Questions

Read the passage carefully and select the best answer to each question out of the given four alternatives.

One should consciously engage in activities that will nourish your soul. Just as we nourish the body, we need to nurture the soul to connect to the creative power of the universe and to manifest joy in our lives. Often, we forget to address the soul, lost as we are in a jungle of material and sensual pleasures. But the more you embrace what feeds your soul, the happier you become. So if you want to enjoy the abundance of life, engage in what enriches your soul. Nurturing the soul is all about finding calm amidst chaos. There are a number of practices that empower people towards this end including silent contemplation, various forms of meditation, yoga and tai chi However, the rigor and discipline involved in the pursuit of such practices often seems to discourage people. Add to this, the temptations of the material world that leave little time and motivation for anyone to pursue the spiritual path. Poet Walt Whitman declared: “Whatever satisfies the soul is truth”. The good news is that simple, everyday activities can also nutrify the soul — like spending time in the midst of nature, dancing in the rain or just putting thoughts on paper. Do whatever is calming and pleases you. Creative pursuits are particularly appealing as inside each one of us, there is an artist craving for release and awaiting an opportunity for expression. One of the ways to indulge the artist within is to get started with the practice of any one or more of the creative art forms such as music, singing, dancing, acting, drawing, painting, sculpting, poetry, fiction or essay writing.

When you engage in such soul nourishing activities, all thought and energy gets focused toward goal accomplishment. At this point, you will find that even unknown forces of the universe are conniving to assist you in your amateurish but sincere attempts. As you progress, you are motivated to do better. You touch and access a faculty, a part of you that you never knew existed. Your inner artist is unleashed, baring the beauty of your soul that has found a fond medium of expression. For instance, a sculptor’s soul is seen in his artwork; a musician’s in his compositions; an actor’s in his acting, a painter’s in his paintings and so on. It is immaterial whether your effort is an immaculate artwork or just a clumsy attempt by a layperson. The idea is to try, be inspired and to create giving free rein to the mind. As Michelangelo remarked: “I saw the angel in the marble and carved until I set him free”!

According to the passage, why even our amateurish attempts motivate us?

Which of these countries got Independence from United Kingdom?

____ lake is suspected to have developed due to ipact of a large meteorite on Deccan Basaltic rocks of Cretaceous age.

_________ can give the Union parliament power to make laws on matters included in the State list.

In the following passage some of the words have been left out. Read the passage carefully and select the correct answer for the given blank out of the four alternatives.

The ______________ of gurudakshina is very ancient and it is ________________ to the Indian culture and tradition. If you are absolutely ______________ about India, then it's advisable that you first try to understand the meaning of a guru and the ________________ of his presence in the lives of those around him. This, in turn, will help you to understand what guru dakshina is. In ancient India, a teacher or a guru was a spiritually _____________ guide.

If you are absolutely ______________ about India

In the following question, out of the four alternatives, select the word opposite in meaning to the word given.

To filch

In the following passage, some of the words have been left out. Read the passage carefully and select the correct answer for the given blank out of the four alternatives.

While language as the medium ___________ thought may be compared to air as the medium of the sun's influence, in other _____________ it is like the skin of the body; a scurvy skin shows bad blood within, and a scurvy language shows inaccurate thought ___________ a confused mind. And as a disease once fixed on the skin reacts and poisons the blood in turn as it has first been poisoned by the blood, so careless use of language __________ indulged reacts on the mind to make it permanently and increasingly _____________, illogical, and inaccurate in its thinking.

in other _____________ it is like the skin

In the following question, a sentence has been given in Direct/Indirect speech. Out of the four alternatives suggested, select the one which best expresses the same sentence in Indirect/Direct speech.

He said to the bankers, "These diamonds are more valuable than a billion dollars."