Download Classical Era: India Mauryan and Gupta Empires

Classical Era: India
Mauryan and Gupta
Empires
Homework Readings: Strayers’ Chapters 5 and 6
Before Classical Era
2.
1.
According to a creation myth. . .
From Parusha’s body were
formed. . . .
priests
landowners,
merchants
and artisans
warriors and
government
officials
common
peasants and
laborers
3.
1500 - 500 B.C.E. = Vedic Age = development of
Hinduism
Buddhis
m
• Siddhartha Gautma (563-483 B.C.E.)
• Buddha- “Enlightened One”
• rejected caste system and power of Brahmins
• taught everyone could reach nirvana - union with the universal spirit - how could one
reach nirvana?
• The Four Noble Truths
• All of life is suffering
• All suffering is caused by desire
• Desire can only be overcome by ending it
• Desire can only be ended by following. . .
• The Eightfold Path
•right thinking and acting
•right knowledge
•right purpose
•right speech
•right action
•right living
•right effort
•right mindfulness
•right meditation
• appealed to lower caste and women
• spread east via trade routes
• experienced a schism (division)
• Theravada - stricter version - smaller number of followers
• Mahayana - most Buddhist follow this version - worship Buddha as a god, erect
stupas
Buddhist
images
stupas
China
India
Mauryan
Empire
321 - 185 B.C.E.
Most famous ruler:
Ashoka - turned
Buddhist
BEFORE the Mauryan Empire, India’s government was separated into
kingship groups and independent groups. AFTER the rule of the
Mauryan Empire, India again divided into many regional kingdoms. The
caste system was in place so political authority was of only secondary
importance.
Gupta
Empire
The Gupta Empire was a “theatre-
S
state.” This means that rulers used
rituals and ceremonies to persuade
others to follow its lead.
Read page 162 - 165 in Bulliet
textbook for SPRITE features of the
= urbanization and new middle class
led to women’s status drops; practice of sati and
Gupta
Empire.
child brides begins; women escaped these new restrictions joining Jainist or Buddhist
communities.
P = A theatre-state; rulers not as powerful as Mauryans; hereditary governors controlled
provinces and could exploit their people; labor tax as well as tax on agriculture sustained the
gov’t.
R = Gupta rulers were Hindu but practiced religious toleration; Hinduism and the caste
system became more important and status of Brahmin priests increased
T = astronomers, mathematicians and scientists were supported by the government; the
concept of zero and the system of place-value notation was invented known as “Arabic”
number system
E = Trade flourished; After the fall of the Roman Empire, merchants turned to S.E. Asia for
trade, especially Indonesia and the Malay Peninsula; the government monopolized the
mining of salt and metals