1. Chapter 3
Ancient India and China
2600 B.C.- 550 A.D.

2. Section 1- Early Civilizations of
India and Pakistan
 Geography
 Subcontinent- a large landmass that juts out from a
continent
 India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal Bhutan
 Mountains- Hindu Kush and Himalayas

Three zones- Gangetic Plain, Deccan plateau and the
coastal plains

Monsoons- seasonal winds
• October- blow from northeast
• June- blow from southwest

3. Indus Civilization
 Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro

Well planned cities
 3 miles in circumference
 Well planned plumbing systems
 Farmers and traders
 Contact with Sumer

Writing is not related to Cuneiform

Polytheistic
 Veneration for buffalo and bull
 Sacred Cow

4. Decline 1900 B.C.
 Cities abandoned
 No more writing
 Crude pottery
 Flood?
 Earthquake?
 Attack?

5. Aryan Civilization
 2000 B.C.-1500 B.C. the Aryans migrated
into India from southern Russia
 Most of what we know about them comes
from the Vedas
 The Vedas are a collection of hymns, chants,
ritual instructions, and other religious
teachings
 1500-500 B.C. called the Vedic Age

6. From Nomads to Farming
 The Aryans mixed with the people they
conquered
 Learned how to farm from them
 Developed iron axes and weapons
 Rulers called Rajahs

Depended on a council of elders
 Fought with other rajahs

7. Societal Structure
 People divided into groups depending on
their occupation
 1. Brahmins- priests
 2. Kshatriyas- warriors

3. Vaisyas- herders, farmers, artisans and
merchants
 4. Sudras- people with little or no Aryan blood.
Included farmers, servants and laborers.
Lowest place in society.

8. Religious Beliefs
 Polytheistic
 Gods and goddesses embodied natural forces
 Chief god was Indra, god of war
 Brahmins offered sacrifices or food and drink to
the gods for their good favor
 Brahman- a single spiritual power that exists in
everything
 Mystics- people who seek direct communion
with divine forces

9. Epic Literature
 Written in Sanskrit
 Mahabharata and the Ramayana
 Inside the Mahabharata is the Bhagavad-
Gita
 Dharma- devotion to one’s duty

10. Hinduism
(quiz material starts here)

11. Characteristics of Hinduism
 Very complex
 Countless gods and goddesses
 “God is one, but wise people know it by
many names.”
 All god and goddesses are a part of the
brahman and make it more tangible
 Brahma- creator
 Vishnu- preserver
 Shiva- destroyer

12. Sacred Texts
 Vedas
 Upanishads- one section of the Vedas that
deals with mystical questions
 Who is the Knower?
What makes my mind think?
Does life have a purpose, or is it governed by
chance?
What is the cause of the Cosmos?
 – Upanishads

13. Bhagavad-Gita
 “song of the divine one”
 Told by Krishna- and avatar of Vishnu
 Concise guide to Hindu philosophy and a
guide to life

14. Achieving Moksha
 Atman- essential self
 Moksha- uniting with brahman
 Reincarnation- rebirth of the soul into another
bodily form
 Karma- actions in this life that affect your fate in
the next life
 All existence is ranked, humans are closest to
brahman

Live a good life, create good karma, reborn into a
higher existence

Live a bad life, create bad karma, suffer at a lower
level of existence

15. Achieving Moksha continued…
 Dharma- religious and moral duty of an
individual
 Ahimsa- non-violence

16. Jainism
 Mahavira develops Jainism around 500
B.C.
 Rejected the authority of Brahmin priests
 Emphasized meditation, self-denial, and
extreme forms of ahimsa

17. Buddhism

19. Buddhism Spreads Beyond India
 Buddhist monasteries become centers of
learning
 Spreads to Myanmar, Thailand, Laos,
Cambodia, Vietnam, China, Nepal,
Bhutan, Korea, Japan

20. Dalai Lama
 Tibetan Buddhism
 Called Gelug Buddhism

21. Tripitaka
 “Three Baskets of Wisdom”

Basket of Discipline- rules for monastic life
 Basket of Discourse- contains sermons and
discussion of ethics and doctrine attributed to the
Buddha or his disciples
 Basket of Special Doctrine- additional doctrine
 All contain legends and other narratives as well
 Total canon of Theravada Buddhism
 Preliminary body of teachings for Mahayana
Buddhism

22. Mahayana Buddhism
 Easier for ordinary people to follow
 Picture the Buddha and other holy beings
as compassionate gods
 Afterlife filled with many heavens and hells
 Spread to China, Tibet, Korea, and Japan

23. Theravada Buddhism
 Follows Buddha’s original teachings
 Life devoted to hard spiritual work
 Only monks and nuns could hope to
achieve nirvana
 Spread to Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia