1. Ancient India
Indo-Europeans,
Aryans, and Hittites
Ancient India
Indo-Europeans,
Aryans, and Hittites

2. Mohenjo-Dara and Harappa Vedic Period – Aryan Invaders
India Timeline
Mohenjo-Dara and Harappa
Mauryan Empire
Chandragupta
Mauryan Empire
Asoka
Gupta Empire
King Chandragupta I
Gupta Empire
Collapses
Vedic Period – Aryan Invaders
Golden Age of India
Buddhism
500 years of turmoil
2600 BC
1500 – 1000 BC
600 BC
321 BC
269 BC –
232 BC
5th Century AD
321 AD

3. Map of ancient Mohenjo-Daro.
Mohenjo-Dara and Harappa
Mohenjo-Dara and Harappa
India’s 1st civilizations.
Started in 2,600 BC.
Called the Indus Valley Civilization or the Harappan Civilization.
Map of ancient Mohenjo-Daro.

4. Geography Geography Ganges river – forms a fertile farming valley.
Indus river- farming region that produces wheat.
Climate is impacted by monsoons.
These guys were and still are, strongly impacted by the monsoon seasons. Population is the most dense on the West and East Coast as well as along the Ganges plain. The Deccan Plateau is south of the Ganges. It is both hilly and dry.
In the west, the Indus river provides the modern day border to Pakistan.
The Ganges river is in the south. It is a rich farming valley.
The Himalayas to the North, form a strong, natural border.

5. Images of ancient Mohenjo-Daro.
Mohenjo-Dara and Harappa
Mohenjo-Dara and Harappa
1st to make cotton.
City was developed on a grid system.
Advanced drainage and sewage systems.
Supported a population of 35,000-40,000. Ended suddenly – no one knows why.
Public wells
Advanced drainage systems – wastewater flowed out drains under the streets and was carried to sewage pits beyond the city walls. System of chutes for garbage disposal. These cities were very well-planned and organized.
Picture’s site -
A system of chutes took household trash from houses to street-level garage bins. Only a well-organized government could have maintained such carefully structured cities.
Images of ancient Mohenjo-Daro.

6. Images of ancient Mohenjo-Daro.
Mohenjo-Dara and Harappa
Mohenjo-Dara and Harappa
Public wells
Advanced drainage systems – wastewater flowed out drains under the streets and was carried to sewage pits beyond the city walls. System of chutes for garbage disposal. These cities were very well-planned and organized.
Picture’s site -
A system of chutes took household trash from houses to street-level garage bins. Only a well-organized government could have maintained such carefully structured cities.
These images reflect the careful planning that went into the design of this ancient city.
Images of ancient Mohenjo-Daro.

7. Indo European and Aryan Migrations Indo European and Aryan Migrations
Eventually floods, an earthquake, or changes in climate weakened the once flourishing civilization
Aryan invasions began around 1500 BC, and waves of Aryans swept through passes in the Mountains- Hindu Kush- into the Indus River Valley. Then conquered the Ganges Plains
Floods, earthquakes or changes in climate weakened civilizations, and by 1500 BC, waves of Aryan invaders migrated throughout the region.

8. Geography
Geography
Migration was made possible via the Khyber Pass through the Hindu Kush Mtns.
Himalayas-highest mountains in the world.
Hindu Kush
Himalayas
Khyber Pass
Label the Hindu Kush Mtns, the Himalayas and the downward path through the Khyber Pass.

9. Indo European and Aryan Invaders Indo European and Aryan Invaders
The Vedic Period BC- Invaders breached the Khyber Pass in the Hindu Kush Mtns.
Conquered the Indus valley region of India.
War-like and pastoral people.
These invaders were lighter skinned than the original inhabitants of the region.
Aryan warrior-herders sang rousing hymns and recited epics, for centuries they were passed by word of mouth from generation to generation. Eventually the Aryans developed a written form of Sanskrit. Priests collected the hymns and poems and legends into holy books- the Vedas, or “Books of Knowledge.”

10. An Indian Raja and Princess.
Indo European and Aryan Invaders
Indo European and Aryan Invaders
Aryan Kings or Leaders were called “Rajas” – (“princes”)
India was made of warring kingdoms and shifting alliances.
Ancient Aryan legends and hymns describe people who delighted in waging war, gambling on chariot races, and singing and dancing at festivals. Cattle were the basis of their diet and economy, even serving as money. Wealth was measured in cattle, so the Aryans raided each other’s herds. They were often at war.
An Indian Raja and Princess.

11. Indo European and Aryan Invaders Indo European and Aryan Invaders
Iron tools – plow, etc, made them good farmers.
They produced: rice, wheat, barley, millet.
Spices included: cinnamon, pepper, and ginger.

12. Selections from the Rig Veda above, courtesy Wikipedia Commons.
Indo European and Aryan Invaders
Indo European and Aryan Invaders
Writing – Sanskrit
Sanskrit was a status symbol of education and wealth.
Only the higher castes were taught to read and write Sanskrit.
Panini's book was called the Astadhyayi and was written in about the forth century B.C. It is a complete grammar of the Sanskrit language. Sanskrit was a language only used by the Brahmins. Panini's work helped to begin the standardization of the language. Scholars today are able to learn many things about what the language was like in Panini's time because he had written his book outlining so much about the structure of the language.
Selections from the Rig Veda above, courtesy Wikipedia Commons.

13. Indo-European Languages Indo-European Languages
Balto-Slavik
Greek
Indo-Iranian
Hittite
Armenian
Slavik
Baltic
Indic
Iranian
Polish
Czech
Russian
Ukrainian
Macedonian
Latvian
Lithuanian
Hindi
Urdu
Punjabi
Bengali
Persian
Kurdish
Italic
Germanic
Celtic
There are over 110 languages and 1,000 dialects spoken in India.
Latin
Danish
Swedish
Norwegian
English
Dutch
Afrikaans
German
Breton
Welsh
Irish Gaelic
Scottish Gaelic
French
Portuguese
Spanish
Italian
Romanian

14. Religions in India Religions in India
The dominant religion in the region is Hinduism which was brought in by the original Aryan invaders.
With the birth of Siddhartha Gautama (Buddha) in 600 BC, the religion of Buddhism was also introduced in India.

15. Religions in India Religions in India Vedas
Aryans brought with them a strong oral tradition, and religion.
These became the foundation for the religion of Hinduism.
They established a social institution and class system – caste system.
Vedas
The term yoga is sanskrit for the word discipline.

16. Impact of the Caste System
Position in society based on skin color.
Occupation, and economic status are determined by your caste.
This will also determine who you marry.

17. Aryan Social Classes Aryan Social Classes Brahmins – priests
Kshatriyas – rulers and warriors
Vaishyas – artisans and traders
Shudras – laborers and servants
You are born into a caste for life.
It determines: who you will marry, the job you will have, and the people you are allowed to associate with.
Higher castes are concerned with ritual purity.
Social classes= varnas
Varnas were divided into smaller groups known as jati according to occupation

18. The Untouchables The Untouchables
Pariahs
Skinned animals and tanned their hides for leather- lived outside the village and were shunned by most other people
The lowest social class were known as untouchables because they did the dirtiest work that was considered unclean and impure. They were butchers, gravediggers, and trash collectors.

19. A Hindu widow commits sati above.
Family Life in India
Family Life in India
Patriarchal – men are educated and allowed to inherit.
Women - no status, and daughters were an financial drain. (Dowry).
Suttee – wife throws herself onto the pyre of her dead husband.
3 Generations may live under one roof. Marriages were and still are, arranged. Divorce was not allowed. A man was able to take a second wife, provided that the first one was barren.
Boys are taught by a guru – which means teacher.
For many traditionalists, this Hindu practice symbolizes the epitome of wifely devotion, especially among the Rajput caste of  Northern India (Harlan 1995: 80).  In addition, some Hindus believe the act of self-immolation by a widow facilitates the attainment of spiritual salvation for her dead husband.  The woman who commits sati is also revered as a goddess (81).  On the other hand, feminists, political leaders, and many of India’s rural people and elite contend that the glorification of sati is a national disgrace and an immoral act.  Understandably, the differing points of view have created strong division among India’s people, especially among women.
A Hindu widow commits sati above.
A Rajput girl – right.

20. Alexander’s battle with Porus on the Jhelum.
Alexander the Great
Alexander the Great
After 400 B.C., India faced new threats from the west–first from Persia, Greece, and Macedonia, under Alexander the Great in 327 B.C.
Alexander left quickly, but his invasion gave rise to the 1st Indian dynasty.
Alexander’s battle with Porus on the Jhelum.

21. Mauryan Empire Mauryan Empire
321 BC - King Chandragupta established one of the greatest Hindu empires – the Mauryan Empire.
He created a large army – 60,000 soldiers, 30,000 cavalry, and 9,000 elephants.
King Chandragupta

22. Extent of Mauryan Empire under Asoka
The Mauryan Empire stretched from modern day Pakistan and Afghanistan in the west, to the Ganges river in the east.
His grandson, Asoka would be the next great ruler of India.
Extent of Mauryan Empire under Asoka

23. Asoka Maurya above. Image courtesy of Wikipedia Commons.
Mauryan Empire
Mauryan Empire
The “founding Father” for India, was Mauryan ruler, Asoka who ruled from 268 BC -232 BC.
Asoka added to his empire through a bloody battle at Kalinga.
Saddened over the loss of life, Asoka turned to Buddhism for comfort.
Asoka’s rule began in 274 BC. His merciless armies swept across India hunting down and kill their enemies. After one particularly brutal battle, Asoka rode out to view the battlefield. The experience changed his life. As he looked on the bloodied bodies of the dead and maimed, the Indian ruler was horrified. He renounced war. He set up hospitals for people and animals, and he ordered a system of shade trees and shelters for travelers.
India flourished economically under Asoka.
It became an important crossroads in a commercial network from the Pacific Rim to Southwest Asia and the Mediterranean Sea.
Asoka died in 232 B.C.
The empire then declined.
The last Mauryan ruler was killed in 183 B.C., and India fell into disunity.
Asoka Maurya above. Image courtesy of Wikipedia Commons.

24. Map of Asoka’s rock edicts
Mauryan Empire
Mauryan Empire
“Along the roads, wells have been dug and trees planted for the use of men and beasts.”
“I must promote the welfare of the whole world, and hard work…whatever may be my great deeds, I have done them in order to discharge my debt to all beings.”
Asoka’s edicts – pillar edicts and rock edicts.
Asoka’s rule began in 274 BC. His merciless armies swept across India hunting down and kill their enemies. After one particularly brutal battle, Asoka rode out to view the battlefield. The experience changed his life. As he looked on the bloodied bodies of the dead and maimed, the Indian ruler was horrified. He renounced war. He set up hospitals for people and animals, and he ordered a system of shade trees and shelters for travelers.
India flourished economically under Asoka.
It became an important crossroads in a commercial network from the Pacific Rim to Southwest Asia and the Mediterranean Sea.
Asoka died in 232 B.C.
The empire then declined.
The last Mauryan ruler was killed in 183 B.C., and India fell into disunity.
Map of Asoka’s rock edicts

25. Mauryan Empire Mauryan Empire
Asoka sent missionaries to other lands, spreading Buddhism.
Carved royal messages on stone monuments that stood as “billboards” throughout his empire.
His empire collapsed 50 years after his death, but to this day, his impact and legacy on India is powerful.
Asoka’s rule began in 274 BC. His merciless armies swept across India hunting down and kill their enemies. After one particularly brutal battle, Asoka rode out to view the battlefield. The experience changed his life. As he looked on the bloodied bodies of the dead and maimed, the Indian ruler was horrified. He renounced war. He set up hospitals for people and animals, and he ordered a system of shade trees and shelters for travelers.
India flourished economically under Asoka.
It became an important crossroads in a commercial network from the Pacific Rim to Southwest Asia and the Mediterranean Sea.
Asoka died in 232 B.C.
The empire then declined.
The last Mauryan ruler was killed in 183 B.C., and India fell into disunity.
Asoka’s Chakra – chosen 2,000 years later for India’s flag.

26. Map of the Gupta Empire-413 AD
Kingdom of the Guptas
Kingdom of the Guptas
500 years later-Chandragupta, (no relation to the 1st Chandragupta), established a new kingdom in 320 A.D. He was called the Great King of Kings.
The Gupta period was India’s Golden Age.
Arts, sciences and trade flourished.
Gupta dynasty would rule northern India for more than 200 years.
Map of the Gupta Empire-413 AD

27. Kingdom of the Guptas Kingdom of the Guptas
Aryabhata was the Gupta Empire’s most famous mathematician.
He was one of the first scientists known to have used algebra.
Indian mathematicians also introduced the concept of zero.
image
The symbols 1 to 9 were adopted by traders from the Middle East and so came to be called “Arabic numerals” in the West. Realized the earth was round and had some knowledge of gravity.
Aryabhata

28. Kingdom of the Guptas Kingdom of the Guptas
The Guptas postulated that the Earth was not flat, but rotated on its axis.
Astronomers calculated the solar year and the movement of bodies in space.
In medicine, the Guptas knew how to set bones, and perform minor skin grafts.
image
The symbols 1 to 9 were adopted by traders from the Middle East and so came to be called “Arabic numerals” in the West. Realized the earth was round and had some knowledge of gravity.

29. Kingdom of the Guptas Kingdom of the Guptas
They traded salt, cloth, and iron domestically and as far away as China and the Mediterranean.
In the 5th century A.D., invasion by nomadic Huns from the northwest weakened the empire.
Later Gupta rulers lived extravagantly, which weakened the people’s loyalty. Chandragupta II’s death in 415 AD also lead to decline. By 600, the Gupta Empire had dissolved into a collection of small states.
Trade in the ancient world brought many cultures and kingdoms together. Silk road was 4,000 miles.

30. Contributions of India Contributions of India
Writing – Sanskrit
Many of the World’s Languages
3-Religions/Eastern Philosophies of: Hinduism, Buddhism and Sikhism.
Spice merchants and tradesmen.