UGC NET Questions (Paper – 1)

Sabda is the pramana based on meaningful statements issued by a reliable speaker or preserved in authoritative texts. It underlies much of our everyday knowledge, such as historical facts or distant events, that we cannot verify directly. Nyaya conditions its validity on the competence and honesty of the source. Hence the testimony-based knowledge in the stem is properly called sabda.

Option A:
Option A is correct because sabda explicitly denotes verbal testimony as a distinct source of valid cognition. By treating sabda separately, Nyaya acknowledges our dependence on linguistic communication for large portions of what we legitimately know. It also allows detailed analysis of when testimony is trustworthy or defective.

Option B:
Option B, pratyaksha, delivers direct sensory knowledge and does not involve reliance on someone else's words. While perception and testimony can sometimes co-operate, the question focuses on knowledge based primarily on statements.

Option C:
Option C, smriti, is memory, which recalls previously acquired knowledge but does not itself introduce new information from another speaker. It presupposes earlier pramanas such as perception or testimony.

Option D:
Option D, anumana, is inference based on signs and vyapti and does not require an authoritative speaker; its justification lies in logical relations, not in the reliability of testimony.