Question

Periya Puranam is the work on
A) Bengal Vaishnavism
B) Tamil Shaivism
C) Kashmir Shaivism
D) Post-Gupta Shaktism

Answer 1

Hint: The Periya Puranam, or Great Purana or Epic, is a Tamil literary account recounting the lives of the sixty-three Nayanars, the canonical poets of Tamil Shaivism. It is also known as Tiruttontarpuranam ("Tiru-Thondar-Puranam," the Purana of the Holy Devotees). It was compiled by Sekkizhar in the 12th century. It proves that there was trade with West Asia.

Complete answer:
Periya puranam is a Tamil Shaivism work. Shiva, also known as Rudra, is worshipped as the Supreme Being in Shaivism, one of the major Hindu religions. It incorporates several sub-traditions ranging from devotional dualistic theism such as Shaiva Siddhanta to yoga-oriented monistic non-theism such as Kashmiri Shaivism, making it one of the largest Hindu faiths.

Shaivism arose from the synthesis of pre-Vedic faiths and traditions inherited from the southern Tamil Dravidian Shaiva Siddhanta traditions and philosophies, which were integrated into the non-Vedic Shiva tradition. Starting in the last years BCE, with the Sanskritization and development of Hinduism, these pre-Vedic traditions became connected with the Vedic deity Rudra and other Vedic deities, bringing non-Vedic Shiva-traditions into the Vedic-Brahmanical fold.

In the first century CE, both devotional and monistic Shaivism gained prominence, quickly becoming the main religious tradition of many Hindu countries. Soon after, it came to Southeast Asia, resulting in the construction of thousands of Shiva temples on the Indonesian islands, as well as in Cambodia and Vietnam, where it co-evolved with Buddhism.

Therefore the correct answer is option ‘B’.

Note: Shiva is described as the creator, preserver, and destroyer in Shaivite theology, as well as being the same as the Atman (self, soul) within oneself and every living entity. It has a strong connection to Shaktism, and some Shaivas visit both Shiva and Shakti temples. The Hindu tradition is the one that most readily embraces asceticism and stresses yoga.