UGC NET Questions (Paper – 1)

Pramana is defined as the instrument or means that produces valid cognition. It connects the knower to the knowable object in a trustworthy way. Different systems list different numbers of pramanas, but all treat pramana as the technical term for a source of knowledge. Therefore the generic means of valid knowledge mentioned in the stem is called pramana.

Option A:
Option A is correct because pramana names the channel such as perception or inference through which knowledge arises. It focuses on the causal or justificatory route by which the cognition is obtained. Without pramana there would be no recognised basis for calling a cognition valid.

Option B:
Option B, prameya, is the object about which knowledge is obtained, like a pot or a cloth, not the means that produces the cognition. It is what is known, not the instrument of knowing. Hence it does not fit the description of a means.

Option C:
Option C, pramata, is the knowing subject who experiences the cognition. While essential to the knowledge situation, the subject is not termed the means of knowing. Thus pramata cannot fill the blank.

Option D:
Option D, pramiti, denotes the resultant valid cognition or knowledge produced by a pramana. It is the outcome in the epistemic process, not the instrument that yields it.

In Indian epistemology, particularly in the Nyaya school, pramanas are recognised as valid means or instruments of knowledge. Perception, inference, comparison and verbal testimony form the canonical four pramanas in early Nyaya. Each provides a distinct route by which cognition can be justified. Therefore the group of knowledge sources mentioned in the stem is correctly called pramanas.

Option A:
Option A, vyaptis, refers to relations of invariable concomitance between hetu and sadhya and is not itself a means of knowledge. Vyapti is used within inference but does not name the broader category of knowledge sources. Hence vyaptis is not appropriate.

Option B:
Option B, hetus, are reasons or middle terms used in inference to support a conclusion. They function within one pramana, anumana, rather than naming all means of knowledge. Thus hetus cannot be the correct answer.

Option C:
Option C, pakshas, are the subjects or loci in which a property is to be established in inference. Again, paksha is a component of inferential structure, not a general type of knowledge source. Therefore pakshas is not suitable here.

Option D:
Option D is correct because pramanas encompass all the recognised independent means through which valid cognition can arise in Nyaya. The examples listed in the question are standard members of this group.

Pramana is the technical term used in Indian epistemology to denote a reliable instrument or means of valid knowledge. It focuses on the process or channel through which true cognition arises, such as perception or inference. By identifying pramana, philosophers can distinguish trustworthy cognitions from error. Therefore, the generic means described in the stem is correctly called pramana.

Option A:
Option A is correct because pramana names the epistemic instrument, like perception or testimony, that causally and justificatorily connects the knower to the object. It captures the idea of a route that, when functioning properly, produces non-contradicted, fruitful cognition. In pramana theory, the classification of different pramanas is central to understanding how knowledge is grounded.

Option B:
Option B, prameya, denotes the object that is known, such as a pot or a sound, and is thus the target of knowledge rather than the means that produces it. Treating prameya as a means would confuse the distinction between epistemic instrument and object. Hence prameya cannot fill the blank in this definition.

Option C:
Option C, pramiti, is the valid cognition itself, the resultant knowledge occurring in the mind after the pramana has operated. It is an epistemic product rather than the instrumentive factor highlighted in the question. Identifying pramiti with pramana would collapse the process–product distinction.

Option D:
Option D, pramata, refers to the knower or epistemic subject who employs pramanas to gain knowledge of prameyas. While essential to the knowledge situation, the pramata is not described as the instrument that generates cognition. Therefore pramata does not match the stem.