Classical+India

1. **ESPIRIT Chart on India ---** **1500 B.C.E. to 500 .C.E.** The Indian economy was very prosperous due to lucrative industries and an affinity to trading. || ﻿Religion was the linchpin of Indian society, and two of the aspects Hinduism promoted, the priesthood and caste system, were pertinent to the time.
 * E || * Ashoka sponsored an extensive road network with wells and rest stops for travelers
 * Child labor, but no slavery
 * Steel and iron metallurgy
 * Best steel market at the time
 * Rivaled and/or exceeded chinese economy
 * Textiles
 * Cotton cloth
 * Calico
 * Cashmere
 * Artisans and craft guilds
 * Highly active traders
 * Served, sometimes, as an entrepot for China and Mediterranean
 * Traded throughout the continent via land and sea
 * Dyes, jewelry, gold, and ivory for:
 * pottery, wine, metals, slaves, and gold
 * Agricultural based
 * S || ﻿Purple is for collaborative work.
 * The Indian caste system had created a social schism and affected the other sectors.
 * Family life was crucial to the emotional function and structure of society
 * Agricultural society like China
 * Farmer peasantry
 * Villages with local authority and cultures
 * Micro-organization
 * Close family ties
 * Patriarchal society in which women were greatly subordinated
 * Arranged marriages in which the bride had no say, only the family
 * Married in a young age, to people they never met before
 * More diversified than China's Middle Kingdom -- economically, idiomatically, prejudicially, demographically
 * Vedic (1500 - 1000 B.C.E) and Epic (1000 - 600 B.C.E) ages -- aka. the formative years
 * Reconstruction of Indian civilization after the fall of cities like Harappa along the Indus
 * Agriculture extended from the Indus to Ganges
 * Domination of Vedic beliefs and Brahmans (700 - c. 500 B.C.E)
 * **Caste system**
 * **Varnas**, social classes
 * Low caste individuals had few legal rights
 * Highly abused by landowners
 * Lower caste members were equated with animals
 * Peasantry and nobility had little contact
 * intercaste marriage was forbidden -- capital crime
 * __ underline serves the same purpose as blue: __Brahmans and Kshatriyas (priests > warriors __after the Vedic Age __ __)__ >Vaisyas ( merchants and farmers) > Sudras (common laborers, serfs) > Untouchables
 * Divided into even smaller groups, //**jati,**// with distinctive occupations and social status
 * Almost 300 after the Epic Age
 * No blatant slavery
 * Provided social stability
 * Supported by Hinduism ||
 * P || ﻿ //The political system of India was not very elaborate;// the Indian society was a nigh-theocracy.
 * Little formal politcal theory
 * Few politcal values and institutions
 * ** Kautilya, Chandragupta's chief minister, wrote a treatise instructing leaders how to maintain power -- psuedo-Legalism **
 * Overall government was overshadowed by local villages and the caste system
 * __ Politics were overshadowed by religion __
 * Emperor state
 * **Regionalism** - distinct provincial cultures
 * Agricultural regions were alongside the Indus and Ganges
 * Northern mountainous regions (**Himalayas**) developed herding economies
 * Souther coastal rim, sequestered by mountains and the Deccan plateau, developed an active maritime economy
 * 16 major states by 600 B.C.E.
 * War for supremacy was common
 * **Mauryan Empire**
 * 322 B.C.E. - **Chandragupta Maurya** seizes power (322 - 298 B.C.E.)
 * Mirrored Persian and Hellenistic political structures
 * Bureaucracy
 * Legalism monarchy
 * United most of the subcontinent
 * **Grandson** Ashoka **(269 - 232 B.C.E.)**
 * Influenced by Vedic beliefs and Buddhism
 * Expanded the Mauryan Empire to just short of the southern tip before converting
 * Empire collapsed and regional kingdoms flourished
 * **Kushan** state (? - 220 C.E.)
 * Gupta Empire (320 C.E. - 535 C.E.)
 * Longest lasting
 * Expanded authority with intermarriage alliances
 * Greatest political stability
 * Smaller than Mauryan
 * Did not impose Sanskrit
 * __ No separation of church and state __ ||
 * I || The intellectual atmosphere of India was dictated by religions
 * Children should indulge in imagination longer
 * Lively, usually secular stories
 * Romantic dramas
 * Under the Gupta, one of the first universities in the world was founded
 * The Nalanda Universtiy taught astronomy, theology, philosophy, medicine, artchitecture, and agriculture
 * Tolerant of cultures and religions
 * **//Kamasutra//**
 * A legal document that debated the relationship between men and women
 * Many ideas past their time
 * One of the first civilizations to propose a round planet
 * Solar calendar
 * Seven planets
 * Daily rotation of the Earth on the axis
 * Explained eclipses
 * Inoculation against smallpox with cowpox
 * Advanced mathematics
 * decimals
 * negative numbers
 * Art was based on religion and veneration of nature ||
 * R || italicized items in purple equals green: Religion, namely Vedic beliefs, Buddhism, and Hinduism, was the epicenter of Indian society.
 * Vedic beliefs and practices
 * **Vedas,** written epics
 * **Rig-Veda**,dedication to the gods
 * **Mahabharata and Ramayana**, epics to real and mythological battles
 * Reflected a more settled agricultural society with stronger political units
 * **Upanishads,** Epic Age epic poems with a more mythical/religious flair
 * Similar to Greek and Scandinavian mythology
 * ** Buddhism **
 * Derived from Hinduism
 * ** dharma, moral consequences **
 * Religion of Ashoka
 * Converted Kushan king Kanishka
 * Hurt Buddhism's reputation
 * Experienced the greatest influence 200 B.C.E. - 200 C.E. -- during Kushan rule
 * Overshadowed by Hinduism, but gained prominence throughout Asia
 * ** Stupas -- spherical shrines to Buddha **
 * **Hinduism**
 * Supported by Ashoka
 * Religion of the Guptas, who used a mandate of heaven claim
 * Began during the Vedic and Epic ages - exists as the religion of India's majority
 * No single founder, no central holy figures
 * Promoted **Artha**, economic goals, and **karma**, worldly pleasures
 * gurus and Brahmans accepted certain dogmas
 * Brahma is quintessence
 * reincarnation
 * Fulfillment of personal life and caste duties led to communion with the soul of Brahma
 * Supported the caste system since it said that people who fulfilled their caste's role would be reincarnated into a better position ||
 * I || Indian interactions with the world occurred via trade, invasion, or missions.
 * Indo-Chinese trade developed later in the classical period with the majority of the impact on China
 * Middle Eastern (Persian) and Mediterranean (Hellenist Greek) civilizations conquered India at points
 * Short lived, but brought many new aspects into the cultures
 * Greek Bactria in NW India -- 327 B.C.E.
 * Middle Eastern influences persisted past the classical era, forcing the Indian culture to assimilate
 * Aryan invasions (1600-1000 B.C.E.)
 * Kushan invaders after the fall of Mauryan Empire
 * Sent religious missionaries and welcomed religious diversity
 * Cultural trading
 * In southeast Asia, Indian merchants married into local royalties
 * Hinduism and Buddhism spread throughout Asia
 * Climate
 * Unreliable monsoon rains
 * critical to farming, devastating floods, drought and famine ||
 * T || * Sanskrit **- written language**
 * Arabic numbering system
 * Steel ||

Comparison of the Chinese and Indian economy: The industries of classical China and classical India were alike in several aspects, but the primary difference between the economies was emphasis of trade. Being in similar geographical areas, the industries of India and China fluctuated very slightly. India and China both had a prosperous textile industry, jewelry industry, and metal industry for example. However, the Indian economy was filled with merchants eager to trade with other cultures. Their geographical location, being a peninsula, allowed them trading dominance. On the other hand, the Chinese economy, and culture as a matter of fact, was self-efficient. They didn't want to taint their culture by having cross culture interactions nor did they want any of their "superior" culture to seep into the mongrel customs.Above that, internal conflicts were the main focus of the government. The only cross cultural trade route Chinese officials and nobles paid heed to was the lucrative Silk Road, a simple 5000 mile land trade route. The Indians had access to that trade route, control of the Hindu Kush, interactions with the Mediterranean and a gamut of sea routes going around the known world.

2. Key Terms For Buddhists: the idea of moral consquences Dharma was used by Ashoka to provide an ethical guide to unite and discipline his subjects. It's based on a principle of virtues similar to Confucianism in China. || The first Indian language with classical status and the people of NE Sri Lanka. || Known as the "song of god," the text is part of the larger collection, the **Mahabharata.** The text is the embodiment of Hindu beliefs as it promotes yoga and dharma. ||
 * Aryans || A group of invaders from central Asia that periodically invaded India after the fall of Harappa. As these Indo-European hunter-gatherers settled down into agricultural societies, they ushered in the **Vedic Age**, a period (1500 - 1000 B.C.E.) that is the first formative of Indian post river civilization. The Aryans are responsible for the spread of Indian agriculture to the **Ganges River**, the development of **Sanskrit**, the **Vedas**, the **caste system**, etc. ||
 * Ashoka || Ashoka was Chandragupta's grandson who ruled the Mauryan empire from 267-232 B.C.E. Ashoka, before he converted to Buddhism, conquered nearly all of the subcontinent except for the southern tip. He sent Buddhist missionaries throughout the continent, from Sri Lanka to Greece/Macedonian empire. Ashoka also improved trade and communication, such as extensive road programs. ||
 * Gupta || The successors of the Kushan state and ruled from 320 C.E. to 535 when it was conquered by the Huns. The Guptan empire was smaller than the Mauryan empire, but it had more political stability since marriages between regional families and the Guptan rulers ensured peace. The Guptas supported Hinduism, a loose political system in which regional rulers swore loyalty to the dominance of the Guptas, spread uniform law, sponsored public works, and developed the cultural and intellectual life of India. Overall, the Guptan empire is considered the golden age of India ||
 * Caste system || This was the social organization of India established by the Aryans, promoted by Vedic beliefs and Hinduism, and continues to modern day. During the Vedic and Epic ages, the caste system was a tool in which to separate the Aryans from the indigenous people. The social classes/**varnas** were divided into several categories: (post Epic Age) **Brahmans** > **kshatriyas**/warriors > **vaisyas**/merchants and farmers > **sudras**/common workers > **untouchables**. Initially, the kshatriyas were the superior of the Brahmans until the Epic age when religion became increasingly important. Under the varnas, were **jati,** subclasses, in which people were designated specific jobs. After the Epic age, there were over 300 jati. ||
 * Hinduism || __//Refer to Religion in the ESPIRIT Chart//__ ||
 * Sanskrit || The first written Indian language during the Vedic Age. Throughout classical Indian history, sanskrit was a language amongst a variety of regional dialects and languages. During the Guptan Empire, sanskrit was promoted but not imposed. The language of the educated could be found amongst distinctly popular languages. ||
 * Dharma || For Hindus: the name of their religion
 * Buddhism || The religion founded by Siddhartha Gautama, an Indian prince who came to be known as Buddha. Since Gautama was a Hindu mystic, Buddhism and Hinduism share many beliefs, such as reincarnation. However, Buddhism disavowed the caste system and promoted the idea of **nirvana**. Today, Buddhism exists as one of the major religions in the world spreading throughout the Asian continent. ||
 * Tamils || __Not in the book__
 * Chandragupta Maurya || The soldier who united India in 322 B.C.E. under his autocratic bureaucracy that resembled a legalistic state. ||
 * Gurus || Men who sought communion with the divine soul as outlined by the //Upanishads//. They were considered as incredibly wise men who contained transcendental knowledge and allowed people to find communion with the divine soul. ||
 * Bhagavad Gita || __Not in the book__

Summary:

After the fall of Harappa**,** the Indus river civilization, Indian society was invaded by **Aryan** hunter-gatherers who settled down in India. From 1500- 600 B.C.E., the **Vedic and Epic ages** (the formative ages of Indian history), civilization was spread to the **Ganges river** and greatly developed. Society was organized into a social **caste system** in which the priests were the ultimate class and a decentralized, regional theocracy with a prosperous trading economy that expanded throughout the known world. The reason behind the development of most aspects of Indian society is explicitly intertwined with religion. The main religion of India since Aryan time was **Hinduism,** but dissident beliefs, primarily **Buddhism,** have rose to challenge the Brahmanical religion. Buddhism contributed to the formation of India's first genuine empire, the **Mauryan Empire.** This empire was short lived as the successors of its most prominent leader, **Ashoka,** the grandson of the founder **Chandragupta Maurya,** had succumbed to regional states**.** Succeeding the Mauryan empire was the **Kushan state** and then the **Guptas**. Under the Guptas, India experienced its golden age as the culture and intellectual life of India prospered.