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HINDUISM 9487/02Paper 2 Development of Hinduism For examination from 2021MARK SCHEME

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Gen

eric

Mar

king

Prin

cipl

es

Thes

e ge

nera

l mar

king

prin

cipl

es m

ust b

e ap

plie

d by

all

exam

iner

s w

hen

mar

king

can

dida

te a

nsw

ers.

The

y sh

ould

be

appl

ied

alon

gsid

e th

e sp

ecifi

c co

nten

t of t

he m

ark

sche

me

or g

ener

ic le

vel d

escr

ipto

rs fo

r a q

uest

ion.

Eac

h qu

estio

n pa

per a

nd m

ark

sche

me

will

als

o co

mpl

y w

ith th

ese

mar

king

pr

inci

ples

.

GE

NE

RIC

MA

RK

ING

PR

INC

IPLE

1:

Mar

ks m

ust b

e aw

arde

d in

line

with

:

•th

e sp

ecifi

c co

nten

t of t

he m

ark

sche

me

or th

e ge

neric

leve

l des

crip

tors

for t

he q

uest

ion

•th

e sp

ecifi

c sk

ills

defin

ed in

the

mar

k sc

hem

e or

in th

e ge

neric

leve

l des

crip

tors

for t

he q

uest

ion

•th

e st

anda

rd o

f res

pons

e re

quire

d by

a c

andi

date

as

exem

plifi

ed b

y th

e st

anda

rdis

atio

n sc

ripts

.

GE

NE

RIC

MA

RK

ING

PR

INC

IPLE

2:

Mar

ks a

war

ded

are

alw

ays

who

le m

arks

(not

hal

f mar

ks, o

r oth

er fr

actio

ns).

GE

NE

RIC

MA

RK

ING

PR

INC

IPLE

3:

Mar

ks m

ust b

e aw

arde

d po

sitiv

ely:

•m

arks

are

aw

arde

d fo

r cor

rect

/val

id a

nsw

ers,

as

defin

ed in

the

mar

k sc

hem

e. H

owev

er, c

redi

t is

give

n fo

r val

id a

nsw

ers

whi

ch g

o be

yond

the

scop

e of

the

sylla

bus

and

mar

k sc

hem

e, re

ferr

ing

to y

our T

eam

Lea

der a

s ap

prop

riate

•m

arks

are

aw

arde

d w

hen

cand

idat

es c

lear

ly d

emon

stra

te w

hat t

hey

know

and

can

do

•m

arks

are

not

ded

ucte

d fo

r err

ors

•m

arks

are

not

ded

ucte

d fo

r om

issi

ons

•an

swer

s sh

ould

onl

y be

judg

ed o

n th

e qu

ality

of s

pelli

ng, p

unct

uatio

n an

d gr

amm

ar w

hen

thes

e fe

atur

es a

re s

peci

fical

ly a

sses

sed

by th

e qu

estio

n as

indi

cate

d by

the

mar

k sc

hem

e. T

he m

eani

ng, h

owev

er, s

houl

d be

una

mbi

guou

s.

GE

NE

RIC

MA

RK

ING

PR

INC

IPLE

4:

Rul

es m

ust b

e ap

plie

d co

nsis

tent

ly e

.g. i

n si

tuat

ions

whe

re c

andi

date

s ha

ve n

ot fo

llow

ed in

stru

ctio

ns o

r in

the

appl

icat

ion

of g

ener

ic le

vel

desc

ripto

rs.

GE

NE

RIC

MA

RK

ING

PR

INC

IPLE

5:

Mar

ks s

houl

d be

aw

arde

d us

ing

the

full

rang

e of

mar

ks d

efin

ed in

the

mar

k sc

hem

e fo

r the

que

stio

n (h

owev

er; t

he u

se o

f the

full

mar

k ra

nge

may

be

lim

ited

acco

rdin

g to

the

qual

ity o

f the

can

dida

te re

spon

ses

seen

).



GE

NE

RIC

MA

RK

ING

PR

INC

IPLE

6:

Mar

ks a

war

ded

are

base

d so

lely

on

the

requ

irem

ents

as

defin

ed in

the

mar

k sc

hem

e. M

arks

sho

uld

not b

e aw

arde

d w

ith g

rade

thre

shol

ds o

r gra

de

desc

ripto

rs in

min

d.

Gen

eric

Lev

els

of re

spon

se d

escr

iptio

ns

Thes

e le

vel d

escr

ipto

rs a

ddre

ss A

sses

smen

t Obj

ectiv

es (A

Os)

1 a

nd 2

, and

sho

uld

be u

sed

in c

onju

nctio

n w

ith th

e in

dica

tive

cont

ent f

or e

ach

ques

tion

in th

e m

ark

sche

me.

Ass

essm

ent O

bjec

tives

AO

1: K

now

ledg

e an

d un

ders

tand

ing

Dem

onst

rate

kno

wle

dge

and

unde

rsta

ndin

g of

teac

hing

s, b

elie

fs a

nd p

ract

ices

, inc

ludi

ng re

leva

nce

for i

ndiv

idua

l Hin

dus

and

com

mun

ities

.

AO

2: A

naly

sis

and

eval

uatio

n

Ana

lyse

, eva

luat

e an

d di

scus

s ev

iden

ce, p

oint

s of

vie

w a

nd is

sues

in H

indu

ism

.

Gen

eric

mar

king

prin

cipl

es

(a)

Exa

min

ers

shou

ld u

se th

e pe

rform

ance

sum

mar

y st

atem

ents

at t

he to

p of

the

desc

ripto

rs to

hel

p to

iden

tify

a le

vel w

hich

mat

ches

the

cand

idat

e’s

resp

onse

. How

ever

, the

fina

l dec

isio

n on

the

band

and

the

mar

k w

ithin

the

band

sho

uld

be m

ade

on th

e ba

sis

of a

ll th

e de

scrip

tors

in th

e le

vel

and

not p

rimar

ily u

sing

the

perfo

rman

ce s

umm

ary

stat

emen

t.

(b)

Exa

min

ers

shou

ld s

tart

at th

e lo

wes

t lev

el, i

f the

ans

wer

mee

ts a

ll th

e cr

iteria

they

sho

uld

then

mov

e to

the

next

leve

l and

so

on. T

he E

xam

iner

sh

ould

repe

at th

is p

roce

ss u

ntil

ther

e is

a m

atch

bet

wee

n th

e ov

eral

l ans

wer

and

the

leve

l des

crip

tor.

Exa

min

ers

shou

ld u

se a

bes

t-fit

appr

oach

w

hen

deci

ding

upo

n th

e le

vel,

it is

pos

sibl

e fo

r a d

iffer

ent l

evel

to b

e ch

osen

for e

ach

AO

.

(c)

If th

e E

xam

iner

iden

tifie

s al

l asp

ects

of t

he le

vel d

escr

ipto

r with

in th

e an

swer

then

the

high

est m

ark

for t

he le

vel s

houl

d be

giv

en. E

xam

iner

s sh

ould

als

o m

ake

refe

renc

e to

the

indi

cativ

e co

nten

t whe

n de

cidi

ng o

n th

e m

ark

with

in a

leve

l to

ensu

re th

at th

ere

is s

uffic

ient

rele

vant

con

tent

ev

iden

t with

in th

e an

swer

for t

he le

vel a

nd m

ark.

Exa

min

ers

shou

ld b

e pr

epar

ed to

cre

dit m

ater

ial i

n an

swer

s w

hich

is n

ot c

onta

ined

in th

e in

dica

tive

cont

ent.



(d)

The

Exa

min

er m

ay n

eed

to m

ake

a ju

dgem

ent w

ithin

a le

vel o

r bet

wee

n tw

o or

mor

e le

vel s

tate

men

ts. O

nce

a ‘b

est-f

it’ le

vel s

tate

men

t has

bee

n id

entif

ied,

use

the

follo

win

g gu

idan

ce to

dec

ide

on a

spe

cific

mar

k: •

Whe

re th

e ca

ndid

ate’

s w

ork

conv

inci

ngly

mee

ts th

e le

vel s

tate

men

t, yo

u sh

ould

aw

ard

the

high

est m

ark.

•W

here

the

cand

idat

e’s

wor

k ad

equa

tely

mee

ts th

e le

vel s

tate

men

t, yo

u sh

ould

aw

ard

the

mos

t app

ropr

iate

mar

k in

the

mid

dle

of th

e ra

nge.

•W

here

the

cand

idat

e’s

wor

k ju

st m

eets

the

leve

l sta

tem

ent,

you

shou

ld a

war

d th

e lo

wes

t mar

k.

5 m

ark

ques

tions

Leve

l A

O1

Kno

wle

dge

and

unde

rsta

ndin

gM

arks

Leve

l 3A

ccur

ate

know

ledg

e w

ith g

ood

unde

rsta

ndin

g •

Use

s a

rang

e of

det

aile

d, a

ccur

ate

and

rele

vant

kno

wle

dge.

•D

emon

stra

tes

unde

rsta

ndin

g th

roug

h a

wel

l-dev

elop

ed re

spon

se.

•Fu

lly a

ddre

sses

the

ques

tion.

•G

ood

unde

rsta

ndin

g of

the

wid

er c

onte

xt, i

f rel

evan

t.

5

Leve

l 2Pa

rtia

lly a

ccur

ate

know

ledg

e w

ith li

mite

d un

ders

tand

ing

•U

ses

a ra

nge

of k

now

ledg

e w

hich

may

be

parti

ally

acc

urat

e. •

Dem

onst

rate

s lim

ited

unde

rsta

ndin

g th

roug

h a

parti

ally

dev

elop

ed re

spon

se.

•A

ddre

sses

som

e as

pect

s of

the

ques

tion.

•

Atte

mpt

s to

eng

age

with

the

wid

er c

onte

xt, i

f rel

evan

t.

3–4

Leve

l 1B

asic

kno

wle

dge

and

basi

c un

ders

tand

ing

•

Iden

tifie

s a

limite

d ra

nge

of k

now

ledg

e w

hich

may

not

be

accu

rate

. •

Dem

onst

rate

s ba

sic

unde

rsta

ndin

g th

roug

h a

limite

d re

spon

se.

•R

espo

nse

is re

leva

nt to

the

topi

c, b

ut d

oes

not d

irect

ly a

ddre

ss th

e qu

estio

n. •

Littl

e or

no

refe

renc

e to

the

wid

er c

onte

xt, i

f rel

evan

t.

1–2

Leve

l 0

No

rele

vant

mat

eria

l to

cred

it.0



10 m

ark

ques

tions

Leve

l A

O1

Kno

wle

dge

and

unde

rsta

ndin

gM

arks

Leve

l 4A

ccur

ate

know

ledg

e w

ith g

ood

unde

rsta

ndin

g •

Use

s a

rang

e of

det

aile

d, a

ccur

ate

and

rele

vant

kno

wle

dge.

•D

emon

stra

tes

unde

rsta

ndin

g th

roug

h a

wel

l-dev

elop

ed re

spon

se.

•Fu

lly a

ddre

sses

the

ques

tion.

•G

ood

unde

rsta

ndin

g of

the

wid

er c

onte

xt, i

f rel

evan

t.

9–10

Leve

l 3M

ostly

acc

urat

e kn

owle

dge

with

som

e un

ders

tand

ing

•U

ses

a ra

nge

of m

ostly

acc

urat

e an

d re

leva

nt k

now

ledg

e. •

Dem

onst

rate

s un

ders

tand

ing

thou

gh a

dev

elop

ed re

spon

se.

•A

ddre

sses

mos

t asp

ects

of t

he q

uest

ion.

•

Som

e en

gage

men

t with

the

wid

er c

onte

xt, i

f rel

evan

t.

6–8

Leve

l 2Pa

rtia

lly a

ccur

ate

know

ledg

e w

ith li

mite

d un

ders

tand

ing

•U

ses

a ra

nge

of k

now

ledg

e w

hich

may

be

parti

ally

acc

urat

e. •

Dem

onst

rate

s lim

ited

unde

rsta

ndin

g th

roug

h a

parti

ally

dev

elop

ed re

spon

se.

•A

ddre

sses

som

e as

pect

s of

the

ques

tion.

•

Atte

mpt

s to

eng

age

with

the

wid

er c

onte

xt, i

f rel

evan

t.

3–5

Leve

l 1B

asic

kno

wle

dge

and

basi

c un

ders

tand

ing

•Id

entif

ies

a lim

ited

rang

e of

kno

wle

dge

whi

ch m

ay n

ot b

e ac

cura

te.

•D

emon

stra

tes

basi

c un

ders

tand

ing

thro

ugh

a lim

ited

resp

onse

. •

Res

pons

e is

rele

vant

to th

e to

pic,

but

doe

s no

t dire

ctly

add

ress

the

ques

tion.

•Li

ttle

or n

o re

fere

nce

to th

e w

ider

con

text

, if r

elev

ant.

1–2

Leve

l 0

No

rele

vant

mat

eria

l to

cred

it.0



15 m

ark

ques

tions

Leve

l A

O2

Ana

lysi

s an

d ev

alua

tion

Mar

ks

Leve

l 5Th

orou

gh d

iscu

ssio

n su

ppor

ted

with

evi

denc

e •

Ana

lyse

s th

e im

porta

nce

and/

or s

treng

th o

f diff

eren

t arg

umen

ts/p

oint

s of

vie

w.

•U

ses

accu

rate

evi

denc

e to

sup

port

a w

ell-s

truct

ured

dis

cuss

ion.

•C

oher

ent c

oncl

usio

n to

the

ques

tion

whi

ch e

valu

ates

kno

wle

dge

and

poin

ts o

f vie

w a

nd a

sses

ses

alte

rnat

ive

conc

lusi

ons.

13–1

5

Leve

l 4C

oher

ent d

iscu

ssio

n su

ppor

ted

with

evi

denc

e •

Dis

cuss

es d

iffer

ent a

rgum

ents

/poi

nts

of v

iew

in s

ome

deta

il. •

Use

s ac

cura

te e

vide

nce

to s

uppo

rt a

stru

ctur

ed d

iscu

ssio

n. •

Coh

eren

t con

clus

ion

to th

e qu

estio

n w

hich

eva

luat

es k

now

ledg

e an

d po

ints

of v

iew

.

10–1

2

Leve

l 3C

lear

dis

cuss

ion

with

som

e su

ppor

t •

Rec

ogni

ses

diffe

rent

arg

umen

ts/p

oint

s of

vie

w a

nd d

iscu

sses

at l

east

one

in s

ome

deta

il. •

Use

s so

me

evid

ence

to s

uppo

rt di

scus

sion

. •

Cle

ar c

oncl

usio

n to

the

ques

tion

whi

ch is

link

ed to

a ra

nge

of k

now

ledg

e an

d po

ints

of v

iew

.

7–9

Leve

l 2A

ttem

pts

a di

scus

sion

with

lim

ited

supp

ort

•O

utlin

es o

ne o

r mor

e ar

gum

ent/p

oint

of v

iew

. •

Use

s su

ppor

ting

evid

ence

for o

ne o

r mor

e re

leva

nt p

oint

. The

sup

port

may

not

be

who

lly re

leva

nt o

r acc

urat

e. •

Atte

mpt

s a

conc

lusi

on to

the

ques

tion

whi

ch is

link

ed to

kno

wle

dge

and/

or a

poi

nt o

f vie

w.

4–6

Leve

l 1B

asic

resp

onse

with

a p

oint

of v

iew

•S

tate

s a

poin

t of v

iew

. •

Littl

e or

no

supp

ortin

g ev

iden

ce.

•M

ay a

ttem

pt a

bas

ic c

oncl

usio

n, w

hich

may

not

dire

ctly

add

ress

the

ques

tion.

1–3

Leve

l 0

No

rele

vant

mat

eria

l to

cred

it.0



Que

stio

nA

nsw

erM

arks

Gui

danc

e

1(a)

‘The

‘hea

rt o

f Hin

duis

m’ –

the

Pura

nas,

the

Epic

s, a

nd e

spec

ially

the

Bha

gava

d G

ita –

is a

live

... [t

oday

] and

bea

ting

vigo

rous

ly …

The

fact

they

hav

e gr

own

over

man

y ce

ntur

ies

and

wer

e pe

rfor

med

and

inte

rpre

ted

in e

ver n

ew w

ays

thro

ugho

ut th

e ag

es, h

as k

ept t

hem

aliv

e an

d fu

ll of

mea

ning

for e

very

new

ge

nera

tion

of H

indu

s.’

Kla

us K

Klo

ster

mai

er

Out

line

wha

t the

pas

sage

abo

ve s

ays

abou

t the

impo

rtan

ce o

f non

-Ved

ic te

xts.

AO

1 –

Kno

wle

dge

and

unde

rsta

ndin

g.R

espo

nses

will

be

mar

ked

acco

rdin

g to

the

5 m

ark

leve

l des

crip

tors

(AO

1).

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht re

fer t

o so

me

of th

e fo

llow

ing:

Th

e pa

ssag

e id

entif

ies

the

Pur

anas

and

the

Epi

cs a

s be

ing

extre

mel

y im

porta

nt, i

n fa

ct c

entra

l to

an u

nder

stan

ding

of H

indu

ism

. It s

peci

fical

ly h

ighl

ight

s th

e B

haga

vad

Gita

from

am

ong

the

who

le b

ody

of th

ese

text

s, im

plyi

ng th

at th

is h

as e

ven

grea

ter

impo

rtanc

e th

an th

e ot

her t

exts

. It s

tate

s th

at th

ese

are

the

vigo

rous

ly b

eatin

g he

art

of H

indu

ism

in th

e cu

rren

t era

. So

cand

idat

es m

ight

inte

rpre

t the

pas

sage

as

sayi

ng

that

Hin

duis

m in

the

cont

empo

rary

wor

ld is

effe

ctiv

ely

base

d on

thes

e te

xts

rath

er

than

the

anci

ent V

edas

, whi

ch m

ay s

eem

less

rele

vant

to c

onte

mpo

rary

soc

iety

.

The

pass

age

also

giv

es re

ason

s fo

r the

ass

ertio

n ab

ove,

and

can

dida

tes

mig

ht

use

thes

e in

dev

elop

ing

thei

r out

line.

The

pas

sage

reco

gnis

es th

at th

ese

text

s ar

e po

pula

r and

exp

lain

s th

at th

is is

bec

ause

they

are

bot

h ac

cess

ible

and

am

enab

le

to c

ontin

uing

inte

rpre

tatio

n an

d re

-inte

rpre

tatio

n. T

hey

are

wid

ely

trans

late

d, a

nd s

o ac

cess

ible

for r

eade

rs, a

nd th

ey a

re a

lso

the

subj

ect o

f dra

mat

ic p

erfo

rman

ce in

film

an

d th

eatre

. Thi

s he

lps

to e

nsur

e th

ey c

an re

mai

n re

leva

nt in

a c

hang

ing

wor

ld.

5C

andi

date

s do

not

nee

d to

refe

r to

all

of th

is m

ater

ial t

o ga

in th

e m

arks

.

All

accu

rate

inte

rpre

tatio

ns w

ill b

e cr

edite

d as

app

ropr

iate

.



Que

stio

nA

nsw

erM

arks

Gui

danc

e

1(b)

Expl

ain

why

the

teac

hing

s of

the

Bha

gava

d G

ita o

n ac

hiev

ing

liber

atio

n m

ight

be

impo

rtan

t to

Hin

dus.

AO

1 –

Kno

wle

dge

and

unde

rsta

ndin

g.R

espo

nses

will

be

mar

ked

acco

rdin

g to

the

10 m

ark

leve

l des

crip

tors

(AO

1).

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht re

fer t

o so

me

of th

e fo

llow

ing:

The

Bha

gava

d G

ita is

a s

ectio

n of

the

Mah

abha

rata

Epi

c. A

lthou

gh th

is is

usu

ally

re

gard

ed a

s a

smrit

i tex

t, it

is e

xtre

mel

y po

pula

r and

influ

entia

l in

cont

empo

rary

H

indu

ism

. It c

ould

be

argu

ed th

at it

s po

pula

rity

and

acce

ssib

ility

con

tribu

te to

the

impo

rtanc

e gi

ven

to it

s te

achi

ngs.

Man

y di

ffere

nt id

eas

aris

e w

ithin

the

dial

ogue

, inc

ludi

ng d

harm

a (d

uty/

right

eous

ness

), dh

arm

a yu

ddha

(rig

hteo

us w

arfa

re),

varn

a (s

ocia

l cla

ss),

the

guna

s (fu

ndam

enta

l qua

litie

s), t

he n

atur

e of

atm

an (s

oul),

rebi

rth o

r rei

ncar

natio

n an

d co

ncep

ts o

f dei

ty. M

any

of th

ese

conc

epts

are

rela

ted

to m

oksh

a (li

bera

tion)

, as

diffe

rent

pat

hs to

war

ds li

bera

tion

iden

tifie

d by

Kris

hna.

All

thes

e id

eas

exis

ted

with

in

Hin

duis

m b

efor

e th

e B

haga

vad

Gita

was

writ

ten

and

diffe

rent

text

s ex

plor

e th

em in

di

ffere

nt w

ays.

The

Bha

gava

d G

ita is

unu

sual

in th

at it

exa

min

es d

iffer

ent p

aths

to

liber

atio

n an

d ex

plai

ns h

ow e

ach

path

lead

s to

that

goa

l. C

andi

date

s m

ight

exp

lain

th

at it

wou

ld th

eref

ore

be p

ossi

ble

to g

ain

an u

nder

stan

ding

of s

ever

al w

ays

in w

hich

H

indu

ism

mig

ht b

e pr

actis

ed b

y re

adin

g th

is s

ingl

e te

xt.

Libe

ratio

n is

a k

ey c

once

pt fo

r Hin

dus,

bec

ause

it is

the

ultim

ate

aim

of l

ife in

sa

msa

ra (t

he c

ycle

of b

irth,

dea

th a

nd re

birth

). A

ll sc

hool

s of

Hin

duis

m a

ddre

ss th

is

issu

e. T

each

ings

on

liber

atio

n ar

e co

nsid

ered

impo

rtant

, and

an

acce

ssib

le te

xt s

uch

as th

e B

haga

vad

Gita

whi

ch e

nabl

es o

rdin

ary

peop

le to

acc

ess

thos

e te

achi

ngs

dire

ctly

is li

kely

to b

e hi

ghly

val

ued.

10C

andi

date

s do

not

nee

d to

refe

r to

all

of th

is m

ater

ial t

o ga

in th

e m

arks

.

Can

dida

tes

shou

ld b

e fa

mili

ar w

ith th

e st

ory

but d

o no

t cre

dit n

arra

tive

deta

il of

the

Bha

gava

d G

ita th

at is

not

link

ed

to th

e qu

estio

n.

Alte

rnat

ive,

acc

urat

e ex

plan

atio

ns w

ill

be c

redi

ted

as a

ppro

pria

te.



Que

stio

nA

nsw

erM

arks

Gui

danc

e

1(c)

Ass

ess

the

clai

m th

at s

tudy

ing

the

Bha

gava

d G

ita is

the

best

way

to

unde

rsta

nd c

onte

mpo

rary

Hin

duis

m.

AO

2 –

Ana

lysi

s an

d ev

alua

tion.

Res

pons

es w

ill b

e m

arke

d ac

cord

ing

to th

e 15

mar

k le

vel d

escr

ipto

rs (A

O2)

.

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht re

fer t

o so

me

of th

e fo

llow

ing:

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht b

egin

by

refle

ctin

g on

the

mul

tiplic

ity o

f Hin

du te

xts

and

notin

g th

at th

e Ve

das

are

com

mon

ly h

eld

to b

e th

e m

ost i

mpo

rtant

and

aut

horit

ativ

e. T

hey

are

the

olde

st H

indu

text

s an

d ar

e ge

nera

lly c

onsi

dere

d to

be

the

foun

datio

n of

H

indu

ism

. Acc

eptin

g th

em a

s au

thor

itativ

e ha

s be

en u

sed

to d

efin

e w

hat i

t mea

ns

to b

e a

Hin

du. H

owev

er, c

andi

date

s m

ight

als

o po

int o

ut th

at m

uch

of th

e co

nten

t of

the

Veda

s re

late

s to

the

perfo

rman

ce o

f ritu

al a

nd o

ther

prie

stly

dut

ies,

so

they

hav

e lim

ited

rele

vanc

e fo

r Hin

dus

who

are

not

prie

sts.

The

y m

ight

als

o no

te th

e di

ffere

nt

view

s of

ast

ika

(orth

odox

) and

nas

tika

(het

erod

ox) s

choo

ls.

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht o

bser

ve th

at th

e co

ncep

t of H

indu

ism

is d

ebat

able

in it

self,

giv

en

the

dive

rsity

of f

orm

s an

d pr

actic

es g

roup

ed u

nder

that

um

brel

la te

rm. T

hat b

eing

th

e ca

se it

cou

ld b

e ar

gued

that

it is

impo

ssib

le to

est

ablis

h a

sing

le ‘b

est’

way

to

unde

rsta

nd H

indu

ism

in it

s en

tiret

y, b

ut th

at th

e B

haga

vad

Gita

offe

rs u

sefu

l ins

ight

s in

to s

peci

fic fo

rms

of H

indu

ism

suc

h as

Vai

shna

va tr

aditi

ons.

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht a

lso

argu

e th

at th

e po

pula

rity

of th

e B

haga

vad

Gita

mea

ns it

is p

artic

ular

ly h

elpf

ul in

un

ders

tand

ing

popu

lar o

r cul

tura

l Hin

duis

m.

The

brah

min

ical

trad

ition

, with

its

focu

s on

var

nash

ram

adha

rma,

mig

ht b

e th

e fo

rm

of H

indu

ism

with

whi

ch c

andi

date

s ar

e m

ost f

amili

ar, a

nd th

ey m

ight

use

this

to

argu

e th

at th

e Ve

das

are

the

foun

datio

n fo

r the

relig

ion.

How

ever

, it c

ould

als

o be

ar

gued

that

mod

ern

prac

tice

uses

an

unde

rsta

ndin

g of

var

nash

ram

adha

rma

that

is

root

ed m

ore

wid

ely.

Con

cept

s ex

plor

ed in

the

Bha

gava

d G

ita h

ave

thei

r orig

ins

in th

e Ve

das,

but

the

Bha

gava

d G

ita o

ffers

exp

ansi

on a

nd c

larif

icat

ion,

whi

ch is

arg

uabl

y m

ore

impo

rtant

to m

oder

n H

indu

s. C

andi

date

s m

ight

als

o re

flect

mor

e br

oadl

y on

the

issu

e of

rele

vanc

e to

con

tem

pora

ry li

ves

and

the

impl

icat

ions

of t

he a

ge a

nd s

tatu

s of

the

Veda

s as

shr

uti.

15C

andi

date

s do

not

nee

d to

refe

r to

all

of th

is m

ater

ial t

o ga

in th

e m

arks

.

Can

dida

tes

shou

ld b

e fa

mili

ar w

ith th

e st

ory

but d

o no

t cre

dit n

arra

tive

deta

il of

the

Bha

gava

d G

ita th

at is

not

link

ed

to th

e qu

estio

n.

Cre

dit a

ll re

leva

nt d

iscu

ssio

n.

Can

dida

tes

can

argu

e fo

r or a

gain

st

the

clai

m a

s lo

ng a

s th

eir d

iscu

ssio

n is

fo

cuse

d on

the

ques

tion.



Que

stio

nA

nsw

erM

arks

Gui

danc

e

1(c)

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht a

lso

cons

ider

issu

es o

f lan

guag

e an

d th

e ac

cess

ibili

ty o

f tex

ts

for o

rdin

ary

Hin

dus

– th

e or

igin

al la

ngua

ge o

f the

Ved

as p

reda

tes

thei

r writ

ten

form

and

tran

slat

ion

into

mod

ern

lang

uage

s ca

n be

diff

icul

t. It

coul

d th

eref

ore

be

argu

ed th

at m

ore

mod

ern

text

s, li

ke th

e B

haga

vad

Gita

, are

nee

ded

to e

nabl

e w

ider

un

ders

tand

ing.

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht a

lso

refe

r to

othe

r pop

ular

text

s, s

uch

as th

e R

amay

ana.

The

gen

eral

pop

ular

ity o

f the

Bha

gava

d G

ita m

ight

als

o be

con

side

red

as a

par

t of i

ts in

fluen

ce o

n th

e re

ligio

n.

Fina

lly, i

t cou

ld b

e no

ted

that

it is

pos

sibl

e to

pra

ctis

e H

indu

ism

with

out d

irect

re

fere

nce

to te

xts.

Man

y co

mm

on p

ract

ices

of c

onte

mpo

rary

Hin

duis

m (s

uch

as

mur

ti pu

ja) a

re n

ot e

asily

sho

wn

to h

ave

thei

r fou

ndat

ions

in in

stru

ctio

n fro

m re

ligio

us

text

s.



Que

stio

nA

nsw

erM

arks

Gui

danc

e

2(a)

Sum

mar

ise

the

diffe

renc

e be

twee

n sm

riti a

nd s

hrut

i.

AO

1 –

Kno

wle

dge

and

unde

rsta

ndin

g.R

espo

nses

will

be

mar

ked

acco

rdin

g to

the

5 m

ark

leve

l des

crip

tors

(AO

1).

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht re

fer t

o so

me

of th

e fo

llow

ing:

S

mrit

i and

shr

uti a

re te

rms

used

to c

lass

ify ty

pes

of re

ligio

us te

xt a

ccor

ding

to th

eir

perc

eive

d or

igin

s. S

hrut

i is

usua

lly tr

ansl

ated

as

‘hea

rd’ a

nd s

mrit

i as

‘rem

embe

red’

al

thou

gh it

can

als

o be

thou

ght o

f as

‘trad

ition

’.

Shr

uti t

exts

are

con

side

red

to b

e di

rect

reve

latio

ns (a

lthou

gh th

ere

is d

isag

reem

ent

as to

the

natu

re o

f the

reve

aler

) and

they

are

ther

efor

e re

gard

ed a

s ha

ving

no

begi

nnin

g or

orig

in a

nd n

o au

thor

.

Sm

riti t

exts

may

be

com

men

tary

or i

nter

pret

atio

n of

shr

uti t

exts

, or t

hey

may

be

philo

soph

ical

or s

pirit

ual w

orks

. Bot

h sm

riti a

nd s

hrut

i tex

ts a

re c

onsi

dere

d to

hav

e au

thor

ity, a

nd c

an b

e un

ders

tood

and

inte

rpre

ted

in d

iffer

ent w

ays,

but

shr

uti t

exts

ca

nnot

be

supe

rsed

ed.

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht a

lso

note

that

, alth

ough

mos

t Hin

dus

are

clea

r on

the

diffe

renc

e be

twee

n th

e tw

o ty

pes

of te

xt, t

here

is n

o un

iver

sal a

gree

men

t on

whi

ch te

xts

have

w

hich

sta

tus.

It is

als

o tru

e th

at s

ome

bran

ches

of H

indu

ism

do

not c

onsi

der t

he

Veda

s to

be

auth

orita

tive

and

may

ther

efor

e re

ject

thei

r sta

tus

as s

hrut

i. S

imila

rly,

late

r tex

ts s

uch

as th

e M

ahab

hara

ta a

re s

omet

imes

des

crib

ed a

s sh

ruti.

5C

andi

date

s do

not

nee

d to

refe

r to

all

of th

is m

ater

ial t

o ga

in th

e m

arks

.

Alte

rnat

ive,

acc

urat

e ex

plan

atio

ns w

ill

be c

redi

ted

as a

ppro

pria

te.



Que

stio

nA

nsw

erM

arks

Gui

danc

e

2(b)

Expl

ain

how

Hin

dus

mig

ht u

se th

e M

anus

mrit

i in

thei

r liv

es.

AO

1 –

Kno

wle

dge

and

unde

rsta

ndin

g.R

espo

nses

will

be

mar

ked

acco

rdin

g to

the

10 m

ark

leve

l des

crip

tors

(AO

1).

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht re

fer t

o so

me

of th

e fo

llow

ing:

Muc

h (a

lthou

gh n

ot a

ll) o

f the

Man

usm

riti i

s pr

actic

al in

nat

ure,

focu

sing

on

soci

al

mor

es a

nd v

alue

s an

d gi

ving

inst

ruct

ion

and

guid

ance

on

how

to b

ehav

e in

diff

eren

t ro

les

and

diffe

rent

situ

atio

ns. T

he te

xt s

ets

out d

etai

ls o

f the

resp

onsi

bilit

ies

of th

e di

ffere

nt v

arna

s an

d in

clud

es s

ome

very

spe

cific

teac

hing

s ab

out t

he p

lace

and

role

of

men

and

wom

en. S

ome

cand

idat

es m

ight

exp

lain

that

Hin

dus

can

use

it in

exa

ctly

th

e w

ay it

was

app

aren

tly in

tend

ed –

as

a ki

nd o

f gui

de to

livi

ng w

hich

info

rms

them

ab

out t

heir

dhar

ma.

It a

lso

give

s gu

idan

ce o

n bo

th c

ivil

and

crim

inal

law

and

mig

ht b

e us

ed in

dis

cuss

ion

and

deba

te o

n th

ese

issu

es.

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht a

lso

com

men

t tha

t the

gre

at a

ge o

f the

Man

usm

riti (

betw

een

3000

and

180

0 ye

ars

old)

mea

ns th

at it

s di

rect

usa

ge is

no

long

er re

leva

nt. H

indu

s m

ight

resp

ect t

he te

xt a

s a

part

of th

eir h

isto

ry, a

nd s

uppo

rt so

me

of th

e va

lues

and

id

eals

iden

tifie

d in

it, b

ut w

ithou

t reg

ardi

ng th

e ex

plic

it ru

les

as b

indi

ng o

r hel

pful

in

cont

empo

rary

life

. Man

y of

the

text

’s s

peci

fic ru

les

on th

e ro

le, r

espo

nsib

ility

and

re

latio

nshi

p of

the

diffe

rent

var

nas

and

of m

en a

nd w

omen

mig

ht s

eem

inap

prop

riate

or

out

date

d to

Hin

dus

in th

e co

ntem

pora

ry w

orld

. Thi

s m

ight

rest

rict u

sing

the

text

as

a pr

actic

al g

uide

for l

ivin

g in

the

cont

empo

rary

wor

ld.

10C

andi

date

s do

not

nee

d to

refe

r to

all

of th

is m

ater

ial t

o ga

in th

e m

arks

.

Alte

rnat

ive,

acc

urat

e ex

plan

atio

ns w

ill

be c

redi

ted

as a

ppro

pria

te.



Que

stio

nA

nsw

erM

arks

Gui

danc

e

2(c)

‘Hin

duis

m c

anno

t be

fully

und

erst

ood

with

out k

now

ledg

e of

the

Man

usm

riti.’

Dis

cuss

this

cla

im.

AO

2 –

Ana

lysi

s an

d ev

alua

tion.

Res

pons

es w

ill b

e m

arke

d ac

cord

ing

to th

e 15

mar

k le

vel d

escr

ipto

rs (A

O2)

.

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht re

fer t

o so

me

of th

e fo

llow

ing:

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht u

se th

e w

ell-k

now

n na

ture

of t

he M

anus

mrit

i and

its

grea

t age

to

arg

ue th

at th

e te

xt is

inde

ed fu

ndam

enta

l to

an u

nder

stan

ding

of H

indu

ism

. It

has

been

his

toric

ally

impo

rtant

in s

ocia

l for

mat

ion

and

it re

mai

ns a

rgua

bly

the

mos

t st

udie

d by

bra

hmin

s, a

nd th

eref

ore

the

mos

t inf

luen

tial t

ext o

f its

kin

d. W

hile

the

nam

e M

anus

mrit

i cle

arly

impl

ies

that

the

text

has

sm

riti r

athe

r tha

n sh

ruti

stat

us th

ere

is n

o un

iver

sal a

gree

men

t on

this

. Diff

eren

t for

ms

of H

indu

ism

may

acc

ord

shru

ti st

atus

to d

iffer

ent t

exts

. Ast

ika

(orth

odox

) sch

ools

of H

indu

ism

, with

thei

r em

phas

is

on th

e Ve

das

and

the

cent

ralit

y of

dha

rma,

mig

ht fi

nd th

e M

anus

mrit

i of g

reat

er

sign

ifica

nce

than

nas

tika

(het

erod

ox) s

choo

ls.

The

Man

usm

riti w

as a

lso

influ

entia

l in

the

deve

lopm

ent o

f the

bra

hmin

ical

form

s of

H

indu

ism

whi

ch in

form

muc

h of

the

stud

y of

Hin

duis

m to

day.

Man

y co

ntem

pora

ry

idea

s ab

out v

arna

(soc

ial d

ivis

ions

), as

hram

a (s

tage

s of

life

) and

the

asso

ciat

ed

dhar

ma

and

abou

t the

righ

ts a

nd s

tatu

s of

wom

en h

ave

been

stro

ngly

influ

ence

d by

th

e M

anus

mrit

i, ev

en if

that

influ

ence

is n

ot a

lway

s ex

plic

itly

unde

rsto

od. H

owev

er,

it co

uld

also

be

argu

ed th

at, w

hen

com

bine

d w

ith it

s fo

cus

on s

ocia

l stru

ctur

es a

nd

role

s, th

e te

xt is

of g

reat

er c

once

rn to

phi

loso

pher

s, h

isto

rians

and

soc

iolo

gist

s th

an

it is

to p

ract

ition

ers

of H

indu

ism

as

a re

ligio

n.

How

ever

, it i

s on

ly o

ne te

xt o

f the

dha

rma

shas

tra li

tera

ture

. The

re a

re d

iffer

ing

view

s on

how

man

y te

xts

of th

is ty

pe m

ight

hav

e ex

iste

d, a

lthou

gh m

any

surv

ive

only

in

fragm

enta

ry fo

rm o

r as

refe

renc

es in

oth

er te

xts.

Can

dida

tes

coul

d ar

gue

that

the

cont

inue

d ex

iste

nce

of th

e M

anus

mrit

i dem

onst

rate

s its

impo

rtanc

e in

und

erst

andi

ng

Hin

duis

m. O

r the

y m

ight

arg

ue th

at it

is a

t lea

st e

qual

ly im

porta

nt to

und

erst

and

the

hist

oric

al d

evel

opm

ent o

f the

dha

rma

shas

tras

as a

bra

nch

of H

indu

lite

ratu

re.

It co

uld

also

be

argu

ed th

at th

e M

anus

mrit

i set

s th

e bo

unda

ries

whi

ch d

istin

guis

h as

tika

scho

ols

of H

indu

ism

from

Shr

aman

a tra

ditio

ns s

uch

as B

uddh

ism

, whi

ch re

ject

th

e au

thor

ity o

f the

Ved

as.

15C

andi

date

s do

not

nee

d to

refe

r to

all

of th

is m

ater

ial t

o ga

in th

e m

arks

.

The

focu

s sh

ould

rem

ain

on th

e va

lue

of th

e M

anus

mrit

i for

und

erst

andi

ng

Hin

duis

m. C

andi

date

s m

ay re

fere

nce

othe

r tex

ts b

ut th

is s

houl

d be

in

com

paris

on w

ith th

e va

lue

of th

e M

anus

mrit

i for

und

erst

andi

ng

Hin

duis

m, n

ot a

gen

eral

dis

cuss

ion

of

the

impo

rtanc

e of

Hin

du te

xts.

Cre

dit a

ll re

leva

nt d

iscu

ssio

n.

Can

dida

tes

can

argu

e fo

r or a

gain

st

the

clai

m a

s lo

ng a

s th

eir d

iscu

ssio

n is

fo

cuse

d on

the

ques

tion.



Que

stio

nA

nsw

erM

arks

Gui

danc

e

2(c)

Ano

ther

per

spec

tive

mig

ht b

e to

con

side

r the

wid

e-ra

ngin

g co

nten

t of t

he M

anus

mrit

i an

d w

heth

er th

is m

akes

the

text

mor

e or

less

sig

nific

ant t

han

othe

r mor

e sp

ecifi

c or

focu

sed

text

s. C

andi

date

s m

ight

refe

r to

text

s fro

m o

utsi

de th

e sy

llabu

s, s

uch

as

the

Nar

adas

mrit

i (w

hich

is e

ntire

ly fo

cuse

d on

lega

l pro

cedu

res)

. The

y m

ight

als

o ar

gue

that

it is

mor

e im

porta

nt to

und

erst

and

proc

ess

than

con

tent

bec

ause

all

non-

shru

ti lit

erat

ure

has

been

sub

ject

to d

evel

opm

ent a

nd c

hang

e ov

er ti

me.

Man

y of

the

area

s w

ith w

hich

the

Man

usm

riti i

s co

ncer

ned,

suc

h as

gen

der r

oles

and

the

natu

re

of v

irtuo

us b

ehav

iour

, are

of i

nter

est a

nd re

leva

nce

to H

indu

s in

the

cont

empo

rary

w

orld

.



Que

stio

nA

nsw

erM

arks

Gui

danc

e

3(a)

Out

line

the

dist

inct

cha

ract

eris

tics

of S

haiv

ism

.

AO

1 –

Kno

wle

dge

and

unde

rsta

ndin

g.R

espo

nses

will

be

mar

ked

acco

rdin

g to

the

5 m

ark

leve

l des

crip

tors

(AO

1).

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht re

fer t

o so

me

of th

e fo

llow

ing:

S

haiv

ism

is n

amed

for S

hiva

, and

can

dida

tes

shou

ld k

now

that

Sha

ivite

trad

ition

s fo

cus

on th

e w

orsh

ip o

f Shi

va. F

or S

haiv

ites,

Shi

va is

the

Sup

rem

e B

rahm

an, w

ho

man

ifest

s cr

eatio

n an

d cr

eate

s m

aya.

Hin

du b

elie

f tra

ditio

nally

des

crib

es S

hiva

as

the

dest

roye

r but

Sha

ivite

trad

ition

s m

ight

als

o co

nsid

er h

im to

be

the

crea

tor –

his

co

ntra

dict

ory

natu

re is

em

brac

ed b

y hi

s de

vote

es.

Mos

t Sha

ivite

s be

lieve

in th

e po

ssib

ility

of j

ivan

muk

ta –

ach

ievi

ng li

bera

tion

whi

le

still

with

in s

amsa

ra (t

he c

ycle

of b

irth,

dea

th a

nd re

birth

). S

haiv

ism

reco

gnis

es

thre

e pa

ths

to li

bera

tion

– se

rvic

e, w

orsh

ip a

nd m

edita

tion/

yoga

. Whi

chev

er p

ath

is

follo

wed

, the

dev

otee

mus

t be

who

lly fo

cuse

d on

Shi

va to

ach

ieve

libe

ratio

n as

his

gi

ft.

The

bhak

ti tra

ditio

n is

stro

ng in

all

form

s of

Sha

ivis

m, w

ith d

evot

iona

l pra

ctic

es

ofte

n te

ndin

g to

war

ds a

uste

rity

and

asce

ticis

m. I

n so

me

form

s, S

haiv

ism

is n

ot

com

patib

le w

ith th

e du

ty o

f som

e as

hram

as (s

tage

s of

life

). Fo

r exa

mpl

e, s

ome

Sha

ivite

sad

hus

live

on c

rem

atio

n gr

ound

s, d

ress

in s

kulls

, cov

er th

emse

lves

in

ashe

s an

d de

liber

atel

y flo

ut m

oral

nor

ms

in a

ritu

al c

onte

xt. T

hey

mig

ht a

lso

obse

rve

wha

t can

see

m to

be

quite

ext

rem

e au

ster

ities

, suc

h as

vow

ing

not t

o si

t or l

ie d

own,

ho

ldin

g an

arm

in th

e ai

r for

a p

erio

d of

yea

rs o

r atta

chin

g w

eigh

ts to

pie

rced

ski

n.

The

asce

tic (s

anny

asa)

life

styl

e is

con

side

red

by m

any

to b

e th

e be

st p

ath

and

the

Bra

hmin

ical

ass

ocia

tion

betw

een

this

life

styl

e an

d ol

d ag

e is

not

as

perv

asiv

e am

ong

Sha

ivite

s.

Oth

er s

peci

fical

ly S

haiv

ite p

ract

ices

incl

ude

wea

ring

a lin

ga in

stea

d of

a s

acre

d th

read

, and

the

Sha

ivite

tila

ka o

f thr

ee h

oriz

onta

l lin

es, s

omet

imes

with

a re

d do

t to

repr

esen

t Shi

va’s

third

eye

.

Bel

ief i

n av

atar

s (th

e in

carn

atio

n of

a d

ivin

e be

ing)

is fo

und

in S

haiv

ism

, for

exa

mpl

e M

ahis

ha, b

ut c

andi

date

s m

ight

exp

lain

that

in c

ontra

st to

Vai

shna

vism

, the

con

cept

of

ava

tars

is n

ot p

artic

ular

ly s

igni

fican

t in

Sha

ivis

m o

r not

par

ticul

arly

wel

l kno

wn

by

Sha

ivite

s.

5C

andi

date

s do

not

nee

d to

refe

r to

all

of th

is m

ater

ial t

o ga

in th

e m

arks

.

Cha

ract

eris

tics

coul

d re

fer t

o be

lief,

prac

tices

, app

eara

nce

and

othe

r el

emen

ts w

hich

dis

tingu

ish

Sha

ivite

s fro

m o

ther

Hin

dus.

Des

crip

tions

of S

hiva

, his

mur

ti an

d/or

attr

ibut

es a

re n

ot c

hara

cter

istic

s of

S

haiv

ites

or S

haiv

ism

.

Ther

e ar

e di

ffere

nt s

ub-s

ets

of

Sha

ivis

m a

nd c

andi

date

s ar

e no

t ex

pect

ed to

kno

w a

nd/o

r nam

e th

em.

The

focu

s is

on

wha

t mak

es th

em

Sha

ivite

s.

Exa

mpl

es a

re u

sed

to il

lust

rate

the

conc

epts

but

can

dida

tes

do n

ot n

eed

to u

se e

xam

ples

to g

ain

the

mar

ks.



Que

stio

nA

nsw

erM

arks

Gui

danc

e

3(b)

Expl

ain

the

impo

rtan

ce o

f Gan

esh

with

in S

mar

tism

.

AO

1 –

Kno

wle

dge

and

unde

rsta

ndin

g.R

espo

nses

will

be

mar

ked

acco

rdin

g to

the

10 m

ark

leve

l des

crip

tors

(AO

1).

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht re

fer t

o so

me

of th

e fo

llow

ing:

Sm

artis

m is

a s

ect o

f Hin

duis

m th

at p

ract

ises

pan

chay

atan

a pu

ja –

the

wor

ship

of

five

dei

ties.

The

dei

ties

are

Vish

nu, S

hiva

, Gan

esh,

Sur

ya a

nd S

hakt

i. A

ll th

ese

deiti

es a

re c

onsi

dere

d eq

ual,

in c

ontra

st to

som

e ot

her f

orm

s of

Hin

duis

m w

hich

re

cogn

ise

a si

ngle

dei

ty a

s S

upre

me.

Alth

ough

all

five

deiti

es a

re re

cogn

ised

and

th

eir m

urti

(imag

e) p

rese

nt d

urin

g w

orsh

ip, S

mar

tas

may

focu

s on

one

dei

ty a

s th

e pr

imar

y de

ity fo

r tha

t par

ticul

ar a

ct o

f wor

ship

. Thi

s is

mad

e cl

ear b

y th

e ph

ysic

al

arra

ngem

ent o

f the

mur

ti du

ring

puja

– th

e ce

ntra

l dei

ty is

the

prin

cipa

l one

.

Sm

artis

m is

ofte

n al

igne

d w

ith A

dvai

ta p

hilo

soph

y, s

o th

ese

five

deiti

es a

re n

ot

truly

sep

arat

e an

d di

stin

ct b

ut a

re a

ll B

rahm

an (A

bsol

ute

real

ity) a

nd a

re th

eref

ore

equa

lly im

porta

nt. H

owev

er, n

amed

dei

ties

usua

lly h

ave

spec

ific

area

s of

con

cern

an

d de

vote

es m

ight

cho

ose

to fo

cus

on o

ne ra

ther

than

ano

ther

, dep

endi

ng o

n th

eir

situ

atio

n.

The

impo

rtanc

e of

Gan

esh

in S

mar

tism

is c

onne

cted

with

mor

e w

ides

prea

d be

liefs

ab

out h

is n

atur

e an

d at

tribu

tes.

Gan

esh

is th

e go

d re

spon

sibl

e fo

r obs

tacl

es,

both

pla

cing

them

and

rem

ovin

g th

em. H

e gu

ards

ent

ranc

es a

nd d

oorw

ays

and

is

asso

ciat

ed w

ith k

now

ledg

e an

d w

isdo

m. T

here

fore

, Sm

arta

wor

ship

pers

mig

ht p

lace

G

anes

h at

the

cent

re o

f the

ir sh

rine

for p

uja

offe

red

befo

re a

jour

ney,

a te

st o

r oth

er

unde

rtaki

ng.

In th

e S

mar

ta tr

aditi

on th

e ch

oice

to w

orsh

ip a

ny s

agun

a de

ity is

see

m a

s a

step

on

the

path

tow

ards

real

isin

g th

e tru

e na

ture

of r

ealit

y as

nirg

una

Bra

hman

. Thi

s is

as

true

of d

evot

ion

to G

anes

h as

it w

ould

be

of a

ny o

ther

dei

ty. H

owev

er, G

anes

h co

uld

be s

aid

to h

ave

addi

tiona

l im

porta

nce

as th

e go

d of

beg

inni

ngs.

He

is re

cogn

ised

be

fore

act

s of

wor

ship

to o

ther

dei

ties

as w

ell a

s re

ceiv

ing

wor

ship

in h

is o

wn

right

.

Whi

le G

anes

h is

reco

gnis

ed a

s on

e of

the

five

form

s of

sag

una

Bra

hman

by

Sm

arta

s th

ere

is a

lso

a br

anch

of H

indu

ism

, the

Gan

apat

yas,

that

wor

ship

s hi

m a

s th

e S

upre

me

Bra

hman

. Can

dida

tes

mig

ht s

ugge

st th

at th

is in

dica

tes

both

his

pop

ular

ity

and

impo

rtanc

e as

a p

relu

de to

dis

cuss

ing

the

rela

tions

hip

betw

een

pers

onal

nam

ed

deiti

es a

s fo

rms

of s

agun

a B

rahm

an a

nd th

e A

bsol

ute

qual

itile

ss n

irgun

a B

rahm

an.

10C

andi

date

s do

not

nee

d to

refe

r to

all

of th

is m

ater

ial t

o ga

in th

e m

arks

.

The

focu

s of

the

ques

tion

is o

n th

e im

porta

nce

of G

anes

h w

ithin

S

mar

tism

. Do

not c

redi

t nar

rativ

e de

tails

of G

anes

h’s

life

with

out

refe

renc

e to

the

ques

tion.



Que

stio

nA

nsw

erM

arks

Gui

danc

e

3(c)

‘Vai

shna

vism

is th

e m

ost i

nflu

entia

l Hin

du tr

aditi

on.’

Dis

cuss

this

cla

im.

AO

2 –

Ana

lysi

s an

d ev

alua

tion.

Res

pons

es w

ill b

e m

arke

d ac

cord

ing

to th

e 15

mar

k le

vel d

escr

ipto

rs (A

O2)

.

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht re

fer t

o so

me

of th

e fo

llow

ing:

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht a

ppro

ach

this

que

stio

n by

est

ablis

hing

a c

onte

xt a

nd a

skin

g ‘m

ost

influ

entia

l whe

re?’

Or t

hey

may

con

side

r wha

t kno

wle

dge

of V

aish

navi

sm m

ight

in

fluen

ce –

for e

xam

ple,

the

stud

y of

Hin

duis

m a

s a

relig

ion,

kno

wle

dge

of H

indu

ism

by

non

-Hin

dus

or th

e pr

actic

e of

Hin

duis

m in

diff

eren

t pla

ces.

They

mig

ht a

rgue

that

in In

dia

this

sta

tem

ent m

akes

littl

e se

nse,

giv

en th

at In

dia

is

the

plac

e of

orig

in fo

r the

relig

ion,

the

plac

e w

here

all

its c

urre

nt fo

rms

deve

lope

d an

d th

e pl

ace

whe

re m

ost o

f the

wor

ld’s

pra

ctis

ing

Hin

dus

still

live

. It c

ould

als

o be

ar

gued

that

sec

taria

n di

visi

ons

are

blur

red

and

conf

used

in th

e re

ality

of a

maj

ority

H

indu

cou

ntry

and

it is

in H

indu

ism

’s v

ery

natu

re to

be

plur

alis

t and

acc

eptin

g of

m

ultip

le a

nd d

iver

se e

xpre

ssio

ns. C

andi

date

s m

ight

als

o co

nsid

er w

heth

er th

e na

mes

of t

radi

tions

and

the

way

s in

whi

ch th

ey a

re d

istin

guis

hed

from

eac

h ot

her

have

the

sam

e m

eani

ng a

nd s

igni

fican

ce fo

r pra

ctis

ing

Hin

dus

as th

ey d

o fo

r sc

hola

rs o

f rel

igio

n.

Out

side

the

cont

ext o

f its

pla

ce o

f orig

in, c

andi

date

s m

ight

con

side

r how

sch

olar

ly

and

cultu

ral u

nder

stan

ding

s of

Hin

duis

m a

re fo

rmed

and

the

amou

nt o

f con

tact

sc

hola

rs a

nd n

on-H

indu

indi

vidu

als

mig

ht h

ave

with

the

relig

ion.

If o

ne fo

rm o

f H

indu

ism

is m

ore

outg

oing

, wid

espr

ead

or c

omm

unic

ativ

e th

an o

ther

s it

mig

ht

deve

lop

grea

ter i

nflu

ence

. Can

dida

tes

coul

d ar

gue

that

the

bhak

ti m

ovem

ent

(form

ed to

pro

mot

e th

e sp

read

of b

hakt

i yog

a) h

as it

s m

ost s

ucce

ssfu

l exp

ress

ion

in V

aish

navi

te g

roup

s su

ch a

s th

e In

tern

atio

nal S

ocie

ty o

f Kris

hna

Con

scio

usne

ss

(ISK

CO

N).

An

alte

rnat

ive

appr

oach

for c

andi

date

s m

ight

be

to c

onsi

der t

he a

mbi

guity

and

ov

erla

p be

twee

n th

e di

ffere

nt ty

pes

of H

indu

ism

. Can

dida

tes

mig

ht a

rgue

that

it is

im

poss

ible

to id

entif

y a

disc

rete

form

of H

indu

ism

in a

way

that

mar

ks it

out

as

who

lly

dist

inct

from

all

othe

r for

ms

and

in a

way

that

is u

nive

rsal

ly a

gree

d up

on. S

o th

ere

can

be n

o ‘m

ost i

nflu

entia

l’ fo

rm.

15C

andi

date

s do

not

nee

d to

refe

r to

all

of th

is m

ater

ial t

o ga

in th

e m

arks

.

Ther

e ar

e di

ffere

nt s

ub-s

ets

of

Vais

hnav

ism

and

can

dida

tes

are

not e

xpec

ted

to k

now

and

/or n

ame

them

. The

focu

s of

the

ques

tion

is

on w

heth

er it

is th

e m

ost i

nflu

entia

l H

indu

trad

ition

. Do

not c

redi

t nar

rativ

e ex

plan

atio

n of

Vai

shna

vism

whi

ch is

no

t lin

ked

to th

e qu

estio

n.

Cre

dit a

ll re

leva

nt d

iscu

ssio

n.

Can

dida

tes

can

argu

e fo

r or a

gain

st

the

clai

m a

s lo

ng a

s th

eir d

iscu

ssio

n is

fo

cuse

d on

the

ques

tion.



Que

stio

nA

nsw

erM

arks

Gui

danc

e

3(c)

Man

y H

indu

s w

orsh

ip a

per

sona

l pan

theo

n of

dei

ties

whi

ch c

ross

the

sect

aria

n di

vide

s ac

adem

ic s

tudy

ofte

n co

nsid

ers

abso

lute

. Sim

ilarly

, the

his

tory

of t

he s

tudy

of

relig

ion

show

s th

e in

fluen

ce o

f Chr

istia

nity

, and

par

ticul

arly

Pro

test

ant f

orm

s of

Chr

istia

nity

, on

the

way

sch

olar

s ha

ve c

once

ived

and

spo

ken

abou

t the

obj

ect

of th

eir s

tudi

es. I

t cou

ld b

e ar

gued

that

ther

e is

not

act

ually

any

real

thin

g ca

lled

Vais

hnav

ism

or e

ven

Hin

duis

m. I

t cou

ld b

e ar

gued

that

Vai

shna

vism

is th

e on

ly ‘r

eal’

form

of H

indu

ism

, and

all

othe

r for

ms

are

disc

rete

alte

rnat

ive

relig

ions

. Tha

t wou

ld

mak

e it

mea

ning

less

to d

iscu

ss th

e in

fluen

ce o

f Vai

shna

vism

on

Hin

duis

m a

s a

who

le.



Que

stio

nA

nsw

erM

arks

Gui

danc

e

4(a)

‘The

sum

tota

l of a

ll th

at li

ves

is G

od. W

e m

ay n

ot b

e G

od b

ut w

e ar

e of

God

ev

en a

s a

little

dro

p of

wat

er is

of t

he o

cean

.’M

ohan

das

K G

andh

i

Des

crib

e w

hat t

he p

assa

ge a

bove

say

s ab

out t

he n

atur

e of

God

.

AO

1 –

Kno

wle

dge

and

unde

rsta

ndin

g.R

espo

nses

will

be

mar

ked

acco

rdin

g to

the

5 m

ark

leve

l des

crip

tors

(AO

1).

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht re

fer t

o so

me

of th

e fo

llow

ing:

The

pass

age

desc

ribes

a G

od th

at is

mad

e up

of a

ll liv

ing

thin

gs. I

t cla

ims

that

whe

n al

l liv

ing

thin

gs a

re p

ut to

geth

er th

e re

sult

is G

od. I

t doe

s no

t say

cat

egor

ical

ly e

ither

th

at w

e ar

e G

od, o

r tha

t we

are

not –

inst

ead

it sa

ys th

at w

e ar

e m

ade

of G

od. T

his

is il

lust

rate

d w

ith th

e an

alog

y of

a d

rop

of w

ater

bei

ng m

ade

of th

e oc

ean

– th

e sa

me

subs

tanc

e bu

t on

an in

com

preh

ensi

bly

diffe

rent

sca

le.

The

pass

age

is o

pen

to a

var

iety

of d

iffer

ent i

nter

pret

atio

ns s

uppo

rting

diff

eren

t be

liefs

abo

ut th

e na

ture

of G

od. I

t cou

ld b

e co

nsid

ered

to b

e de

scrib

ing

a pa

nthe

ist

belie

f in

God

, whi

ch u

nder

stan

ds G

od a

s pa

rt of

the

univ

erse

or c

laim

s th

e un

iver

se

to b

e a

man

ifest

atio

n of

God

. Or i

t cou

ld a

lso

be c

onsi

dere

d to

be

com

ing

from

a

mon

ist p

ersp

ectiv

e, a

rgui

ng th

at th

ere

is o

nly

one

ultim

atel

y re

al s

ubst

ance

and

th

at is

God

. It c

ould

sup

port

a m

onot

heis

t bel

ief i

n a

sing

le d

eity

, with

out m

akin

g cl

aim

s as

to th

e ul

timat

e re

latio

nshi

p of

the

subs

tanc

e of

that

dei

ty a

nd th

e re

st o

f th

e un

iver

se. I

t doe

s no

t eve

n ru

le o

ut th

e pa

nthe

ist b

elie

f tha

t God

incl

udes

, but

is

grea

ter t

han

the

univ

erse

.

The

pass

age

is c

lear

ly c

laim

ing

that

God

is th

e so

urce

of a

ll lif

e bu

t it i

s am

bigu

ous

abou

t the

nat

ure

of G

od.

5C

andi

date

s do

not

nee

d to

refe

r to

all

of th

is m

ater

ial t

o ga

in th

e m

arks

.



Que

stio

nA

nsw

erM

arks

Gui

danc

e

4(b)

Expl

ain

the

impo

rtan

ce o

f ish

vara

in c

onte

mpo

rary

Hin

duis

m.

AO

1 –

Kno

wle

dge

and

unde

rsta

ndin

g.R

espo

nses

will

be

mar

ked

acco

rdin

g to

the

10 m

ark

leve

l des

crip

tors

(AO

1).

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht re

fer t

o so

me

of th

e fo

llow

ing:

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht fo

cus

on is

hvar

a as

a p

erso

nal d

eity

in th

e pr

actic

al s

ense

.

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht c

onsi

der i

ts im

porta

nce

in re

latio

n to

indi

vidu

als,

fam

ilies

and

co

mm

uniti

es a

nd th

ey m

ight

not

e th

at m

urti

puja

, whi

ch is

stro

ngly

ass

ocia

ted

with

co

ncep

ts o

f ish

vara

, is

prob

ably

the

mos

t pop

ular

form

of H

indu

pra

ctic

e. W

hile

po

pula

rity

does

not

cor

resp

ond

to p

hilo

soph

ical

impo

rtanc

e, it

doe

s in

dica

te th

e im

porta

nce

of is

hvar

a in

und

erst

andi

ng th

e re

aliti

es o

f Hin

duis

m a

s a

livin

g tra

ditio

n.

Alte

rnat

ivel

y, s

ome

cand

idat

es m

ight

take

a p

hilo

soph

ical

or t

heol

ogic

al p

ersp

ectiv

e,

desc

ribin

g ho

w d

iffer

ent v

iew

s of

the

Abs

olut

e an

d/or

of G

od h

ave

influ

ence

d co

ntem

pora

ry H

indu

s.

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht c

hoos

e to

bui

ld o

n Q

uest

ion

4(a)

, exp

lain

ing

the

rela

tions

hip

betw

een

ishv

ara

as a

per

sona

l God

and

con

cept

s of

sag

una

Bra

hman

. The

y m

ight

als

o co

nsid

er th

e ro

le o

f ide

as a

bout

and

wor

ship

of i

shva

ra in

rela

tion

to

achi

evin

g m

oksh

a (li

bera

tion)

, whi

ch is

see

n as

the

ultim

ate

goal

by

mos

t Hin

dus.

Th

e im

porta

nce

of th

e co

ncep

t of i

shva

ra m

ight

be

expl

ored

from

an

indi

vidu

al

pers

pect

ive

as b

eing

dire

ctly

rela

ted

to th

e co

ntrib

utio

n it

mak

es in

ach

ievi

ng

mok

sha.

Alte

rnat

ivel

y, c

andi

date

s m

ight

con

side

r the

impo

rtanc

e of

ishv

ara

from

the

mor

e ab

stra

ct p

ersp

ectiv

e of

its

sign

ifica

nce

in u

nder

stan

ding

con

tem

pora

ry fo

rms

of

Hin

duis

m.

Som

e ca

ndid

ates

mig

ht p

rese

nt is

hvar

a an

d sa

guna

Bra

hman

as

bein

g ef

fect

ivel

y sy

nony

mou

s an

d so

of e

qual

impo

rtanc

e. F

or o

ther

Hin

dus

this

is a

n in

com

plet

e un

ders

tand

ing

of th

e A

bsol

ute.

If th

e pa

th to

libe

ratio

n is

und

erst

ood

as o

verc

omin

g av

idya

(ign

oran

ce),

an in

com

plet

e un

ders

tand

ing

is a

an

obst

acle

to li

bera

tion.

H

indu

s w

ho ta

ke th

is v

iew

are

like

ly to

con

side

r ach

ievi

ng a

cor

rect

und

erst

andi

ng

of th

e tru

e na

ture

of t

hing

s as

mor

e im

porta

nt fo

r the

ir lib

erat

ion

than

the

conc

ept o

f is

hvar

a. O

ther

can

dida

tes

mig

ht c

omm

ent t

hat t

he m

atte

r is

mor

e co

mpl

ex a

nd th

at

ishv

ara

may

incl

ude

othe

r und

erst

andi

ngs

of B

rahm

an. T

hey

mig

ht re

fer t

o th

e

10C

andi

date

s do

not

nee

d to

refe

r to

all

of th

is m

ater

ial t

o ga

in th

e m

arks

.

Exa

mpl

es a

re u

sed

to il

lust

rate

the

conc

ept b

ut c

andi

date

s do

not

nee

d to

us

e ex

ampl

es to

gai

n th

e m

arks

.



Que

stio

nA

nsw

erM

arks

Gui

danc

e

4(b)

Sm

arta

per

spec

tive

of fo

cus

on is

hvar

a as

a fi

rst s

tep

tow

ards

real

isin

g th

e tru

th, o

r th

ey m

ight

con

side

r the

bha

kti m

arga

(pat

h of

dev

otio

n) a

s on

e of

the

poss

ible

pat

hs

to li

bera

tion.

Som

e H

indu

s co

nsid

er a

ll re

ligio

ns to

be

path

s to

the

sam

e tru

th. I

shva

ra m

ay

ther

efor

e be

con

side

red

as o

ne a

mon

g th

e m

any

poss

ible

nam

es fo

r a c

once

pt

of G

od s

hare

d by

all

relig

ions

. Thi

s w

ould

mak

e it

an im

porta

nt c

once

pt fo

r un

ders

tand

ing

Hin

duis

m a

s S

anat

ana

dhar

ma,

alth

ough

it w

ould

stil

l onl

y gi

ve a

pa

rtial

pic

ture

of H

indu

con

cept

s of

dei

ty a

nd th

e A

bsol

ute.



Que

stio

nA

nsw

erM

arks

Gui

danc

e

4(c)

Eval

uate

the

clai

m th

at H

indu

ism

is b

est d

escr

ibed

by

the

term

‘mon

ism

’.

AO

2 –

Ana

lysi

s an

d ev

alua

tion.

Res

pons

es w

ill b

e m

arke

d ac

cord

ing

to th

e 15

mar

k le

vel d

escr

ipto

rs (A

O2)

.

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht re

fer t

o so

me

of th

e fo

llow

ing:

Ther

e ar

e m

any

diffe

rent

nam

ed d

eitie

s as

soci

ated

with

Hin

duis

m. T

his

mig

ht le

ad

cand

idat

es to

arg

ue th

at, o

n th

e fa

ce o

f it,

Hin

duis

m is

a p

olyt

heis

tic re

ligio

n th

at

invo

lves

the

wor

ship

of m

any,

who

lly s

epar

ate,

dei

ties.

Thi

s, a

nd o

ther

des

crip

tors

(e

.g. h

enot

heis

m) m

ight

be

exam

ined

in tu

rn in

rela

tion

to d

iffer

ent u

nder

stan

ding

s of

H

indu

ism

. Can

dida

tes

mig

ht a

rgue

that

rath

er th

an w

orsh

ippi

ng d

istin

ct e

ntiti

es m

any

Hin

dus

unde

rsta

nd th

e de

ities

as

diffe

rent

par

ts o

r asp

ects

of a

gre

ater

who

le, s

uch

as S

hiva

or D

evi,

or a

s be

ing

rela

ted

in s

ome

way

to a

sin

gle

Sup

rem

e de

ity.

The

focu

s of

the

ques

tion

is H

indu

ism

as

mon

ism

, and

any

exp

lora

tion

of d

iffer

ent

desc

riptiv

e te

rms

shou

ld re

cogn

ise

this

. Mon

ism

mig

ht b

e un

ders

tood

as

a br

oade

r co

ncep

t tha

n m

onot

heis

m. M

onot

heis

m re

late

s to

sin

glen

ess

of d

eity

whe

reas

m

onis

m re

late

s to

the

exis

tenc

e of

onl

y on

e re

ality

or s

ubst

ance

from

whi

ch

ever

ythi

ng e

lse

is fo

rmed

.

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht c

onsi

der d

iffer

ent f

orm

s of

Ved

anta

, in

parti

cula

r Adv

aita

, in

rela

tion

to th

is id

ea. T

hey

mig

ht c

onsi

der w

heth

er G

od is

bes

t see

n as

an

impe

rson

al

Abs

olut

e w

ithou

t attr

ibut

es (n

irgun

a) o

r with

per

sona

l attr

ibut

es a

nd q

ualit

ies

(sag

una)

and

how

eac

h co

ncep

t rel

ates

to a

mon

ist p

ersp

ectiv

e.

Can

dida

tes

mig

ht c

oncl

ude

that

ther

e is

one

term

whi

ch b

est d

escr

ibes

Hin

duis

m

in th

eir v

iew

, or t

hey

mig

ht c

onsi

der t

hat H

indu

ism

is to

o di

vers

e to

be

sum

med

up

with

a s

ingl

e te

rm. T

hey

mig

ht c

oncl

ude

that

all

thes

e te

rms

are

draw

n fro

m W

este

rn

philo

soph

y, a

nd s

o ar

e ro

oted

in a

who

lly d

iffer

ent u

nder

stan

ding

of r

ealit

y to

that

of

Hin

du p

hilo

soph

ers

and

prac

titio

ners

.

Som

e ca

ndid

ates

mig

ht s

ugge

st th

at re

ligio

us p

ract

ice

is a

s im

porta

nt, o

r mor

e im

porta

nt, i

n un

ders

tand

ing

Hin

duis

m th

an p

hilo

soph

ical

per

spec

tives

. The

y m

ight

con

side

r for

ms

of w

orsh

ip o

r puj

a en

cour

aged

by

Ram

anuj

a an

d M

adhv

a re

pres

entin

g Vi

shis

tadv

aita

(qua

lifie

d no

n-du

alis

m) o

r Dva

ita (d

ualis

m),

and

the

impo

rtanc

e fo

r man

y H

indu

s of

bha

kti o

r dev

otio

n to

a p

erso

nal d

eity

.

15C

andi

date

s do

not

nee

d to

refe

r to

all

of th

is m

ater

ial t

o ga

in th

e m

arks

.

The

focu

s sh

ould

be

on w

heth

er

mon

ism

is th

e be

st w

ay to

des

crib

e H

indu

ism

. Can

dida

tes

may

refe

r to

othe

r nam

ed th

eist

ic tr

aditi

ons

but

this

sho

uld

be in

com

paris

on w

ith

the

valu

e of

the

term

mon

ism

in

desc

ribin

g H

indu

ism

, not

as

a ge

nera

l di

scus

sion

of t

he o

ther

thei

stic

term

s.

Cre

dit a

ll re

leva

nt d

iscu

ssio

n.

Can

dida

tes

can

argu

e fo

r or a

gain

st

the

clai

m a

s lo

ng a

s th

eir d

iscu

ssio

n is

fo

cuse

d on

the

ques

tion.