Transcript Early Indian Civilization

Early Indian Civilization
3000 B.C. – 500 A.D.
Geography
 Indus River valley
Yearly flooding
 Ganges River valley
 Deccan plateau
 Monsoons
Indus Valley Civilization (Harappan)
(3000 – 1500 BC)
 Cities = Harappo & Mohenjodara
 Well-planned, drainage/sewage
system, brick buildings w/
bathrooms
 Irrigation, productive farming,
domesticated animals
 Undecipherred pictographic
writing
 Advanced Technology =
jewelry, pottery, copper/bronze
tools, cloth
 Disappeared abruptly
Writing of the Harappan Civilization –
has not been deciphered
“The Great Bath” – excavated at the site of Mohenjo-Daro
“The Great Bath”
Remains of “The Granary” a large room possibly used as a meeting place or a
place in which religious ceremonies were held. Evidence shows that it was
probably not used as a place to store grains as originally suspected.
“The Granary”
Aryan Conquests
(2000 – 600 BC)
 Indo-Europeans (light
skinned)
 Invaded the Indus Plain ~
1500 BC
 Vedas = religious writings
that reveal the history of the
Aryans (Hinduism)
 Sanskrit becomes primary
language
Indian Empires
 Magahda Empire (684 – 424
BC)
Civilization takes over from the
Ganges River area
Siddhartha Guatama & the founding
of Buddhism
 Maurya Empire (321 – 185 BC)
First great empire
Famous rulers
 Chandragupta Maurya
 Asoka
 Gupta Empire (320 – 535 AD)
Golden Age of India
Center of education
Influenced Eastern Asia
Caste System
 Complex Social & Economic Class Divisions
(brought by Aryans)
Priests (Brahmans)
Rulers & Warriors (Kshatriyas)
Landowners & Merchants (Vaisyas)
 Everyday people
Laborers & Servants (Sudras)
 Limited rights in society
Outcasts (“untouchables” or pariahs)
 Menial jobs
 Each caste was hereditary & contact w/ other
castes was often forbidden
Family System
Male Centered
Could take more than
one wife
Men were educated
(guru)
Women took care of
family
Hinduism
Major Gods
Brahma = the creator
Vishnu = the preserver
Siva = the destroyer
Beliefs
Live righteously
Perform religious duties
Not a unified system, but a collection of beliefs
w/ many varieties (monotheists to polytheistic)
Hindu Terms
 Reincarnation
Rebirth of the soul after death
 Karma
Force of a person’s actions in this life used in
determining his/her rebirth in the next life (Caste
System)
 Dharma
Divine law that affects a person’s karma
 Yoga
Process of achieving oneness with the spiritual nature
Buddhism
 Siddhartha Gautama = founder
 Became Buddha (“enlightened one”)
 Mo Tree (Wisdom Tree)
 Goal in life is to reach a spiritual state of peace known as
“Nirvana”
 4 Noble Truths
 Life is full of suffering and sorrow
 Cause of suffering is selfish desire and temporary pleasures
 End all suffering through ending desires
 To end suffering follow the Eightfold Path
 The Noble Eightfold Path
 The “Middle Way” between desires and self-denial
Decline of Buddhism
Theravada
Followers who thought
Buddhism was a way
of life and not a religion
Mahayana
Followers who believe
Nirvana can only be
achieved through
devotion to Buddha
Contributions of Ancient India
 Art/Architecture
 Symbolic & ornate designs
 Pointed domes, columns, & conical towers
 Literature (Sanskrit)
 Vedas = religious prayers, hymns, & principles
 Mahabharata & Ramayan = epic poems
 Hindu animal fables
 Science/Technology
 Achievements in diagnosing & treating illnesses
 Chemistry
 Math
 Most advanced of ancient civilizations
 Created the modern written # system