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History Optional PYQ Master Pack · Model answer

Examine the information of Fahien about the political, religious, social and economic conditions of India. Make a comparative study of his account with that of Yuan Chwang.

  • UPSC 2003
  • Guptas, Vakatakas and Vardhanas

Two Chinese Buddhist pilgrims separated by roughly two centuries, Fa-Hien (visiting during Chandragupta II, c. 399–411 CE) and Yuan Chwang or Hiuen Tsang (visiting during Harshavardhana, c. 630–645 CE), left behind travelogues that are among the richest non-indigenous sources for early medieval India. Their accounts are valuable not merely for the information each supplies independently…

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What the full answer covers

  • Political conditions
  • Social conditions
  • Religious conditions
  • Economic conditions
  • Comparative assessment as historical sources

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