Mauryan, Kūshan, &Gupta Empire India
Background Indus Valley Civilization (Harappan) 2 Major Cities: Harappa & Mohenjo-Daro 2 Major Rivers: Indus & Ganges River Seasonal monsoons brought water to crops & caused floods
Writing System Early India: has not been translated yet successfully. By 1000BC, Sanskrit, an Indo-European Language (influenced by Aryans who invaded India) The Vedas: writings about their rituals, legends, and religious chants. Gives us more information about their culture Bhagavad Gita: a sermon by the god Krishna discusses to not worry about success or failure but be aware of moral rightness. Trade: traded with Mesopotamia Government: based on religious beliefs Economy: based on farming (wheat, barley, peas, rice, cotton, spices like pepper, ginger & cinnamon) Technology: garbage chutes indoor plumbing
Decline of Indus River Valley Around 1500 BC, nomadic warriors known as the Aryans conquered the Indus River Valley The cultures mixed and formed a new culture of people
Social Class The Aryans believed society was divided into 4 varnas, or social groups Overtime, these ideas created the caste system. Caste System: The social system of Ancient India where the people were divided into four varnas that ranked people from high to low. Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaishyas, Sudras and the Untouchables (who were not even part of the system) You were born into your class. Your class would determine your job You had to marry within your class You could only socialize with your class. The Untouchables (dalits)
Women were almost equals among men in India for centuries and highly respected Women could select their husbands and married at mature ages Women could own land Women received an education and held jobs Women s equal rights changed during the Gupta Empire and when Muslim invasions in the 1300s and Islamic culture influenced India They could no longer own land, had arranged marriages at a young age and put men first Women had to follow the practice of sati. She would commit suicide by throwing herself onto her deceased husband s burning funeral site. Women in India
Mauryan Empire
Government 1st emperor: Chandragupta Maurya (324BC-301BC) Afraid of assassination. Made people taste food before him Never slept 2 nights in a row in the same bed Capital: Pataliputra (Patna) in Ganges Valley Emperor divided land into provinces (ruled by governors)
Chandragupta Maurya s grandson, Aśoka ruled 268-232 BC Government Considered greatest ruler in India s history Converted to Buddhism and used it to guide his rule Set up hospitals for welfare for people and animals Ordered trees and shelters to be planted along the roads so weary travelers could get rest and shade Sponsored Buddhist missionaries to spread religion ( & eventually to China) Eventually empire fell apart after Aśoka s death
Buddhist influenced architecture 3 Main types of structure pillar: made of stone. Built along road to mark sites of events in Buddha s life. Each topped with a carved lion, uttering Buddha s message stupa: built to house a relic of Buddha, they eventually became a place for devotion. Over 84,000 stupas were constructed in India under the leadership of Aśoka rock chamber: a series of rooms to house monks for religious ceremonies. Carved out of rock cliffs
Kushān Empire After the fall of the Mauryan Empire, new kingdoms arose in what is now Afghanistan and spread into Northern India
Prospered from trade along the Silk Road between Rome and China A mix of culture! Contact with Persia, China & Rome Kūshan Empire Used Greek alphabet Practiced Buddhism, Hinduism, & Zoroastrianism Made calendar based on the sun and moon (still used today) Kūshan Empire collapsed due to invaders. A new state, in 320 AD, created by Candra Gupta, no relation to Candragupta Maurya (Confusing, right!?) This created the Gupta Empire
Gupta Empire The Golden Age of Indian Culture
Hindu & Buddhist arts flourished Expanded the empire Traded with China, Southwest Asia and Mediterranean Encouraged trade within India of cloth, salt & iron
Famous temples builtinfluenced by Buddhist & Hindu pilgrims (people who traveled to religious places) from distant places Rulers controlled much of trade. Owned silver & gold mines (extremely wealthy!) The Gupta Empire collapsed due to invasions by the Huns. India was divided into 70 different states.
Southward from this is the so-called middle country The people are very well off, without poll-tax or official restrictions. Only those who farm the royal lands return a portion of profit of the land [to the king]. If they desire to go, they go; if they like to stop, they stop. The kings govern without corporal punishment, criminals are fined, according to their circumstances, lightly or heavily. Even in cases of repeated rebellion they only cut off the right hand. In this country they do not keep swine nor fowls, and do not deal in cattle; they have no shambles or wine-stops in their marketplaces -Faxian, a famous Chinese Buddhist monk
Invasions For many years, India fell victim to a series of Muslim invaders India was divided by the Conquerers (Muslims) and Conquered (Indians) in society Islamic beliefs were pushed onto the people until Muslims realized there were just too many Hindus Yet the Islamic faith majorly influenced north-western parts of the Indian empires. Today: Most of India is Hindu and Pakistan & Bangladesh is Islamic