APSC CCE Mains PYQ Solved | APSC CCE 2023 Model Answer

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APSC Mains GS Paper 1: 2023: Elements of dissent and protest were inherent in the preaching of the various Bhakti saints in medieval India. Discuss with examples. (10 marks, 150 Words)

Model Answer:

Eminent historian Romila Thapar observes that the medieval Bhakti movement was not merely a spiritual awakening, but a powerful socio-cultural mechanism of dissent against established feudal, patriarchal, and Brahmanical orthodoxies.

1. Protest against Social Hierarchy and the Caste System

• Rejection of the Varna System: Saints fundamentally rejected birth-based superiority and the practice of untouchability.
• Examples of Dissent:
  • Guru Ravidas protested against social exclusion by conceptualizing ‘Begumpura’—a stateless, casteless city without sorrow.
  • Basavanna’s Lingayat movement in 12th-century Karnataka actively defied the caste system by encouraging inter-caste dining and marriages.

2. Dissent against Religious Orthodoxy and Ritualism

• Anti-Institutional Religion: The movement protested against the hegemony of the priestly class, expensive sacrifices, and empty ritualism, advocating for a direct, personal connection with the divine.
• Examples of Dissent:
  • Kabir Das utilized his sharp Dohas to fiercely mock the hypocrisy and fundamentalism of both Hindu and Islamic orthodoxies (e.g., criticizing both idol worship and the loud call to prayer).
  • Guru Nanak initiated the Langar (community kitchen) to systematically dismantle religious and caste barriers in dining.

3. Subversion of Patriarchal Norms (Gendered Protest)

• Breaking Domestic Confinement: Female Bhakti saints used spiritual devotion as a legitimate tool to protest oppressive patriarchal structures, forced marriages, and royal restrictions.
• Examples of Dissent:
  • Mirabai rejected her Rajput royal status and marital boundaries to wander as an ascetic.
  • Akka Mahadevi in the South protested extreme societal objectification of women by shedding her clothes and conventional modesty.

4. Linguistic Rebellion: Democratization of Knowledge

• Protesting the Sanskrit Monopoly: By intentionally abandoning elite languages (Sanskrit/Persian) and adopting the vernacular, saints protested the intellectual monopoly of the elite classes.
• Examples of Dissent: Tulsidas (Awadhi), Namdev (Marathi), and Chaitanya Mahaprabhu (Bengali) decentralized religious knowledge, making it accessible to the subaltern masses.

5. The Assam Dimension: Srimanta Sankardeva’s Egalitarian Dissent

• Protest against Tantric Esotericism & Sacrifices: In the Brahmaputra Valley, the Ekasarana Naam Dharma spearheaded by Srimanta Sankardeva was a strong protest against violent animal sacrifices and exploitative esoteric practices.
• Democratic Institutions: He established Satras (monasteries) and Namghars (community prayer halls), creating a revolutionary, caste-free platform where marginalized tribes (Morans, Kacharis) and even Muslims (like his disciple Chand Sai) were embraced as equals.

The Bhakti movement’s inherent dissent laid the spiritual and cultural foundation for modern India’s Constitutional values of equality and fraternity (Articles 14 and 15). Assimilating this historical ethos of egalitarianism is imperative to achieve SDG 10 (Reduced Inequalities) and realize the vision of Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas for a cohesive Viksit Bharat 2047.

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