Daily Static Quiz Prelims Practice 2027
Gavishti literally means "desire for cows" or "search for cattle," and the Rigveda uses it to describe battles fought primarily to seize cattle, reflecting the pastoral, cattle-centric economy of the Rigvedic Aryans, where the cow (Go) was the primary unit of wealth. Option (a) instead describes a Sukta, a hymn or verse of the Rigveda unrelated to cattle raiding. Option (c) confuses the term with Purohita, the chief priest and spiritual adviser of the tribal chief, who held no title called Gavishti, while option (d) wrongly links it to the Sabha and Samiti, the two key Rigvedic assemblies, neither of which was specifically termed Gavishti.
- List I: A. Rajan B. Jana C. Vis D. Purohita
- List II: 1. The common people / clan members forming the base of tribal society 2. Tribal king or chief 3. The tribe or people as a whole 4. Chief priest and spiritual adviser to the king
Rajan was the tribal chief or king, whose authority rested on military prowess and priestly sanction rather than hereditary right as in later periods, while Jana referred to the tribe or people as a whole — inter-tribal conflicts were called Jana-yuddha, and the Rigveda names many Janas including the Bharatas, Purus, and Yadus. Vis denoted the common people or ordinary clan members forming the productive base of society, positioned above the Dasa/Dasyu outsiders but below the warrior-noble class, and Purohita was the chief priest attached to the royal household who wielded enormous influence over the Rajan, with Vasishtha and Vishwamitra as famous examples.
- The term "Rita" in the Rigveda refers to the cosmic moral order or truth that governs the universe, overseen by Varuna.
- The Sabha and Samiti were two tribal assemblies; the Sabha was a smaller, select council of elders while the Samiti was a larger general tribal assembly.
- The Rigvedic economy was predominantly agricultural, with iron ploughs widely used for cultivation.
- The term "Sukta" refers to a well-said or well-composed hymn in the Rigveda.
Statement 1 is correct — Rita is the Rigvedic concept of cosmic and moral order, truth, righteousness, and the law of nature, upheld by Varuna, the sky god and guardian of moral law. Statement 2 is correct, as the Sabha was a more exclusive council of select elders and nobles while the Samiti was a larger, more democratic general tribal assembly. Statement 3 is incorrect because the Rigvedic economy was primarily pastoral rather than agricultural, and iron was entirely unknown to the Rigvedic Aryans, who used copper and bronze tools, with iron appearing only in the Later Vedic period. Statement 4 is correct, since Sukta (su, meaning good or well, plus ukta, meaning said or spoken) denotes a well-composed hymn, and the Rigveda comprises 1,028 such Suktas.
Shutudri is incorrectly matched — it is the ancient Rigvedic name for the Sutlej, not the Beas, which is instead known as Vipash (or Vipasha) in the Rigveda. Vitasta correctly corresponds to the modern Jhelum, and Parushni corresponds to the Ravi, on whose banks the famous Battle of Ten Kings (Dasarajna) was fought. Asikni, meaning "dark" or "black," correctly corresponds to the Chenab.
The Sarasvati is mentioned most frequently in the Rigveda and is glorified as "naditame," the greatest of rivers — a divine, mighty river flanked by civilisations, later described as disappearing (Antahsalila), possibly reflecting its drying up due to tectonic or climatic changes. The Sindhu (Indus) is the second most mentioned, with 20-plus references, and gives its name to the Rigvedic heartland Sapta Sindhu, while the Ganga is mentioned only about twice or thrice and the Parushni (Ravi) around five times, far fewer than the Sarasvati or Sindhu.
