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GS Paper: GS1-01.Indian Culture- Salient aspects of Art Forms, Literature and Architecture from ancient to modern times.

  • Booker Prize awarded to first Indian language book

    Author Geetanjali Shree’s translated Hindi novel, Tomb of Sand, became the first Indian language book to win the International Booker Prize.

    Note: Such topics hold very little relevance for CSE prelims. However, last year experience make such topics more uncertain. Still such topics hold relevance for other exams such as CAPF and state PSCs.

    What is the Booker Prize?

    • The Booker Prize is one of the best-known literary awards for fiction writing in English, including both novels and collections of short stories.
    • It was first awarded in 1969.
    • Every year a panel of judges decides the best work of the year, with the criteria being that it must be written in English and published in the UK and Ireland.
    • This panel of judges is picked from among eminent cultural historians, writers, professors, and novelists, and others from related fields.
    • For the Booker Prize, the winner receives £50,000.

    About the book

    • The 2018 novel titled ‘Ret Samadhi’ was translated by Daisy Rockwell and published as ‘Tomb of Sand’ in 2021.
    • The prize is one of two literary awards given out annually by the Booker Prize Foundation, a charity whose stated aim is to “promote the art and value of literature for the public benefit”.

    What about the International Booker Prize?

    • The International Booker Prize began in 2005.
    • A biennial prize initially, it was then awarded for a body of work available in English, including translations, with Alice Munro, Lydia Davis and Philip Roth becoming some of the early winners.
    • In 2015, the rules of the International prize changed to make it an annual affair.
    • The new rules stipulated that it will be awarded annually for a single book, written in another language and translated into English.
    • The £50,000 prize money is divided equally between the author and translator each year.

    Why is it called the ‘Booker’?

    • The Booker Prize, from 1969 to 2001, was named simply after the Booker Group Limited – a British food wholesale operator that was its initial sponsor.
    • The Man Group, an investment management firm based in the UK, began to sponsor the prize in 2002 and it thus came to be known as The Man Booker Prize.
    • The Man Group ended their sponsorship in 2019.
    • Crankstart, an American charitable foundation, has been the sponsor after that. The prize name has changed back to the ‘Booker’ since then.

    Who have been some prominent winners?

    • Prominent winners of the coveted prize include Margaret Atwood (‘The Testaments’), Yann Martel (‘Life of Pi’), and Julian Barnes (‘The Sense of an Ending’).
    • Many Indian-origin writers have won the Booker in the past, such as Arundhati Roy (‘The God of Small Things’), Salman Rushdie (‘Midnight’s Children’), Kiran Desai (‘The Inheritance of Loss’), and Aravind Adiga (‘The White Tiger’).
    • Shree is the first Indian to win an international prize.

     

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  • Qutub Minar not a Place of Worship: ASI

    The Qutub Minar complex is not a place of worship and its character cannot be changed now, the Archaeological Survey of India submitted in a Delhi Court while opposing a plea challenging the dismissal of a civil suit seeking “restoration” of temples on the premises.

    What is the case?

    • The original suit claimed that 27 temples were demolished to build the Quwwat-ul-Islam mosque at the Qutub Minar complex.
    • This pleas was dismissed last year under the provisions of Places of Worship (Special Provisions) Act, 1991.
    • The Additional District Judge (ADJ) has now reserved the order.
    • The petitioner said that the dismissal of the original suit based on the 1991 Act was wrong.
    • The Qutub Minar complex comes under the purview of the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains (AMASR) Act of 1958.

    Why in news now?

    • The ASI now submitted that the Qutub Minar complex was not a place of worship when it was first notified as a protected monument in 1914.
    • The ASI, explained that the character of a monument is decided on the date when it comes under protection.

    About Qutub Minar

    • The Qutub Minar is a minaret and “victory tower” that forms part of the Qutb complex, which lies at the site of Delhi’s oldest fortified city, Lal Kot, founded by the Tomar Rajputs.
    • It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site in the Mehrauli area of South Delhi.
    • It can be compared to the 62-metre all-brick Minaret of Jam in Afghanistan, of c. 1190, which was constructed a decade or so before the probable start of the Delhi tower.
    • The surfaces of both are elaborately decorated with inscriptions and geometric patterns.
    • The Qutb Minar has a shaft that is fluted with “superb stalactite bracketing under the balconies” at the top of each stage.

    Its construction

    • The Qutb Minar was built over the ruins of the Lal Kot, the citadel of Dhillika.
    • Qutub Minar was begun after the Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque, which was started around 1192 by Qutb-ud-din Aibak, first ruler of the Delhi Sultanate.
    • It is usually thought that the tower is named for Qutb-ud-din Aibak, who began it.
    • It is also possible that it is named after Khwaja Qutbuddin Bakhtiar Kaki a 13th-century sufi saint, because Shamsuddin Iltutmish was a devotee of his.
    • Quwwat-ul-Islam Mosque, to the north-east of the Minar was built by Qutub-ud-Din Aibak in A.D. 1198.
    • It consists of a rectangular courtyard enclosed by cloisters, erected with the carved columns and architectural members of 27 Jain and Hindu temples, which were demolished by Qutub-ud-Din.
    • This is recorded in his inscription on the main eastern entrance.

    Back2Basics:

    What is the Places of Worship Act?

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  • Who was Prithviraj Chauhan?

    There is controversy around a new film where some communities of Rajasthan are laying claim over the 12th century emperor Prithviraj Chauhan.

    Prithviraj Chauhan

    • Prithviraj Chauhan (1177–1192 CE) popularly known as a king from the Chauhan (Chahamana) dynasty who ruled the territory of Sapadalaksha, with his capital at Ajmer in present-day Rajasthan.
    • Ascending the throne as a minor in 1177 CE, Prithviraj inherited a kingdom which stretched from Thanesar in the north to Jahazpur (Mewar) in the south.

    His legend

    • He aimed to expand by military actions against neighbouring kingdoms, most notably defeating the Chandela’s.
    • Prithviraj unified several Rajput clans and defeated the Ghurid army led by Muhammad Ghori near Taraori in 1191 AD.
    • However, in 1192 CE, Ghori returned with an army of Turkish mounted archers and defeated the Rajput army on the same battlefield.
    • Prithviraj fled the battlefield, but was captured near Sirsa and executed.
    • His defeat at Tarain is seen as a landmark event in the Islamic conquest of India, and has been described in several semi-legendary accounts, most notably the Prithviraj Raso.

    Prithviraj in literary works

    • The image of Prithviraj as a fearless and skilled warrior that is now etched in the folk imagination can be traced back to his depiction in ‘Prithviraj Raso’.
    • This was a poem in Brajbhasha attributed to Chand Bardai, which is thought to have been composed in the 16th century.
    • James Mill’s ‘The History of British India’ (1817) categorized Indian history into the Hindu, Muhammadan and British periods.
    • In this formulation, Prithviraj Chauhan would be the last ruler of ‘Hindu’ India.

    Why is he being revived?

    • To a vocal section of the Hindu right, Prithviraj Chauhan appears as “the last Hindu emperor” of India who made a valiant attempt to stop the radical invaders.
    • In the popular imagination, he is the heroic figure who symbolises the exalted ideals of patriotism and national pride.
    • However the historical evidence demonstrates rather different ways in which Prithviraj has been seen over the ages.

     

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  • Buddhist heritage in Gujarat

    Prime Minister in Lumbini, on the occasion of Buddha Purnima, said that his birthplace Vadnagar in Gujarat’s Mehsana district had been a great centre for Buddhist learning centuries ago.

    Vadnagar’s ties with Buddhism

    • In 2014, the excavation work has brought up Buddhist relics and around 20,000 artefacts, some dating back to the 2nd century.
    • Among these are an elliptical structure and a circular stupa along with a square memorial stupa of 2×2 metres and 130 centimetres in height with a wall enclosure.
    • It is like a platform which has a chamber in the centre that resembles a pradakshina path.
    • Further, bowls said to be used by monks have been found during the excavations, which have a terracotta sealing with inscriptions of namassarvagyaya and a face-shaped pendant with tritatva symbol.
    • Sacred relics of the Buddha were even found in Devni Mori in Aravalli district of Gujarat.

    In travellers record

    • Vadnagar is mentioned often in the Puranas and even in the travelogue of the great Chinese traveler, Hiuen Tsang (7th century), as a rich and flourishing town.
    • He is believed to have visited the state in 641 AD.
    • It adds how some of the names attributed to Vadnagar in history are Chamatkarpur, Anandpur, Snehpur and Vimalpur.
    • It also had snippets about other Buddhist heritage sites in Gujarat, such as Junagadh, Kutch and Bharuch.

    Back2Basics: Places associated with Buddha

    These are three of the few holiest sites in Buddhism:

    1. Bodh Gaya in Bihar, the site of the enlightenment of Gautama Buddha under a tree and top site in the list of world heritage sites in India.
    2. Kesaria stupa is a Buddhist stupa in Kesariya, located at a distance of 110 kilometres (68 mi) from Patna, in the Champaran (east) district of Bihar, India. The first construction of the Stupa is dated to the 3rd century BCE. Kesariya Stupa has a circumference of almost 400 feet (120 m) and raises to a height of about 104 feet (32 m).
    3. Nalanda was a renowned Buddhist University in the ancient kingdom of Magadha (modern-day Bihar) in India.Buddhist texts describe it as a Mahavihara, a revered Buddhist monastery.
    4. Sarnath near Varanasi in Uttar Pradesh, the site of the first sermon (Dhammacakkappavattana Sutta), where Buddha taught about the Middle Way, the Four Noble Truths and Noble Eightfold Path.
    5. Kushinagar in Uttar Pradesh, the site of the Buddha’s parinirvana and home of many famous meditation & prayer offering sites in India.

     

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  • Devasahayam Pillai: first Indian layman to be declared a Saint by Vatican

    Pope Francis canonised Devasahayam Pillai as a Catholic Saint during an event in St Peter’s Basilica.

    Who was Devasahayam Pillai?

    • Devasahayam was born on April 23, 1712 in Nattalam village in Kanyakumari district, and went on to serve in the court of Marthanda Varma of Travancore.
    • After meeting a Dutch naval commander at the court, Devasahayam was baptised in 1745, and assumed the name ‘Lazarus’, meaning ‘God is my help’.

    His works

    • While preaching, he particularly insisted on the equality of all people, despite caste differences.
    • His conversion did not go well with the heads of his native religion.
    • False charges of treason and espionage were brought against him and he was divested of his post in the royal administration.
    • On January 14, 1752, Devasahayam was shot dead in the Aralvaimozhy forest.
    • Since then, he is widely considered a martyr, and his mortal remains were interred inside what is now Saint Francis Xavier’s Cathedral in Kottar, Nagercoil.

    Other canonized saints in India

    • Of the eleven, Gonsalo Garcia, born in India to Portuguese parents in Mumbai in 1557, is considered to have been the first India-born saint.
    • In 2008, Kerala-born Sister Alphonsa was declared as the first woman Catholic saint from India.
    • Mother Teresa had a fast track to sainthood when she was canonized in 2016.

     

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  • Iron in Tamil Nadu 4,200 years ago: A new dating and its significance

    Carbon dating of excavated finds in Tamil Nadu pushes evidence of iron being used in India back to 4,200 years ago, the Tamil Nadu government announced this week on the basis of an archaeological report.

    What is the news?

    • Before this, the earliest evidence of iron use was from 1900-2000 BCE for the country, and from 1500 BCE for Tamil Nadu.
    • The latest evidence dates the findings from Tamil Nadu to 2172 BCE! Much older.
    • The results of dating, used accelerator mass spectroscopy.

    Where were these objects found?

    • The excavations are from Mayiladumparai near Krishnagiri in Tamil Nadu, about 100 km south of Bengaluru.
    • Mayiladumparai is an important site with cultural material dating back between the Microlithic (30,000 BCE) and Early Historic (600 BCE) ages.
    • The site is situated in the midst of several archaeological sites such as Togarapalli, Gangavaram, Sandur, Vedarthattakkal, Guttur, Gidlur, Sappamutlu and Kappalavadi.

    Outcome: Varying span of Iron Age

    • The dates when humans entered the Iron Age vary from one region of the world to another.
    • In India, too, the date has been revised with successive findings over the decades.

    When the Iron Age is considered in India?

    • In 1979, use of iron was traced to 1300 BCE at Ahar in Rajasthan. This is what we have been reading in NCERTs.
    • Later, samples at Bukkasagara in Karnataka, indicating iron production, were dated back to 1530 BCE.
    • The date was subsequently pushed back to 1700-1800 BCE with excavations finding evidence of iron smelting at Raipura in the Mid-Ganga valley.
    • It was then to 1900-2000 BCE based on investigations in sites at Malhar near Varanasi and Brahmagiri in North Karnataka.
    • A series of dating results on finds from various parts in India have shown evidence of iron-ore technology before 1800 BCE.
    • Before the latest discovery, the earliest evidence of iron use for Tamil Nadu was from Thelunganur and Mangadu near Mettur, dating back to 1500 BCE.

    Historical significance

    • Iron is not known to have been used in the Indus Valley, from where the use of copper in India is said to have originated (1500 BCE).
    • But non-availability of copper for technological and mass exploitation forced other regions to remain in the Stone Age.
    • When iron technology was invented, it led to the production of agricultural tools and weapons, leading to production required for a civilisation ahead of economic and cultural progress.
    • While useful tools were made out of copper, these were brittle and not as strong as iron tools would be.
    • With the latest evidence tracing our Iron Age to 2000 BCE from 1500 BC, we can assume that our cultural seeds were laid in 2000 BCE.
    • And the benefit of socio-economic changes and massive production triggered by the iron technology gave its first fruit around 600 BCE — the Tamil Brahmi scripts.

    Culture and politics

    • The Tamil Brahmi scripts were once believed to have originated around 300 BCE, until a landmark finding in 2019 pushed the date back to 600 BCE.
    • This dating narrowed the gap between the Indus Valley civilisation and Tamilagam/South India’s Sangam Age.
    • This, and the latest findings, are politically significant.
    • The dating of the scripts, based on excavations from sites including Keeladi near Madurai, became controversial when the ASI did not go for advanced carbon dating tests.

     

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  • Places in news: Martand Sun Temple

    After Prayers held at the ruins of the eighth-century Martand Sun Temple in Jammu and Kashmir’s Anantnag is deemed to be a violation of the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) rules.

    About Martand Sun Temple

    • The Martand Sun Temple is a Hindu temple located near the city of Anantnag in the Kashmir Valley.
    • It dates back to the eighth century AD and was dedicated to Surya, the chief solar deity.
    • The temple was destroyed by Sikandar Shah Miri in a bid to undertake mass conversion and execution of Hindus in the valley.
    • According to Kalhana, the Temple was commissioned by Lalitaditya Muktapida in the eighth century AD.
    • The temple is built on top of a plateau from where one can view whole of the Kashmir Valley.
    • From the ruins the visible architecture seems to be blended with the Gandharan, Gupta and Chinese forms of architecture.

    Why in news now?

    • According to ASI, prayers are allowed at its protected sites only if they were “functioning places of worship” at the time it took charge of them.
    • No religious rituals can be conducted at non-living monuments where there has been no continuity of worship when it became an ASI-protected site.

    What are the living/non-living monument?

    • If some activity, like any kind of worship, has been going on for years in the structure, then it is taken over as a living monument.
    • But where no activity has taken place, say an abandoned building, then it is declared a dead monument.
    • The latter is difficult to restore because it is generally covered by a lot of overgrowths.
    • The best-known example of a living ASI monument is the Taj Mahal in Agra, where namaz is held every Friday.

     

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  • Rakhigarhi skeletons’ DNA samples sent for analysis

    DNA samples collected from two human skeletons unearthed at a necropolis of a Harappan-era city site in Rakhigarhi, Haryana have been sent for scientific examination.

    Why in news?

    • DNA analysis might tell about the ancestry and food habits of people who lived in the Rakhigarhi region thousands of years ago.

    About Rakhi Garhi

    • The ancient site of Rakhi-Khas and Rakhi-Shahpur are collectively known as Rakhigarhi, located on the right bank of the now dried up Palaeo-channel of Drishadvati.
    • It is located in the Ghaggar-Hakra river plain in the Hissar district of Haryana.
    • Seven mounds are located here.
    • The site has yielded various stages of Harappan culture and is by far one of the largest Harappan sites in India.
    • The site shows the sequential development of the Indus culture in the now dried up Saraswati basin.

    Major findings at Rakhi Garhi

    • Findings confirm both early and mature Harappan phases and include 4,600-year-old human skeletons, fortification and bricks.
    • Digging so far reveals a well-planned city with 1.92 m wide roads, a bit wider than in Kalibangan.
    • The pottery is similar to Kalibangan and Banawali.
    • Pits surrounded by walls have been found, which are thought to be for sacrificial or some religious ceremonies.
    • There are brick-lined drains to handle sewage from the houses.
    • Terracotta statues, weights, bronze artefacts, comb, copper fish hooks, needles and terracotta seals have also been found.
    • A bronze vessel has been found which is decorated with gold and silver.
    • A granary belonging to the mature Harappan phase has been found here.
    • Fire altars structures were revealed in Rakhigarhi.

     

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  • Who was Guru Tegh Bahadur?

    The government will celebrate the 400th birth anniversary of Guru Tegh Bahadur with a two-day event at the Red Fort.

     Guru Tegh Bahadur (1621–1675)

    • Guru Tegh Bahadur was the ninth of ten Gurus of the Sikh religion. He was born at Amritsar in 1621 and was the youngest son of Guru Hargobind.
    • His term as Guru ran from 1665 to 1675. One hundred and fifteen of his hymns are in Guru Granth Sahib.
    • There are several accounts explaining the motive behind the assassination of Guru Tegh Bahadur on Aurangzeb’s orders.
    • He stood up for the rights of Kashmiri Pandits who approached him against religious persecution by Aurangzeb.
    • He was publicly executed in 1675 on the orders of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb in Delhi for himself refusing Mughal rulers and defying them.
    • Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib and Gurdwara Rakab Ganj Sahib in Delhi mark the places of execution and cremation of his body.

    Impact of his martyrdom

    • The execution hardened the resolve of Sikhs against religious oppression and persecution.
    • His martyrdom helped all Sikh Panths consolidate to make the protection of human rights central to its Sikh identity.
    • Inspired by him, his nine-year-old son, Guru Gobind Singh Ji, eventually organized the Sikh group into a distinct, formal, symbol-patterned community that came to be known as Khalsa (Martial) identity.
    • In the words of Noel King of the University of California, “Guru Teg Bahadur’s martyrdom was the first-ever martyrdom for human rights in the world.
    • He is fondly remembered as ‘Hind di Chaadar’.

    Try this PYQ:

    Q.Consider the following Bhakti Saints:

    1. Dadu Dayal
    2. Guru Nanak
    3. Tyagaraja

    Who among the above was/were preaching when the Lodi dynasty fell and Babur took over?

    (a) 1 and 3

    (b) 2 only

    (c) 2 and 3

    (d) 1 and 2

     

     

    [wpdiscuz-feedback id=”hnvg6h5b2p” question=”Please leave a feedback on this” opened=”1″]Post your answers here.[/wpdiscuz-feedback]

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  • Festivals in news: Karaga Festival

    The centuries-old Karaga (temple fair) festival was recently held at the Dharmaraya Swamy Temple in Bengaluru.

    Karaga Festival

    • It is celebrated annually in the Chaitra month (March/April) according to the Hindu calendar.
    • The festival has found its roots in the epic Mahabharata.
    • It honours Draupadi as the ideal woman and Goddess Shakti.
    • The word ‘Karaga’ translates to an earthen pot, supporting a floral pyramid and an idol of Goddess.
    • The Karaga is carried on the head of the bearer without touching it.
    • The carrier wears a woman’s attire with bangles, mangal-sutra, and vermillion on his forehead.

    Cultural significance of Karaga

    • The Karaga procession makes a customary halt at Astana e-Hazrath Tawakkal Mastan Shah Saharwardi Dargah to pay obeisance to Tawakkal Mastan.
    • The Dargah, a symbol of syncretic Sufism, has been taken care by the Muzavvar family for several generations.
    • According to them, the history of the Dargah goes back to at least 300 years when Tawakkal Mastan, who came to Bengaluru with his horses looking for business opportunities, was adored as a saint.
    • Hyder Ali, who was the ruler then, was a patron of Mastak for his good deeds.

     

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