1. India

2. Location & Geography Stretches south from the Himalayas
Highest mountain range in the world
Subcontinent in the Indian Ocean
Geography limited contact with other cultures
Himalaya and Hindu Kush Mountain Ranges
Bay of Bengal, Indian Ocean, Arabian Sea
Passes in the mountains
Allowed for migration into the Indus River Valley
Great rivers begin in the mountains
Indus River
Ganges River
Make farming possible down below
Location & Geography

3. India and its Rivers

4. Monsoons Strong winds that blow across the region at certain times of the year
Dry air blows from NE
Oct – May
Rains blow up from Indian Ocean
Middle of June
Drenches the valleys and plains
Monsoons

5. Life in the Indus River Valley
Rich soil
Wheat and grains
Lots of food led to population increase
Well planned cities flourished BC
Harappa
Mohenjo-Daro
The larger of the two
On banks of Indus River
Life in the Indus River Valley

7. Mohenjo-Daro: Carefully Built
Built above ground level
To protect from floods
Homes and workshops on one side of the city
Public buildings on the others
Highest point of the city served as the citadel
Fortress
Built on a high mound of earth
Enclosed by a high brick wall
Would have protected most important buildings
Storehouse for grain
Bath house
Clay pipe drains ran under the brick streets
Carried waste out of the city
Canals outside the city to handle the flooding
Redirected the water to where it was needed
Mohenjo-Daro: Carefully Built

9. Life in Mohenjo-Daro Merchants owned shops along the streets
Trade came from as far as Mesopotamia
Jewelry
Bright clothing
Homes opened to courtyards
Children played with toys and pets
Adults enjoyed games and music
No idea as to their language
Writing on square seals
Don’t know about their religion or government either
Evidence supports they had multiple gods
Life in Mohenjo-Daro

10. Indus valley farmers began to abandon their land around 2000 BC
Climate change?
Earthquakes and floods destroyed canals?
Aryans entered valley b/w 2000/1500BC
“noble” or “highborn”
Nomadic herders
Drove horse-drawn chariots
Overwhelmed local people militarily
Intermarried with the locals
Combined Aryan and native culture
Rise of the Aryans

11. Aryan Life Iron age in 800BC Religion books: Vedas
Used axes to clear rain forest of northeast
Built cities
Religion books: Vedas
“knowledge”
Tells us much about Aryan Life
Herders and warriors
Lived in temporary villages
Three social classes
Aryan Priests: Brahmans
Warriors and Nobles
Artisans and Merchants
Later a fourth formed: Farm workers, laborers, servants
Aryan Life

12. Caste System Strict division of classes – Caste system
Each caste (class) had special duties
People had to stay in the caste of their parents
People of the same caste had the same occupation
People did the same jobs as their parents
Castes divided into hundreds of different groups over times
Caste System

13. Hinduism The Hindu religion developed over 3500 years
Absorbed beliefs of many religions
Different people need different ways of approaching god
The religion has no single founder
Worships many gods and goddesses
Belief in one spiritual power: brahman
Lives in everything
Hinduism

14. Different gods and goddesses stand for different parts of Brahman
Take many different forms (avatars)
Representation of a Hindu god or goddess in human or animal form
Brahma
Creator
Born from a golden egg
Created Earth and everything on it
Not as widely worshipped
Brahma

15. Vishnu The Preserver Kindly god concerned with welfare of humans
Visits earth to protect mankind
Vishnu

16. Shiva The Destroyer Not concerned with human matters Very powerful
Responsible for creative and destructive forces of universe
Shiva

17. Wife of Shiva
Also a creator and destroyer
Shakti

18. Upanishads Hindu religious text Means “sitting near a teacher”
In the form of questions by pupils and responses by teachers
Upanishads

19. Reincarnation Reincarnation: Rebirth of the soul
Belief that when someone dies, the soul is reborn in the body of another living thing
Every living thing has a soul
Actions of one’s life affect his fate in the next
Good behavior rewarded: reborn into a higher position
Bad behavior punished: reborn into a lower caste
Maybe even return as animals
Perfect life: he or she may be freed from this cycle of death and rebirth
Soul becomes one with Brahman
Reincarnation

20. A Hindu’s Duties Dharma: Moral duties of each person
Depend on caste, age, and occupation
Man’s duty to protect the women in his family
Ruler’s duty to protect his subjects
Ahimsa: Nonviolence
All living things are part of Brahman
Must be treated with respect
Many Hindus do not eat meat
Try to avoid harming living things
A Hindu’s Duties

21. Yogas Yoga means “union” Different types of yoga Private devotion
Goal is to free the soul from the worries of the world
Different types of yoga
Yoga of physical activity
Yoga of selflessness: Giving to the poor
Yoga of following religious practices
Private devotion
Personal gods
Private altars and offerings
Yogas