Chapter 19

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Chapter 19 History of Ancient India
Section Notes
Video
Early Indian Civilizations Origins of
Hinduism Origins of Buddhism Indian
Empires Indian Achievements
Impact of Buddhism as a World Religion
Maps
Ancient India, 2300 BC-AD 500 Harappan
Civilization, c. 2600-1900 BC Aryan
Migrations Early Spread of Buddhism Mauryan
Empire, c. 320-185 BC Gupta Empire, c. 400 India
Physical Ancient India
Close-up
Life in Mohenjo Daro
Images
Harappan Art The Great Departure Mauryan
Troops Gupta Art Temple Architecture
Quick Facts
Chapter 19 Visual Summary
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Early Indian Civilizations

• The Big Idea
• Indian civilization developed on the Indus River.
• Main Ideas
• Located on the Indus River, the Harappan
  civilization also had contact with people far
  from India.
• Harappan achievements included a writing system,
  city planning, and art.
• The Aryan invasion changed Indias civilization.

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Main Idea 1Located on the Indus River, the
Harappan civilization also had contact with
people far from India.

• Archaeologists think that the Harappan
  civilization thrived between 2300 and 1700 BC.
• The Harappan civilization controlled large areas
  on both sides of the Indus River.
• The largest settlements were two cities Harappa
  and Mohenjo Daro.
• The Harappan civilization was dependent on
  agriculture and grew a variety of cropsfrom
  wheat and barley to dates and vegetables.
• The Harappans traded with people as far away as
  southern India and Mesopotamia.

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Main Idea 2Harappan achievements included a
writing system, city planning, and art.

• Developed Indias first writing system
• Scholars cannot read this system.
• Must rely on other clues to study Harappan society

Writing System

• Skilled engineers
• Towering fortresses were built near each city.
• Streets were lined with storehouses, workshops,
  market stalls, and houses.
• Built extensive sewer systems

City Planning

• Skilled artisans
• Sturdy pottery vessels, jewelry, and ivory objects

Artistic Achievements
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The End of the Harappan Civilization

• Harappan civilization ended by the early 1700s
  BC.
• No one is sure why their civilization ended.
• Perhaps invaders or natural disasters caused the
  civilization to collapse.

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Main Idea 3The Ayran invasion changed Indias
civilization.

• Arrival and Spread
• First arrived in India in the 2000s BC
• Originally from the area around the Caspian Sea
  in Central Asia
• Spread east and south into central India
• Most of what we know about Aryan society comes
  from the Vedas

• Government and Society
• Nomads who eventually settled in villages and
  began to farm
• Lived in small communities based on family ties
• Villages were governed by rajas.
• Groups often fought each other

• Language
• Did not read or write
• Memorized poems and hymns that were important to
  their culture
• Sanskrit was the most important language in
  ancient India.
• Sanskrit is no longer spoken today.

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Origins of Hinduism

• The Big Idea
• Hinduism, the largest religion in India,
  developed out of ancient Indian beliefs and
  practices.
• Main Ideas
• Indian society divided into distinct groups.
• The Aryans formed a religion known as Brahmanism.
• Hinduism developed out of Brahmanism and
  influences from other cultures.
• The Jains reacted to Hinduism by breaking away.

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Main Idea 1Indian society divided into distinct
groups.

• These groups were largely organized by peoples
  occupations.
• Strict rules developed about how people of
  different groups could interact.
• Over time, these rules became stricter and became
  central to Indian society.

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Social Divisions in Aryan society

• The Varnas
• Brahmins priests
• Kshatriyas rulers and warriors
• Vaisyas farmers, craftspeople, and traders
• Sudras laborers and non-Aryans

• The Caste System
• Divided Indian society into groups based on a
  persons birth, wealth, or occupation
• Determined his or her place in society
• On rare occasions, people could change caste.
• Untouchables were considered unclean and were the
  outcasts of society.

• Caste Rules
• Aryans wanted to keep the classes distinct.
• Sutras, or guides, which listed the rules of the
  caste system
• People spent almost all of their time with others
  in their same class.

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Main Idea 2Aryans formed a religion known as
Brahmanism.

• Aryan priests were called Brahmins, and their
  religion is often called Brahmanism.
• Aryan religion was based on the Vedas.
• Aryans wrote down their thoughts about the Vedas
  in collections called Vedic texts.
• One collection of Vedic texts describes Aryan
  religious rituals.
• A second collection describes secret rituals that
  only certain people could perform.
• The final group of Vedic texts are the
  Upanishads. These writings are reflections on
  the Vedas by religious students and teachers.

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Main Idea 3Hinduism developed out of Brahmanism
and influences from other cultures.

• The Vedas, the Upanishads, and other Vedic texts
  remained the basis of Indian religion for
  centuries.
• Eventually, the ideas began to blend with ideas
  from other cultures.
• This blending created a religion called Hinduism,
  the largest religion in India today.

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Hinduism

• Hindu Beliefs
• Believe in many gods
• Each god is part of a single universal spirit
  called Brahman.
• Brahman created the world and preserves it.
• Everything in the world is part of Brahman.

• Life and Rebirth
• Believe that everyone has a soul
• A persons ultimate goal should be to reunite
  that soul with Brahman, the universal spirit.
• People must try and see through the illusion of
  the world, which can take several lifetimes.
• Souls are born and reborn many times, each time
  into a new body. This process of rebirth is
  called reincarnation.

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Hinduism

• Hinduism and the Caste System
• A persons karma determines what physical form
  person will be reborn into.
• Karma is the effects that good or bad actions
  have on a persons soul.
• Hinduism teaches that one must obey ones dharma.
• Hinduism was popular at all levels of Hindu
  society.
• Hinduism preserved the caste system in India by
  teaching people to accept their places in society.

• Hinduism and Women
• Early Hinduism taught that both men and women
  could gain salvation, but that women were
  inferior to men.
• Over the centuries, Hindu women have gained more
  rights.
• Mohandas Gandhi was influential in helping women
  achieve more rights.

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Main Idea 4The Jains reacted to Hinduism by
breaking away.

• Mahariva did not like the control of religion by
  the Brahmins and founded a new religion called
  Jainism.
• Jains try to live by four principals injure no
  life, tell the truth, do not steal, and own no
  property.
• Jains practice nonviolence, or the avoidance of
  violent action.
• Jains believe that everything is alive and part
  of the cycle of rebirth.
• Jains are vegetarians. They do not eat any food
  that comes from animals.

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Origins of Buddhism

• The Big Idea
• Buddhism began in India and became a major
  religion.
• Main Ideas
• Siddhartha Gautama searched for wisdom in many
  ways.
• The teachings of Buddhism deal with finding
  peace.
• Buddhism spread far from where it began in India.

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Main Idea 1Siddhartha Gautama searched for
wisdom in many ways.

• Siddhartha Gautama was born around 563 BC in
  northern India.
• He was a prince, a member of the Kshatriya (or
  warrior) class, who grew up in luxury.
• Siddhartha began to ask questions about the
  meaning of life.
• Before he was 30, Siddhartha left his home and
  family and began to travel around India, talking
  to priests and people known for their wisdom.

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The Buddha Finds Enlightenment

• Siddhartha spent six years wandering throughout
  India.
• He started fasting, or went without food.
• He spent time in meditation, the focusing of the
  mind on spiritual ideas.

• After seven weeks of deep meditation under a tree
  in the town of Gaya, Siddhartha suddenly had the
  answers that he had been looking for.

• He discovered that human suffering comes from
  three things
• wanting what we like but do not have,
• wanting to keep what we like and already have,
  and
• not wanting what we dislike but have.

• Siddhartha is said to have found enlightenment
  under the tree. From that point on, he would be
  called the Buddha, or Enlightened One.

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Main Idea 2The teachings of Buddhism deal with
finding peace.

• At the heart of the Buddhas teachings were four
  guiding principles, which became known as the
  Four Nobel Truths.
• The Eightfold Path was a middle way between human
  desires and denying oneself any pleasure.
• Some of Buddhas teaching challenged traditional
  Hindu ideas.

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The Four Noble Truths

• Suffering and unhappiness are a part of human
  life. No one can escape sorrow.

• Suffering comes from our desires for pleasure and
  material goods. People cause their own misery
  because they want things they cannot have.

• People can overcome their desires and ignorance
  and reach nirvana, a state of perfect peace.
  Reaching nirvana would free a persons soul from
  suffering and from the need for further
  reincarnation.

• People can overcome ignorance and desire by
  following an eightfold path that leads to wisdom,
  enlightenment, and salvation.

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The Eightfold Path

1. Right Thought
2. Right Intent
3. Right Speech
4. Right Action
5. Right Livelihood
6. Right Effort
7. Right Mindfulness
8. Right Concentration

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Buddhist Teachings Challenged Hindu Ideas

• The Buddha rejected many of the ideas contained
  in the Vedas and told people that they did not
  have to follow these texts.
• The Buddha challenged the authority of the Hindu
  priests, the Brahmins. He taught that each
  person was responsible for their own salvation.
• The Buddha was opposed to the caste system.

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Main Idea 3Buddhism spread far from where it
began in India.

• In India
• After his death, 500 of the Buddhas followers
  spread his teachings throughout India after the
  Buddha died.
• Buddhist teachings were popular and easy to
  understand.
• Within 200 years of the Buddhas death, Buddhism
  had spread throughout most of India.

• Beyond India
• The Indian king Asoka helped to spread Buddhism
  both within India and outside of India.
• He built Buddhist temples and schools throughout
  India.
• Asoka sent missionaries to other kingdoms in
  Asia.
• Buddhism spread via the Silk Road into China,
  then Korea and Japan.

• Buddhism Splits
• As Buddhism spread, not all Buddhists could agree
  on their beliefs and practices.
• Buddhism split into two major branches
  Theravada and Mahayana.
• Both branches have millions of followers today,
  but Mahayana is by far the larger branch.

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Indian Empires

• The Big Idea
• The Mauryas and the Guptas built great empires in
  India.
• Main Ideas
• The Mauryan Empire unified most of India.
• Gupta rulers promoted Hinduism in their empire.

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Main Idea 1The Mauryan Empire unified most of
India.
Starting around 320 BC Candragupta Maurya founded
the Maurya Empire.
Candragupta Maurya used an army of mercenaries,
or hired soldiers, to seize control of the entire
northern part of India.
The strongest of all the Mauryan emperors was
Candraguptas grandson, Asoka.
The Mauryan Empire lasted for about 150 years.
In 184 BC the last Mauryan king was killed and
India divided into small states again.
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The Mauryan Empire

• Candragupta Maurya ruled his empire by means of a
  complex government.
• In 301 BC Candragupta decided to become a Jainist
  monk and gave the throne to his son.
• His son continued to expand the empire, and
  before long the Mauryas ruled all of northern
  India and much of central India as well.

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Asoka

• Military Ruler
• Asoka, Candraguptas grandson, became king in 270
  BC.
• He was the strongest of all the Mauryan rulers.
• He extended Mauryan rule over most of India.

• Buddhist
• When he converted to Buddhism, Asoka swore to
  stop the wars of conquest.
• He began to work to improve the lives of his
  people.
• He encouraged the spread of Buddhism.
• For example, he raised large stone pillars carved
  with Buddhist edicts, or laws.

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Main Idea 2Gupta rulers promoted Hinduism in
their empire.
A New Hindu Empire

• The Gupta dynasty took over India around AD 320.
• Under the Guptas, India was again united and it
  prospered.
• Hinduism became Indias dominant religion.
  However, the Gupta rulers also supported the
  religious beliefs of Buddhism and Jainism.

Gupta Society

• Gupta society reached its high point around 375,
  during the rule of Candra Gupta II.
• The empire had a strong economy, its people
  prospered, and fine works of art and literature
  were created.
• The Gupta kings believed in the strict social
  order of the Hindu caste system and womens roles
  were limited.

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Indian Achievements

• The Big Idea
• The people of ancient India made great
  contributions to the arts and sciences.
• Main Ideas
• Indian artists created great works of religious
  art.
• Sanskrit literature flourished during the Gupta
  period.
• The Indians made scientific advances in
  metalworking, medicine, and other sciences.

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Main Idea 1Indian artists created great works
of religious art.
The Indians of the Mauryan and Gupta periods
created great works of art, many of which were
religious in nature.
Many of their artistic endeavors illustrated
either Hindu or Buddhist teachings.
Hindu and Buddhist temples were built throughout
India.
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Buddhist and Hindu Temples during the Mauryan and
Gupta Periods

• Hindu Temples
• During the Mauryan period, temples were small,
  stone structures with one or two rooms and flat
  roofs.
• During the Gupta period, the temples were more
  complex, with huge towers and intricate carvings.

• Buddhist Temples
• Some Buddhists carved entire temples out of
  mountainsides.
• The temples at Ajanta and Ellora are two of the
  most famous of this type of Buddhist temple.
• Another type of Buddhist temple was the stupa.

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Painting and Sculpture

• The Gupta period saw the creation of countless
  works of art.
• Most Indian paintings of the Gupta period are
  clear and colorful.
• Many of the finest paintings of ancient India are
  found in Hindu and Buddhist temples.
• Indian sculptors created intricately carved
  columns, statues of kings and the Buddha for
  Buddhist cave temples, and impressive statues of
  the Hindu gods for the Hindu temples.

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Main Idea 2Sanskrit literature flourished
during the Gupta period.
Religious Epics

• During the Mauryan and Gupta period, many works
  of Sanskrit literature were created.
• The greatest of these Sanskrit writings are two
  religious epics the Mahabharata and the
  Ramayana.

Other Works

• Writers in the Gupta period also created plays,
  poetry, and other types of literature.
• Kalidasa was a famous writer during this time.
• Indian writers produced a book of stories called
  the Panchatantra. This collection of moral
  stories spread throughout the world.

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Main Idea 3 The Indians made scientific
advances in metalworking, medicine, and other
sciences.

• Metalworking
• Pioneers of metallurgy, the science of working
  with metals
• Knew processes for mixing metals to produce
  alloys, mixtures of two or more metals
• Metalworkers made their strongest products out of
  iron.

• Other Sciences
• Began writing medical textbooks as early as the
  AD 100s
• Doctors knew about disease prevention and used
  inoculation.
• Doctors could perform surgery.
• Interested in astronomy, the study of stars and
  planets

• Mathematics
• The most skilled mathematicians of their day
• Hindu-Arabic numerals were created by Indian
  scholars and brought to Europe by Arabs.
• The first people to create the zero

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