Key Terms Flashcards
Abu’l Fazl
Advisor/Vizier to Emperor Akbar of the Mughal Empire. Wrote the Akbarnama, the official history of Akbar’s reign in three volumes, and a Persian translation of the Bible. Killed by Akbar’s son, Jahangir, who may or may not have killed his father.
Abul Kalam Azad
Muslim friend/supporter of Gandhi. Did not believe that there was a conflict between being an Indian and a Muslim. Had a “rationalist/reason” outlook. Believed that Hindus could be included in religious tradition of Islam - Quran is fundamentally about cooperation. Did not necessarily agree with Gandhi regarding ahimsa, thought it was one of many options. Did not appreciate Gandhi’s conciliatory attitude towards Jinnah. Was elected President of Congress twice; did not advocate for Partition.
Article 17 of the Constitution
The Abolition of Untouchability. It made the practice of untouchability a legal offense and provided legal recourse for anyone found engaging in it. The Untouchability Offences Act of 1955 provided penalties for preventing a person from entering a place of worship or taking water from a tank or well.
Ashokan Edicts
Pillars made from rock; established in 259 BCE. They were written in the Brahmi script and placed all over the country. They reflected Ashoka’s Buddhist leanings and his approach to dhamma, or piety. These edicts stressed that people should act rightly and be tolerant. In a somewhat ironic twist, he established Dhamma Officers tasked with ensuring that people were being tolerant.
Babri Masjid
A mosque built in Ayodhya on the top of a Hindu temple in 1527. It was destroyed in 1992 by extremist Hindus who replaced it with a makeshift Hindu temple. This incited violence across India which resulted in over 2000 deaths. The film Ram ke Nam explored the alleged corruption of the VHP who appeared to be behind much of the conflict.
Bahadur Shah II
The last of the Mughal emperors, he was ousted by the British as a result of his involvement with the Indian Rebellion of 1857. He was the son of Akbar II and a Hindu Rajput. He was also an Urdu poet who wrote many ghazals under a nom de plume. He was exiled to British-controlled Burma and died in 1862.
Bangla Language Martyrs
The University of Dhaka students who were killed in the February 21st, 1952 demonstrations against the Pakistani edict that Urdu serve as the sole national language of both East and West Pakistan. These deaths sparked widespread civil unrest and catalyzed the development of a Bengali national identity.
Battle of Plassey
A battle in which the East India Company secured a decisive victory over the Nawab of Bengal and his french allies in 1757. The battle gave the East India Company control over Bengal which then expanded into the rest of India in the ensuing centuries. The increased revenues from trade in the now secured region allowed the British to push out other colonial powers (specifically the Dutch and French) in South Asia. It was a battle that changed the course of the subcontinent forever.
Bhakti poetry
A genre of Hindu poetry which emphasizes a personal love for a monotheistic god. Bhakti can be conceived in four distinct ways: 1. To the Supreme Self, 2. To God or the Cosmic Lord as a formless being, 3. To God in the form of various gods and goddesses, 4. To God in the form of the Guru. This poetry is noted for its intense eroticism and devotional aspect.
Bharatiya Janata Party
The BJP is one of the two major parties in the Indian political system (the other being the Indian National Congress). It is a right-wing party with ties to the Hindu nationalist party, the RSS. It was an integral antagonist in the Babri Masjid demolition. It champions a policy of Hindu fundamentalism and Hindutva, which is a movement to define Indian culture in Hindu terms.
Cholas
A long-ruling dynasty in southern India which reigned for approximately 900 years near Tamil Nadu (and expanded beyond during its period). Their rule falls into four distinct periods: the early Cholas, the interregnum between the fall of the early Cholas and the rise of the imperial medieval Cholas, the Imperial Cholas, and the Later Cholas. The Cholas oversaw an incredible advancement in Tamil art, literature, religion, and music. One of their most incredible legacies was the wonderful temples and sculptures in both stone and bronze.
Communal Award
An award enacted by British P.M. Ramsay Macdonald in 1932 which granted separate electorates in British India for the Forward Castes, Muslims, Hindus, Backward Castes, Buddhists, Sikhs, Indian Christians, Europeans, and Dalits (untouchables). This solution to the problem of government representation was criticized by Gandhi who fasted while in prison in protest. Many minority groups were in favor of it, however, including the Dalits under B.R. Ambedkar. Gandhi and Ambedkar came to an agreement (called the Poona Pact) which had a single Hindu electorate with Untouchables seats reserved.
dasas
A term originally used in the Rig Veda to refer to the enemies of of the Indo-Aryan tribes. It later came to mean a devotee or votary of God. They were opposed to the Aryans in the Rig Veda as they rejected their religious practices. It also means “slave” and has been used in that way both to refer to slaves of people and, in a religious context, as slaves of God.
Delhi Sultanate
A Delhi-based Muslim Turkic kingdom that ruled over large parts of India for about 300 years. This sultanate was ruled by five separate dynasties during its institution. It was finally replaced by the Mughal Dynasty in 1526. The Sultanate was responsible for the destruction of South Asian temples and the emergence of Indo-Islamic architecture.
duhkha
A Buddhist term meaning “suffering” or “anxiety.” The Buddha is reputed to have said that there was only one thing: duhka and the cessation of duhka. Duhkha is often described in three separate categories: 1. the mental and physical suffering associated with birth, growing old, illness, and dying; 2. the anxiety or stress of trying to hold onto things that are constantly changing; 3. a basic dissatisfaction that pervades all forms of existence because all life is constantly changing and impermanent.
Fatehpur Sikri
A city in Uttar Pradesh that served as the seat of the Mughal Empire under Akbar. It was a planned, walled city where the legends of Akbar and his famed courtiers, the nine jewels, were born. It is considered one of the best extant examples of surviving Indian Mughal architecture. It is believed that Akbar himself directed the planning and building of the grand city.
First, Second, and Third Urbanizations
The First Urbanization occurred between 2600 and 1900 BCE. The first urbanization took place during the bronze age in the arid and semi-arid region of northwest India in the valleys of the Indus and the Saraswati rivers, the latter represented by the now dry Ghaggar-Hakra bed. This urbanization is known as the Indus or Harappan civilization.The Second Urbanization occurred between 800 and 500 BCE. The second phase of urbanization of India, marked by trade, coinage, script and birth of the first Indian empire, namely Magadha, with its capital at Pataliputra (modern Patna) also took place in this region in the sixth century B.C. The Third Urbanization occured during the reign of the time of the Cholas. Many of these capitals became the major temples of the time. Each was not only a sacred place for the royal deity, but also the place where the kings lived. Both god and king attracted subjects and devotees in large number. The care of both kinds of pilgrims and the objects of their adoration, human and divine, made each capital city an economic centre as well. To that spur to urbanization was added the imitations of the subordinates of kings, those magnates to whom the title samanta applied, who maintained smaller courts in the scores of kingdoms of the early medieval age.
First Partition of Bengal
Occurring in 1905, Lord Curzon separated the largely Muslim areas in the East from the largely Hindu areas in the West. The Hindus of West Bengal, who dominated business and rural life, complained that the partition would make them a minority in Bihar and Orissa. Many Indians believed that this was an effort on the part of the British to effect a “divide and rule” policy. This caused outrage for both Muslims and Hindus, and in 1911, Bengal was reunified although some Bengali Muslims were upset as they believed they had benefited from the partition.
Godhra, Gujarat
A city in Gujarat which means “Land of the Cows”; it is known within India and internationally as the starting point for the 2002 episode of violence. Statewide religious riots (both Muslims and Hindus) occurred after a train burning incident. About 1,000 people died and several more thousand were injured. The incident was used politically by Hindu hardliners however it was ruled an accident in 2013.
Guru Nanak
The founder of Sikhism and the first of the Sikh Gurus. He traveled far and wide spreading his message of one god who dwells in every creation and constitutes eternal truth. He taught that one should share with others, helping those who are in need, earning and making a living honestly, without exploitation or fraud, and meditating on God’s name to control your 5 evils to eliminate suffering and live a happy life. Guru Nanak believed that God was the Doer and was in all things.
Harijan
A term used by Gandhi to refer to the Untouchables/Dalits. It means “Children of God.” He used it in order to bring dignity to the Dalits and emphasize a humane treatment of them. Not all liked the term as it could be perceived as patronizing and paternalistic.
Horizontal Mobilization
The marshaling of support by leaders across a class or other wide structure. In India, horizontal mobilization refers to the efforts of political leaders to have castes act as one political body, irrespective of communal/local identities. Notably the Nadar caste in Southern India has made strides to elevate its status through its utilization of horizontal mobilization.
“Hymn of Cosmic Man”
The myth describes the origin of the cosmos as the result of a primal sacrifice, the sacrifice by the gods of the first person, a giant named Purusha. The gods sacrifice this primal being, and out of the pieces of his body the divisions of the human world, and indeed the world itself, are formed. The Brahmins come from his mouth; the Kshatriyas from his arms; the Vaishyas from his thighs; and the Shudras from his feet. This is often understood to be the first articulation of the caste system, although it is important to note that the myth itself does not present a divisive hierarchical ordering, but one which makes the different parts of society fundamentally interdependent (like the various parts of the human body).
Indira Gandhi
Indira Gandhi was a populist Prime Minister who ruled after Nehru. She got rid of the old guard of her father’s party when she ascended and became known for her ruthless politics and authoritarian orientation. She ushered in the so-called “Green Revolution” which introduced new types of rice/wheat into India. She is noted for her centralization of power and the Emergency of 1975 - 1977 which suspended civil rights in the country. She was assassinated by her own guards in 1984.
Indra
One of the chief gods of the Rig Veda, Indra is responsible for War and Weather. He is the archetype for all lords and warriors including Rama from the Ramayana. He is the supreme deity of the Hindu gods and the ruler of the heavens. Indra is also known as Sakra in Buddhist tradition.
