Ancient civilization of india

India’s First Civilization As in Mesopotamia and Egypt, early civilization in India emerged in river valleys The valleys of the Indus River valley of the River supported a flourishing civilization that extended hundreds of miles from the Himalayas to the coast of the Arabian Sea

India’s First Civilization Archeologists have more than a thousand settlements in the region Two of the major cities were: Harappa Mohenjo-Daro

Harappa & Mohenjo-Doro At its height, Harappa had 35,000 inhabitants Mohenjo-Daro had perhaps 35,000 to 40,000 Both cities were planned carefully Most buildings were constructed of mud bricks baked in oven and were square, forming a grid pattern Public wells provided a regular supply of water for all the inhabitants

Rulers and the Economy As in Egypt and Mesopotamia, Harrapan rulers based their power on a belief in divine assistance Also like those in Egypt and Mesopotamia, Harappan economy was based primarily on farming The Indus river flooded every year, providing rich soil for the growing of wheat, barely, and peas This Indus Valley civilization also traded with the city-states in Mesopotamia

The Arrival of the Aryans Around 1500 BC a group of nomadic peoples known as the Aryans moved out of their homeland in central Asia They moved south into northern India and conquered the Harappans and created a new Indian society based on Aryan culture and institutions

Aryan Ways of life Aryans were a pastoral nomadic people with a strong warrior tradition After settling in India, the Aryans gave up there nomadic ways for regular farming The introduction of Iron led to this change The use of the iron plow along with the use of irrigation made it possible for the people to clear the dense jungle growth and turn it into a rich farming area

Aryan Ways of life The Aryans developed their first writing system known as Sanskrit This enabled them to write down the legends and religious chants and rituals that had previously been passed down from generation to generation The early writings of the Aryans revealed that India was a world of warring kingdoms and shifting alliances Various Aryan leaders known as rajas (princes) carved out small states and attacked one another’s fortresses and seized women, cattle, and treasure

Society in Ancient India The conquest by the Aryans had a lasting impact on Indian Society Out of the clash between conqueror and conquered came a set of social divisions that has lasted in India, with only minor changes to this present day

The Caste System The caste system of ancient India was a set of rigid social categories that determined not only a persons occupation and economic potential, but also his or her position in society It was based on part on skin color The Aryan invaders looked down on their subjects who were dark skinned, despite the fact that the civilization of the dark skinned inhabitants of the Indus Valley was much more advanced than the Aryan Civilization

The Caste System There were 5 major divisions of Indian classes (known castes in English) At the top were two castes that were clearly the ruling elites in Aryan Society: Priests Warriors

The Caste System The priestly class known as Brahmans were considered at the top The second caste was the Kshatriyas, or warriors The third caste was in Indian Society was the Vaisyas, or commoners Most Vaisyas were merchants who engaged in commerce or farmers caring for the land

The Caste System The fourth level in the caste system was the Sudras , who made a great bulk of the Indian population The Sudras were not Aryans, and the term “Sudras” probably referred to conquered dark skinned natives Most Sudras were peasants and people who worked at other forms of manual labor

The Caste System At the lowest level of Indian society – and in fact not even considered as a part of the caste system were the Untouchables The Untouchables were given degrading tasks such as collecting trash and handling dead bodies They made up of about 5 percent of ancient India

The Caste System The untouchables were not even considered human, and there very presence was considered harmful to the members of other classes No Indian would touch or eat food handled by an Untouchable Untouchables lived in separate areas than the rest of the population When they traveled outside their areas, they were required to tap two sticks together so others would hear them coming and avoid them

The Family in Ancient India Life in Ancient India was patriarchal The superiority of males in ancient Indian society was evident in a number of ways Only males could inherit property, except in a few cases where their were no sons Women were not allowed to serve as priest, and generally, only males were educated

The Family in Ancient India Perhaps the most vivid symbol of the men’s dominance was a ritual of suttee. During this ritual the dead was placed on a heap of burning materials The suttee required a wife to throw herself on her dead husband’s flaming pile Most women did this gladly Women who refused were held in disgrace

Hinduism Early Hindus believed in the existence of a single force in the universe, a form of ultimate reality or God called Brahman Reincarnation had soon become apart of Hinduism Reincarnation is the belief that the individual soul is reborn in a different form after death According to Hinduism, all living beings seek to achieve this goal

Hinduism Important top this process is the idea of karma Karma is the force generated by a person’s actions that determines how the person will be reborn in the next life. According to this Idea, what people do in their present lives determines what they will be in their next lives So the current status of an individual is not an accident, it is a result of actions in a past existence

Hinduism The concept of karma is ruled by the dharma, or the divine law This law required all people to do their duty The system of reincarnation provided a religious basis for the rigid class division in Indian society This system justified the privileges of the higher class people After all, they would not have these privileges if they were not deserving

Hinduism Hindus developed the practice of yoga to achieve a oneness with the gods. There are hundreds of deities in the Hindu Religion including three chief ones: Brahma the Creator Vishnu the Preserver Siva the Destroyer

Buddhism In the 6 th century B.C., a new doctrine called Buddhism, appeared in India and soon became a rival of Hinduism

The Story of Buddha The founder of Buddhism was Siddhartha Gautama, known as the Buddha, or the “Enlightened One” Buddha was the son of a ruling family, he was next in line for king He decided to give all of that up to find the true meaning of life He practiced ascetics , which is a practice of self denial to achieve an understanding of ultimate reality

The Story of Buddha The practice of ascetics however led to a close brush with death from not eating He went into a long period of meditation where it was said he found the true meaning of life He spent the rest of his life preaching what he had discovered

The Basic Principles of Buddhism Buddha denied the reality of the material world The physical surroundings of humans, he believed were simply illusions The pain, poverty, and sorrow that affect human beings are caused by their attachment to things of this world

The Basic Principles of Buddhism Achieving wisdom is a key step to achieving nirvana, or ultimate reality – the end of the self and a reunion with the Great World Soul Buddha accepted the idea of reincarnation, but he rejected the Hindu division of human beings into different caste based on previous reincarnation

The Basic Principles of Buddhism Buddhism also rejected the multitude of gods that have become identified with Hinduism He forbade his followers to worship him or his image after his death For that reason, many Buddhist see Buddhism as a philosophy rather than a religion

The Basic Principles of Buddhism After his death, his followers traveled throughout India, spreading his message Temples sprang up through out the countryside Buddhist monasteries were also established to promote his teaching and provide housing and training for monks dedicated to the simple life and the pursuit of wisdom

Ancient civilization of india

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Ancient civilization of india