Ancient India

  1. The Indus River Valley is much like the Nile, Tigris, and Euphrates Rivers.

A)Like All river valleys, river flooding is both beneficial and harmful.

B)River flooding provides silt and water for agriculture.

C)The Indus River carries twice as much silt as the Nile River.

D)The Indus River like the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers flooding is random.

  1. The Indus River Begins in the Himalayas Mountains and empties into the Arabian Sea.
  1. Ancient Indus farmers irrigated their fields with canals and built dirt walls for protection – Crops and homes were protected from terrible flooding.

A)Indus farmers grew wheat, barley, beans, and sesame.

B)They also grew some of the world’s first: rice, banana, black pepper, mustard, and cotton crops.

C)Ancient India’s climate allowed farmers to have TWO FULL growing seasons.

Early Indian Civilizations

  1. Historians know very little about Harappan Civilizations because its writing system has not been figured out.

A)Harappan’s wrote in Sanskrit and we can not read this writing.

B)Harappa was named after an Indian god by the people who lived near the ruins.

C)The Harappan Civilization lasted from about 2500 B.C. – until 1600 B.C.

  1. Harappan merchants traded goods in many places some of which were as far away as Mesopotamia.

A)Harappan merchants traded with Afghanistan for jewelry made with lapis lazuli.

B)They also traded with Mesopotamia.

  1. The city of Mohenjo-Daro was laid out in a grid and the buildings were made of brick. The city also had paved roads, and a sewer system.

A)The biggest building in the city was citadel: A huge for protection and grain warehouse.

B)This orderly lay-out of the city suggests it had a strong government.

  1. In about 1500 B.C. people called Aryans

migrated (moved into), to the Indian sub-continent. They bought new ideas to the region.

A)The Aryans were mostly animal herders

B)They bought with them a collection of religious songs called Vedas. These songs became the basic building blocks of Hinduism.

Beginnings of Hinduism

  1. Hinduism is one of the world’s oldest religions. It is practiced many different ways.

A)It has between 700-800 million followers today. One of every 8 people today are Hindu.

  1. Aryan newcomers to the Indian sub-continent introduced sacred songs that became the Vedas. These became the foundation of Hinduism.

A)The Vedas explained the way Indian society was divided – Four (4) major classes.

B)These four classes became or developed into the caste system.

  1. The caste system is a way of organizing people into hundreds of different levels.

A)A persons place in society is determined by their past life and the family he or she is born to.

  1. An important theme in Hinduism is reincarnation.

A)This idea gives Hindus some control over their caste they are born into.

B)Reincarnation has people living in constant circle of life: Birth-Death-Rebirth.

  1. By following the dharma, or instruction of their caste, Hindus believe people can break free of the cycle of reincarnation.

A)Reincarnation allows Hindus to move through the caste to get to Heaven

B)Dharma are the laws and duties (over a 100), to be followed in each caste. For each caste it is different.

Beginnings of Buddhism

  1. Between about 1500 B.C. and 500 B.C. Aryan rulers gained control over much of India and spread Hinduism.

A)Some Indians began looking for answers about life beyond the Veda. This is the beginning of Buddhism.

  1. Siddhartha Gautama founded Buddhism. He gave up ALL his wealth and fortune to search for a way to end suffering.

A)The Buddha (Siddhartha Gautama) borrowed beliefs from Hinduism.

B)He taught the Four Noble Truths are what rules life:

  1. Life is filled with suffering.
  2. Suffering is caused by peoples wants. People want more pleasure, more power or a longer life.
  3. Suffering can be ended if people stop wanting things.
  4. To stop wanting things, people must follow eight basic laws.
  1. The Eightfold Path is a set of instruction on the proper way to live.

A)By following the Eightfold Path people could end suffering in their lives.

B)This Eightfold Path was meant to be the Middle Way. This way of life should not be too strict or too easy.

C)By the time Buddha died at 80, there were thousands of Buddhists.

D)Buddhism spread after the Buddha’s death. This religion has 330 million followers today.

Karma is described by bothHindus and Buddhists as a force caused by peoples good and bad acts.

A)Karma affects future lives.

B)Unlike Hindus, the Buddhists did not search for the one powerful force that connects ALL LIFE.

C)Buddha believed that the most important thing in life was to reach peace by ending suffering.