Ancient India

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Ancient India
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GEOGRAPHY

• India is a subcontinent, a large land mass that
  is somewhat separated yet still part of a
  continent.
• The Indus River Valley was an ideal place for
  people to settle because the river flooded
  oftenspreading fertile soiland the monsoons
  brought regular rain fall.

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The Indus Valley Civilization

• Supported by a stable food supply, people settled
  in the Indus River Valley and eventually built
  cities.

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GOVERNMENT

• The Indus River Civilization probably had a
  strong central government with information
  flowing freely between towns.
• Trade took place with communities as far away as
  Mesopotamia and the Persian Gulf.

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Contributions of the Indus River Valley People

• After lasting 1000 years, the Indus River Valley
  civilization finally declined.
• The Indus River Valley people were the first to
  raise chickens for food. Today chicken is eaten
  worldwide.
• The Indus Valley people made jewelry and cotton
  cloth, both of which are still made today.

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The Aryans

• The Aryans were part of a larger semi nomadic
  group we now call the Indo-Europeans.
• The Indo-Europeans left their homeland around
  2000 B.C. and migrated throughout Europe, Asia,
  and India.
• Aryan beliefs and daily life were described in
  Vedas, a collection of sacred hymns and poems,
  passed down orally from generation to generation.

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Social Structure

• As the Aryans and the Indus Valley people
  combined cultures, they ended up with a four
  -class system.
• Divisions within classes were called castes.
  People did not change castes.

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Religion

• The Aryans worshipped a number of nature gods,
  and priests became very powerful in their society.

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Contributions of the Aryans

• Sanskrit, the language spoken by the Aryans, is
  the root of Hindi, one of the most common
  languages of modern India.
• Many people in modern India still follow the
  caste system created by the Aryans thousands of
  years ago.

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The Beginning of Buddhism

• Siddhartha Gautama established Buddism, one of
  the worlds major religions.
• After much searching and meditation, Siddhartha
  reached a height of understanding that Buddhists
  call enlightenment.
• After his enlightenment, Siddhartha was called
  the Buddha. He preached Buddhist dharma for many
  years until he died.

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Teachings of Buddhism

• The Buddha preached that everyone could find
  peace, without the Vedic priests or animal
  sacrifices.
• The Buddhas teaching centered on how people
  should think and act.

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• The Buddha taught that the Eightfold Path leads
  to enlightenment.
• Buddhism gradually traveled to China, Korea,
  Japan, Tibet, Burma and other areas of Southeast
  Asia.

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A Great Buddhist Ruler

• Asoka, a powerful emperor, converted to Buddhism
  and sent missionaries around and beyond the
  subcontinent.
• Asoka announced his Buddhist beliefs to his
  people in edicts, and ordered his empire to
  follow them.

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Hinduism

• Hinduism is both the major religion of India
  today, and a way of life, with roots in the Vedic
  religion of the Aryan people.
• Hinduism teaches its followers to do the duties
  of their caste.
• Certain Hindus go through different stages of
  life the last stage is as a wandering holy
  person.

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The Gupta Empire

• Both India and Hinduism grew and flourished under
  the Gupta Empire.
• Under the Guptas, India traded with Rome and the
  rest of the Mediterranean, Saudi Arabia, Central
  Asia, China, and Southeast Asia.
• Guilds grew as trade increased under the Guptas.

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Achievements of Ancient India

• Under the Guptas, two important epics of Hinduism
  were written down for the first time.
• An Indian astronomer determined the world was a
  sphere that rotated around the sun and accurately
  calculated the length of a solar year.

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• Indian mathematicians devised the number system
  we use today, featuring nine numerals, the zero,
  and the decimal.