The Indian Subcontinent

India Religion- Hinduism, Muslim, Christian Population- > 1 billion people (5x USA) ‏ Size: 1/2 the size of the USA Literacy- 65% men 37% women Per capita GNP- $2500

Early History Began in Indus Valley (now Pakistan) ‏ In the 5 th century AD, invaders from Central and SW Asia conquered the area By 1500 the Mughal Empire was firmly established throughout India Muslim rule brought new customs that conflicted with those of the native Hindus

Europeans Arrive Europeans began arriving around 1500 looking for spices, cloth and other goods not available in Europe The British set up the British East India Company and gained control of the trade in India by 1757 In 1857 Britain gained direct rule over India, which lasted until 1947, called raj

Resistance Most Indians did not like colonization Gandhi emerged as the leader of the opposition movement based on nonviolent resistance/civil disobedience In August 1947 India became an independent democratic nation

India and Pakistan The Muslims of West and East Pakistan (Bangladesh) chose to separate from India, which was strongly Hindu About 1 million people died in the conflict 10 million moved across borders

Bangladesh Although East and West Pakistan shared a religious bond, the 1100 mile separation drove them apart. Bangladesh was established in 1971

Economic Challenges About ½ of India’s population lives in poverty 2/3 farm but only enough for family

Modern India Blend of traditional and new ways Arranged marriages, male dominated, divorce rare Most middle class children go to school, but in city slums and rural areas school attendance is irregular and literacy rates are low

Indian Culture Hindu official language Dominant force in most lives is Hinduism – 80% of population More about this later

Does India have a population control program similar to China? It doesn’t limit births to one child per family It has one of the oldest population programs in the world 1950s, it encourages birth control and family planning and the Indian Government provides grants to people who undergo sterilization surgeries

Taj Mahal Built by Shah Jahan for his Wife (Mahal) who died after giving birth to their 14 th child. Construction began in 1631 and took 22 years and 20,000 workers to complete. It is located in Agra, India.

Taj Mahal

What is Bollywood Mumbai, India (previously called Bombay), is the world’s movie capital The entertainment industry produces more films than the U.S.A.

Map of South Asia

Hinduism

Hinduism Some consider Hinduism to be the world's oldest religion. Unlike most other religions, Hinduism has no founder and no single set of beliefs. Hinduism is a way of life as well as a set of religious teachings A Hindu is free to worship only a single god, many gods, or no gods at all To Hindus, religion includes everything from one's outlook on life and worship to one's daily life and social status.

Many Hindus invoke Ganesha, the god who can overcome any obstacle, before beginning any undertaking.

Reincarnation Hindus believe that, after a person dies, his or her soul is reborn into a new life. This happens over and over again in a seemingly endless cycle.

Karma The form into which a soul is reborn depends upon the karma that the soul acquired in its previous life. If a soul lives a very bad life, it gathers lots of bad karma and will be reborn into a lower form. If it lives a good life, it collects good karma and will be reborn in a higher form.

A murderer collects bad karma. If enough bad karma is accumulated, and the soul might come back in its next life as a demon, a tiger, or even a worm. A poor person who lives a very good life might be reborn as a rich person or even a god.

By leading a good life and accumulating enough good karma, the individual soul may eventually escape from the cycle of rebirth and achieve union with Brahman, the Universal Soul.

An ancient Hindu epic describes the timeless war between good and evil.

Way of Life Hinduism states that one worships the gods simply by living the way prescribed for the status into which he or she is born. Thus, someone born to the working caste accumulates good karma by working hard and respecting those of a higher station. A good Hindu obeys his or her family priest, performs daily religious rituals, and respects the gods. Most important, though, is living according to one's caste obligations and doing good deeds.

Dharma Each person is born into a caste and has a certain moral duty (dharma) that is specific to that caste A person can move into a different caste only through reincarnation Limits ability of people to improve their lives

Caste System Cornerstone of Hinduism System of social classes Four basic castes made up original system but over time they were divided into smaller groupings

How does India’s Caste System work? Consist of 4 categories: Brahmans (priests), Kshatriyas (warriors), Vaisyas (merchants) and Sudras (servants) ‏ People outside caste system are considered untouchables Caste system dictates not only one’s profession, but also whom one can marry, social contracts and all other aspects of life

Brahman – priest, teacher, judge

Kshatriyas – warrior, police, soldier

Vaishya – shopkeeper, landowner

Shudra – Carpenter, service providers Within the caste of Shudra there are many different groups. Each one of these groups performs a service. Their specific service is a birthright and is somewhat similar to unions in the U.S. Duties range from making furniture to building houses.

Harijan - untouchables These little girls are members of the lowest caste in the heirarchy. They are a part of what used to be known as the untouchables. They were called untouchables because people belived that they were so dirty that they were not fit to be touched by other people in higher castes. Their jobs involve doing most of the cleaning, or what we might call "dirty work." In this particular picture the girls are making dung patties. The dung from cows are taken and made into patties and set out to dry (as you can see the rows of them), these patties are then used to be burned as fuel or for heat.

That’s all folks!