indus river valley. classical indian civilization began in the indus river valley spread into the...
TRANSCRIPT
Indus River Valley
Classical Indian Civilization
• Began in the Indus River Valley• Spread into the Ganges River Valley• Then spread through the Indian
subcontinent
Geography
• The Indian civilization was protected from invaders by the physical barriers of the Hindu Kush and Himalayan Mountains and by the Indian Ocean
Harappan Civilization
• Arose around 2500 BC and lasted until 1700 BC
• Major cities were Harappa and Mohenjo Daro built around a citadel
Sites of Harappan Civilization
Indo-Aryan People
• Invaded the area around 1750 BC• Came from north of the Black and
Caspian Seas
Caste System
• A form of social organization introduced by the Indo-Aryans
• Based on occupations
Four levels of the caste system
• At the top – rulers and warriors• Next, Brahmins – the priests and
scholars• Then – the merchants, traders, and
farmers• Last – the peasants who worked the
fields owned by others
• There was a 5th group – Pariahs, or “untouchables”
Writing Style - Sanskrit
Characteristics of Indo-Aryan Society:
Government
• Tribes forms small city-states• Each state ruled by raja and his council
Social Life
• Complex system of social orders• Elaborate rules governed marriage
among the difference orders• Parent-arranged marriage favored• Marriage by purchase, by capture, and
by mutual consent recognized
Economy
• Mostly farmers• Wheat and barley major crops• Poor transportation and trading
methods sometimes limited trade• System of barter for goods
Mauryan and Gupta Empires
Mauryan Empire – Asoka
• Continued political unification of much of India
• Contributions: Spread of Buddhism, free hospitals, veterinary clinics, good roads
Gupta Empire
• Golden Age of classical Indian culture• Contributions: Mathematics (concept
of zero), medical advances (setting bones), astronomy (concept of a round earth), new textiles, literature
Hinduism
Hinduism
• Developed by the Indo-Aryans• The Vedas are the sacred Hindu texts• Became India’s major religion• Belief in many forms of one major
deity• Reincarnation: cycles of rebirths
• Dharma – means doing one’s moral duty in this life so that the soul can advance in the next
• Karma: the good or bad force created by a person’s actions. Future reincarnation based on present behavior
• Nirvana: a perfect peace; the goal of all Hindus – unite with Brahman
• Vedas and Upanishads – sacred writings
• A way of life rather than strictly defined rules
• Everyone has to find his or her own way to god
• When a person dies, the soul does not die, but reborn in another form – not necessarily human
• How one behaves in one life affects the next life
• Belief in a caste system in which a person is born into a set position and cannot change in present life
• Belief in religious tolerance
