Early Civilizations Geography of India Subcontinent Mountains, Plains, and Rivers Himalayan Mts. Fertile plains below mountains Rich soil Indus & Ganges & Brahmaputra Rivers Source of farming, transportation, and trade Deccan Plateau Monsoons Winter: blow cold dry air Summer: warm wet air and pouring rain

Early Civilizations (cont.) Summer monsoons Water for crops Celebrated; also cause floods, destroy crops, deaths Droughts Starvation Video

Indus Valley Civilizations Cradle of Ancient India Nomads settle along river (3000 BC) Today’s Pakistan Fertile soil; farmers Tool makers, house builders Prospered and built cities

Indus Valley Civilization Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa 2600 BC – 1900 BC Cities were designed almost identically Larger streets, brick roads Oven baked bricks to build homes Flat wooden roofs Enclosed courtyards Grain storage; wells; indoor bathrooms Sewers; garbage chutes

Mohenjo-Daro & Harappa (cont.) Life in ancient cities Royal palaces, temples Importance of religion and gov’t People lived in farming villages surrounding cities City residents were merchants, shopkeepers and artisans Traders went as far as Mesopotamia, southern coast of Asia.

Aryan Migrations and Settlements Mass migration away from cities Drought lasted hundreds of years Earthquakes and floods; course of river changed Aryans migrated to India Language family Nomadic; raised cattle Mixed with Indus Valley civilizations and created new culture Tribes; led by raja (prince) Created small kingdoms

Aryan Migrations and Settlements Aryans settled; created written language called Sanskrit Recorded sales, trade, land ownership Religious texts, Vedas

Ancient Indian Society Varnas: Social Classes of India Brahmins (Priests): one of most powerful Kshatriyas (warriors): one of most powerful Vaisyas (common people) Sudras (manual workers): had few rights Each varna was broken down into thousands of smaller groups called jatis Based on type of work a person did; had its own rules and customs Untouchables: not part of caste system

Family center of life in India Oldest male member is head of household Men had more rights than women Boys taught by gurus (teachers) Parents arranged marriages; divorce not an option

Origins of Hinduism One of the oldest religions 3 rd largest Aryans, Vedas Spoken before Sanskrit was developed

Origins of Hinduism (cont.) What is Hinduism? One universal spirit, Brahman Text: Upanishads Describes search for Brahman Every living thing has a soul, part of Brahman Death reunites soul with Brahman Difficult to understand Believed in many deities that were more like people

Origins of Hinduism (cont.) Hindus built temples, statues Held ceremonies Developed into three main deities: Brahma, the Creator Vishnu, the Preserver Shiva, the Destroyer All three were different parts of Brahman

Origins of Hinduism (cont.) Reincarnation Rebirth of the soul Must pass through several lives before reuniting with Brahman Hindus seek Moksha, ultimate peace Karma Status in life is not accident Actions dictate next life

Origins of Hinduism (cont.) Dharma Personal duty Everyone has different, or their own, dharma All life is sacred Animals are well kept, treated with respect More accepting of Varna Status was deserved and higher jatis were superior

Rise of Buddhism Desire for simpler, more spiritual faith Focus, positive thinking Meditation Siddhartha Gautama, Buddha Very few followers remain in India today

Rise of Buddhism (cont.) Buddha Gave up prosperous happy life. Tried to find meaning of life Beliefs Four Noble Truths Life is full of suffering People suffer because they desire worldly things End suffering by ending desire for worldly things Follow Eightfold Path to stop desiring worldly things

Rise of Buddhism (cont.) Eightfold Path Know/understand Four Noble Truths Give up worldly things; do not harm others Tell truth, do not gossip, do not speak badly of others DO not commit evil acts Do rewarding work Work for good and oppose evil Make sure mind keeps your senses under control Meditate to see world in new way

Rise of Buddhism (cont.) Nirvana : free from earthly concerns; emotional state Placed little importance on varna system; success depended on actions in present Reincarnation End cycle by following Eightfold Path Lower jati accepted Buddha’s teachings willingly

Rise of Buddhism (cont.) Theravada Buddhism Teachings of the elders Buddha was great teacher, not a god Mahayana Buddhism Teaches Buddha is a god Eightfold path too difficult; pray to Buddha to go to Heaven

Jainism Origins unknown Mahavira Lived in India same time as Siddhartha Gautama Wealthy; gave up possessions after parents died Became known as the Jina (the conqueror) Practiced strict poverty

Jainism (cont.) What is Ahimsa? Non-violence toward all living things Brooms used for insects Did not farm Influential throughout India’s modern history

The Mauryan Empire Persian empire in 500s B.C. Greek empire under Alexander the Great in 325 BC Chandra Gupta Maurya Set out to conquer and unify northern India First ruler of the Mauryan dynasty Well-run gov’t in Pataliputra Efficient postal system Improved communications

The Mauryan Empire (cont.) Army crushed any resistance to rule Used spies to report disloyalty Paranoid! Used tasters; never slept in same bed more than two days in a row

The Mauryan Empire (cont.) Ashoka Leader during best times of the empire Conqueror; hated killing Became Buddhist Tried to improve lives of others Created laws that encouraged good deeds Built hospitals; built roads First ruler to promote Buddhism Teachings carved on pillars throughout kingdom for all the people to read

Mauryan Empire (cont.) Ashoka (cont.) Built stupas Contained religious objects; house of worship Tolerant of all beliefs Empire declines after Ashoka’s death

Gupta Empire Chandra Gupta I Samudra Gupta Expanded empire India’s Golden Age Expansion of Hinduism Temples trade

Culture in Ancient India Literature Vedas Epics Mahabharata: longest poem in any language (90,000 verses) Bhagavad Gita: best known section of the Mahabharata

Culture in Ancient India (cont.)