Chapter 3 India and China
Geography of Indian subcontinent
The Monsoon
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L8E-s5QTQOg
Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro
• Centered in Indus R. valley 3000 – 1500 BC
• Circa 35,000 inhabitants
• Show high level of organization– Water– Plumbing– Garbage disposal
• Agrarian• Trade (Esp. by Sea
with Mesopotamia)
Aryan Invasions
• Harappan culture weakened by natural disasters / effect flow of Indus R.
• 1500 BC Indo-European nomadic people cross into Indus valley
• Excellent warriors• Develop Sanskrit circa
1000 BC• Raja is name for ruler
Society in Ancient India
• India was a conquered state– Relatively light skinned Aryans conquer relatively dark-
skinned inhabitants Indus R. valley• Caste System
– Brahmans – priestly class– Kshatriyas – warrior class– Vaisyas – merchants and farmers– Sudras – peasants with limited rights– Untouchables – outside of the system did menial and
degrading tasks (5%)• Patriarchcal
– Suttee http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMPGakW08r4&feature=related
Hinduism
• Origins in religious beliefs of Aryan people– Vedas (collections of hymns and religious
rites initially passed down orally, later written down)
• Brahman – ultimate reality• Atman – individual self• Reincarnation (circa 6th century BC)• Karma – force generated by a person’s life• Dharma – divine law or your duty• Yoga – (union) method of training designed to help
individual reach oneness with God
Buddhism (Religion or Philosophy)
• Siddhartha Gautama (6th century BC)– Born to great wealth– Ascetics– Meditation enlightenment bodhi nirvana– Accepts reincarnation but rejects caste system – anyone can reach
nirvana as a result of behavior in this life– Rejects multiple gods of Hinduism and forbade followers from
worshipping him or his image
• The Four Noble Truths– Ordinary life is full of suffering– This suffering is caused by our desire to satisfy ourselves– If you want to end suffering you must end your desire – The way to end desire is to seek the Middle Path
The Eightfold Path (Middle Path)
• Right view• Right intention• Right speech• Right action• Right livelihood• Right effort• Right mindfulness• Right concentration
The Eightfold Path
Right_____ Right_____ Right_____
Right_____Right_____Right_____Right_____
Right_____
Buddhism and Hinduism
Complete the Venn Diagram using the following words: Worships many gods, reincarnation, Four Noble Truths, associated with Aryans, karma, Brahman, yoga, Siddhartha Gautama, nirvana, bodhi, Eightfold Path, atman, believes in rigidly defined castes, most common religion in India today, all people can reach nirvana as a result of their actions in their current life
BuddhismHinduism
Later Indian Empires• Mauryan circa 300 BC – 180 BC
– Chandragupta Maurya• “It is power and power alone, which, only when exercised by the
king with impartiality, over his son or his enemy, maintains both this world and the next.”
– Asoka (268 – 232 BC)• India’s “greatest ruler• Buddhist approach
• Kushan (circa 200 BC – 200 AD– Primarily a trade empire – Silk Road
• Gupta (320 AD – circa 650 AD)– Founded by Chandragupta in central Ganges– Trade is important as pilgrims come to visit major religious
centers under Gupta control
The Silk Road
Cultural Contributions of India• Without military expansion, India’s culture
has spread throughout the world– Literature
• Vedas• Mahabharata - 90,000 stanzas (longest poem)
– Includes the Bhagvad Gita (sermon by god Krishna emphasizing centrality of moral rightness as guide to action
• Ramayana – Rama as ideal Aryan hero – Architecture
• Pillar• Stupa• Rock Chamber
– Science• Astronomy• Mathematics - Indians developed concept of zero and
used (0) as its symbol– Aryabhata one of first to use algebra
China• Huang He (Yellow)
• Chang Jiang (Yangtze)
Early Dynasties in China• Xia (circa. 2000 BC)
– Traditionally marked as the origin of Chinese civilization
– Little known about them, semi-mythical
• Shang (1750 – 1122 BC)– Agrarian society with dominant aristocracy
• Pyramidal social structure
• Belief in supernatural (oracle bones) and in afterlife (veneration of ancestors)
– Extraordinarily skilled in bronze casting • Taotie mask
Early Dynasties in China
• Zhou (1045 – 256 BC)– King becomes increasingly important and
creates a large bureaucracy • Seen as link between Heaven and Earth
– Mandate of Heaven• Zhou king takes authority from ruling in
accordance to the Dao • Ineffective kings could be replaced• “He who wins is the king; he who loses is the
rebel”
Dynastic Cycle
New dynasty established
Dynasty collapses
Rebellions or invasions
Central government’s power declines
Chinese PhilosophiesConfucianism Daoism Legalism
Chinese PhilosophiesConfucianism“Kongfuzi” b. 551 BC –his ideas are studied up till 20th century written down in Analects
Lived at time when China was at war with itself – addressed question “How do we restore order to society?”
His answer is political and ethical – assumes that there is “an order” and that following Dao would lead to prosperity. Duty and humanity are key elements
Five constant relationships:
Parent / child
Husband / wife
Older sibling / younger
Older friend / younger
Ruler / subject
Mutual obligations however, “The duty of children to their parents is the foundation from which all virtues spring”
Daoism
Associated with Laozi (Old Master) (perhaps a mythical amalgam)
Tao Te Ching (The Way of the Dao)
Concerned with behavior rather than meaning
Inaction rather than action Not like Pooh, the most effortless Bear we've ever seen." "Just How do you do it, Pooh?""Do What?" asked Pooh."Become so Effortless.""I don't do much of anything," he said."But all those things of yours get done.""They just sort of happen," he said
While Eeyore frets ... ... and Piglet hesitates... and Rabbit calculates ... and Owl pontificates...Pooh just is.
Legalism
Not associated with any one person
Humans are evil by nature
Harsh laws and strict punishment necessary to control people
Reject Confucian view that compassion was a desirable trait among rulers and believed instead that a strong ruler was needed to control people.
Chinese PhilosophiesConfucianismIf everyone fulfills their duties then society will prosper
Humanity - takes “Golden Rule” and states it as “Do not do unto others as you would not wish to have done to yourself”
Confucius believed Zhou dynasty was a “Golden Age”
Believed in rule by “meritocracy”
Died in 479 BC
His ideas spread widely after his death
Daoism Legalism
Confucianism
Confucianism - Five Constant Relationships
Ruler / subject
Older friend / younger friend
Older sibling / younger sibling
Husband/Wife
ParentChild
Qin and Han Dynasties
• Qin (Chin) 221- 206 BC– Qin Shihuangdi
• Adopted Legalism as regime’s official ideology• State is highly centralized with 3 major divisions “strengthens
the trunk and weakens the branches”– Civil– Military– Censorate (the watchers)
» Provincial & County level officials appointed by emperor based on merit
– Qin reforms• Single monetary system• Roads & canals• “Great Wall”
– Terra Cotta army
Great Wall
• Linked smaller sections of wall that already existed
The workers will work on the wall – or
die!
Han (202 BC – 220 AD)• Liu Bang
– Peasant origin– Adopts Confucian principles rather than legalism– Retains 3 branches of government and structure
• Introduces civil service exams and schools to train
• Wudi– Liu Bang’s great grandson
• Han Technology• Paper• Collar harness for livestock• Wheelbarrow• Fishing reel• Rudder• Two bladed plow• Watermills