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History 1
History of World Civilizations Part 1
Session 4:Foundations of Indian Society
Recap

Last time we continued our examination of the
creation of the state as a method to bring
organization some of the earliest human
civilizations.

Today we will turn our attention to early civilizations
in the Indus River Valley, examining the societies of
the Aryans as well as the creation of three major
religions– Buddhism, Jainism and Hinduism.
Big Questions of the Day

In what ways did ancient India follow patterns of
development similar to those seen elsewhere?

What are the similarities and differences between the
religious ideas and practices of early India and those
that emerged in the Nile River Valley and southwest
Asia?
Defining “India”
Term:
The Indian
Subcontinent
River Valleys of India

Geography:

Indus River Valley

Ganges River Valley

Harappan India (Neolithic
India), 3000 BCE-1500 BCE
The Aryans and the
Vedic Age

ca. 1500-500 BCE

Unsure precisely where Aryans
came from.

Speakers of an Indo-European
language called Sanskrit

“Aryan” means ‘noble’ and
‘pure’

Named for the Vedas – ancient
sacred works written in Sanskrit
Military Takeover or
Cultural Transmission?

Military chief (raja) on top

High priest is second

Warrior class (advise the chief)

Common tribesmen

Conquered non-Aryans (menial
workers)

Persian armies record existence
of 16 Aryan kingdoms when
they arrived in 513 BCE
Bronze Aryan sword
The Caste System

The four strata (varna)
1.
Brahmins (priests)
2.
Kshatriya (warriors)
3.
Vaishya (merchants)
4.
Shudra (peasants and
laborers)
Also: outcastes/untouchables
The Rig Veda attributed the caste system
to the gods.
Was Aryan Society
Pyramid-Shaped?
Top: Ruler (The King, Pharaoh,
etc…)

Second tier: religious leaders, scribes,
bureaucrats, etc.
Below: everyone else,
Often divided by
class or caste.
Often captives
and slaves at the
very bottom.
In a pyramid-shaped society,
sovereignty rests at the top.
Religious Ideas of
Brahminism

dominance of the Brahmins

The Upanishads

samsara

“reincarnation/transmigration of the soul”

karma

brahman (the unchanging, ultimate reality)
Jainism

Founded by Vardhamana
Mahavira (520 BCE?)
Image of a Jain ascetic
Buddhism

Siddhartha Gautama

The Buddha

The Enlightened One
Buddhism
Giant Buddha at Bodh Gaya,
site where Siddartha found
Enlightenment.

Four Noble Truths and the
Eightfold Path

“An acknowledgement that the
deepest human longings can
never be satisfied, and even those
things that seem to give pleasure
cause anxiety because [people]
are afraid of losing them.
Attachment to people and things
causes sorrow at their loss.”McKay 71.

Term: Nirvana
Subverting the State
Religion?

Circumambulating the Stupa –

The Buddha reminded his
disciples that each person
must reach ultimate
fulfillment by individual
effort, but recognized the
value of striving together for
the same goal.
Hinduism

Named for the Indus River

An evolution of Brahmanism

Reaffirmed value of the Vedas

dharma: moral law

Central text: Bhagavad Gita

How does the vertical layering
of this frieze differ from the
picture of the Buddha earlier?
Comparison
Gandharan Buddha
Vishnu in Uttar
Pradesh
The Persian and
Greek Interludes
(513 BCE – 183 BCE)
The Mauryan Unification

Chandragupta Maura

Unified Northern India from
the Ganges River valley.

Established a complex
bureaucracy

Financed public service through
taxes on agriculture

Built a regular army
What is this an example of ?
Reign of Ashoka, ca 269-232 BCE

Grandson of Chandragupta

Ashoka embraced Buddhism
and promoted it beyond India

Ashoka’s monuments are the
earliest preserved examples of
Indian writing in their original
form (translated in 1837)

Mauryan Empire’s decline was
followed by another period of
decentralization.
Buddhist Temple at Sanchi
Next Up:

“China’s Classical Age”

Next time we will examine the early history of
China, from its early Neolithic settlements through
the Shang and Zhou dynasties, and into the Warring
States Period.