During the Upanayana (sacred-thread) ceremony of the Kshatriya class, recitation of which mantra was prescribed?
- (a)Jagati Mantra
- (b)Gayatri Mantra
- (c)Sarvesham Mantra
- (d)Trishtubh Mantra
Correct — D, Trishtubh Mantra. During the Upanayana (sacred-thread) ceremony, every dvija (twice-born) boy — Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya — was initiated with the same Savitri/Gayatri verse (addressed to the solar deity Savitr), but classical Dharmashastra texts (e.g. Manusmriti 2.243) prescribe that it be recited in a different Vedic metre (chanda) for each varna: Gayatri metre for Brahmins, Trishtubh metre for Kshatriyas, and Jagati metre for Vaishyas. For a Kshatriya initiate, the prescribed recitation was therefore in the Trishtubh metre.
- (a)Jagati Mantra — The metre prescribed for Vaishya initiates, not Kshatriyas — swapped from its correct varna.
- (b)Gayatri Mantra — The metre prescribed for Brahmin initiates. The underlying verse recited by all three varnas is popularly called 'the Gayatri mantra,' which makes this the most tempting wrong answer — but strictly, 'Gayatri' names the Brahmin-specific metre, not the Kshatriya one.
- (c)Sarvesham Mantra — Not part of the recognised Brahmin–Kshatriya–Vaishya metre scheme (Gayatri–Trishtubh–Jagati) prescribed for the Upanayana; no established varna-specific recitation by this name.
The Upanayana was the Vedic 'second birth' rite formally initiating a boy of the three dvija (twice-born) varnas — Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya — into Vedic study under a guru. All three received the same core Savitri/Gayatri verse (addressed to the solar deity Savitr), but tradition prescribed it be recited in a different Vedic metre for each varna.
The trap is treating 'the Gayatri mantra' as a single undifferentiated ritual detail — a question that names a specific varna (here, Kshatriya) is testing the metre-differentiation, not the base verse.
- Upanayana initiated dvija (twice-born) boys — Brahmin, Kshatriya, Vaishya — into formal Vedic study.
- The same Savitri/Gayatri verse was recited by all three varnas, but in a varna-specific metre (chanda).
- Manusmriti 2.243: Gayatri metre for Brahmins, Trishtubh metre for Kshatriyas, Jagati metre for Vaishyas.
- Shudras were traditionally excluded from the Upanayana rite in the classical varna framework.
- Picking 'Gayatri Mantra' by reflex because the base verse is popularly called that — the metre asked about here is varna-specific (Trishtubh for Kshatriyas).
- Confusing the verse recited (same for all three varnas) with the metre used to recite it (varna-specific).
MPPSC likes precise varna-linked ritual details (which metre/mantra for which varna) rather than the general fact that the Upanayana existed.
No directly related past UPSC PYQ was found — the store has no question on the Upanayana ceremony's varna-specific mantra or metre.
- practice — not a real PYQ
In the Vedic Upanayana ceremony, Brahmin initiates recited the Savitri/Gayatri verse in which metre (chanda)?
- (a)Trishtubh
- (b)Jagati
- (c)Gayatri
- (d)Anushtubh
Answer(c) Gayatri metre — Trishtubh (a) was prescribed for Kshatriyas and Jagati (b) for Vaishyas.
- practice — not a real PYQ
The Savitri verse recited during the Vedic Upanayana ceremony is traditionally addressed to which deity?
- (a)Indra
- (b)Savitr (the solar deity)
- (c)Varuna
- (d)Agni
Answer(b) Savitr — hence the verse's name, 'Savitri', popularly called the Gayatri mantra.