Lesson 4: Classical India 500 B.C.E. – 700 C.E. Lesson Question: What were the most important political and religious developments in Classical India? Lesson Objectives: The students will understand the general political developments in the Indian subcontinent between the end of the Mauryan Empire and the Islamic invasions. The students will also understand the origins and essential elements of Mahayana Buddhism and Hinduism during this period.

Key Term: Syncretism

Syncretism: Reconciliation or fusion of differing systems of belief, as in philosophy or religion, especially when success is partial or the result is heterogeneous.

Classical Indian Civilization 500 B.C.E. – 700 C.E. Bactrian Kingdom c. 250 B.C.E. Indo-Greek Kingdom 190 B.C.E. – 50 C.E. Menander (Melindha) Questions of Melindha Greek Statues Gandharan Art Kushan Empire c. 100 – 240 C.E. Bodhisattvas Mahayana Buddhism Theravada Buddhism Gupta Empire 320 – 550 C.E. Magadha East and West Trade Sanskrit Secular Literature Kalidassi Hinduism Brahman Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva Bhakti (devotion)

Alexander the Greats Conquests

Hellenistic Kingdoms

Archaic Greek Statue

Classical Greek Statue

Gandharan Buddha

Gandharan Bust of the Buddha

Bodhisattva

Bodhissatva

Hindu Temple

Vishnu

Shiva

Brahma

Hindu Temple at Khajurahao

Hindu Temple in Orissa

Formative Assessment: 1.The Bactrian Kingdom/Indo-Greek Kingdom (c. 332 B.C.E. – 50 C.E.) 2.The Kushan Empire (c. 100 – 300 C.E.) 3.The Gupta Empire (c. 320 – 550 C.E.) Explain how political and religious developments in these different eras of Indian history reflect the process of syncretism. Syncretism: Reconciliation or fusion of differing systems of belief, as in philosophy or religion, especially when success is partial or the result is heterogeneous.