Ancient Indiamsraleighkelloggschool.weebly.com/uploads/3/8/6/0/... · Ancient India Copyright©2014 History Gal. ... Pakistan, and Bangladesh . ... Caste System People were born into

Ancient India

Copyright©2014 History Gal. All rights reserved.

Subcontinent Includes the modern-day countries of

Location


India, Pakistan,

and Bangladesh

A little About India’s Geography 3 major rivers:


Indus

Ganges

Brahmaputra

A little About India’s Geography

India’s civilizations experienced monsoons or seasonal winds.

Winter monsoons bring dry air and moderate temperatures.

Summer monsoons bring rain from the ocean and often cause flooding.


Indus River Valley

Civilizations Copyright©2014 History Gal. All rights reserved.

Harappa circa 2500 BC – 1500 BC


Major Cities

Harappa and

Mohenjo-Daro



http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohenjo-daro#mediaviewer/File:Stupa_at_Mohenjo-Daro.jpg

Cities had a citadel (fortress) overlooking each city.

Cities were laid out in a grid pattern.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohenjo-daro#mediaviewer/File:Mohenjo-daro-2010.jpg

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mohenjo-daro#mediaviewer/File:Mohenjo-daro.jpg

Houses had at least one bathroom with drains and chutes connecting to a sewer beneath the streets.

Cities had brick houses with flat wooden roofs.

Harappan Life Most people worked the land.


They grew wheat, barley, rice and cotton.

wheat

cotton


They planted at the beginning or end of the flood season, relying on the drenched land to provide the necessary water for the crops.

Food surpluses enabled people to do other work like commerce and arts.

rice field

barley

Religion Artifacts suggest that the Harappans worshipped gods associated with natural forces.


Language


Inscribed pictograms have been found on package seals, but have not been deciphered.

Lack of written records makes it difficult to know much about the Harappans.

Collapse Around 1500 BC, the Harappans disappeared.

Possible Reasons: - Climate change - Disease (evidence of leprosy and tuberculosis

have been discovered) - Socio-economic upheaval - invasion


As more artifacts are discovered, archaeologists will likely learn more about these ancient Indus River cities.

520 BC – 321 BC Persia and

Macedonia ruled over India


Mauryan Empire 321 BC – 185 BC

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Chandragupta Maurya After the death of Macedonian King, Alexander the Great in 323 BC,

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Chandragupta Maurya began conquering the Macedonian satrapies (provinces or areas ruled by Macedonian governors) and united Northern India under his control.

Macedonian Satraps

In 321 BC, at the age of 20, Chandragupta Maurya proclaimed himself ruler of the Mauryan Empire.

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Empire at end of reign

One alliance was with Seleucus, a Macedonia satrap. To seal the alliance, Chandragupta married Seleucus’s daughter and gifted Seleucus with 500 war elephants.

Empire in 321 BC

Throughout his reign, he continued to expand the empire through conquests and alliances.

He kept control over the empire by maintaining a strong army. According to Ancient Roman historian Pliny, his army consisted of 600,000 infantry, 30,000 cavalry, 9,000 war elephants.

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He also used an extensive spy network.

He established a bureaucracy. He established standardized weights and measures. He established standards for physicians. At the age of 42, he gave the throne to his son. He became a Jain ascetic (someone who abstains from any self-indulgence) and died completing the religious ritual of suicide by fasting to achieve moksha (release from reincarnation).

Other Accomplishments

Ashoka 270 BC – 232 BC

He was Chandragupta Maurya’s grandson.

He built an empire that covered 2/3 of the Indian subcontinent.

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Empire under Ashoka

Ashoka’s Rock Edicts The Rock Edicts were laws written in local languages so people could read them.

After viewing the horrors of war, Ashoka announced he would follow the teachings of Buddha and he became a man of peace.

Ashoka Chakra, a symbol representing Buddhism that was used by Ashoka

During his rule, Buddhism spread throughout India and other parts of Asia.

Mauryan Empire declined after the death of Ashoka.

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In 184 BC, the last Mauryan emperor was murdered and India split into warring kingdoms.

Gupta Empire 350 AD – 550 AD

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Chandragupta I 320 – 374 AD

Chandragupta (no known relation to the previous rulers of the same name) created the Gupta Empire. He used whatever means necessary to remain in control.


Arts and sciences flourished.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gupta_Empire#mediaviewer/File:Vishnu_Hood2_Deogarh.jpg

During the rule of Chandragupta 1

Hindu god Vishnu

Hinduism became the dominate religion.

Chandragupta II 374 – 415 AD

He eased tax burdens.

Art and sciences continued to flourish.


The empire weakened after his death and eventually collapsed in 550 AD.

Iron pillar of Delhi, erected by Chandragupta II after his victory against Vihilakas honors the Hindu god Vishnu. It has stood for more than 1600 years without rusting or decomposing

Life and Culture in

Ancient India


Economy Trade


Monsoon winds took ships from India to Egypt

Goods were carried overland by camels and then again by boat on the Nile River to Alexandria

From Alexandria, the goods reached the Roman Empire

Society Caste System

People were born into a caste. They could not move into a different caste. Laws dictated what each caste could and could not do.


Sudra Commoners, peasants, laborers,

servants

Vaishya Merchants, landowners

Kshatriya Warrior and rulers

Brahmins Priests, scholars

Dalit, Untouchable Performed unclean jobs like Street sweepers, waste handlers,

dead body handlers

Role of Women Women had to obey their father, husband, or son.

They could not own property or study sacred writings.

Their husbands were allowed to practice polygyny, which means men could have more than one wife.


When their husband died, wives committed suttee or the practice of committing suicide by throwing themselves on their dead husband’s burning body.

Education Only boys in the upper castes were educated.


They studied great epics, astronomy, math, warfare, and governments.

From the Panchatantra

Achievements Panchatantra – collection of fables

Math – abstract and negative numbers, algebra


Astronomy – identified 7 planets, understood the rotation of the earth, and predicted sun and moon eclipses Medicine – set bones, evidence of plastic surgery, had free hospitals, knew about the need for cleanliness and disinfections, had a small pox vaccine

Inoculation - the practice of infecting a person with a mild form of the disease so they will not become ill from the more serious form

Religions that

Originated in India


Hinduism


A combination of different beliefs and practices

Polytheistic

Vedas – sacred works of Hindu religious literature Upanishads (800-300 BC) – contains Hindu beliefs


Sacred Books and Text

Reincarnation – rebirth of the soul continues until a person reached spiritual perfection Cycle of rebirth is determined by karma. Karma – how a person lives determines what form the person will take in the next life (good actions means a soul will be reborn to a higher caste in next life, bad actions means a soul will be reborn in a lower caste in the next life)


Important Terms

Dharma – correct actions for one’s class, helps achieve karma Ahimsa – non-violence, requires the believer to protect humans, animals, insects, even plants Moksha – release from the pain and suffering of rebirth and becoming one with the universal spirit, only Brahmins can achieve this


More Important Terms

Buddhism


In 563 BC, Siddhartha Gautama was born in luxury and raised as a price. He was shielded from sickness and death. One day, as Gautama’s charioteer was driving him around, he encountered sickness, old age, and death for the first time. He decided to find out what people suffered and how it could end. At the age of 29, he left his wife and newborn son and began his search. He wandered throughout India for about 7 years and while meditating, he gained the answer and began sharing it.


How Buddhism was Founded

4 Noble Truths 1. All people suffer and know sorrow. 2. Desires cause suffering (in other words,

people suffer because they try to get things they cannot have).

3. End suffering by eliminating desires. 4. Eliminate desire by following the Eightfold

Path. Copyright©2014 History Gal. All rights reserved.

Eightfold Path 1. Know truth 2. Resist evil 3. Say nothing to hurt others 4. Respect life 5. Work for the good of others 6. Free mind from evil 7. Control your thoughts 8. Practice meditation

By following the Eightfold Path, a person could achieve nirvana.

Nirvana is the freedom from reincarnation and being at one with the universe.

Anyone regardless of class could achieve nirvana.


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Ancient Indiamsraleighkelloggschool.weebly.com/uploads/3/8/6/0/... · Ancient India Copyright©2014 History Gal. ... Pakistan, and Bangladesh . ... Caste System People were born into