Daily Static Quiz Prelims Practice 2027
Vijayanagara was founded in 1336 by Harihara I and Bukka Raya I on the Tungabhadra, after which Hampi grew into the imperial capital in the early 15th century under rulers like Devaraya II. The sacred centre crystallised around the Virupaksha Temple (a Shiva shrine that predated the city but was massively expanded), whose sanctum set the city's ritual orientation; the grand Royal Enclosure with the Hazara Rama Temple followed in the 15th–16th centuries under Krishna Deva Raya and his successors. Option (b) reverses the founding and capital stages, while options (c) and (d) place the temple or enclosure before the empire was even founded — chronologically impossible.
- Hampi was organised around a sacred axis with the Virupaksha Temple as the ritual centre, with concentric zones of bazaars, residential areas, and water systems radiating outward.
- The Royal Enclosure and palace complex were intentionally placed at the exact geographic centre of Hampi to maximise the ruler's visibility and control over all urban activities.
- The market areas (bazaars) of Hampi were strategically located along the main trade routes and near water sources, facilitating commerce while serving practical urban functions.
Statements 1 and 3 are correct. Hampi followed a ritual cosmological model with the Virupaksha Temple as the sacred axis (axis mundi), radiating outward in concentric zones of bazaars, residences and water systems — a distinctly Hindu planning principle unlike grid-iron Islamic layouts (Statement 1). Its bazaars, such as the Mahanavami and Kamavirupaksha markets, were sited along major thoroughfares and near tanks (pushkarinis), serving both commerce and water management (Statement 3). Statement 2 is incorrect — the Royal Enclosure lay to the south and east of the temple axis rather than at the exact geometric centre, reflecting a hierarchical sacred landscape in which the ruler deferred to the temple, not Renaissance-style palace centrality.
Option (d) is the incorrect match — Hampi's concentric mud-and-stone fortifications were substantial defensive engineering meant to protect the city from invasions and raids, not merely ceremonial boundaries (their limits were exposed only against the combined sultanate forces at Talikota in 1565). Option (a) is correct: the Virupaksha precinct was the ritual nucleus with sacred processional streets for festivals like Mahanavami. Option (b) is correct: the Royal Enclosure housed the private Hazara Rama Temple, palaces, audience halls and administrative buildings. Option (c) is correct: the bazaar zones were organised, guild-based commercial and artisanal streets.
Reason (R): The Vijayanagara rulers followed Hindu cosmological principles (Vastu Shastra and Shilpa Shastra traditions) in designing the city's spatial organisation and zoning patterns.
Both A and R are correct, and R correctly explains A. Hampi shows clear functional zoning — the sacred temple precinct, the royal administrative zone, the market bazaars and residential quarters were spatially distinct, serving both temple sanctity and practical urban management. This segregation was grounded in the Vastu Shastra and Shilpa Shastra traditions, which prescribed spatial hierarchies, cardinal orientation for temples (axis mundi) and the proper relationship between sacred and secular zones. Because the Vijayanagara rulers consciously applied these Shastra principles, the philosophical framework directly explains why the zoning occurred rather than it being mere practical necessity.
- Hampi's water management included multiple stone-built tanks (pushkarinis) and elaborate canal systems fed by the Tungabhadra River, supporting urban and agricultural needs.
- The famous Chakra Teertha tank and the Kamavirupaksha temple tank were integral to Hampi's sacred landscape and ritual life.
- The aqueduct systems of Hampi were copied directly from Islamic sultanate models, representing a synthesis of Indo-Islamic water technology.
Statements 1 and 2 are correct. Hampi had extensive hydraulic infrastructure — stepped stone tanks such as the Zenana and Krishna Temple tanks plus stone-lined canals drew Tungabhadra water for domestic, ritual and agricultural use (Statement 1) — and sacred tanks like the Chakra Teertha and the Kamavirupaksha temple tank were central to ritual bathing (tirthas) and pilgrimage (Statement 2). Statement 3 is incorrect — Hampi's pushkarini stone-tank technology was rooted in ancient and medieval Hindu Shilpa Shastra engineering, not directly copied from Islamic sultanate models; the claimed dependency is a fabricated trap.
