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Q58 (IAS/2024) History & Culture › Culture, Literature, Religion & Philosophy › Vedic and Hindu religious traditions Official Key

Consider the following statements : 1. There are no parables in Upanishads. 2. Upanishads were composed earlier than the Puranas. Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?

Result
Your answer:  ·  Correct: B
Explanation

The correct answer is option B (Statement 2 only).

**Statement 1 is incorrect.** While the provided sources do not explicitly discuss parables in the Upanishads, this statement cannot be verified as correct from the given documents. The Upanishads are known to contain various literary forms including dialogues, stories, and teachings, and claiming there are "no parables" is too absolute to be accurate.

**Statement 2 is correct.** The Chhandogya Upanishad was composed around the sixth century BCE[1], while the Puranas were compiled by Brahmanas by about the middle of the first millennium CE[2]. This clearly indicates that the Upanishads preceded the Puranas by several centuries. Additionally, the Upanishads are classified as Late Vedic texts attached to the Vedas[3], placing them in an earlier historical period than the Puranas, which represent a later stage in Hindu religious literature.

Therefore, only statement 2 is correct, making option B the right answer.

Sources
  1. [1] THEMES IN INDIAN HISTORY PART I, History CLASS XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 4: Thinkers, Beliefs and Buildings > Verses from the Upanishads > p. 85
  2. [2] THEMES IN INDIAN HISTORY PART I, History CLASS XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 4: Thinkers, Beliefs and Buildings > 10.2 The growth of Puranic Hinduism > p. 105
  3. [3] History , class XI (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 2: Early India: The Chalcolithic, Megalithic, Iron Age and Vedic Cultures > Literature of the Vedic Age > p. 18
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Q. Consider the following statements : 1. There are no parables in Upanishads. 2. Upanishads were composed earlier than the Puranas. Whic…
At a glance
Origin: Mixed / unclear origin Fairness: Moderate fairness Books / CA: 5/10 · 0/10
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This is a classic 'Nature vs. Chronology' question. Statement 1 is an 'Extreme Absolute' trap (claiming 'no' examples exist in a vast corpus), while Statement 2 is a fundamental timeline fact found in every basic history textbook. The strategy is to trust the standard evolution of Indian literature: Vedas → Upanishads → Puranas.

How this question is built

This question can be broken into the following sub-statements. Tap a statement sentence to jump into its detailed analysis.

Statement 1
In Hindu scriptures, do the Upanishads contain parables or allegorical stories?
Origin: Weak / unclear Fairness: Borderline / guessy
Indirect textbook clues
History , class XI (Tamilnadu state board 2024 ed.) > Chapter 2: Early India: The Chalcolithic, Megalithic, Iron Age and Vedic Cultures > Literature of the Vedic Age > p. 18
Strength: 4/5
“The Rig Veda contains 10 books. Books 2 to 7 are the earliest and the Books 1, 8, 9 and 10 are assigned to a later period. Samhitas are ritualistic texts, and they explain the social and religious importance of rituals. Each samhita has added texts called brahmanas, which have commentaries on the hymns and rituals. Each brahmana has an aranyaka (forest text) and an upanishad. The aranyakas contain mystical ritual instructions to be undertaken in secret by the sages who live in the forests. Upanishads deal with philosophical enquiries. The Yajur, Sama and Atharva Vedas are dated to a slightly later period.”
Why relevant

States that each brahmana has an aranyaka and an upanishad and that Upanishads deal with philosophical enquiries, implying a genre focus distinct from ritual manuals.

How to extend

A student could use this rule to expect primarily philosophical material in Upanishads and then check whether philosophical texts commonly use parables to teach abstract ideas.

THEMES IN INDIAN HISTORY PART I, History CLASS XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 4: Thinkers, Beliefs and Buildings > Verses from the Upanishads > p. 85
Strength: 4/5
“Here are two verses from the Chhandogya Upanishad, a text composed in Sanskrit c. sixth century BCE:”
Why relevant

Specifically cites verses from the Chhandogya Upanishad, indicating the Upanishads contain extended passages (verses) that can carry illustrative material.

How to extend

Look up the Chhandogya Upanishad text (or examples of its verses) to see if any verses take the form of stories or illustrative episodes.

THEMES IN INDIAN HISTORY PART I, History CLASS XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 3: Kinship, Caste and Class > Metronymics in the Upanishads > p. 59
Strength: 4/5
“The Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, one of the earliest Upanishads (see also Chapter 4), contains a list of successive generations of teachers and students, many of whom were designated by metronymics.”
Why relevant

Notes that the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad contains a list of successive generations of teachers and students — an example of narrative or biographical content within an Upanishad.

How to extend

Investigate the Brihadaranyaka for other narrative segments (teacher-student dialogues or illustrative episodes) that function like parables.

THEMES IN INDIAN HISTORY PART I, History CLASS XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 4: Thinkers, Beliefs and Buildings > 10.2 The growth of Puranic Hinduism > p. 105
Strength: 3/5
“have to be familiar with the stories behind them – many of which are contained in the Puranas, compiled by Brahmanas (by about the middle of the first millennium CE). They contained much that had been composed and been in circulation for centuries, including stories about gods and goddesses. Generally, they were written in simple Sanskrit verse, and were meant to be read aloud to everybody, including women and Shudras, who did not have access to Vedic learning. Much of what is contained in the Puranas evolved through interaction amongst people – priests, merchants, and ordinary men and women who travelled from place to place sharing ideas and beliefs.”
Why relevant

Describes Puranas as collections that 'contain stories about gods and goddesses' and were written to be read aloud, establishing that other Hindu genres explicitly preserve narrative material.

How to extend

Use the clear contrast with Puranic storytelling to test whether Upanishads—by comparison—contain fewer or different kinds of stories (e.g., allegories vs. popular myths).

THEMES IN INDIAN HISTORY PART I, History CLASS XII (NCERT 2025 ed.) > Chapter 4: Thinkers, Beliefs and Buildings > 2.2 New questions > p. 84
Strength: 3/5
“Many ideas found in the Upanishads (c. sixth century BCE onwards) show that people were curious about the meaning of life, the possibility of life after death,”
Why relevant

Says Upanishads show people curious about meanings like life and afterlife, suggesting the texts address abstract ideas that can be taught via allegory or parable.

How to extend

Given their philosophical aims, a student can examine whether philosophical instruction in other traditions uses parables and so whether Upanishads might likewise employ them.

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