1996 General Studies, all questions
UPSC Prelims 1996 · General Studies
Question 57: History and Culture
The sufi saint who maintained that devotional music was one way of coming close to God was
aMuin-ud-din Chishti
bBaba Farid
cSaiyid Muhammad Gesudaraz
dShah Alam Bukhari
AnswerThe answer is (a).
The Chishti Sufi tradition held that sama, devotional music, helps the seeker come close to God, and Muin-ud-din Chishti, who brought the order to India and settled at Ajmer, is the saint the question points to. Later Chishti saints such as Baba Farid and Nizamuddin Auliya also upheld sama, and qawwali grew out of it. Remember: Chishti order - sama, Ajmer.
Why each option is right or wrong
- (a) Right: Muin-ud-din Chishti, founder of the Chishti order in India, upheld devotional music.
- (b) Baba Farid was a Chishti saint of Punjab, but the question points to the order's founder in India.
- (c) Gesudaraz was a Chishti saint of the Deccan, not the one named here.
- (d) Shah Alam Bukhari is not the saint the question refers to.
Explanation: written by UPSC Grade, not by UPSC.
Source: UPSC, Civil Services (Preliminary) Examination 1996, General Studies. UPSC's own paper isn't online; the words are from a published compilation. The paper on upsc.gov.in.