Correct Answer: Correct answer is: (D) All of these.
Exam Relevance: UPSC Civil Services, IAS Prelims, Philosophy Exams
Difficulty: Moderate
Concept notes: The Charvaka philosophy, an ancient Indian materialistic school of thought, rejected the authority of the Vedas and other scriptures. They based their rejection on several grounds, including criticism of inference, absence of physical proof, and contradictions and tautologies within the scriptures.
Common Mistakes: Students may mistakenly believe that the Charvakas rejected the scriptures based on a single reason, rather than a combination of multiple reasons.
Explanations: The Charvakas rejected the validity of scriptures on multiple grounds. They criticized the use of inference (anumana) as a means of knowledge, arguing that it is unreliable without empirical evidence. They also pointed out the absence of physical proof for the claims made in the scriptures. Additionally, they highlighted contradictions and tautologies within the scriptures, further undermining their validity. Therefore, the correct answer is "All of these."
Option Analysis: - Option A: Criticism of inference is one of the reasons, but not the only one.
- Option B: Absence of physical proof is another reason, but not the only one.
- Option C: Contradictions and tautologies are also reasons, but not the only ones.
- Option D: This option correctly identifies that all the reasons mentioned are valid.
Mnemonic: C-A-C: Criticism, Absence, Contradictions