Among the following, who was not a proponent of the Bhakti cult?

Answer: (a) Nagarjuna

Nagarjuna was a Buddhist philosopher of the Madhyamika school. Tukaram, Tyagaraja and Vallabhacharya were all devotional (bhakti) saints and teachers.

• ✓ (a) Nagarjuna (c. 2nd century CE) founded Madhyamika Buddhism, not bhakti.
• ✗ (b) Tukaram was a Marathi bhakti poet-saint.
• ✗ (d) Vallabhacharya taught devotion to Krishna (Pushtimarg).

Remember · Nagarjuna: Madhyamika Buddhist philosopher, not bhakti.

📘 Read it in NCERT: Class 11 Knowledge Traditions and Practices of India, Part I, Ch 1 (practise this chapter) · Class 12 Themes in Indian History, Part II, Ch 2 (practise this chapter)

Question: UPSC Civil Services (Preliminary) 2010, General Studies paper. UPSC did not publish an answer key for 2010: the answer shown is the one the sources above support. Explanation: Minimalist IAS, checked 24 Oct 2026 (how we verify). · Report an error