Chapter 2: Foundations Of Indian Society Flashcards
Brahmanism-page 36
#8
13th-4th century B.C.E, India
1) Brahmanism’s key ideas were laid out in the book “The Upanishads”. Three main ideas were samsara, karma, and moksha.
2) Samsara: the continual process of rebirth.
3) Karma: the tally of good and bad deeds which determine a persons social status in their next life.
4) Moksha: release from the wheel of life. Moksha was thought to only be achieved through realizing that the ultimate reality was unchanging.
5) It was a foreign religion to India because it was brought by the Aryans when they migrated there.
6) Was polytheistic and included gods like Vishnu, Ganesh, Shiva, etc.
7) CC-Compare to other polytheistic religions like that of the Greeks, Romans, Babylonians, and Egyptians. Contrast, monotheistic religions (Christianity, Judaism, Islam) lacked many elements such as rebirth and karma.
8) COT-Buddha will cause Brahmanism to change to Hinduism by “attacking” and reforming some of the values of Brahmanism (especially its emphasis on caste structure, allowing only the priestly caste to participate in certain rituals, and not preaching in the vernacular)ww
Harappan Civilization + Mohenjo-daro-Page 32
#5
26th century B.C.E, India
1) Harappan Civilization: the first Indian civilization; it is also known as the Indus River Valley civilization.
2) Mohenjo-daro: A planned city which had an advanced sanitation system. Mohenjo-daro had planned streets in a grid pattern, sewers, a marketplace, palace, and a great bath (for ritual purification).
3) The decline of Harappan civilization (soon after 2000 BCE) cannot be determined, but was likely due to changing environmental factors.
4) CC-Compare to other early river valley civilizations such as Babylon, Egypt, and the Yellow River Valley.
5) COT- Mohenjo-daro was the first city to have the Great Bath, which continued as a part of India’s culture (Great
Rigveda and Ramayana -page 34
#4
16th-6th centuries B.C.E, India
1) Rigveda: the earliest collection of hymns, ritual texts, and philosophical treaties, it is the “central source” of information on early Aryans.
2) Ramayana (and Mahabharata), Aryan epics noting Aryanns’ failure to conquer south India and Sri Lanka to the Dravidian speaking people.
3) The Rigveda portrayed the Aryan people as warriors who glorified military skill and heroism; the Aryans loved to drink, hunt, race and dance.
4) CC: Comparable to other religious/philosophical ancient texts such as the Torah (Judaism), the Analects (Confucianism), the Old and New Testaments, etc. Furthermore, the Rigveda could also be compared to epic poems such as the Iliad, Odyssey, and or the Aeneid, written by Homer and Virgil respectively.
5) COT:
Caste system & levels-page 35
#7
11th-4th centuries B.C.E (but continues in influence until the 19th or 20th century CE), India
1) Caste system: the Indian system of dividing society into groups that limited interaction with each other; people were born into one caste and could never move from it
2) The highest varna (level) consisted of Brahmans (priests).
3) The second varna consisted of Kshatriya (warriors and officials).
4) The third varna consisted of Vaishya (merchants and artisans).
5) The lowest varna consisted of Shudra (peasants and laborers).
6) Some people we even considered “Untouchables” and had no caste at all.
7) Castes could not intermarry and each had certain rights and obligations
6) CC: Comparable to other social structures that have limited fluidity between classes such as the class system of Feudal Japan; however, the caste system is the best contrast with other class hierarchies because it is so much stricter and impermeable.
7) COT: Caste continued to be influential in India until the British officially outlawed it in many ways in the late 18th and early 19th century; however, even Gandhi in the mid 20th century still had to deal with unofficial caste issues, which pervade Indian society to the present time.
Buddhism and Siddhartha Gautama-page 38
#6
6th century B.C.E, India
1) Buddhism: a belief system originated in India by Buddha (Gautama) and later spreading to China, Burma, Japan, Tibet, and parts of Southeast Asia.
2) Gautama taught that the only way to achieve enlightenment was to follow the eightfold path (code of conduct) and the four noble truths ( 1. Pain and suffering are inescapable, 2. suffering and anxiety are caused by attachment, 3. people can understand these weaknesses and triumph over them, 4. this triumph can be achieved by following the eightfold path.)
3) Buddhists who follow the eightfold path and four noble truths were thought to reach nirvana (a state of blissful nothingness and freedom from reincarnation).
4) Written teachings of Buddha were transcribed in the 2nd century BCE and were called sutras.
5) Mahayana Buddhism: The “great vehicle”; a tradition of Buddhism that aspires to be more inclusive.
6) Bodhisattvas: Aspiring Buddhas who stayed in the world after “enlightenment” to help others on their path to salvation.
7) CC:
8) COT:
Hinduism & Bhagavad Gita-page 41
#6
5th century B.C.E - 1st century CE, India
1) Hinduism: a guide to life which ones goal is to reach union with brahman.
2) Hindus were to observe dharma(the moral law). The dharma concluded that material gain and pleasure was necessary.
3) Hindus believed in many gods such as: Brahma(the creator), Shiva (the cosmic dancer who both creates and destroys), Vishnu (the preserver and sustainer of creation), Lakshmi (goddess of wealth) and Saraswati (goddess of learning and music).
4) The Bhagavad Gita offered Hindus guidance on how to live and honor dharma and achieve release from the wheel of life.
5) CC: Hinduism was similar to Buddhism in that both belief systems recognized the wheel of life; however Hinduism was different from Buddhism, in that Hinduism believed that material gain was necessary whereas Buddhism believed one must reject material gain.
6) COT: Change of the older Brahmanistic beliefs into a more modern and reformed version.
Alexander the Great-page 43
#5
Early 4th century B.C.E, India
1) Alexander the Great led his troops (Macedonians, Greeks, and Persians) into the Indus Valley.
2) Alexander conquered many rival states through military force.
3) Alexander then followed the Indus Valley south hoping to find the end of the world. Alexander’s men refused to continue. He left his general Seleucus in charge of a portion of his territory.
4) CC: Similar to Napoleon in that both conquered vast swathes of territory only to have their empires collapse once they, Alexander and Napoleon, could not rule individually.
5: COT:
Taxila-page 43
#4
Mid 4th century B.C.E, India
1) Taxila: a major center of trade in Punjab. Taxila was the biggest center of trade between the Indus River and the Hydaspes.
2) Taxila was expanded by Alexander the Great’s successor states, and was a melting pot of Hellenistic, Oriental (Far Eastern states), and Indian cultures.
3) CC: ?
4) COT: ?
Code of Manu-page 47
#3
2nd-3rd centuries CE, India
1) Code of Manu: the codification of Indian law which laid down family, caste, and commercial law.
2) CC:
3) COT:
Mauryan Empire - page 44-46
#6
Late 4th century B.C.E. - early 2nd century B.C.E., India
1) Founder: Chandragupta unified small Aryan kingdoms into this civilization.
2) A state located in the Ganges Valley, the Mauryan Empire was expanded following Alexander’s attempted conquest of India, and further expanded by defeating Alexander’s successor state ruled by Seleucus.
3) The Mauryan Empire was one of India’s first centralized near-unifying states, as the Mauryan Empire conquered all of India except the southern most tip and the coastal island of Sri Lanka.
4) Main source of wealth and income originated from Indian merchants trading good such as, silk, cotton, and elephants
5) CC: Similar to the Roman and Han Empires in that all three expanded their territory through war and centralized their governments and states.
6) CoT: Change small Aryan kingdoms into larger, unified civilization
Chandragupta - Page 44
#6
Late 4th century BCE - early 3rd century BCE, India
1) Founder of the Mauryan Empire, through conquest and war.
2) Adopted Persian administrative customs such as the division of land into provinces ruled by royally appointed governors.
3) Created a complex bureaucracy that not only administered the state, but also collected taxes for use in public works projects.
4) Created a standing army with multiple departments, notable for being one of the first such modern (for the time) armies.
5) CC: Similar to Alexander the Great in that he gained the throne and an empire through conquest.
6) CoT: ?
Kautilya - Page 44
#4
Late 4th century B.C.E - early 3rd century B.C.E., India
1) Chief Minister to Chandragupta.
2) Wrote a treatise on how a ruler should seize, maintain, and manipulate others to attain authority; an example was Kautilya urged Chandragupta to use propaganda
3) CC: Similar to Legalistic teachings in China, in that both declared that a ruler should do anything to gain more influence. Also similar to Niccolo Machiavelli of Florence, Italy, in the late 15th century during the Renaissance who wrote The Prince, which likewise detailed maintaining and seizing authority through any means necessary.
4) CoT: ?
Ashoka - Page 45-46
7
Mid 3rd century B.C.E - early 3rd century BCE, India
1) Grandson to Chandragupta, Ashoka was a notorious warrior, despite being a Buddhist.
2) Defeated elder brother in battle to claim throne; later, Ashoka conquered Kalinga in a bitter campaign rife with bloodshed and death. Following this campaign, Ashoka fervently converted to Buddhism and faithfully followed its tenets.
3) Besides continuing the policies of Chandragupta in administration, Ashoka also created offices to see to the spiritual well being of his people. Although Ashoka warned Buddhist monks of his intolerance of a schism (divisions based on difference of opinion about doctrine or ritual)
4) Ashoka created The Rock and Pillar Edicts upon which he had engraved edicts and accounts of victories and triumphs of the Mauryan Empire.
5) Allowed religious freedom within the Mauryan Empire
6) Built roads and rest spots to improve communications within India
7) CC: Similar to Constantine the Great of Rome during the 4th century C.E. in that both experienced conversions to belief systems following military campaigns.
8) CoT: ?
Aryans and the Vedic Age-page 33-34
#5
20th-16th B.C.E, India
1) Aryans: the dominant people in Northern India after the Indus Valley (Harappan civilization) collapsed; brought the chariot into India.
2) Aryans spoke Sanskrit (related to ancient Persian), which is the basis for many modern European languages.
3) The Aryan people were highly conscious of race and because they were foreigners who migrated into India; they created the caste system to keep themselves separate and higher than native Indians. This is best exemplified in the Ramayana where native Indians and Sri Lankans were portrayed as demons and savages.
4) Polytheistic beliefs under Brahmanism, which the Aryans brought into India.
4) CC: Compare to other ancient militaristic groups–the Assyrians, the Babylonians, and the Romans–because they conquered and moved into large land empires; contrast with…?
5) COT: Changed India because they conquered more of the northern half than ever before and brought in new religious, social, and technological beliefs; continuity because neither the Harappan before them or the Mauryan after would be able to unite and hold the entire subcontinent.
Kushan Period - Pages 46-47
#7
1) 1st-2nd century CE
2) King Kanishka (ca1st-2nd CE) was of Buddhist sources
3) In Kushan period, Greek culture influence Indian arts. Indo-Greek artists and sculptors working in India adorned Buddhist shrines based on early representations of the Buddha on Hellenistic statues of Apollo.
4) Indo-Greek states contributed coins cast with images of the king, which was adopted by Indian rulers.
5) During this period, South India was center of active seaborne trade, with networks reaching Rome.
6) CC: compare- influences of Greek culture on both India and the Near East
7) COT: continuity- Indian involvement of trade with Europeans
