Chapter 8 Section 4 7th Century C.e. India After The Guptas Chapter 8 Section 4 7th Century C.e.

The Impact of Religion Buddhism was founded in India by a price called Siddhartha Gautama . From India Buddhism began to spread to other parts of Asia, as this happened the religion split into 2 very different schools of Buddhism Theravada – Buddhism in its original form. It is not considered a religion because they do not associate themselves with gods or Deities. It is more of a way of life, centered around ending the cycle of rebirth by reaching Nirvana. Mahayana – less strict that Buddhism in its original form. This school is considered a religion because they view the Buddha as a God, unlike Theravada. To them Siddhatha was a devine figure.

The Decline of Buddhism Buddhism began to decline in India after its popularity do to the fact that some aspects of the philosophy/religion were absorbed into Hinduism, the other popular religion of India. Islam also made inroads into India and thus also contributed to Buddhism’s decline. Islam was able to establish itself in the Northwestern portion of India where it still has a strong presence today. Once Islam arrived in India, the subcontinent was disjointed politically with more than 70 independent states at constant war with each other. Once Islamic Arab armies arrived they were able to gain political control and established the Islamic state of Ghazna.

Islam’s Impact The new Islamic state of Ghazana fell into political turmoil after the death of its founder. The founders son would took over, a very ambitious leader, he attacked neighboring Hindu communities and their warriors known as Rajputs. After years of successful battles, the Islamic state came to control the entire northern plain of India and established a new Muslim state known as the Sultanate of Delhi. A new threat reached the Indian subcontinent. A Mongol army led by Temur Lenk would attack all of the states on the subcontinent. Eventually Lenk controlled a territory from the Caspian Sea to Mesopotamia.

Indian Society and Culture Indian society was very fragmented culturally as Islam, Hinduism, and Buddhism all effected areas within India differently. When Islam took over parts of India it was able to establish an Islamic government but was not very successful in converting people from Hinduism to Islam with only 20% of the population converting. A large percentage of the population were peasants, relying on farming to survive. Although many people relied on farming, most of the population was centered around cities. India also benefited greatly from trade as they were located at the center of 2 valuable trade routes, the Silk Roads & the India Ocean Trade Network.

Culture In India India developed a very unique style of Architecture. The architecture was mostly centered around Hindu temples. Some of these structure were massive, looking like a city to outsiders. A unique form of Indian literature also developed known as prose literature. Essentially a novel, this style of writing would not appear in Japan until the 11th Century and in Europe it shows up in the 17th Century. One of the most famous writings was composed by Dandin. The story known as The Adventures of 10 Princes told the tale of how these princes looked for love.

Hindu Temple in India