How many Alvars and Nayanars are there according to tradition?
- (a)12 and 63
- (b)12 and 53
- (c)23 and 63
- (d)23 and 53
Correct — A, 12 and 63. South Indian bhakti tradition fixes the number of Alvars (Vaishnavite Tamil saint-poets, including Andal, their only woman) at 12, and the number of Nayanars (Shaivite Tamil saint-poets, canonised chiefly through the later Periya Puranam) at 63; both groups composed devotional Tamil hymns roughly between the 6th and 9th centuries CE.
- (b)12 and 53 — Undercounts the Nayanars — the traditional figure is 63, not 53.
- (c)23 and 63 — Overcounts the Alvars — tradition fixes their number at 12, not 23.
- (d)23 and 53 — Wrong on both counts — neither figure matches the traditional 12 Alvars or 63 Nayanars.
The Alvars (Vaishnava) and Nayanars (Shaiva) were Tamil bhakti saint-poets of roughly the 6th–9th centuries CE whose devotional hymns — collected as the Naalayira Divya Prabandham for the Alvars, and the Tevaram/Periya Puranam corpus for the Nayanars — shaped South Indian temple worship and are considered forerunners of the broader pan-Indian bhakti movement.
MPPSC/UPSC test the fixed traditional counts (12 Alvars, 63 Nayanars) as a direct memory fact, often alongside a related detail such as the identity of the lone female Alvar (Andal) — the trap is swapping which number belongs to which group.
- 12 Alvars — Vaishnavite bhakti saints; Andal was the only woman among them
- 63 Nayanars — Shaivite bhakti saints, celebrated in the Periya Puranam
- Both groups composed in Tamil and flourished roughly between the 6th and 9th centuries CE
- Their hymns fed directly into the later pan-Indian bhakti movement
Both figures are fixed by tradition — 12 Alvars, 63 Nayanars — and are frequently tested together.
- Swapping the counts — assigning 63 to the Alvars and 12 to the Nayanars
- Assuming the bhakti movement began in North India rather than with the Tamil Alvars/Nayanars
MPPSC/UPSC ask the fixed traditional counts directly, or test a related fact such as the identity of the lone female Alvar (Andal) or the names of their hymn collections.
No directly related past PYQ was found.
- practice — not a real PYQ
Who was the only female saint-poet among the twelve Alvars of the Tamil Vaishnavite bhakti tradition?
- (a)Meera Bai
- (b)Andal
- (c)Akka Mahadevi
- (d)Lal Ded
Answer(b) Andal — the sole woman among the 12 Alvars, known for the Tiruppavai.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The hymns of the Nayanar saints, devoted to Lord Shiva, are compiled chiefly in which of the following?
- (a)Naalayira Divya Prabandham
- (b)Tevaram
- (c)Ramcharitmanas
- (d)Gitagovinda
Answer(b) Tevaram — the Shaivite hymn collection associated with the Nayanars, alongside the hagiographic Periya Puranam.