Ancient India

Geography and ClimateHarappan Civilization

Origins of Hinduism and Buddhism

Earliest History• About 2500 B.C.,

Indus Valley civilization arose on the banks of the Indus River, in what is now Pakistan and western India. Indus River

Indus

Ganges•Mohenjo- Daro

•HarappaHindu Kush

Himalayas

India India is considered a sub-continentPeople of the first civilization in India built cities on the banks of the Indus River.

Indian civilization began in the Indus River Valley and spread through the Ganges River Valley, then through the Indian subcontinent. It continued with little interruption because of its geographic location.

Physical Geography and location were dictated by physical barriers such as:

–The Himalayas, the Hindu Kush, and the Indian Ocean made invasion more difficult.

–Mountain passes in the Hindu Kush provided migration routes into the Indian subcontinent.

–The Indus and Ganges were the most important rivers in the Indian subcontinent

The Indus and Ganges River create a fertile plain.

South Asia (modern India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh) is separated from the rest of Asia by tall mountains (Himalayas, the Hindu Kush). Just below the mountains are two large plains that hold the Ganges and Indus rivers.

These high mountains gave the indigenous people safety from invaders.

Geography presents challenges for the Indus Valley

The rivers flooded each year and left soil good for farming, but the floods did not occur at the same time each year.

The region’s weather caused problems also. Each winter, strong winds blew dry air across the area. Each spring, the winds brought heavy rains. These were called monsoons

Early Indus Valley settlers developed farming villages

Historians know that people were farming along the rivers by about 3200BC.

Harappa and Mohenjo- Daro were the 2 main cities

Capitals• Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro

–Might have been twin capitals• Highly structured and well organized• Traded with Sumer

Harappa and Mohenjo- Daro

• These cities were large and carefully planned• Most houses were built with baked clay bricks

of a standard size, however mud and unbaked bricks were found as well.

• Houses had a complex plumbing system, with baths, drains, and water chutes that led into sewers beneath the streets.

• Merchants used a uniform system of weights and measures.

• City government was well organized.

Archaeology• Archaeologists have uncovered many small stone seals, thought to be signature seals, used to “seal a deal.”

Bath at Mohenjo-Daro

Planned plumbing and sewage systems.

About 2500BC, while the Egyptians were building pyramids, these people began building their first cities.

In Mesopotamia, cities were a jumble of streets laid down without thinking first.

In the Indus Valley, however, the builders of cities followed a grid of streets. The cities showed sophisticated careful planning.

They built a strong area called a citadel that was easy to defend and held all the important buildings. There were also separate residential districts.

Buildings were constructed of oven-baked bricks in standard sizes, unlike the simpler, irregular sun-dried bricks of the Mesopotamians.

They also had sophisticated systems for carrying water and sewage. These systems could rival any urban drainage system built before the 19th century.

The uniformity in the cities’ planning and construction suggests that the Indus peoples had developed a strong central government.

The Indus people valued personal cleanliness and social sanitation.

They may have known that poor sanitation could spread disease.

They realized that establishing a citywide waste disposal system would be more effective that leaving waste disposal up to individuals.

Proper sanitation was made available to all classes, not exclusively to the wealthy.

This may mean that the Indus Valley people felt the government had some responsibility to provide services for citizens.

Ruins reveal the character and trading patterns The civilization of the Indus was

peaceful. Few weapons have been found at the

sites of these ancient cities. This suggests that warfare was not common.

Because the houses were mostly like one another, scholars think that the Indus culture did not have sharp differences between social classes.

Characteristics• In the middle of the city was a large

hilltop structure, possibly a fortress.• No temples, shrines or religious writings

have been found.

Characteristics• Each city also contained a huge

warehouse which would have been used to store grain.

What does all this organization mean?

Likely had a well-organized, strong

government

Disappearance• Around 1700 BCE, the Harappan

civilization disappeared without a trace.

• Order was replaced with sloppy work and cities went into decline. –Some have speculated that over

lumbering of the forests (fuel), volcanic eruptions, or even a devastating earthquake may have aided their decline.

Aryan Invasion• Indo-Aryan people invaded

sometime between 1500-1000 BCE– In about 1750 BCE, tribes of Indo-European peoples

began to cross the Hindu Kush Mountains into northwest India

• Information about these peoples comes from their writings, The Vedas.

Indo-Aryan People The Aryans, who spoke an early form of

Sanskrit, migrated through the passes of the Hindu Kush mountains and entered India.

Indo-Aryan People migrated into the area, creating a rigidly structured society (caste system) blended with native beliefs.

Their sacred literature, the Vedas, left a fairly reliable picture of Aryan life.

Vedas• Language and writing of Indo-Aryans

– The language and writing of the Indo-Aryans was called Sanskrit

• Vedas description of Aryans–Nomadic herders –Aryans loved to drink, eat, play music

and games…real party people–Very warrior-like

Aryan Impact The Aryans migrated into the

area, blended their beliefs with those of the indigenous people, and asserted their dominance

The Aryans were taller, lighter in skin color, and spoke a different language than the people they found in India.

The Aryans were divided into social classes: Brahmins (priests), warriors, and peasants or traders.

Over time the Aryans made more class restrictions. Varna, or skin color, was a distinguishing feature of this system.

This caste system influenced all social interactions and choices of occupations.

The Rise of Classical Indian Civilization

• The merger between the older Indus Valley civilization and the Indo-Aryan culture produced the Classical Indian Civilization.

The Rise of Classical Indian Civilization

• It began in the Indus River Valley and spread to the Ganges River Valley, then through the Indian Subcontinent. It continued with little interruption because of its geographic location.

Remember India looks like a dripping ice cream

cone!!!

Geographic Location• Himalayan Mountains, Hindu Kush Mountains and the Indian Ocean provided physical barriers making invasion difficult.

Indian Ocean

Hindu Kush Himalaya

Geographic Location• Mountain passes like the Khyber Pass and the Bolan Pass provided migration and invasion routes into the Indian subcontinent.

Geographic Location• The Indus and Ganges Rivers were the most important rivers in the Indian subcontinent.

Indus

Ganges

Caste System

Caste SystemDue to this dominance, the Aryans established a rigid hereditary caste system, which influenced all social interactions and choices of occupations.

Caste System–Brahmins – priests–Kshatriyas – warriors–Vaisyas – herders, farmers, artisans and merchants

–Sudras – servants and landless farmers

Caste System–Untouchables – Dravidians, the people the Aryans conquered; forced to do the worst jobs (garbage collectors, animal hide tanners, collectors of the dead)

Religions founded in IndiaHinduism and Buddhism

Hinduism is an important contribution of classical India and is still practiced today.

Hinduism influenced Indian society and culture.

Hinduism

Hinduism• Belief in many forms of one major God

(Polytheistic)• Founded in India, no one founder,

spread along trade routes• Holy Book: Vedas and Upanishads

– Sacred writings of Hinduism

Hinduism• On the one hand, there is Brahman –

the unchanging, all-powerful spiritual force that inhabits all beings– Everything is an aspect, a facet, a piece of

Brahman; sort of the universal soul• On the other hand, many Gods and

Goddesses– Shiva, the Destroyer– Vishnu, the Preserver

Hinduism • Key Concepts

– Dharma: a person’s moral duty in life – Karma: Knowledge that all thoughts and

actions result in future consequences• Think Earl in “My Name is Earl”

– Reincarnation: Rebirth based on Karma• The ultimate goal in Hinduism is Moksha - to stop the

endless cycle of rebirth and achieve final union with Brahman.

• Caste system organized society into classes– Class systems based on occupation and family lineage

Beliefs of Hinduism

Belief in many forms of one major God Reincarnation: rebirth based on karma Karma: Knowledge that all thoughts and

actions result in future consequences Vedas and Upanishads: Sacred writings Hinduism spread along major trade

routes

Buddhism Founded by Siddhartha Gautama in a

part of India that is in present-day Nepal.

Asoka, king of India’s Mauryan Empire in 269 BC, sent his missionaries throughout Asia spreading Buddhism from India to China and other parts of Asia.

It is because of Asoka that Buddhism became a major faith.

Beliefs of Buddhism Founder: Siddhartha Gautama

(Buddha- “enlightened one”) Four Noble Truths (everything in life is

suffering, the cause is selfish desires, to end suffering you must end desires, overcome desires by the Eightfold Path)

Eightfold Path to Enlightenment (following this path leads to Nirvana, a release from selfishness and pain)

Buddhism• Founded in India by Siddhartha Gautama

(Buddha)– Asoka’s missionaries and their writings spread of

Buddhism from India China/Asia• No Deity – The Buddha did not teach a deity • Holy Book – no one book (writings like Perfection of

Wisdom Sutras)• Basic Concept:

– Humans struggle to achieve virtuous life of Buddha.– Persons achieve complete happiness (nirvana) by eliminating

their attachment to worldly things (personal decisions).

Buddhism – 4 Noble TruthsSiddhartha taught 4

main ideas that he had understood in his enlightenment - 4 Nobel Truths1.Everything in

life is suffering and sorrow

Buddhism2. The cause of all suffering is people’s selfish

desire for temporary pleasures of this world.

Buddhism

3. The way to end all suffering is to end all desires.

Buddhism4. The way to

overcome such desires and attain enlightenment is to follow the Noble Eightfold Path.

BuddhismEightfold Path to Enlightenment

Right ViewsRight IntentionsRight SpeechRight Action/ConductRight LivelihoodRight EndeavorRight MindfulnessRight Mediation

Goal of Buddhism:

enlightenment

Mauryan Empire- Asoka

• Chandragupta gained power in the Ganges Valley and then conquered northern India.

• His son and grandson later added much of the Deccan area in the south to the empire.

• Chandragupta had specially trained women warriors guard his palace.

• Chandragupta's grandson, Asoka, is the most honored emperor.

Asoka• Shortly after becoming emperor Asoka fought

a long, bloody war to conquer the region of Kalinga.

• Horrified by the slaughter- more than 100,000 people died- Asoka no longer wanted to fight or conquer other territories.

• He converted to Buddhism, rejected violence, and ruled by moral example.

• Most importantly, he sent missionaries to spread Buddhism across India and throughout Asia, including China.

Contributions of the Mauryans

• Political unification of much of India• Spread Buddhism• Free hospitals• Veterinary clinics• Good roads

Gupta During the reign of the first three

Guptas, India experienced a period of great achievement called: The Golden Age of classical Indian Culture.

India's Golden Age - GuptaDuring this time Indian people made

significant contributions to world civilizations in the area of ~mathematics- concept of zero

~medical advancements- set bones

~astronomy- concept of earth as round

~new textiles

~literature.

Compare the Empires