Chapter 3- Classical Civilization: India

Question 0

Himalayas

Answer 0

Mountain region marking the northern border of the Indian subcontinent; site of the Aryan settlements that formed small kingdoms or warrior republics

Question 1

Alexander the Great

Answer 1

Successor of Philip II; successfully conquered Persian Empire prior to his death in 323 B.C.E.; attempted to combine Greek and Persian cultures

Question 2

Monsoon

Answer 2

Seasonal winds crossing Indian subcontinent and Southeast Asia; during summer bring rains

Question 3

Aryans

Answer 3

Indo-European nomadic pastoralists who replaced Harappan civilization; militarized society

Question 4

Sanskrit

Answer 4

The sacred and classical Indian language

Question 5

Vedas

Answer 5

Aryan hymns originally transmitted orally but written down in sacred books from the 6th century B.C.E.

Question 6

Mahabharata

Answer 6

Indian epic of war, princely honor, love, and social duty; written down in the last centuries B.C.E.; previously handed down in oral form

Question 7

Ramayana

Answer 7

One of the great epic tales from classical India; traces adventures of King Rama and his wife, Sita

Question 8

Upanishads

Answer 8

Later books of the Vedas; contained sophisticated and sublime philosophical ideas; utilized by Brahmans to restore religious authority

Question 9

Untouchables

Answer 9

Lowest caste in Indian society; performed tasks that were considered polluting—street sweeping, removal of human waste, and tanning

Question 10

Indra

Answer 10

Chief deity of the Aryans; depicted as a colossal, hard-drinking warrior

Question 11

Chandragupta Maurya

Answer 11

Founder of Maurya dynasty; established first empire in Indian subcontinent; first centralized government since Harappan civilization

Question 12

Mauryas

Answer 12

Dynasty established in Indian subcontinent in 4th century B.C.E. following invasion by Alexander the Great

Question 13

Ashoka

Answer 13

Grandson of Chandragupta Maurya; completed conquests of Indian subcontinent; converted to Buddhism and sponsored spread of new religion throughout his empire

Question 14

Dharma

Answer 14

The caste position and career determined by a person’s birth; Hindu culture required that one’s social position and perform occupation to the best of one’s ability in order to have a better situation in the next life

Question 15

Kushans

Answer 15

Dynasty that succeeded the Mauryas in northwestern India; sponsors of Buddhism; empire did not extend to Ganges River Valley

Question 16

Guptas

Answer 16

Dynasty that succeeded the Kushans in the 3rd century C.E.; built empire that extended to all but the southern regions of Indian subcontinent; less centralized than Mauryan Empire

Question 17

Kautilya

Answer 17

Political advisor to Chandragupta Maurya; one of the authors of Arthashastra; believed in scientific application of warfare

Question 18

Gurus

Answer 18

Brahmans who served as teachers for the princes of the imperial court of the Guptas

Question 19

Vishnu

Answer 19

The Brahman, later Hindu, God of sacrifice; widely worshipped

Question 20

Shiva

Answer 20

The Brahman, later Hindu, God of destruction and reproduction; worshipped as the personification of cosmic forces of change

Question 21

Reincarnation

Answer 21

The successive attachment of the soul to some animate form according to merits earned in previous lives

Question 22

Buddha

Answer 22

Creator of major Indian and Asian religion; born in 6th century B.C.E. as son of local ruler among Aryan tribes located near Himalayas; became an ascetic; found enlightenment under botree; taught that enlightenment could be achieved only by abandoning desires for all earthly things

Question 23

Nirvana

Answer 23

The Buddhist state of enlightenment, a state of tranquility

Question 24

Kamasutra

Answer 24

Written by Vatsayana during Gupta era; offered instructions on all aspects of life for higher caste males, including grooming, hygiene, etiquette, selection of wives, and instruction on lovemaking

Question 25

Stupas

Answer 25

Stone shrines built to house pieces of bone or hair and personal possessions said to be relics of the Buddha; preserved Buddhist architectural forms