Question

Who among the following foreigners was the first to visit India?

• A. Hiuen-Tsang
• B. Megasthenese
• C. I Ching
• D. Fahien

Answer 1

The Correct Option is B

To determine who among the listed foreigners was the first to visit India, we need to understand the historical context and timeline of their visits.

1. Megasthenes: He was a Greek ambassador to the court of Chandragupta Maurya in the 4th century BCE. He is one of the earliest known accounts of India by any foreigner, documenting the Indian subcontinent's geography, culture, and administration in his work, "Indica."
2. Fahien: A Chinese Buddhist monk, Fahien traveled to India during the reign of Chandragupta II (Gupta Empire) in the early 5th century CE to acquire Buddhist texts and spread Buddhism.
3. Hiuen-Tsang: Another Chinese Buddhist monk, he visited India in the early 7th century CE, during the reign of Harshavardhana, and documented his travels extensively in "The Great Tang Records on the Western Regions."
4. I Ching: A Chinese Buddhist monk who visited India later on in the 7th century CE, compiling works that contributed to the understanding of Buddhism and its practices.

Comparing the timelines, Megasthenes was the first among these individuals to visit India. He lived in the 4th century BCE, much earlier than the others mentioned.

Conclusion: Therefore, the correct answer is Megasthenes. He was the first foreigner among the given options to visit India.