In which Upanishad is the famous dialogue of Yagnavalkya and Gargi mentioned ?

Question

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Correct — A, Brihadaranyaka Upanishad. The exchange in which Gargi Vachaknavi twice cross-examines the sage Yajnavalkya — ending with her question about what everything above the sky and below the earth is 'woven, warp and woof' upon, and Yajnavalkya's answer of Akshara, the imperishable — occurs in the third chapter of the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad, set in the assembly of King Janaka of Videha. The same text also carries Yajnavalkya's dialogue with his wife Maitreyi.

Why the other options are wrong — (b) Belongs to the Krishna Yajurveda and is known for the five-sheath (panchakosha) doctrine and the convocation address 'Satyam vada, dharmam chara' — it contains no Gargi dialogue.  (c) Attached to the Rigveda (part of the Aitareya Aranyaka); famous for the mahavakya 'Prajnanam Brahma' and an account of creation — not for the Yajnavalkya-Gargi debate.  (d) Belongs to the Atharvaveda and is built around six questions put to the sage Pippalada by six disciples. It is a question-and-answer text, which makes it tempting — but the questioners are not Gargi and the respondent is not Yajnavalkya.

Concept: The Upanishads form the concluding, philosophical layer of Vedic literature (hence 'Vedanta'), and each is attached to a particular Veda. The Brihadaranyaka — literally 'the great forest book' — forms the closing portion of the Shatapatha Brahmana of the Shukla Yajurveda and is among the oldest and longest of the principal Upanishads. It is largely dialogue: Yajnavalkya with Gargi, Yajnavalkya with Maitreyi, and the brahmodya, the philosophical contest held at King Janaka's court.

State PCS 2025 Q20 — History PYQ with Answer

State PCS 2025 Q20 — History PYQ with Answer