Study Guide: South Asia History and Government

Buddhism – Compare Hinduism to Buddhism

Include:

  1. Basic ideas of Buddhism
  • Founded by Siddhartha Gautama
  • Text: Four Noble Truths and Eight Fold Path (explains how to reach Nirvana)
  • Reincarnation
  • Nirvana
  1. Ideas & concepts that are similar between Hinduism and Buddhism
  • Reincarnation
  • Nirvana
  • Both have a sacred text
  1. What is different about Buddhism?
  • Buddhists reject the caste system and do not see it as the reason why there is suffering in the world

What is the Buddhist concepts of Nirvana & the purpose of life?

  • The purpose in life is to give up greed and selfish desires
  • Nirvana is a state of peace and unity with the universe = the ultimate goal

Who are the following people?

4. Indira Gandhi– the 1st female prime minister of India (Nehru was her father)

5. Mohandas Gandhi: led India to gain independence from British colonial rule through civil disobedience (non-violent protests). He tried to unite the people of India (Hindus and Muslims) and opposed the caste system.

  1. Siddhartha Gautama: a prince in India who rejected Hinduism and founded Buddhism after searching for the reason for suffering and being “enlightened.” (Buddha means “enlightened one.”)
  1. Jawaharlal Nehru: first prime minister of India
  1. During the Mughal Empire, Aurangzeb enforced the Islamic religion, outlawing the Hindu religion. One of the laws he passed was Purdah. What is this?a law which secluded women by requiring them to cover their heads
  1. Which two countries are involved in a dispute over Kashmir? India and Pakistan

Why are they fighting?

  • Resources: the region is the source of major rivers in the region such as the Indus and the Ganges (control source of water, hydro-electricity, dams, …)
  • The Sikhs who live here do not want to be a part of India or Pakistan; they want independence. (While their religion has similarities to both Hinduism and Buddhism, theirs is different from both, so they do not identify with the culture of either India or Pakistan.)
  1. A. Why did the Hindu ask the British to help them? Muslims had invaded India in 15th century and established the Mughal Empire which eventually forced Hindus to live under Islamic law. Hindus (majority) wanted to overthrow this Muslim (minority) government where they were not allowed to practice their religion and were oppressed.

B. Why were the British so happy to help? (What were they after?) The British were happy to help because this earned them favor with the Hindus (majority) in India and paved the way for them to make India a colonial power of theirs.

C. That caused India to be named the jewel in the Britishcrown.

  1. Describe the Sepoy Rebellion. What did the British do to anger the Hindu and who won the war? The Hindu and Muslim soldiers which made up the army of India during British colonialism rebelled against their British leaders and attacked their fort, killing 200 women and children. They did this because rumors had spread that the British had given them guns which had been greased with animal fat (from cows and pigs). This was viewed as a sinful act to both religions. The British responded by handing the rule of India over to the queen of Great Britain and taking away more rights of the Indian people (ex: rights to Indians to own businesses)
  1. Why did Great Britain finally grant India independence?
  • Great Britain had promised India independence if India helped them fight against Hitler in WWII.
  • Great Britain sustained many losses in WWII and needed to focus on rebuilding their country.
  • Gandhi’s non-violent protest for independence gained international attention and “worked.”
  1. Why did the Muslims request to divide or partition India upon India’s independence?
  1. Muslims were a small minority who had ruled Hindus and taken their rights before British colonization of India. The resentment and conflict was still alive. Muslims feared “pay-back” from the Hindus when the British left.
  2. What was the result?
  • India was partitioned (divided)
  • West and East Pakistan was set aside for the Muslims
  • India was designated for the Hindus
  • Slaughter of one million people from both groups occurred as people migrated to their respective areas

14. What two countries were created as a result? India and East and West Pakistan (which later became Bangladesh).

  1. A. What type of government did India create? Constitutional Democracy
  1. How are the leaders chosen due to having this type of government?

They are elected by citizens

16. What type of economy does India currently have? mixed

17. In the 1990s, the Taliban took over what country? Afghanistan -They made it illegal for women to hold jobs. Why? Women had no rights and no voice. The Taliban wanted women to stay at home.

  1. Since independence in India, roles of women have been changing. How?
  • More women get an education
  • More women have careers
  • Women can vote and run for political office
  • Many women (but not all) have a voice in who they marry—some choose their husband, some parents seek their daughter’s consent, but some others still arrange the marriage

19. Explain how the Green Revolution helped India’s economy. The Green Revolution provided training for farmers and modern methods and equipment. As a result, more crops were produced, so there was more food. This also meant more money in India’s economy and fewer malnourished citizens.

20. What type of industry does MOST of India have? Over half of India’s population works in the agricultural industry How does this keep them below the international poverty line of $1 a day?

The vast majority of India’s farmers have small family farms and are unable to earn very much money for the crops they grow. Most of what they grow is used to feed their own family.

  1. After the British left South Asia, the countries were reluctant to follow the western style of economies; thus, they followed more of a command /communist type of economy. Without competition, this led to widespread corruption, inefficiency, and shut downs.
  1. Describe how international trade with the U.S. helps boost India’s economy. Trade provides more “customers” for India. This means more jobs, more money and a higher GDP.
  1. Explain how India benefits from the U.S. outsourcing technology and service jobs to India. When American companies bring their companies to India, they need employees, so Indian people get jobs and, in many cases, they earn more money than they would be able to otherwise.
  1. Explain why Bangladesh is poor and overpopulated. At the time of partitioning when East and West Pakistan were designated as a country for Muslims, most Muslims chose to migrate to East Pakistan because it had more fertile land and was easier to get to (to get to West Pakistan from India, most would have to go through or around mountains and desert). Most were farmers, and there is not enough farmland for all. This led to East Pakistan (which later became Bangladesh) being very overcrowded. These people left behind their businesses and most belongings, thus they were poor. It has taken a long time for so many to rise above these setbacks. Additionally, Bangladesh is subject to many natural disasters—floods, tsunamis, typhoons, etc.

Types of Government…..

  1. India’s government is divided into different levels, local and national. The people elect officials to represent them.

Federal, democratic

  1. Bhutan has a government where there is one monarch that is the head, but there are elected officials that help run the government with the king’s approval.

Unitary, democratic

  1. In 1990, Nepal changed its constitution to include a multi-party system. However, the king dismissed the democratic government and took complete control as a monarch. The people no longer have a say in their government. This is an example of what type of government?

Unitary, autocratic

  1. Sri Lanka has a government that is divided between national and local levels and that has maintained a system of elected officials that run the government. This would be an example of what type of government?

Federal, democratic

  1. Explain why Kashmir is so important to both Pakistan and India.

Why do both India and Pakistan want the land? What is the religious importance? What is the importance of the resources?

This region is the source of a number of major rivers, including the Indus and Ganges.

This means a reliable source of water, dams, hydro-electricity… The people who inhabit this region are predominantly Sikhs. They do not identify with the Hindus in India, nor the Muslims in Pakistan; they have a different culture. Nationalism has grown among them, and the people of Kashmir wish to be independent.

Both India and Kashmir have developed nuclear weapons which have been tested and stand ready to be deployed against the other side should the conflict escalate to the point that either country chooses to use them.