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Early Civilizations of India, Pakistan and China
Concepts and Definitions
India How does geography effect
India? Where and what were
India’s first civilizations? Why did they decline? Who were the Aryans? What were some of their
cultural contributions? Describe the caste system Describe the principles of
Buddhism and Hinduism
Vocabulary and Places Caste- know all five
classes Indus River, Ganges River Himalaya Mountains Hinduism Buddhism Karma Dharma patriarchal society nirvana
Geography of India
Geography major force shaping the early cultures of India
Himalaya Mountains to the north, ocean to the south
Central India-Deccan Plateau –a dry area not good for supporting agriculture.
coast is a good agricultural region, densest populations.
Two major river systems The Ganges and the Indus- begin
in the Himalayas. The first civilizations grew up
around the Indus River Valley
Monsoons were a defining feature of life
Monsoon rains come in the summer and in the winter the wind shifts direction and bring it brings hot, dry air
Monsoons bring rain to agricultural areas
What if the monsoons came too early or late?
Geography of India
India’s First Civilizations
Along the Indus River valley in present day Pakistan, civilization flourished from 3,000-1500 B.C.
Two major cities were Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro
Very little is known about this culture because archeologists have yet to decipher their writing
Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro
Each city around 35,000 people
well planned with grid streets, raised buildings and a sewer system
The uniformity suggests cities had well organized governments
Like all ancient civilizations, religion and political power were closely linked
Harappan economy was based on agriculture and they trade extensively with Mesopotamian civilizations
Environmental factors and invasion led to the downfall of the Harappan culture
These cities were not discovered until the 1920’s
Using your notes and the book (pages 72-73) describe features of Harappan culture that demonstrate they were an advanced civilization.
Question #1
Invaders
Aryans, a nomadic group from central Asia, crossed the Hindu-Kush mountains and conquered the region around 1500 B.C.
The Aryans created a new society in India. They eventually controlled most of northern India
The Aryans settled down and became agriculturists. They used iron, a new invention, to clear land. They grew grains in the arid north, rice, cotton and spices were grown in the south and along the river valleys
Aryan Life
The Aryans developed a written language , Sanskrit around 1000B.C.
They wrote religious rituals, legends that had previously been passed down orally
The writings reveal that early Aryan culture was ruled by rajas. Each had a small state and fought each other
Question #2- What are the advantages of passing on cultural knowledge orally and passing it on through writing? What are the disadvantages?
Society in Ancient India
Aryan conquest had long lasting effects on India
Created social divisions and a set of social institutions that last even today- this is known as the caste system
Important Indian social creation
It sets up a rigid hierarchy that determines a persons occupation, economic potential and social status
It was based in part on a persons skin color- the Aryan conquers were had lighter skin than the native Indians
The five castes are- Brahman, Kshatriyas, Viasyas, Sudras and the Untouchables
Caste System pages 74-77
Known as jati There are thousands of castes in India.
Brahmans- top of society, usually priests, in charge of religious ceremonies
Kshatriayas- typically warriors, as society changed they found new forms of employment
Vaisyas- commoners, merchants and farmers
Caste System
Sudras- most people in India, peasants that preformed manual labor, had limited rights
Untouchables- the lowest class, did jobs other Indians would not accept, collecting trash, handling dead bodies, lived away from others, not considered human
Caste System
Life centered on the family unit
Ideal family had three generation living under one roof (grandparents, parents and children)
Oldest male was head of the household (patriarchal society)
Men were educated, taught by a guru
Marriage was important and arranged by the parents
Symbol of dominance by men was the suttee. It was a funeral pyre that women had to throw themselves on top of after the death of their husband
Family Life in Ancient India
One of the worlds most complex religions
Hinduism has no single founder or sacred text
Mixture of Aryan beliefs and native Indian beliefs
Hinduism has many different gods and goddesses because to Hindus Brahman is too complex for most people to understand
Hinduism – “God is one but wise people know it by many names”
Hindu Beliefs
Hinduism is a polytheistic religion
Important Gods- Brahma the Creator Vishnu the Preserver Shiva the Destroyer Each represents an aspects of
Brahman- they can take many different forms and each is worshiped by different people
Each god also has a family
Sacred Texts
Hindu teaching recorded in the Vedas and the Upanishads
Bhagavad-Gita spells out many ethical ideas central to Hinduism- importance of duty over desire and ambition
Every person has an essential self (atman)
Ultimate goal of existence is to achieve moksha, a union with Brahman
To do this you must free yourself from personal, selfish desire
Most do not achieve moksha in one lifetime
Hindus believe in –reincarnation- rebirth of the soul in another bodily form- allows Hindus to achieve moksha through many lifetimes
Hindu Goal of Life
Karma and Dharma
Easier to achieve moksha if you follow rules of karma
Karma- all of the actions in this life will effect your next life. Symbolized by the wheel of fate
To escape wheel of fate need to perform the religious and moral duties of a Hindu- dharma.
obeying dharma a person acquires merit for the next life.
concepts of karma and dharma ensure social order by supporting the caste system
Describe the relationship between the caste system, dharma.
Why are sacred texts important to many religions?
Assignment
In the sixth century B.C. a son of a local ruling family in northern India named Siddhartha Gautama founded a new religion
This religion would spread across Asia and become one of the world’s most influential religions
He wanted to escape the trappings of his good life and “discover” the true meaning of life
After searching and wandering he meditated under a tree for forty-eight days and understood the cause of suffering. He became the Buddha, “The Enlightened One”
Buddhism pages 78-79
Buddhism
Goal of Buddhist life is to attain nirvana that is the end of self and the union with the Great World soul.
All life is suffering, caused by human attachment to the material world.
Once people let go of this attachment worldly pain and suffering are forgotten
The Four Noble Truths
1. Ordinary life is full of suffering
2. Suffering is caused by our desire to satisfy ourselves
3. The way to end suffering is to end desire for selfish goals and to see others as an extension of ourselves
4. The way to end desire is to follow the Middle Path
Middle Path
1. Right View2. Right Intention3. Right Speech4. Right Action5. Right Effort6. Right Livelihood7. Right Mindfulness8. Right Concentration-
meditation
Both grew from the same traditions Both stress nonviolence, karma, dharma,
nonviolence, and a cycle of rebirth Hinduism had formal rituals and many gods Buddhism had rejected rituals, individuals
seek spiritual enlightenment through meditation, nirvana was offered to all regardless of birth.
Buddhism and Hinduism Compared
Indian Empires and Culture
400 B.C. to 500 A.D.
People Chandragupta Maurya Asoka Aryabhata
Cultural Items and Places Silk Road Stupa Rock chamber
Concepts and Definitions to know
In 400 B.C. the Aryan rule was in decline and India was comprised of warring rajas.
India faced a new threat from the west-Persia and then from the Macedonian general Alexander the Great
Chandragupta Maurya founded the first great empire in India around 350 B.C. to 301 B.C.
The Mauryan Empire waged war to gain power
Mauryan Dynasty pages 81-82
Mauryan Dynasty
The Mauryan Empire: Had a large army and
secret police Had a highly centralized
government The empire was divided
into four provinces ruled by local governors
To pay for the government the people, agriculture and industry were heavily taxed
Thirty two years after the death of Chandragupta his grandson Asoka became the ruler
Many consider him the greatest ruler ever in India
Early in his reign he used the military to expand the power of the empire
After a battle where over 100,000 soldiers died he converted to Buddhism and adopted a policy of non-violence
Mauryan Empire under Asoka
Mauryan Empire under Asoka
After his conversion he advocated religious tolerance, treated his subjects humanely, opened hospitals
Throughout the empire he erected large stone pillars with his edicts
He built roads and planted trees to make travel easier
He sent out missionaries to spread Buddhist teachings
He disbanded the secret police and the government looked out for peoples welfare
After the death of Asoka period of war and disunity new kingdom in northern India dominated by trade trade connections and political instability elsewhere
people from central Asia, Greece and Persia settle in northern India.
migration added to and created instability in Indian culture.
southern India - Tamil Empire dominated they practiced different religion (Jainism) and spoke a different language (Tamil)
A Period of Turmoil
Kingdom in Bactria (now Afghanistan) Established in the first century A.D. Kingdom prospered through trade. Trade route that from China to the Mediterranean
(Roman Empire). The Silk Road was established between 200 B.C. and
100 A.D. Trade goods from Rome were traded for silks and
spices from Asia. The goods traveled on camel caravans
Kushan Kingdom and the Silk Road pages 83-84
The Silk Road
In the third century A.D. invaders from Persia overran the Kushan Empire
replaced by the Gupta Empire The empire efficiently run engaged in trade with
the Mediterranean. More power in the hands of the local rulers. Many religious pilgrims came to India to visit
major Buddhist religious centers fifth century A.D. the Guptas were invaded by
the nomadic Huns empire declined. India would not be united for hundreds of years
Gupta Empire pages 84-85
Indian Literature- passed down orally, after the Aryan invasions it was written in Sanskrit
Bhagvad Gita- sermon by the god Krishna about taking action because of the moral rightness of it
Indian Culture pages 85-86
Buddha inspired architecture of Asoka. architecture of the Mauryan Dynasty served
religious purposes. stupa, the pillar and the rock chamber
examples of Indian architecture. Pillars- most famous examples of Asoka’s
reign. placed along roads had the sayings of the Buddha, marked sites in the Buddha’s life the laws of the empire. They were topped with carvings, usually lions
Indian Architecture and Science
Indian Architecture and Science
Stupas- originally to house relics of Buddha’s life. eventually became a place for Buddhist devotion and worship
Rock Chamber- carved out of cliffs. for Buddhist monks to live and religious ceremonies
Contributions in Indian science and math astronomy. They knew that the earth was a sphere it revolved around the sun.
algebra. Indian mathematicians
introduced the concept of zero and used a symbol for it