1. Early Civilizations in India and China
Chapter 3
Early Civilizations in India and China

2. Early Civilizations in India and China
The Indus Valley civilization is located in the region known as South Asia or the Subcontinent of India, in Pakistan.
A subcontinent is a large landmass that juts out from a continent.

3. Early Civilizations in India and China
Regions- The Indian region is divided into three zones.
A) Well-watered northern plain
B) Dry triangular Deccan
C) Coastal plains on either side of the Deccan

4. Early Civilizations in India and China
India’s Northern Plain is watered by the Ganges and the Brahmaputra rivers.
These rivers carry melted snow from the Himalaya mountains making agriculture possible.
Rivers are sacred in India in India, especially the Ganges river, who is one of their goddesses. The word Ganges means “mother of the people.

5. Early Civilizations in India and China
Another region in India is the dry triangular Deccan Plateau, or raised area of level land, which juts into the Indian Ocean.
This area lacks the melting snows of the north like India’s northern plain, as a result the area is dry and arid.
India’s coastal plains are separated from the Deccan Plateau by low-lying mountain ranges, the Eastern and Western Ghats. Rivers and seasonal winds provide water for farmers.

6. Early Civilizations in India and China
A defining feature in Indian life is the monsoon, a strong seasonal wind.
In October, the monsoon flows from the northeast, bringing a flow of hot, dry air that withers crops. In late May or early June, the wet summer monsoons blow from the southwest, pick up moisture from the Indian Ocean and drench the land with daily downpours.

7. Early Civilizations in India and China
Indus Valley Civilization
A) Emerged in the Indus River Valley, in present-day Pakistan, about 2500 B.C.
B) Flourished for 1000 years, then disappeared without a trace.
C) There were two main cities in this civilization: Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro. Each city was laid out in a grid pattern. The homes had very modern plumbing systems and were built from uniform oven-fired clay bricks.

8. Early Civilizations in India and China
Indus Valley Civilization
A) Evidence shows that they had a well-organized government.
B) Leaders- Priest-Kings
C) Rigid system of home building suggests government planners.
D) Most citizens were farmers, who grew a variety of crops. They were the first to cultivate cotton and weave it into cloth.

9. Early Civilizations in India and China
Indus Valley Civilization
A) Some were merchants and traders. Many had contact with the Sumerians who may have stimulated Indus Valley people to develop their own system of writing.
B) Religion- they were polytheistic, a mother goddess was honored

10. Early Civilizations in India and China
Indus Valley Civilization-
A) Declined in 1750 B.C.; no one knows why.
B) Decline may have been due to the local environment; too many trees being cut down to fuel the ovens of brick makers; a volcanic eruption, or a devastating earthquake.
C) In 1500 B.C. the civilization completely declined when Aryan invaders from southern Russia conquered them with superior weaponry.

11. Early Civilizations in India and China
The Aryan conquerors migrated from Europe and Asia.
Early Aryans built no cities and left no statues. What we know of them comes from the Vedas, a collection of prayers, hymns and other teachings.
In the Vedas the Aryans appear as warriors who fought in chariots with bows and arrows.
They were nomadic herders who valued cattle. During the neolithic age they still valued cattle.

12. Early Civilizations in India and China
The Vedas states that the Aryans felt superior to the Dravidians, the people they conquered.
Dravidians are believed to be descendants from the original inhabitants of the Indus Valley.
Aryans divided people by occupation.
The three basic groups were the Brahmins, or the priests, the Kshatriyas or warriors, and the Vaisyas or herders, farmers, artisans, and merchants.
The fourth group, the Sudras, were people who farm workers, servants, and laborers.

13. Early Civilizations in India and China

14. Early Civilizations in India and China
The differences between the Aryans and non-Aryans would give rise to the caste system, which are social groups into which people are born and which they cannot change.
The Vedas shows that the Aryans were polytheistic and their gods and goddesses embodies natural forces such as fire.
Indra, their god of war, was the chief Aryan deity. Indra’s weapon was the thunderbolt.

15. Early Civilizations in India and China
Indra- Aryan God of
War, and storms

16. Early Civilizations in India and China
Varuna- God of
Order and creation

17. Early Civilizations in India and China
Brahman- collective name of the many gods of the Brahmans that resided within all things.
Mystics- people who devote their lives to seeking spiritual truth. The Mystics achieved communion with divine forces through meditation and yoga.
Rajahs- skilled war leader, elected to his position by an assembly of warriors. He ruled with the advice of a council of leaders made up by the heads of families.

18. Early Civilizations in India and China
By 500 B.C. the Dravidians and the Aryan culture merged, a process called acculturation.
By this time they developed their written language, Sanskrit. Priests were then able to write down the sacred texts.

19. Early Civilizations in India and China
Geography of China-
The ancient Chinese called their land the Middle Kingdom.
China was an isolated kingdom, as a result the Chinese saw their kingdom as the center of the Earth and source of civilization.

20. Early Civilizations in India and China
There are several geographic barriers to the west and southwest of China; the Tien Shan and the Himalayas. To the North, the Gobi desert blocked the movement of people.
To the Southeast, thick jungles divided China from Southeast Asia.
To the east, the Pacific Ocean blocked movement.

21. Early Civilizations in India and China
Occasionally, the Chinese encountered nomadic invaders but they were usually absorbed into society.
China is divided into different regions:
Heartland- lays along the east coast and valleys of the Huang He or Yellow River. This region held a large population due to the fertile nature of these rivers.

22. Early Civilizations in India and China
Outlying Regions of Xinjiang Mongolia, Manchuria:
The terrain of this region is rugged and has a harsh climate. Also, this region constantly attacked and plundered cities in this region. At times the Chinese were the invaders took over the Himalayan region of Tibet .

23. Early Civilizations in India and China
Chinese history began in the Huang He valley. The Shang region dominated this area until 1027 B.C.; Chinese civilization took shape during the Shang period.
Evidence from a Shang kings burial place show that the noblewomen had considerable status during this time.
Shang kings only ruled a small area of land; princes and nobles ruled the rest of the land. They were likely the heads of clans, or groups of families who claimed a common ancestor.

24. Early Civilizations in India and China
Social Classes-
Most people in Shang China were peasants, that lived in farming villages.
They worked in the fields and had rough lives.
Gods and Goddesses- Shang Di, and a mother goddesses. The king seen as a link between the people and Shang Di, later on other classes shared in the ritual.
The Chinese called on the spirits of their ancestors to bring good luck to their families. To honor their ancestors they offered them sacrifices of food and other necessities.

25. Early Civilizations in India and China
Chinese writing system- used pictographs, and ideograms, signs that expressed thoughts or ideas.
Oracle Bones- Example of Chinese writing; used bones of animals or turtle shells. Shang priests wrote questions on the boznes to the gods or spirits of an ancestor. Priests then heated the bone or shell until it interpreted the pattern of cracks cracked. They then.

26. Early Civilizations in India and China
Chinese language contains over 10,000 words and is difficult to learn.
Chinese scholars wrote in calligraphy, or fine handwriting, which was an art form.
This language fostered unity.
In 1027 B.C. the Zhou invaded and defeated the Shang.
To justify their rebellion, the Zhou promoted the idea of the Mandate of Heaven, or the divine right to rule.

27. Early Civilizations in India and China
Dynastic Cycle- the rise and fall of dynasties. If a ruler was good then the empire would stand, if a ruler was bad his empire would fall.
The Zhou rewarded their supporters by granting them control over different regions.
Feudalism- a system of government in which local lords governed their own lands but owed military service and other forms of support to the ruler.

28. Early Civilizations in India and China
During the Zhou period, China’s economy grew. Knowledge of ironworking reached China in 500 B.C. They created iron axes and tools that helped them produce more food.
Commerce expanded and they used money for the first time. This led to an increase in the population.

29. Early Civilizations in India and China
Mathematics and Science- used the decimal system, helped develop our present-day mathematical system.
Silk-making- Invented in 1,000 B.C. from the cocoons of silkworms. Silk became their most valuable export. The trade route that linked China to the Middle East was the Silk Road.
They created the first books, made of wood and bamboo.