I NDIA

SOL S TANDARDS E SSENTIAL Q UESTIONS Why were physical geography and location important to the development of Indian civilization? What impact did the Aryans have on India? Why was the caste system central to Indian culture? What were the accomplishments of Mauryan and Gupta empires? What are thebeliefs of the Hindu religion? How did Hinduism influence Indian society and culture? What are the beliefs of Buddhism? How did Buddhism spread?

G EOGRAPHY Hindu Kush Mountains Himalayan Mountains Indian Ocean Geographic barriers allowed Indian civilization to progress with few interruptions from invaders.

I NDO -E UROPEANS Nomadic peoples who migrated across Europe and Asia They spoke forms of the same language

I NDO - A RYANS Nomadic herders who migrated through passes in the Hindu Kush Mountains

K HYBER P ASS Aryan migration route

A RYAN I NVADERS Conquered advanced Indus River Valley cities Put native Indians on the bottom of the caste system

A RYANS Moved east and built kingdoms along the Ganges river. The Indus and the Ganges were the most important rivers in the Indian subcontinent

V EDAS Vast collection of ancient Aryan prayers, magical spells and and instructions for performing rituals passed on orally for years

C ASTE S YSTEM Rigid class system based on occupations People were born into their caste for life and could only move up in another life

C ASTES Influenced all social interactions and choice of occupations Job Marriage Dress

H INDUISM Many forms of one God Reincarnatio n Caste system Karma Vedas and Upanishads Brahma, Vishnu, and Shiva

B RAHMAN Many forms of one major deity ( God ). The unifying soul in all things.

R EINCARNATION Cycles of Rebirth A spirit is born again and again until moksha (perfect understanding) is achieved

K ARMA Good deeds and bad deeds Future life based on present behavior Influences caste, health, wealth, etc.

S PREAD OF H INDUISM Hinduism spread from India to Southeast Asia

U PANISHADS Dialogues between student and teacher Explains such concepts as Brahman, karma and reincarnation

O RIGINS OF B UDDHISM Buddhism was founded by Siddhartha Gautama in the part of India that borders present-day Nepal.

S IDDHARTHA G UATAMA Buddha :” The Enlightened One” Enlightenment: wisdom ; a state of perfect understanding

B ELIEFS OF B UDDHISM Rejects the Hindu caste system, but keeps the concepts of karma and reincarnation Four Noble Truths Eightfold Path

F OUR N OBLE T RUTHS Life is full of suffering The cause of suffering is desire The way to end suffering is to end desire To end desire, one must follow the Eightfold Path

E IGHTFOLD P ATH The Middle Way between desires and self-denial By following the path anyone could reach Nirvana Nirvana: release from selfishness and pain

A SOKA Asoka’s missionaries and their writings spread Buddhism from India to China and other parts of Asia

S PREAD OF B UDDHISM Mahayana spread to China, Korea, and Japan Theravada spread to SE Asia and Sri Lanka

R ELIGIONS OF E AST A SIA Colored areas represent predominant religions today Buddhist ideals eventually became absorbed into the Hindu religion in India

G UPTA E MPIRE Golden age of classical Indian culture

I NDIA ’ S G OLDEN A GE a period of peace and prosperity and a flourishing of arts, literature and learning Mathematics Textiles (cotton) Literature Sugarcane Gupta Dynasty Contributions

H INDU N UMERALS Base 10 Included zero Place value and decimals

G UPTA D YNASTY L ITERATURE Kalidasa Tamil poets

I NDIAN T RADE sugarcane cotton cloth spices

L ATEEN S AIL

R EFLECTION A characteristic of the Aryan society of India is A. a rigid caste system. B. development of a sophisticated alphabet. C. Buddhism as a religion. D. tolerance of conquered peoples. A belief in reincarnation, karma, many forms of one major deity, and a caste system are characteristics of which of the following religions? A. Hinduism B. Buddhism C. Judaism D. Zoroastrianism The following is a sacred writing of Hinduism: A. Ten Commandments B. Code of Hammurabi C. Upanishads D. Koran