1. Classical Civilization: India4
Classical Civilization: India

2. Chapter Overview
The Framework for Indian History: Geography and Culture
Patterns in Classical India
Political Institutions
Religion and Culture
Economy and Society
Indian Influence and Comparative Features

3. FIGURE The cave temples carved out of solid stone at Ajanta in central India provide dramatic evidence of the religious fervor that swept through south Asia in the age of the Buddha and the Hindu revival.
FIGURE The cave temples carved out of solid stone at Ajanta in central India provide dramatic evidence of the religious fervor that swept through south Asia in the age of the Buddha and the Hindu revival.

4. TIMELINE B.C.E.–1 C.E.
TIMELINE B.C.E.–1 C.E.

5. The Framework for Indian History: Geography and a Formative Period
Period of Aryan Incursions
Buddhists and brahmans shape society
Gupta dynasty emerges
Peak of artistic, intellectual achievement
Distinct from Chinese developments

6. The Framework for Indian History: Geography and Culture
Formative Influences
Open to influences from the Middle East
Alexander the Great
Geography
Himalayas
Isolating, but passable
Mountainous northern areas
Deccan
Semitropical climate
Monsoon rains

7. The Framework for Indian History: Geography and Culture
Brahman Culture
Aryans
Indo-European pastoralists
Into Asia Minor, Europe, Iran from 2000s B.C.E.
Social Classes (varnas)
Untouchables

8. The Framework for Indian History: Geography and Culture
Brahman Culture
Sanskrit epics of the Vedic Age
Rig-Veda
1028 hymns
Indra
Epic Age, 1000–600 B.C.E.
The Upanishads
Ritual and mysticism in religion

9. Patterns in Classical India
End of formative era, c.600 B.C.E.
From c. 600 to c. 300 B.C.E. plains divided among rulers
Sixteen major states
327 B.C.E., Alexander the Great

10. Patterns in Classical India
The Mauryan Dynasty
Chandragupta Maurya, 322 B.C.E.
Autocratic rule
Ashoka (269–232 B.C.E.)
Grandson of Chandragupta
Conversion to Buddhism; belief in dharma
Becomes pacific, vegetarian
Infrastructure: roads, hospitals, inns
Opposed by Brahmans
Kushans follow end of Mauryan rule

11. Map India at the Time of Ashoka Although, as the map shows, the Mauryan monarchs claimed to rule most of present-day South Asia, much of the subcontinent was only loosely controlled.
Map India at the Time of Ashoka Although, as the map shows, the Mauryan monarchs claimed to rule most of present-day South Asia, much of the subcontinent was only loosely controlled.

12. FIGURE Two of the four lions that originally sat atop the Ashoka column at Sarnath, in present-day Uttar Pradesh, India (this view of the sculpture obscures the other two lions). This sculpture, now housed at the Sarnath Museum, was carved from a single sandstone block. Ashoka used the lions as the emblem of his rule.
FIGURE Two of the four lions that originally sat atop the Ashoka column at Sarnath, in present-day Uttar Pradesh, India (this view of the sculpture obscures the other two lions). This sculpture, now housed at the Sarnath Museum, was carved from a single sandstone block. Ashoka used the lions as the emblem of his rule.

13. Map The Gupta Empire Not only was the territory claimed by the Gupta dynasty a good deal smaller than the empire of their Mauryan predecessors, even the area controlled was ruled to a far greater extent by local lords than the Gupta emperors.
Map The Gupta Empire Not only was the territory claimed by the Gupta dynasty a good deal smaller than the empire of their Mauryan predecessors, even the area controlled was ruled to a far greater extent by local lords than the Gupta emperors.

14. Patterns in Classical India
The Guptas
Collapse of Kushan state by 220 C.E.
Autocratic rule
Guptas
From 320 C.E.
Long period of stable rule
Overthrown by Huns in 535 C.E.

15. Political Institutions
Consistent tradition of regionalism
Attempts to hold large areas
Mauryan rulers rely on armies
Guptas create taxation system, claim divine sanction
In general simple political culture
Kautilya is an exception
Chandragupta's chief minister
Treatise on politics

16. Political Institutions
Social organization
Caste system becomes more rigid
Yet social mobility existed
Rulers could rise from lower castes
No slavery

17. Religion and Culture The Formation of Hinduism
Origins in Vedic and Epic Eras
No single founder, develops gradually
Fluid, adaptable
Brahmans
Develop abstract aspects of gods
Upanishads
Tension between ritual and spirituality
Brahmans versus gurus

18. Religion and Culture Hinduism Mystics (gurus) Brahma, holy essence
Aspects of brahma as gods
Vishnu
Shiva

19. Religion and Culture Hinduism Different paths for a good life Dharma
Yoga
Brahmans' ritual
Personal devotion
Dharma
Moral law
Not prescriptive

20. FIGURE Perhaps the most frequently depicted Indian religious image is the god Shiva as the celestial dancer, here portrayed in a south Indian bronze. The position of the god's hands and the objects held in them each represent a different aspect of his power, which may be simultaneously creative and destructive. His left hand closest to his head, for example, is held in the posture of reassurance, and the left hand furthest away holds a drum, which signifies time. His left foot crushes the demon of ignorance, which seems to want to be destroyed by the illustrious god.
FIGURE Perhaps the most frequently depicted Indian religious image is the god Shiva as the celestial dancer, here portrayed in a south Indian bronze. The position of the god's hands and the objects held in them each represent a different aspect of his power, which may be simultaneously creative and destructive. His left hand closest to his head, for example, is held in the posture of reassurance, and the left hand furthest away holds a drum, which signifies time. His left foot crushes the demon of ignorance, which seems to want to be destroyed by the illustrious god.

21. Religion and Culture Buddhism Siddhartha Gautama, born c. 563 B.C.E.
Takes to wandering life, asceticism
Four Noble Truths
Escape suffering by renouncing worldly things
Achievement of nirvana

22. Religion and Culture Buddhism Spread through work of monks
Conversion of Ashoka
Opposed by brahmans
Aspects of human life
Laws of love in Kamasutra

23. Map 4. 3 The Spread of Buddhism in Asia, 400 B. C. E. –600 C. E
Map The Spread of Buddhism in Asia, 400 B.C.E.–600 C.E. In less than two centuries wandering missionaries had carried the Buddhist faith from central Asia to Sri Lanka and into China and Japan.
Map The Spread of Buddhism in Asia, 400 B.C.E.–600 C.E. In less than two centuries wandering missionaries had carried the Buddhist faith from central Asia to Sri Lanka and into China and Japan.

24. Religion and Culture Arts and Sciences Literature
Strong traditions of storytelling
Drama
University center under Guptas
Some borrowing from Greeks
Aryabhatta
Length of solar year

25. FIGURE 4. 4 The great Buddhist stupa at Sanchi in central India
FIGURE The great Buddhist stupa at Sanchi in central India. Stupas were built to house relics of the Buddha, and they became major sites of pilgrimage. The intricate carved gates and railing surrounding the stupa related incidents from the Buddha's life or displayed symbols associated with his teachings. The great dome that covered the dirt mound that formed the core of the stupa often was painted white, and it struck approaching pilgrims as a great cloud floating on the horizon.
FIGURE The great Buddhist stupa at Sanchi in central India. Stupas were built to house relics of the Buddha, and they became major sites of pilgrimage. The intricate carved gates and railing surrounding the stupa related incidents from the Buddha's life or displayed symbols associated with his teachings. The great dome that covered the dirt mound that formed the core of the stupa often was painted white, and it struck approaching pilgrims as a great cloud floating on the horizon.

26. Religion and Culture Arts and Sciences Mathematics Architecture
Originated "Arabic" system, including zero
Negative numbers, square roots
Architecture
Stupas
Lively murals

27. Economy and Society Society
Caste system influences many aspects of life
Status of women diminishes
However, stress on loving relationships
Children indulged in early years

28. Economy and Society Economy Strong manufacturing Trade Textiles Steel
Guilds, selling from shops
Trade
Greater status than in China
Trade with East Asia, Middle East, Roman Empire, Southeast Asia

29. Indian Influence and Comparative Features
Indian Ocean a hub for contacts
Buddhism carried to China
Influence on Greeks and Romans

30. Inequality as a Social Norm
Caste system as an organization that contradicts Western beliefs
Concept of equality
Social place not determined by birth
Opportunity to rise in status
Equality would have been incomprehensible in the classical age.
"Rags-to-riches" uncommon
Few challenged this way of life.

31. Indian Influence and Comparative Features
China and India Compared
Chinese restraint versus Indian sensuality
Sciences
Chinese prefer the practical
Indians interested in mathematics
Popular worldviews
Hindu peasants had more local control
Indian merchants more important

32. Map 4. 4 Eurasian and African Trading Goods Routes, c. 300 B. C. E
Map Eurasian and African Trading Goods Routes, c. 300 B.C.E. to 300 C.E. As the map above illustrates, a vibrant oceanic trading system was in place across the Afro-Eurasian continents by the last centuries B.C.E., and the Indian subcontinent was central as a producer and consumer in this vast network of contact and exchange.
Map Eurasian and African Trading Goods Routes, c. 300 B.C.E. to 300 C.E. As the map above illustrates, a vibrant oceanic trading system was in place across the Afro-Eurasian continents by the last centuries B.C.E., and the Indian subcontinent was central as a producer and consumer in this vast network of contact and exchange.