Question

Xuansang, a Chinese pilgrim during the 7th century wrote that their (Indian) garments are made of Kiau-She-Ye and cotton. He used the term Kiau-She-Ye for ________

• A. Fine cotton
• B. Jute
• C. Silk
• D. The Shining Hemp

Answer 1

The Correct Option is C

Concept:

• Xuanzang (also spelt Xuansang or Hiuen Tsang) was a Chinese pilgrim who travelled through India in the 7th century and recorded detailed notes on Indian life, including textiles.
• He used the term Kiau-She-Ye, which is his phonetic rendering of the Sanskrit word 'Kausheya'.
• Kausheya is the classical Sanskrit term for silk, so his account is describing garments made of silk and cotton.

Step 1: Recognise the term as a phonetic transliteration.
Kiau-She-Ye is not an English or Hindi word, it is Xuanzang's Chinese rendering of a Sanskrit textile term.

Step 2: Trace it back to the Sanskrit original.
The sound Kiau-She-Ye closely matches Kausheya, the well documented Sanskrit word for silk.

Step 3: Eliminate the other fabric options.
Fine cotton, jute, and hemp are all different materials with their own separate names in old Indian texts, none of them match the term Kausheya.

Final Answer: Silk