UGC NET Questions (Paper – 1)

Samanya represents the shared nature or universal that is instantiated in many particular objects, enabling us to group them under a common class name. For example, cow-ness is the samanya present in all individual cows. Nyaya-Vaisheshika treats universals as real entities distinct from both individuals and mental constructs. Hence the universal described in the stem is samanya.

Option A:
Option A is correct because samanya literally means “commonness” and designates that which is one in many, grounding our ability to recognise kinds.

Option B:
Option B, vishesha, is the category of particularity that differentiates ultimate entities from one another; it is the opposite of the unifying role of samanya.

Option C:
Option C, dravya, refers to substances that serve as substrates for qualities and universals; universals reside in them but are not identical with them.

Option D:
Option D, guna, denotes qualities such as colour or taste, which inhere in substances but are not the universals under which many individuals are classified.

Samanya is the universal that is instantiated in many individual substances and allows us to group them under a common name. It is numerically one yet present in multiple loci, such as pot-ness in all pots. Nyaya-Vaisheshika treats universals as real entities distinct from both particulars and purely mental constructs. Thus the common nature described in the stem is samanya.

Option A:
Option A, dravya, refers to substances like earth or water that serve as substrata for universals and qualities but are not themselves the unifying properties.

Option B:
Option B, guna, denotes qualities such as colour or taste that inhere in substances and may vary from one instance to another, unlike universals which are shared.

Option C:
Option C is correct because samanya literally means "commonness" and explains how many individuals can fall under a single class-concept. It plays a central role in realist accounts of universals in Indian metaphysics.

Option D:
Option D, vishesha, stands for ultimate particularity that differentiates entities rather than unifying them, so it is conceptually opposite to samanya.

Samavaya is the special relation that connects entities which cannot exist separately, such as a substance and its qualities or a whole and its component parts. Ordinary relations like contact are considered too weak to capture this intimate ontological tie. Nyaya-Vaisheshika therefore treats samavaya as a distinct, eternal category. The inseparable bonding described in the stem is precisely this relation of samavaya.

Option A:
Option A, samanya, denotes universals or common properties shared by many individuals and is not itself a relation of inherence between different entities.

Option B:
Option B is correct because samavaya literally connotes "co-existence" in a particularly strong sense and is explicitly defined as the relation that explains why certain items cannot be separated without destruction.

Option C:
Option C, abhava, refers to non-existence or absence and thus cannot function as the glue that unites substances with their qualities or parts.

Option D:
Option D, vishesha, is the category of ultimate particularity that individuates entities rather than the relation that holds them together.

Vishesha is introduced to account for how fundamentally similar entities, such as atoms of the same element or individual selves, remain numerically distinct. It is an ultimate, non-shareable particularity that marks each entity as this one rather than that one. Without vishesha, the theory fears a collapse of multiplicity into undifferentiated sameness. Therefore the individuating factor mentioned in the stem is vishesha.

Option A:
Option A, samanya, is the universal that unites many individuals into a class and so performs the opposite function of highlighting sameness rather than difference.

Option B:
Option B, samavaya, is the relation of inseparable inherence and does not serve as a principle of individuation among qualitatively similar entities.

Option C:
Option C, abhava, denotes types of non-existence and cannot furnish a positive differentiator that grounds individuality.

Option D:
Option D is correct because vishesha literally means "particularity" and is proposed precisely to secure numerical diversity at the atomic and spiritual levels in Nyaya-Vaisheshika ontology.

Dravya is the basic category of substance that underlies and supports qualities and actions. Classical lists include nine or more dravyas such as earth, water, fire, air, ether, time, space, self and mind. These entities provide the ontological foundation for other categories. Therefore the substrates mentioned in the stem are called dravya.

Option A:
Option A, samanya, denotes universals common to many substances and qualities but is not itself a substance.

Option B:
Option B, guna, consists of attributes like colour or smell that inhere in dravyas and cannot exist independently.

Option C:
Option C, karma, refers to motion or activity that also exists only in substances.

Option D:
Option D is correct because dravya literally means “that which flows” and is used to designate the enduring bearers of properties and actions within this metaphysical scheme.

Samavaya is the special relation posited by Nyaya-Vaisheshika to account for cases where two entities are so intimately connected that they cannot exist separately, such as a substance and its qualities or a whole and its constituent parts. Ordinary relations like contact are deemed insufficient to explain this inseparability. Samavaya is therefore treated as an eternal, irreducible category. Hence the bond mentioned in the stem is called samavaya.

Option A:
Option A, samanya, denotes universals that are common to many individuals and does not name a relation between distinct entities. It explains similarity, not inseparable connection.

Option B:
Option B is correct because samavaya directly addresses the ontological need for a relation that binds co-located but numerically distinct entities into unified complexes. It plays a crucial role in the padartha framework.

Option C:
Option C, vishesha, is the category of particularity that differentiates ultimate entities from one another and is not the relation holding between them.

Option D:
Option D, abhava, signifies non-existence or absence and cannot be the glue that unites substances with their qualities or parts.

A, B and C correctly describe padārtha and include standard Nyaya–Vaisheshika categories, and E matches common exam patterns. D is false because “buddhi/jñāna” is at least discussed categorically in Indian philosophies (and in Nyaya–Vaisheshika it is treated under the category of quality/guṇa of the self), so it is incorrect to claim cognition is never treated categorically anywhere. Hence A, B, C and E only are correct.

Option A:
Option A is correct because it includes all true statements and excludes D, which is an overgeneralisation.

Option B:
Option B is incomplete because it omits E (exam identification angle).

Option C:
Option C is incorrect because it includes D (false) and omits A (definition of padārtha).

Option D:
Option D is incorrect because it omits B (dravya/guṇa/karma examples) and includes D (false).

Samavaya is defined as an intimate relation of inseparable inherence that cannot be reduced to contact or conjunction. It explains bonds such as that between a substance and its qualities or between a whole and its parts. Nyaya-Vaisheshika regards this relation as eternal and unique to these specific connections. Thus the tie described in the stem is called samavaya.

Option A:
Option A, samanya, denotes universals common to many individuals and does not refer to a relation of inherence.

Option B:
Option B, vishesha, signifies ultimate particularity that differentiates indivisible entities, not the relation that binds attributes to substances.

Option C:
Option C, abhava, is non-existence and is used to account for absences rather than for the bonding of existent entities.

Option D:
Option D is correct because samavaya is the only padartha explicitly described as an ineradicable relation tying together entities that cannot exist independently.

Abhava is introduced to explain cognitions and statements about what is not there, like “there is no pot on the floor.” Nyaya-Vaisheshika treats absence as a real category with its own subtypes, such as prior, posterior and mutual non-existence. Recognising abhava allows the system to handle negative facts systematically. Thus the category mentioned in the stem is abhava.

Option A:
Option A, guna, stands for positive qualities like colour or taste and does not capture the notion of absence.

Option B:
Option B, karma, means motion or action inhering in substances and again concerns positive features.

Option C:
Option C is correct because abhava literally means “non-being” and neatly labels the structured ways in which something can be absent.

Option D:
Option D, dravya, refers to substances that exist and bear qualities; it is opposed to non-existence.

Vishesha is posited to account for the numerical distinctness of entities that are otherwise qualitatively identical, such as atoms of the same element or individual selves. It is an ultimate, non-shareable feature that prevents their collapse into a single entity. Without vishesha, the world would lack multiplicity at the fundamental level. Therefore the differentiating factor described in the stem is vishesha.

Option A:
Option A, samanya, is the universal that unites many individuals into one class and so plays the opposite role of highlighting commonality rather than difference.

Option B:
Option B is correct because vishesha literally means “particularity” and is used precisely to secure the individuality of basic entities. It ensures that there are many distinct selves and atoms instead of just one.

Option C:
Option C, samavaya, is the relation of inherence between entities like substance and attribute, not the differentiator of individuals.

Option D:
Option D, abhava, denotes types of non-existence and cannot serve as a positive principle of individuation.