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Q53·GS Paper 1 · Prelims 2017

Buddhist and Jain philosophical sects

HistoryAncient History - ReligionStatement-basedHardStatic

Question

With reference to the religious history of India, consider the following statements:

1Sautrantika and Sammitiya were the sects of Jainism.
2Sarvastivadin held that the constituents of phenomena were not wholly momentary, but existed forever in a latent form.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

  1. 1.

    Sautrantika and Sammitiya were the sects of Jainism.

  2. 2.

    Sarvastivadin held that the constituents of phenomena were not wholly momentary, but existed forever in a latent form.

Options

a

1 only

b

2 only

Answer
c

Both 1 and 2

d

Neither 1 nor 2

Explanation

Statement 1 is incorrect. Sautrantika and Sammitiya (Sammatiya) were Buddhist schools, not Jain sects. Sautrantika was a school of Mahayana Buddhism, and Sammitiya was another Buddhist sect. Jainism had different sects like Digambaras and Svetambaras. Statement 2 is correct. Sarvastivadin (or Sarvastivada) was a Buddhist school that held the doctrine that all dharmas (constituents/elements of phenomena) existed in all three times—past, present, and future—not just momentarily. This was a philosophical position distinct from the Theravada emphasis on momentariness. Therefore, only statement 2 is correct. > Sarvastivadin = Buddhist School; All Dharmas Exist Eternally (Not Momentarily).

Answer: (b).

Question details

Year

2017

Paper

GS Paper 1

Question

Q53

Subject

History

Sub-topic

Ancient History - Religion

Type

Statement-based

Difficulty

Hard

Nature

Static

Source hint

NCERT Ancient India

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