Indus River Valley & Hinduism

Indian Sub-Continent Diverse Geography  Wall of mountains guard top of India  Two major rivers (Indus, Ganges)  Monsoon Season Winter/Summer

Monsoons Seasonal Winds Oct-May (Winter) Blow dry air June-Sep (Summer) Blow moisture from oceans Narrow band of lush tropical land lies along the coast of southern India

Environmental Challenges Indus river floods unpredictable  too much: wash away villages  too little: drought  Silt: Good for farming Mountains provide natural barrier Too much rain could wash away villages, too little rain and people will starve Leave behind deposits of silt Indus Valley Rivers gave an easy access to the sea

The Harappan Civilization 3300 BCE - 2400 BCE

A Civilization Rises Could have come from Africa by sea Could have come from mountain pass Know little about civilization Have not deciphered writing Historians know very little about this civilization Have not deciphered their writing At it’s height the civilization it influenced a much larger area larger than Mesopotamia and Egypt

Planned Cities Sophisticated city planning Citadel Precise Grid System Used oven bricks Plumbing & sewage system Citadel Fortified area with major buildings Around 2500BC while Egyptians were building pyramids the Indus valley people were laying first bricks for cities. Archaeologists have found around 100 settlements in the valley. Largest cities were Kalibangan, Mohenjo-Daro, and Harappa Mesopotamians were a jumble of buildings connected by a maze of winding streets

Citadel Of Mohenjo- Daro

Aerial View of Mohenjo-Daro

Bathing Platform in Mohenjo-Daro

Culture Prosperous Society Early images of Hinduism and worship of cattle Long-Distance Trade Digs found clay and wooden kids toys to show that they could afford to produce nonessential goods Found fertility images and mother goddess figures. Found early images of Hindy god of Shiva Seals found in Sumer and Sumerian objects found in Indus River Valley

Cows on Delhi Streets

Mysterious End? River changed course? Wore out the land? Natural Disaster or Invasion? Decline occurred around 1750BC So floods no longer fertilized fields to the city Overgrazing, overfarmed, over cut trees Found 28 bodies in ruins of Mhenjo-Daro that were not buried. Aryan nomads would come into the valley and would help Indian civilization grow again

Indus Seals Pictographs Not a form of writing Depicts how they lived Archaeologists have found thousands of these square seals with pictographs

Aryan Invasion of India

The Aryans Homeland: Caspian and Aral Seas Light-skinned people Crossed mountain passes into India  referred to people in India as dasas, meaning dark (or slave) First written language called Sanskrit Little archaeological record Vedas: sacred literature  4 collections of prayers & instructions for rituals  most important collection: Rig Veda {1,028 hymns to gods)

Sanskrit & Vedas

Could not move up the ladder! The Aryan Caste System Could not move up the ladder!

Aryan Caste System Complete your caste system foldable by rotating through the Solution Stations located around the room and in the hall. Remember to follow in numerical order to avoid traffic jams.

Mahabharata Epic that reflects struggle of Aryans as they move South in India  a conflict of cultures Main character is Krishna  dark skinned (non-Aryan warrior)  instructs young warrior on how to live ** “…dishonor is worse than death”

Ramayana Great Epic 24,000 versus in 7 books  Story of Rama (incarnation of Vishnu) rescuing his wife Sita from demon king of Lanka

Hinduism Complete your provided questions as you watch Religions of the World: Hinduism.

Origins Collection of religious beliefs that developed over time No founder Hindus see religion as a away of liberating the soul from the illusions, disappointments and mistakes of everyday existence

Key Beliefs All life is connected Difference between Atman: individual soul Brahman: world soul

Key Beliefs Goal to achieve perfect understanding Reincarnation- rebirth of soul Karma: good or bad deeds Your karma determines the life you are reborn into When a person understands relationship between atman and Brahman they can achieve perfect understanding called moksha This does not come in one lifetime and people rebirth until it is achieved Karma follows from one reincarnation to another. Karma influences specific life circumstances, such as the caste one is born into, one’s state of health, wealth or poverty or so on.

Gods Brahma: The Creator Vishnu: The Protector Shiva: The Destroyer Many Gods The world soul, Brahman has been seen as having personalities of three gods Over the years Brahma faded into the background while the many forms of great Mother Goddess grew in importance

Sacred Literature Upanishads: how to achieve liberation from suffering and desire Vedas: collection of prayers, spells and rituals

Caste System: Who’s Who

Effect on Society Belief of karma Hinduism dominates life Strengthens caste system Hinduism dominates life If person has upper caste such as a male, warrior or merchant his good fortune earned in a former life; if a female, laborer or untouchable might be bad deeds in former life It determines what they can eat, how to eat it, cleanliness, who to associate with, how to dress

Modern Day Traditions Jainism Everything has a soul NOTHING should be harmed Wear masks to avoid breathing insects  Sweep ants off path Founded by Mahavira and think nothing should be harm Monks sweep ants off a path and wear gauze masks over their mouths to avoid breathing in an insect accidentally

Hindu Temple in New Delhi

Resources: Darrell Wells - Hickory Ridge HS, NC Chris Balga – Hickory Ridge HS, NC Susan Pojer – Horace Greely HS, NY Russell Olson – Robinson HS, NC