Q80. Dilwara Temple is one of India’s renowned ______ temple complexes.
[SSC MTS – 2023]
A. Buddhist
B. Hindu
C. Jain
D. Sikh
Answer: C. Jain
Explanation: The Dilwara complex comprises five Jain temples dedicated to different Tirthankaras. It developed under wealthy patrons and rulers associated with medieval western India’s Solanki architectural tradition.
Q79. Which fifth major vow was particularly emphasized or explicitly added by Mahavira to the fourfold discipline associated with Parshvanatha?
[MPTET – 2023]
A. Ahimsa
B. Satya
C. Brahmacharya
D. Asteya
Answer: C. Brahmacharya
Explanation: Parshvanatha’s followers traditionally observed four vows. Mahavira’s fivefold discipline explicitly recognized Brahmacharya, or celibacy/chastity, along with ahimsa, truth, non-stealing and non-possession.
Q78. Who was the last Tirthankara of Jainism?
[SSC MTS – 2023]
A. Rishabhanatha
B. Parshvanatha
C. Neminatha
D. Vardhamana Mahavira
Answer: D. Vardhamana Mahavira
Explanation: Mahavira occupies the twenty-fourth and final position among Tirthankaras of the current Jain cosmic cycle and became the principal historical organizer of the surviving Jain community.
Q77. Which philosophical doctrine of Jainism stresses the many-sided nature of reality?
[UGC NET History – 2023]
A. Shunyavada
B. Anekāntavāda
C. Advaita
D. Ajativada
Answer: B. Anekāntavāda
Explanation: Anekāntavāda rejects one-sided descriptions of complex reality. Jain philosophers therefore maintain that apparently contradictory judgments can express valid aspects when understood from different standpoints.
Q76. At what age did Mahavira renounce his worldly life?
[SSC GD – 2023]
A. 25
B. 29
C. 30
D. 40
Answer: C. 30
Explanation: Traditional Jain biographies state that Mahavira renounced household life at thirty and spent approximately twelve years practising severe asceticism before attaining Kevala Jnana.
Q75. Which statement about Mahavira is NOT correct according to the traditional Jain account?
[CGPSC Prelims – 2023]
A. He belonged to a Kshatriya family
B. He was associated with Kundagrama
C. He attained Kaivalya
D. He never married
Answer: D. He never married
Explanation: Śvetāmbara tradition describes Mahavira as having married Yashoda before renunciation. Digambara tradition differs on this detail, illustrating variations between Jain sectarian biographical traditions.
Q74. Consider the statements:
- Mahavira attained Kaivalya near Jrimbhikagrama on the bank of the Rijupalika River.
- In Jain philosophy, Asrava denotes the influx of karmic matter into the soul.
[UPSC CAPF – 2023]
A. 1 only
B. 2 only
C. Both 1 and 2
D. Neither 1 nor 2
Answer: C. Both 1 and 2
Explanation: Jain tradition locates Mahavira’s omniscience near Jrimbhikagrama. Asrava technically means the inflow of karmic particles toward the jiva, while Samvara signifies stopping that inflow.
Q73. Mahavira was born near which ancient city?
[Uttarakhand Police Constable – 2022]
A. Vaishali
B. Taxila
C. Mathura
D. Ujjain
Answer: A. Vaishali
Explanation: Mahavira’s birthplace is traditionally identified as Kundagrama near Vaishali in Bihar. He was born into the Jnatrika Kshatriya clan within the Vajji political region.
Q72. Vardhamana Mahavira was the ______ Tirthankara of Jainism.
[SSC Stenographer – 2022]
A. First
B. Twelfth
C. Twenty-third
D. Twenty-fourth
Answer: D. Twenty-fourth
Explanation: Jain tradition recognizes twenty-four Tirthankaras in the present cycle. Rishabhanatha is first, Parshvanatha twenty-third and Vardhamana Mahavira the twenty-fourth and last.
Q71. Mahavir Jayanti is an important festival of which community?
[SSC CPO – 2022]
A. Jain
B. Buddhist
C. Sikh
D. Parsi
Answer: A. Jain
Explanation: Mahavir Jayanti celebrates the traditional birth anniversary of Vardhamana Mahavira and is one of the major religious observances shared across Jain communities.
