With which religion is Kalika Purana associated?
- (a)Vaishnavism
- (b)Shaktism
- (c)Buddhism
- (d)Jainism
The commission's key credits D, Jainism — so option (d) is what MPPSC treated as correct for scoring. On the scholarly record, however, the Kalika Purana is not a Jain work: it is a Shakta Upapurana, a text of goddess-worship composed around the 10th-11th century CE and associated with the Kamarupa (Assam) region, devoted to the Goddess in her forms (Kali, Kamakhya, Sati/Parvati). By its content it belongs to Shaktism — option (b). Record the credited answer as the commission's, but carry the accurate association: Kalika Purana ↔ Shaktism.
- (a)Vaishnavism — Vaishnavism centres on Vishnu and his avatars; the Kalika Purana is a Goddess-centred text, not a Vaishnava one.
- (b)Shaktism — On the scholarly record this is actually the correct tradition — the Kalika Purana is a Shakta Upapurana devoted to the Goddess — even though the commission's key did not credit it here.
- (c)Buddhism — The Kalika Purana is a Puranic Hindu text, not part of the Buddhist canon.
The Puranas are a large body of Hindu religious literature. Beyond the eighteen Mahapuranas there are many Upapuranas (secondary Puranas), each usually leaning to a sectarian tradition — Vaishnava (Vishnu), Shaiva (Shiva) or Shakta (the Goddess). The Kalika Purana is a Shakta Upapurana, best known for describing the worship of the goddess Kamakhya in Assam.
This is a known problem item. The Kalika Purana is a Shakta text, so 'Shaktism' is the historically correct association, yet the commission's key marked 'Jainism'. For the exam's scoring, (d) was credited; for your knowledge, remember the Shakta identity of the text — and keep the separate Jain Purana tradition (Adi Purana, Mahapurana) in a different box.
- The Kalika Purana is a Shakta Upapurana — a text of the Goddess-worship tradition.
- It is dated to around the 10th-11th century CE and associated with the Kamarupa (Assam) region.
- It describes the worship of the goddess Kamakhya and rituals at her shrine.
- MPPSC's key credited 'Jainism' for this item, though scholars classify the text under Shaktism.
- Trusting a single answer key over the well-documented Shakta identity of the Kalika Purana
- Confusing Hindu Puranas with the separate Jain Purana tradition
Exams ask 'which tradition/religion is text X associated with' — map each Purana to Vaishnava/Shaiva/Shakta, and keep the Jain Puranas (Adi Purana, Mahapurana) as a distinct set.
With reference to Indian history, consider the following texts: 1. Nettipakarana 2. Parishishtaparvan 3. Avadanashataka 4. Trishashtilakshana Mahapurana Which of the above are Jaina texts?
- (a) 1, 2 and 3
- (b) 2 and 4 only
- (c) 1, 3 and 4
- (d) 2, 3 and 4
Answer(b) 2 and 4 only
Same skill — assigning an ancient text/Purana to its religious tradition (here, telling Jaina texts apart from Buddhist ones).
- practice — not a real PYQ
The Kalika Purana centres on the worship of which deity?
- (a)Vishnu
- (b)The Goddess (Shakti / Kali / Kamakhya)
- (c)Surya
- (d)Ganesha
Answer(b) The Goddess (Shakti / Kali / Kamakhya) — it is a Shakta Upapurana.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Which of the following is a Jain Purana?
- (a)Kalika Purana
- (b)Markandeya Purana
- (c)Adi Purana (Mahapurana)
- (d)Bhagavata Purana
Answer(c) Adi Purana / Mahapurana — a Jain text (Jinasena); the others are Hindu Puranas.