Transcript Civilizations_Early_Indiax

Section 1: Indus Valley
Civilization
Picture depicting what a city in the Indus Valley may have looked like. Image taken
from: crystalinks.com
Indian Subcontinent
India is called a subcontinent, because it is
a large landmass that separates itself from
the rest of the continent.
 The monsoons left behind rich fertile soil.
 The climate is a very important factor in the
Hindu people’s lives, as without the
monsoons, the people may burn from the
heat and in the winter they might freeze.
The monsoons are also a welcome factor,
as they generally bring rain, which
translates to water for crops.
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Advances
The Indus Valley cities had thick walls,
raised mounds, sewer systems, and
streets arranged in a grid pattern.
 They had an agricultural economy.
Farmers grew wheat, barley, and cotton
and raised sheep, cattle, chickens, and
goats. They also domesticated animals
for transportation. The economy was
also based on trade.
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Government and Religion of
Indus Valley
The text states that even after in depth
research, scientist and historians cannot
find any artifacts that would lead them to
believe that the Indus valley people had a
king or queen. They do realize though, that
they were a very well organized group of
people. This assumption was made based
on the level of planning in making their city.
 Historians believe they practiced some
form of Hinduism, as Hindu-like statues
were found.
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Citadel and Disappearance
The purpose of the citadel was to be a
fortified area of protection from floods or
attackers. It had a wall around it. Scholars
are not sure, but there is a possibility that it
might have been the center of the
government.
 Some explanations for the disappearance
of the Indus Valley civilization are disease,
floods, overgrazing of the land leading to
starvation, climate change, drought, and
foreign invasion.
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Section 2: India’s Vedic Age
Picture depicting the wealth of the Vedic Age. Image taken from: media.radiosai.org
The Origins of the Indo-Aryans
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There are several theories as to where the Aryans
came from. Here are the three that historians
believe.
The first theory states that the Aryans were warriors
who rode on horseback and defeated the local
Indians, then they settled into the Indus Valley. The
second theory states that the Aryans were the
original inhabitants of the Indus Valley, but this
questions the civilization that supposedly existed that
was mentioned in section one. Finally, the third
theory states that the Aryans were migrants who
simply migrated to the Indus Valley and started living
with the people. Eventually the people adopted their
way of life and religion.
Vedas

The purpose of the Veda was to put
religious and society’s viewpoint of life
into song or hymns. Each Veda
consisted of hundreds of hymns. The
Vedas called upon people to make
offering to their Gods. The Vedas were
originally passed down through word of
mouth, but eventually they were written
down in a language called Sanskrit.
Aryan Life

The Aryans were initially nomadic, but
when they settled into the Indus Valley,
they quickly changed their lifestyle. They
learned to farm and graze cattle on
pastures. Initially the Aryans were
judged by how much cattle they had. If
they had a lot of cattle, then they were
seen as wealthy people. To entertain
themselves, they danced, played music,
had chariot races, and gambled.
Growth of Vedic Civilization

Growth came very quickly for the Vedic
civilization, as they eventually created
clans and tribes. Later on, they were
joined together to form republics,
although they were not democratic in
nature. Finally, they were able to form
kingdoms, after several republic leaders
went to war and conquered other
republics.
The Caste System
The purpose of the Caste System is to
separate India’s society in social classes.
In India’s Caste System people are born
into a caste and stay there for the rest of
their lives. They do not marry or socialize
outside their caste system.
 The Indians were grouped by occupation
and religious status.
 The Caste System had four varnas and the
Dalits, which is not really considered to be
part of the social class because they are so
low in the social class pyramid.
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Caste System
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Brahmins were the priests of the country. The
Kshatriyas were the rulers and warriors. The
Vaishyas were landowners, bankers, and
merchants. The Sudras were the farmers,
laborers, and servants. Finally, the Dalits were
people who performed dirty jobs, such as
butchering and preparing the dead for burial.
Now the Indian Caste system does not dignify
what kind of job you have. In fact India has
had a Dalit president in K.R. Narayanan.
Times have changed, but Indian culture is still
ingrained in its society.
Hinduism
Symbol of the Hindu religion. Image taken from: sacred-texts.com
Roots of Hinduism
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The religion of the people of India is the meaning of
the word Hinduism.
The Hindu religion was initially called Brahmanism
because it was based on the priests and rituals,
particularly sacrifices to the Gods.
Hinduism originated from Brahmanism. Hinduism
was created, because the people did not believe that
the rituals that the priests said were necessary were
in fact needed to reach heaven. They started asking
questions, such as: Why are we born? How should
we live? What happened to us when we die? These
questions led to the change of the people’s religious
thoughts and the start of Hinduism.
Evolution of Hinduism
The teachers (gurus) and their students
who went to the forest to ponder the
questions about life and the ending of
life.
 The Upanishads are writings that were
the ideas of the initial gurus and their
students. The Upanishads deal with
questions of life and death or right and
wrong that concern all people.
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Epic Poems

The purpose of the epic poems was to
explain to the Indian people how they
should live their lives as Hindus.
Beliefs about God
There are two main aspects of the Hindu
religion.
 The first is that there is one supreme
cosmic consciousness, spiritual force, or
God known as Brahman. The second is
that every person is born with a soul.
 Brahman is viewed as a source of all
things; all of the Hindu Gods are forms
of Brahman.
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Beliefs about Life
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Hindus believe that if one lives a good life and
has good karma then they will be reborn or
reincarnated into a higher varna or social
class. If they live a bad life and have bad
karma, then they will be reborn into a lower
varna or social class.
The four goals of Hinduism as doing what is
right, meaning following your caste rules
without complain. Striving for well being, or
earning a livelihood with dignity. Attaining
pleasure, such as eating good food or taking a
bath. Finally, attaining moksha, or liberation
from reincarnation.
Paths to Moksha
The first path is the way of knowledge.
 The second is the way of works.
 The third is the way of devotion.
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Hinduism’s Impact
Hinduism was able to spread throughout
India, because people did not have to
worship a single God, because
Hinduism views all Gods as forms of a
single, supreme God.
 Also, Hinduism does not call for people
to attend regular religious services. In
fact they can pray or make offerings in
their own home.
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Section 4: Buddhism
Picture of the Buddha. Image taken from: globalone.tv
The Buddha’s Life

Siddhartha’s mom had a dream that a
white elephant came down to her from
heaven and a prophet predicted that
Siddhartha would grow to become a
wandering holy man. Siddhartha’s father
didn’t want this for his son, as he wanted
him to become a ruler. To ensure that he
would become a ruler, Siddhartha’s
father shielded him from the ill of the
world.
Search for Enlightenment

Siddhartha reached enlightenment when
he meditated under a fig tree for 49
days. Through those days he found that
he had finally reached a place where he
thought he found the perfect state of
wisdom.
After Enlightenment
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He chose to go back into the world and
teach others what he had learned. He
traveled across India for the next 45
years, preaching a message of truth and
hope.
The Middle Way

The Middle Way is a life of neither total
luxury nor poverty, but the path between
the two extremes.
Four Noble Truths and Eightfold
Path
The Four Noble Truths are that all life
involves suffering. Selfish desires cause
suffering. Giving up selfish desires ends
suffering. People overcome selfish
desires by following the Eightfold Path.
 The Eightfold Path leads to wisdom,
morality, or right action, and meditation.
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Two Schools of Thoughts
The two schools of Buddhism are
Theravada Buddhism and Mahayana
Buddhism.
 Theravada Buddhist believes that the
Buddha’s greatest achievement is his
enlightenment and entry into nirvana.
 Mahayana Buddhist believes that the
Buddha’s greatest achievement was his
compassion.
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