The Foundation of Indian Society: 300 C.E.

Land

India-->For this time India is the landmass of southern of the warm indian waters

Warm climate all year

Monsoons common each summer

Fertile valleys and Indus and Ganges Rivers

Able to farm

Agriculture 7000 B.C.E.

Wheat and Barley+Cattle, sheep, and goats

Brahmanism

Core of religion=sacrifice

Upanishads

record speculation of mystical meaning of scrifice rites.

Asceticism

Severe self-dicipline and self denial

Samsara and Karma

Samsara=transmigration of souls by a continuative process of rebirth

Karma=Tally of good and bad deeds that determine the status of a next individual's life

Brahaman=unchanging and ultimate reality

Aryans and Vedic Age

After Indus Valley Civilazation, Aryans dominated northern India

Speakers of sanskrit

Central source ofr aryans=Rigveda

Rigveda is a book of hyms, ritual texts, and philisophicle treatises

Aryans were warrior tribes who glorified military skill and heroism; loved to drink, hunt, race, and dance

Portayed as...from the Rigveda

Raja was the name for the head of or chief of the tribe

Over course of several centeries, the Aryans were pushed far east to the Ganges river.

Important because it goes along with iron, the Aryans had to clear miles of thick jungle to live so far east, the production of iron helped them by created usefull weapons for the forest; such as the axe.

First settlers

Harappan

Center for trade and cratfts (Cities)

Egyption and Sumarian Civiliazations

Mesopatamian

traded with Indian--> goods and IDEAS

Mohenjo-daro (city)--> important because of the miracules drainage system set up in the city.

Jainism

Key figure=Vardhamana Mahavira

Chief's son of petty State

Followers pursued him for bliss

n

argued that all beings, animals, humans, plants, and inanimate obects all had souls