 India is a subcontinent of Asia.  Along the northern border are the highest mountains in the world, the Himalayan Mountains.

 India has 2 major rivers: Ganges and Indus  The Ganges is seen as the life source for all Indians  India has monsoon season each year from June - September

 7 th largest country in the world (1/3 size of US)  Main language is Hindi  Religions: Hindu (80.5%) Muslim (13.4%)  some of the largest slums in the world  In Dharavi, 1 million ppl live in a space 2/3 the size of Central Park  Not enough water, toilets, sewage & trash everywhere

 2 nd largest population in the world 1.2 billion  Life expectancy = 67 years  2.4 million living with AIDS, 170,000 die yearly  44% of children under 5 are underweight  61% of population is literate  29.8% of the population is below poverty line  World largest producer of opium, traded illegally

 India’s System  System of Writing= Sanskrit  Caste system  a rigid set of social classes  Determined one’s occupation, economic potential, and position in society  Based, in part, on skin color & occupation  4 major levels in the caste system & a bottom level

priests warriors commoners peasants with limited rights

 "Discarded chicken scraps bought from a restaurant barely make a meal for Untouchables in Bihar, one of India's poorest states. These villagers belong to the Musahar, or rat-eaters, caste, its members known for hunting rodents. Musahar women, many of whom work as field hands, have begun to agitate for better living conditions. This takes courage, says a local activist. 'If an Untouchable woman demands or questions something and a landlord doesn't like it, he will beat or sexually harass her.'"  From "India's Untouchables," June 2003, National Geographic magazine

 Given boring and degrading tasks  5% of India’s population  not treated as humans  harmful presence  lived in separate areas away from society

 Holy Books: Vedas  Also: Upanishads, Ramayana, Bhagavad Gita, and Mahabharata  God: Brahman- supreme being (Polytheistic or Monotheistic)  Main Goal: For your atman to merge with Brahman.  How?: Yoga  World’s oldest religion  750 million around the world

 The belief that an individual soul can be reborn in a different form after death

 The force generated by a person’s actions that determines how the person will be reborn in the next life

 A method of training designed to lead to union with Brahman

 Single spiritual force that Hindus believe resides in all things  Considered to be present in many forms but all the SAME supreme being

BBrahma the Creator

VVishnu the Preserver

 Shiva the Destroyer

 Ganesha – deity of intellect & wisdom

 Krishna – origin of all incarnations

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