1. Objectives
India and Hinduism
Locate and label physical features and early river civilizations of the Indus River Valley
Explain how India’s geography impacted the development of early settlements
Discuss legacy of Indo-European
migrations including Aryans
Explain development and central beliefs of Hinduism
Illustrate central beliefs on a Mandala
Describe characteristics of classical Indian empires
Indus River

2. How would you describe the geography of India? Take 30
On which continent is India located?
Asia
How would you describe the geography of India? Take 30
seconds and talk to your neighbor.

3. Important geographic features:
Mountains:
Himalayas
Hindu-Kush
Karakoram
Rivers:
Indus
Ganges
Other features:
Deccan plateau
Eastern and
Western Ghats
Khyber Pass

5. What are monsoons? India is considered a subcontinent because:
Karakoram
It is surrounded on three sides by water (it is a peninsula)
Mountains to the northwest and northeast separate it from the rest of Asia
Hindu Kush
Himalayas
What are monsoons?
Winter and summer winds that blow across India

6. India in the summer

7. Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro
were the first civilizations of
India and they
developed on the Indus
River.
Why did they
develop in this location?

8. Flooding along
the Indus River was
unpredictable. It did leave behind nutrient-rich silt which made the soil fertile for farming.
Harappa and
Mohenjo-Daro developed
around 3200 BCE.

9. Historians know less about Harappa and
Mohenjo-Daro because
the writing system has
never been decoded.

10. Evidence of planned cities and indoor plumbing (toilets!)

11. Artifacts show links to modern Hindu culture
Shiva- is a major Hindu god
Worshipped cows

12. Cows are sacred today
in India

13. Sudden natural disaster Overfarming
By 1750 BCE, The Indus River civilizations had declined. No one really knows why. Theories surrounding the decline:
Sudden natural disaster
Overfarming
Invasion, possibly by an Indo-European people called the Aryans.
The Ganges River in the east would become the center of later civilizations in India.

14. As the Indus River Valley civilizations declined, new civilizations formed along the Ganges River

15. Aryans, an Indo-European people, had migrated to or invaded India blending Aryan beliefs with the beliefs of the Indians (Dravidians).
These Aryan beliefs were hymns. They were later written down and called the Vedas. They became the foundation of
Hinduism.
Aryan Migration

16. The Caste System
The Aryans sought to separate themselves from the darker skinned Indians (Dravidians). Over time, a structured and divided society developed known as the Caste System.

17. The Caste system was rigid.
It influenced all social interactions including marriage and occupations.
Social classes were divided by occupation.
Aryan Varnas
Dravidians

18. Each Varna contained many levels or Jatis, based on occupation
People were born into their Jati and could only perform the duties of their Jati
The system of Varnas and Jatis is called the Caste system. Even today, young people perform the work of their parents in specific Jatis
Think about the work that your parents do. Would you want to do their jobs? Talk to your neighbor -

19. Brahmin
The caste system was rooted in Hinduism. Each Varna represents a body part of the god, Purusha, from the Vedas and each Varna represents occupations in society.
Kshatriya
Vaisya
Sudra

20. Can you identify which Varna is which?

21. Hinduism
India’s religion developed from the blended beliefs of the Aryans and Dravidians
No founder
Belief in many forms of one god, Brahma, the Creator
Brahma

22. Vishnu the Preserver

23. Shiva the Destroyer

24. Hinduism: Monotheistic or Polytheistic?
Talk to your neighbor

25. Hinduism is a way of life in India
Hindus rise early and bathe in the sacred Ganges River

28. Hindus burn incense and offer prayer

29. Hindus practice Yoga.
Yoga is meditation and mind control over body.
(Spiritual Discipline)

30. Can you do this?

31. The popularity of yoga in the west is an example of …….
Cultural
Diffusion

32. Central Beliefs of Hinduism
Belief in many forms of one god
Reincarnation: Rebirth of a human soul based on karma
Karma = deeds; all thoughts and actions result in future consequences.
“Om”= most sacred
sound and spiritual symbol in
Hinduism

33. Reincarnation means “Rebirth”.
An individual spirit (ATMAN) is born again and again until Moksha is achieved.
The cycle of reincarnation is called “Samsara.”

34. Moksha: A state of perfect understanding of all things and release from life in this world

36. Karma is the sum of your good deeds throughout your life
Good karma= reincarnation to a higher varna in the caste system until Moksha is achieved
Dharma= the religious law or moral duty outlined in Hindu scriptures

37. Two sacred texts are important to Hindus:
The Vedas are sacred hymns
Interpretations of the Vedas

38. Jainism also developed at this time in India
Jainism also developed at this time in India. Jains believe that everything in the universe has a soul and should not be harmed. They practice non-violence even to insects.

40. Objectives:
Describe characteristics
of empires of India
during the Classical period
Sequence key events
during Mauryan and
Guptan Empires

41. Around 600 BCE, the first empire united many small kingdoms
During the classical period, India was fragmented with intermittent empires
Around 600 BCE, the first empire united many small kingdoms
It was called the Mauryan
Empire
Ganges River
The classical empires were centered on the Ganges river

42. The Mauryan Empire, led by Chandragupta Maurya,
spanned more than 2,000 miles. Chandragupta
Maurya built his empire by conquest.
He had an army of 600,000 and defeated Alexander the Great’s successor, Seleucus, near the Indus River valley in 303 BCE.

43. Under Chandragupta Maurya:
His advisor, Kautilya, wrote the Arthasastra, about how to keep a vast empire together
Written in Sanskrit, the book urged rulers to conquer neighboring kingdoms that are weak and maintain an army of spies.

44. In 269 BCE, Chandragupta’s grandson, Asoka assumed the throne; under Asoka:
Battled neighbors until battle of Kalinga, where he lost 100,000 soldiers
Asoka, deeply affected by the loss of life and suffering, began to study Buddhism

45. Asoka:
Spread Buddhist teachings by constructing huge pillars inscribed with Buddhist teachings throughout
his empire. They were called Asoka’s Edicts.
These pillars urged non-violence and acceptance of other religions
Asoka built:
improved roads
created public wells
hospitals
veterinary clinics
rest stops for travelers throughout his kingdom

46. Asoka:
Appointed missionaries who spread Buddhism throughout India, China and S.E. Asia
After Asoka died in 232 BCE, the Mauryan empire fell apart

47. A period of disunity and regional kingdoms followed Asoka’s death and lasted for
500 years. Then, in 320 CE, Chandra Gupta united India into its second empire,
the Gupta Empire.

48. Which empire was larger, geographically? Mauryan or Guptan?

49. The Gupta empire brought about the flowering of Indian and Hindu culture and advancements in math and science

50. Cultural achievements:
Literature flourished: Kalidasa wrote Shakuntala, a classic love story
Drama and dancing became important elements of Indian culture

51. Commercial Achievements - Trade
Indian merchants traded goods such as spices, diamonds, sapphires, gold, sandalwood, cotton and teakwood along the Silk Roads.
Traders also spread religion eastward. Buddhism spread
from India throughout China and Southeast Asia.

52. Scientific Achievements:
Indian astronomers proved that the earth was round by observing a lunar eclipse
Advanced mathematics: Indian numerals are the numbers we use today but the Arabic civilizations would get the credit.
the number “Zero” and the decimal system
Indian Mathematicians calculated
the length of the solar year very accurately
Indian doctors made advancements
in medicine, surgery and they compiled medical texts

53. Scientific achievements continued
Mathematician Aryabhata calculated the length of the solar year very accurately
Continued advancements in medicine and surgery-compiled medical texts

54. Ancient and Classical India Timeline
500 years of
disunity
and regional rule
1900 BCE
1500 BCE
500 BCE
326 BCE
321 BCE
320 CE
Mohenjo
Daro
And
Harappa
thrived
The Vedas composed
Siddhartha
Gautama
originated
Buddhism
Sanskrit was first
written
Mauryan
Empire
unites
India-
Ashoka
rules from
Alexander
Invades
and departs
Indus River
Valley
Guptan
Empire
rules
India
Aryan
invasions

55. https://cougar. collegiate-va. org/psinkler/indus_valley/valley_map

56. http://globaltwilight. edublogs. org/files/2011/03/caste_system-oo4t9n