Download The Aryans

The Aryans
Aryans left homeland
about 2000 B.C. &
migrated to Indus
River Valley –
1500 B.C.
Aryans
•Lived in grassland of the Black
& Caspian Seas
•Indo-Europeans
•Herded cattle, goats, and
sheep
•Tamed the horse
•Developed chariot
Aryan Life
•Lived in houses of
bamboo or wood
•Left poetic records –
the Vedas
Vedas
• A collection of hymns and poems
• Passed on through oral tradition
• Main source of information about
Aryan life
Vedic Period
•Period from 1500-600 B.C.
•4 Vedas
•Rig-Veda is oldest
collection
•Written in Sanskrit
Aryan Religion
•Brought new religion with
them
•Worshipped many gods
•Priests sacrificed food and drink
to gods in sacred fires
Aryan Social System:
Made up of 4 varnas
• Priests or Brahmins: performed
religious rituals
• Rulers & warriors: ruled and protected
society
• Merchants & farmers: supplied food
clothing and other goods
• Servants
Only males from top
three classes could
study the Vedas
Social Sub-groups
•Sub-groups were called Jatis
•Person was born into Jatis and
remained there for entire life
Caste System
•Caste System developed as
a result of classes
•Caste: a unit into which a
person is born and cannot
change
Aryans were concerned
with ritual cleanliness
and ranked jobs
according to purity.
Untouchables
•One who falls outside the
Hindu social system
•Performed dirtiest tasks
such as dealing with dead
bodies
Vedic Religion
•Brahman had three roles:
creator, sustainer, and
destroyer
•These roles evolved into
three different gods
Three roles
three gods
•Brahma – creator
•Vishnu – sustainer
•Shiva - destroyer
Brahma
Vishnu
Shiva
Accomplishments of the Aryans
•New language
•New gods
•New social order
The Aryan
religion evolved
into Hinduism!