither is the source of the term.
• Hence option (b), Atharvaveda.
Why the other options are wrong
- (a) Rigveda
- The Rigveda does not use the term; its focus was pastoral.
- (c) Ashtadhyayi
- The Ashtadhyayi is a grammar, not the source of this agricultural term.
- (d) Arthashastra
- The Arthashastra is a later political treatise, not a Vedic text.
Asked in the GS Paper I of the UPSC Civil Services Preliminary Examination 2026, held on 24 May 2026. Question and answer key: Union Public Service Commission. Explanation: UPSC Answer Check.