INDIA AND SOUTHEAST ASIA 1500 BCE-600 CE

Ancient India Mountains and ocean largely separate the Indian subcontinent from the rest of Asia. Migrations and invasions usually came through the Khyber Pass, in the northwest. Seaborne commerce with western Asia, southeast Asia, and East Asia often flourished. Peoples speaking Indo-European languages migrated into the broad valleys of the Indus and Ganges Rivers in the north. Dravidian-speaking peoples remained the dominant population in the south. The diversity of the Indian landscape, the multiplicity of ethnic groups, and the primary identification of people with their class and caste lie behind the division into many small states that has characterized much of Indian political history. India, Geographically Speaking…

Foundations of Indian Civilization: The Indian Sub-Continent  Sub-continent comprised of modern day:

Foundations of Indian Civilization: The Vedic Age  BCE

 Bitter rivalries:  Varna: Foundations of Indian Civilization: The Vedic Age

Varna

 Jati:  Atman:  Karma: Foundations of Indian Civilization: The Vedic Age

 Vedic Religion: Foundations of Indian Civilization: The Vedic Age

 Vedic religion…evolves into Hinduism  Major deities: Foundations of Indian Civilization: Rise of Hinduism

 India: overall difficulty in uniting because of:  “More-yun”  Mauryan: first centralized Indian empire Imperial Expansion and Collapse: Mauryan Empire

Ashoka's Column The best preserved of the pillars that King Ashoka erected in about 240 B.C.E. is this one in the Bihar region, near Nepal. The solid shaft of polished sandstone rises 32 feet in the air. It weighs about 50 tons, making its erection a remarkable feat of engineering. Like other Ashokan pillars, it is inscribed with accounts of Ashoka's political achievements and instructions to his subjects on proper behavior. These pillars are the earliest extant examples of Indian writing and a major historical source for the Mauryan period. (Borromeo/Art Resource, NY) Ashoka's Column

 After Mauryan Empire collapse, series of outside rulers, including:  Despite collapse, Mauryan infrastructure supported land and sea trade  Literature flourished Imperial Expansion and Collapse: Mauryan Empire

 Characteristics of Gupta Empire: Imperial Expansion and Collapse: Gupta Empire