Download 03 Vocab - The Eastern Classical Civilizations

Chaper Three: The Eastern Classical Civilizations
The Unification of China
Qin Shihuangdi (reigned 221-210 B.C.E.): His name literally means "the First Emperor of Qin," a
title that the king of Qin granted to himself after he unified China in 221 B.C.E. Under his rule, the
Qin dynasty established a tradition of centralized imperial rule that would continue throughout the
history of imperial China. Because of his massive public works and cruel punishments, however, he
has been viewed as the most infamous tyrant in Chinese history.
Han Dynasty was founded by Liu Bang and turned out to be one of the longest and most influential in
Chinese history, lasting until 220 CE and laying the foundations of Classical Chinese Culture.
Han Wudi (141-87 B.C.E) or Martial Emperor, was the greatest and most energetic emperor of the
Han dynasty. During his rule, the centralization of imperial rule was strengthened and the territory of
China extended to Vietnam, Korea, and central Asia.
Wang Mang seized the throne in nine C.E. and introduced a series of wide-ranging reforms,
prompting some modern historians to call him a "Socialist Emperor." Resistance from disgruntled
landlords, coupled with poor harvests and famine, sparked widespread revolts, ending his dynasty and
life in 23 C.E.
Confucianism was the most influential philosophy in Chinese culture and it was driven by the search
for harmony and order in life. Its root teaching came from Confucius who taught that proper balance
and order in human relationships would bring about social and political harmony. He believed that
personal virtue was the key to human dignity and social order; and that this personal virtue could only
be achieved by cultivation of the mind.
Daoism (attributed to Laozi) called people to live lives of reflection and introspection and criticized
the Confucian ideal of social activism. Daoism’s chief virtue was wuwei or disengagement from the
world, especially in the area of political ambition or personal striving.
Eunuchs were the personal servants of imperial households. Men went through voluntary castration in
order to work in the harem of the emperor or king. Sometimes they seized enormous power because of
their close relationships with the rulers or various factions at court.
The Great Wall was a massive defensive barriers built to protect China proper from raids of nomadic
peoples from the northwest. The Qin dynasty enrolled a huge amount of human labor to link existing
sections of barriers into an enormous wall, which was further extended and strengthened by later
dynasties.
Islands of the Immortals was a legendary place in China with palaces made from gold and platinum,
jewels hanging from the trees and a mountain from which flowed the elixir of life.
Legalism (established by Shang Yang) was the pragmatic political philosophy developed during the
Period of the Warring states whose totalitarian ideas subordinated the people and their desires and
freedoms to the needs of the state. Legalism sought to channel as many individuals as possible into
agriculture or military service, while discouraging careers as merchants, entrepreneurs, scholars,
educators, philosophers, poets or artisans, because those pursuits did not benefit the state.
Maodun was the powerful leader of the Xiongnu and to whom Liu Bang had to buy peace by paying
tribute
Period of the Warring States refers to the last 200 years of the Zhou Dynasty.
Paper was first invented during the Han dynasty, probably before 100 C.E. Chinese craftsmen were
the first to fashion hemp, bark, and textile fibers into sheets of paper, which was less expensive than
silk and easier to write on than bamboo.
Primogeniture is the inheritance system in which the oldest son inherits all of his father’s estate.
Shangdi was an omnipotent, Supreme Being, in which the Chinese believed but who played little role
in the lives of ordinary people.
Shi refers to the educated class in Han China from whose ranks the Scholar-Gentry were recruited.
The Scholar Gentry were the elite class just below the aristocratic landowners. The Scholar Gentry
were roughly equivalent to the Roman Equites of Augustus as they provided the Chinese government
with an administrative bureaucracy.
Silk was China’s most important invention and export. Silk is made from silk cocoons secreted on the
leaves of mulberry trees. For centuries, the Chinese were able to closely guard the secret of making
this lightweight, beautiful cloth which gave its name to the transportation corridors to the west called
the Silk Road.
Terra Cotta Army consisted of more than 15 thousand life-sized pottery figures buried in the tomb of
the First Emperor to guard him in death. The terra cotta soldiers, horses, and weapons were made
individually, with remarkable detail. The tomb has been under excavation since 1974.
The Xiongnu were Turkish speaking nomadic people from the steppes of central Asia, frequently
raiding the northwest borders of China until pacified by Han Wudi's army.
The Yellow Turban Uprising was a peasant revolt against the Han dynasty during the 2nd century
C.E. It was so called because the rebels wore yellow turbans on their heads. The uprising was put
down, but it severely undermined the imperial rule of Han.
Ban Zhao was a well-educated woman who wrote a widely read treatise entitled Admonitions for
Women that emphasized humility, obedience, subservience, and devotion to their husbands as the
virtues most appropriate for women.
Sima Qian was the great historian of the Han dynasty, known as the Father of Chinese historians;
suffered from punitive castration when his evaluation of a dishonored general contradicted the
emperor's judgment. Thus, the living family was linked to long departed ancestors and to the yet
unborn.
Veneration of Ancestors was the Chinese belief that the spirits of their ancestors at death passed into
another realm of existence from which they had the power to support and protect their descendents
who displayed proper respect and ministered to the departed spirits’ needs, as with food and drink
offerings.
Worship of Heaven was a highly ritualistic ceremonial in which the emperor and his priests
worshipped at an Altar of Heaven. This worship was closely linked with ancestor veneration, so it
was a state version of the Veneration of Ancestors. But this court religion was remote from most
Chinese and as a result China evolved into the most secular culture of the Classical world.
Xian was the Capital of China during both Qin and Han times. It is the location of the tomb of Qin
Shihuangdi and his Terra Cotta Army.
India and the Search for Meaning and Unity
Aryabhatta was the Indian astronomer who calculated pi (Π) and the length of the solar year at 365
days. He also determined that the earth rotated on its own axis and revolved around the sun.
Chandragupta Maurya was king of the state of Magadha and founder of the Mauryan Empire. Rose
to power in north India after Alexander's army withdrew from the region. He was a systematic and
harsh ruler, a true legalist. Although built a strong and efficient bureaucratic state, - and adopted an
imperial, Persian style, ruling from an elaborate palace, he was not able to replace most of the local
rajas with his own administrators and therefore could not establish as strong a centralized state as did
the Persians, the Chinese or the Romans. Tradition holds that he abdicated his throne for an existence
so ascetic that he starved himself to death.
Ashoka Maurya was Chandragupta's grandson and the best known emperor of Mauryan dynasty. He
reigned 268-232 B.C.E. and conquered the kingdom of Kalinga through a bloody campaign in 260
B.C.E. He was cruel and despotic, but after seeing the horror of the aftermath of a major battle, he
converted to Buddhism and sponsored the new religion throughout his empire. His rule represented the
highest point of the Mauryan Empire in terms of territory and central administration, even though he
did not bring local rajas under full control.
Chandra Gupta was the founder of the Gupta Empire who rose to power in Magadha about 320 C.E.
(Note: He was not related to Chandragupta Maurya, the founder of Mauryan empire)
Kautalya was the advisor or minister of Chandragupta's government who devised administrative
procedures and diplomatic strategies for the Mauryan empire. Some of his advice and ideas survived
in the political handbook known as the Arthashastra.
Siddhartha Gautama was the founder of Buddhism. Siddhartha was born to a Kshatriya family about
563 B.C.E.; after a life of luxury, he sought enlightenment through intense meditation and received
enlightenment under a Bo tree. He then began to teach the Four Noble Truths:
1. All life involves pain and suffering;
2. Pain and suffering are caused by desire;
3. If desire is eliminated, then pain is eliminated;
4. Life must be disciplined by the Noble Eightfold Path.
Vardhamana Mahavira was the great teacher of Jainism, born in northern India about 540 B.C.E. to
a prominent Kshatriya family. He taught an ascetic doctrine of detachment from the world and formed
a monastic order to perpetuate and spread his message. His disciples referred to him as Jina, "the
conqueror," and referred to themselves as Jains.
Indra was on of the two chief Aryan gods of Early India. He was primarily a war god and often
depicted as a boisterous, hard-drinking warrior. However, he had a more domestic dimension as well
and the Aryans associated him with the weather, especially the coming of rain and water for the crops.
Varuna presided in his heavenly palace, oversaw moral behavior and cosmic order, reflected ethics.
Varuna and his helpers despised lying and evil deeds and they punished malefactors terribly with
disease and death. The worst were sent to a place in the underworld called the “House of Clay,” which
was a dreary place of misery and punishment while the good and virtuous souls were allowed to enter
an Aryan heaven called “the World of the Fathers.”
Ahimsa is the Jainist principle of nonviolence toward other living things or their souls. To observe this
principle, devout Jainist monks went to extremes to avoid harming the millions of souls they
encountered each day.
Arabic Numerals were really Sanskrit numerals carried by merchants to the Middle East. From them
we get our present numbers including the concept of zero
Bhagavad-Gita or the "Song of the Lord,” was a short poetic work of India. As an episode of the
Mahabharata, it contained a dialogue between a warrior Arjuna and the god Vishnu, which clearly
illustrated both the expectations and promise of Hinduism for its believers.
Bodhisattvas were "The enlightened beings," or individuals who had reached spiritual perfection and
merited the reward of nirvana but who intentionally delayed their entry into nirvana in order to help
others who were still struggling; a notion articulated by Mahayana Buddhist theologians between the
3rd and 1st century C.E.
Buddhism is one of the world religions originating in India during the 6th century B.C.E.; founded by
Siddhartha Gautama, the Buddha. Its fundamental doctrine was based on the Four Noble Truths taught
by the Buddha. The religious goal was to achieve personal salvation called nirvana, a state of perfect
spiritual independence. To achieve this goal, Buddhism stressed reducing desires for material goods
and other worldly attractions.
The Charvaka Sect was an anti-religious sect of classical India, which believed in atheistic
materialism: They taught that the gods were figments of the imagination, that Brahmins were
charlatans who enriched themselves by hoodwinking others, and that human beings came from dust
and returned to dust like any other animal in the natural world. This sect did not achieve long-lasting
popularity.
Dalits is the modern and politically correct name given to the untouchables in modern India. Dalits is
not a Caste or Caste name, but is the latest pejorative term to describe those (usually of Dravidian
ancestry) outside the Caste System.
Dharma refers to the basic doctrine shared by Buddhists of all sects, including the teachings of the
Four Noble Truths and the Noble Eightfold Path.
Gupta Empire was the second Indian empire, founded by the Gupta family during the 4th century
C.E. Extended to all but the southern regions of the Indian subcontinent. The Gupta Empire was less
centralized than the Mauryan Empire was.
Hinayana is a pejorative term for Theravada Buddhism; literally meant "the lesser vehicle," so
called because of its strict adherence to the original Buddha's teachings and monastic life, which, by
the later Mahayana standard, could only carry a few monks to salvation. In later centuries, Theravada
Buddhism became popular in Ceylon, Burma, Thailand, and other parts of Southeast Asia.
Hinduism is the most popular religion of salvation in India, drawing inspiration from the Vedas and
Upanishads. Basic teachings included the four principal aims of human life: obedience to religious and
moral laws (dharma); the pursuit of economic well-being and honest prosperity (artha); the
enjoyment of social, physical, and sexual pleasure (kama); and the salvation of the soul (moksha).
Jainism is one of the most influential Indian religions; became popular beginning in the late 5th
century B.C.; taught that everything possessed a soul and the practice of nonviolence toward other
living things or their souls. Jainism represented an alternative to the traditional cults of Brahmins.
Jati were the sub castes of Indian society, largely determined by occupations. These guilds maintained
order in their own courts and regulated community affairs.
Karma taught that a person is reincarnated according to how he lived his prior life. Thus, virtuous
men who led good lives could expect to be reborn into a higher and more distinguished caste.
However, those who led base lives could expect to be reborn into a difficult existence, lower caste or
even as an animal, insect or plant. As a result, devout people would not eat animals lest they cause
them more suffering.
The Kushans were Indo-European invaders (possibly from Xinxiang/Tarim Basin) who invaded
Northwest India in the last part of the first century B.C.E. (200s) shortly after the death of Ashoka in
232. From about 60 B.C.E. to 220 C.E. they held sway over Northwest India until the rise of the Gupta
Dynasty.
Magadha was a regional kingdom of India, located in the central portion of the Ganges plain.
Chandragupta Maurya developed and added to it to create the Mauryan Empire in 321 B.C.E.
Mahabharata and Ramayana were two great Indian epics. Originally these were secular tales
transmitted orally during the late years of the Vedic age (1500-500 B.C.E.). The Mahabharata dealt
with a massive war over control of northern India between two groups of cousins; the Ramayana was
originally a love and adventure story involving the trials faced by the legendary Prince Rama and his
loyal wife Sita. Brahmin scholars later revised them to bear Hindu values.
Mahayana refers to one of two major subdividing trends in Buddhist belief. Believers in the
Mahayana tradition shared with other Buddhists certain basic concepts in Buddhist doctrine, but
articulated the notion of the bodhisattva, individuals who intentionally delayed their entry into nirvana
to help others struggling to get there. Theologians in this tradition began to teach that bodhisattvas
could perform good deeds on behalf of others, thus opening up the possibility of salvation to the
masses. Mahayana literally meant "the greater vehicle," so called because it could carry more people
to salvation. In later centuries, Mahayana Buddhism also became established in central Asia, China,
Korea, and Japan.
The Mauryan Empire was the first Indian empire, representing a temporary unification of India,
lasting from 321 to 185 B.C.E.; unified almost the entire Indian subcontinent except the southernmost
region.
Nirvana is the religious goal of Buddhism, a state of perfect spiritual independence, an escape from
the cycle of incarnation.
Lawbook of Manu was a manuscript prepared by an anonymous sage of India during the first century
B.C.E. or perhaps somewhat later. It dealt with proper moral behavior and social relationships,
including sex and gender relationships.
Moksha was the Hindu Doctrine that taught there was a permanent escape from the cycle of
reincarnation. Moreover, since physical life involved pain and suffering, Moksha offered liberation
from the physical world and union with Brahman. The two principal means of attaining Moksha were
asceticism and meditation.
Raja was the title for leaders of chiefdoms of early Aryan society who governed in collaboration with
a council of village elders. Raja was a Sanskrit term related to the Latin word rex ("king"). A Great
King was called a Majaraja.
Samsara held that upon death individual souls go temporarily to the World of the Fathers and then
return to earth in a new incarnation. Thus, Reincarnation, which is believed to have been handed
down from the beliefs of Dravidians, teaches that an individual soul departs from one body at death
and becomes associated with another body through a new birth.
Sati or Suttee was the Indian custom by which a widow voluntarily threw herself on the funeral pyre
of her deceased husband to join him in death.
Soma was the hallucinogenic concoction that produced sensations of power and divine inspiration,
used in ritual sacrifices of Aryan Indians.
Upanishad literally means "a sitting in front of," which referred to the practice of disciples gathering
before a sage for discussion of religious issues in Aryan India. Appearing between about 800 and 400
B.C.E., The Upanishads Whereas the physical world is a theater of change, instability and illusion,
Brahman is an eternal, unchanging, permanent foundation for all things that exist – hence the only
genuine reality. Souls were born into the physical world not once, but many times and these souls
appeared most often as humans, but sometimes as animals, and possibly even as plants or other
vegetable matter. The highest goal taught in the Upanishads was to escape this cycle of birth and
rebirth and enter into permanent union with Brahman
Varna is Sanskrit word meaning, "color," used by Aryans to refer to social classes or CASTES. There
were four main Varnas: priests (Brahmins); warriors and aristocrats (Kshatriyas); cultivators,
artisans, and merchants (Vaishyas); and landless peasants and serfs (Shudras); all four varnas were
above the untouchable caste. This caste system became a rigid system of social classification.
White Huns were semi-nomadic invaders who brought down the Gupta Empire