CHAPTER 4
Ancient India
SECTION ONE OBJECTIVES
-Learn about India’s geographic
settings
-Find out about life in an ancient city
of the Indus River Valley
-Examine the rise of a new culture in
the Indus and Ganges River Valleys
India’s geographic setting
 Subcontinent-a large
landmass that juts out
from a continent
 Stretches out from the
Himalayas and juts out
from Asia into the Indian
Ocean
 Historians refer to the
entire subcontinent as
India, although today it is
divided into several
countries, including India,
Pakistan, and Bangladesh.
 The land of India is separated
India’s geographic setting
from the rest of the world by
a great wall.
 This wall stretches along
India’s northern border and
stretches 1,500 miles long
and nearly 5 miles high.
 It is a wall of snow capped
peaks and icy glaciers called
the Himalayan mountains,
the highest mountain range
in the world.
SATELLITE IMAGE OF INDIA
The
subcontinent
of India
A CLIMATE OF MONSOONS
India’s climate is
dominated by
monsoons (strong
winds that blow
across the region
at certain times of
the year).
A CLIMATE OF MONSOONS
From October to May, the winter monsoon blows
from the northeast, spreading dry air across the
country.
In the middle of June, the wind blows from the
Indian Ocean, picking up moisture from the ocean.
It carries rains that drench the plains and river
valleys daily.
A CLIMATE OF MONSOONS
The people of India depend on summer monsoons
to provide life-giving rain.
If the monsoon is late or weak, crops die, causing
famine.
If it brings too much rain, overflowing rivers may
cause deadly floods.
BARRIERS AND PATHWAYS
The mountains that separate India from other
lands, they do have openings.
These openings have served as highways for
migration and invasion.
The earliest people of northern India probably
entered the Indus River Valley through the
pathways of the Himalayas.
How do winter monsoons differ from
summer monsoons?
Look on pg. 108 at the “Stone Seals”
How do these seals compare to the ways
that present-day merchant identify their
goods?
Life in the Indus River Valley
 Because of the rich soil
in the Indus River Valley,
there was a surplus of
food, creating a
population boom.
 Villages turned into
cities, and around 25001500 B.C., two wellplanned cities
flourished in the valleyMohenjo-Daro and
Harappa.
Mohenjo-Daro
To help protect the city from floods, it
was built above ground level.
The city’s highest point served as a
citadel-or fortress.
Homes and workshops make up one
side of the city while public buildings
make up the other.
Streets separated these regular blocks
of homes and buildings.
MOHENJO-DAR0
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SdGbamPgf8o
MOHENJO-DARO
The citadel was built
on a high mound of
earth. It probably
protected the city’s
most important
buildings, including a
storehouse for grain
and a bath house.
MOHENJO-DARO
 Advanced for its time,
 Outside the city, canals
Mohenjo-Daro had a
drainage system.
 Clay pipes ran under brick
streets and carried waste
from homes and public
buildings away from the
city.
ran along the Indus River,
which often flooded.
 The canals helped control
flooding by catching
overflow from the river.
 The water was then
directed where it was
most needed.
MOHENJO-DARO DRAINAGE SYSTEM
LIFE IN MOHENJO-DARO
 Merchants and artisans lined the streets.
 Traders came from as far away as Mesopotamia to buy and
sell goods.
 Citizens of the city lived in homes that opened onto
courtyards.
 Children played with toys and pets.
 Adults enjoyed games and music.
 Artisans fashioned jewelry and bright cotton clothing for
the people to wear.
MOHENJO-DARO TOYS
TRADE
CLAY ELEPHANTS
ECONOMY
These weights were found in recent excavations at Harappa
and may have been used for controlling trade and possibly
for collecting taxes.
CLAY SCULPTURES
CERAMICS
ORNAMENTS
NECKLACE
BURIAL
BURIAL
Burial of woman and infant, Harappa.
This burial was disturbed in antiquity, possibly by ancient Harappan
grave robbers.
Besides the fact that the body is flipped and the pottery disturbed,
the left arm of the woman is broken and shell bangles that would
normally be found on the left arm are missing.
The infant was buried in a small pit beneath the legs of the mother.
LIFE IN MOHENJO-DARO
The language of the people is still a mystery.
There are symbols on their seals, but experts have
yet to figure out their meaning.
The form of government and organized religion are
also unknown.
However, there is evidence that the people had a
number of gods.
SEALS
A MYSTERIOUS DECLINE
 Around 2000 B.C., Indus valley farmers began to abandon
their land.
 Here are possible reasons why:
 The climate changed, making the fertile soil desert-like.
 Great earthquakes may have caused floods that
destroyed the canals.
 Without enough food, people began to leave the cities
of the Indus Valley.
A MYSTERIOUS DECLINE
Between 2000 and 1500 B.C.,
newcomers from the north entered
the valley.
They eventually gained power
throughout the region and a new
culture arose.
ARYANS ARISE IN INDUS RIVER VALLEY
A NEW CULTURE ARISES
This new culture called themselves
Aryans, which meant “nobles” or
“highborn” in their language.
They migrated from Central Asia, and
for several centuries thousands of
nomadic herders swept into India.
A NEW CULTURE ARISES
The Aryans were known for their horse
drawn chariots, helping them overpower any
enemy.
Local people began to adopt the Aryan
language.
Marriages between the members of this old
and new group created a mixed population.
ARYAN CULTURE SPREADS
This new culture developed in the north Indus
Valley and gradually spread to the Ganges valley in
the east, where people also adopted the Aryan
language.
By 800 B.C., people used iron to make tools and
weapons.
With iron axes, these people cleared areas of thick
rainforests to built farms, villages, and cities.
ARYAN LIFE
What we know of Aryan life comes from
religious books called Vedas, meaning
“knowledge”.
We know that the earliest Aryans were
herders and warriors who lived in temporary
villages.
ARYAN LIFE
 Aryan society was organized around three main classes,
with a fourth gradually making its way into society:
 First-Aryan Priests, Brahmans, performed religious
services and composed hymn and prayers
 Second- Warriors and nobles
 Third- Artisans and Merchants
 Fourth- Farm workers, laborers, and servants
THE SOCIAL ORDER
 By 500 B.C., there was a strict division of classes, which
Europeans later called the caste system.
 In the beginning, the caste performed special duties.
 People always to stay in the caste of their parents.
 People ended up doing the same work that their
parents did and so on for generations.
 The caste system still exists today, yet it is not as rigid.
FOCUS ON MOHENJO-DARO
Describe the citadel and the lower-city
sections of Mohenjo-Daro.
What do the features of Mohenjo-Daro
tell us about the people who lived
there?
CLASSWORK AND HOMEWORK
Section 1 Assessment pg. 111
Target Reading Skill
Comprehension and Critical
Thinking
CHAPTER 4, SECTION 2
 Objectives
 Find out about the beginning of Hinduism
 Learn about the teachings of Hinduism.
 Examine the practice of Hinduism.
THE BEGINNINGS OF HINDUISM
 After Aryan culture mixed
with India’s existing culture,
new ideas and beliefs
became a part of the Vedas.
 From this blending of ideas
and beliefs came one of the
world’s oldest living
religions, Hinduism.
 (The mixing of Aryan culture
and India’s existing culture
birthed the beginnings of
one of the world’s oldest
living religions, Hinduism.)
 Hinduism developed over
A blend of religions
3,500 years ago.
 It became very complex
and adopted many beliefs
from other religions.
 Hindus believe that since
people are different, they
need many different ways
of approaching god.
A BLEND OF RELIGIONS
 Hinduism is one of the
world’s top three religionsbehind Christianity and
Islam.
 It is a way of life for over 850
million people in India today.
(161,905 Winston Academys)
 With all of its followers, it is
unlike other major relgions.
A BLEND OF RELIGIONS
Hinduism has no single founder, but Hindus
have many great thinkers.
Hindus worship many gods and goddesses,
but believe in one single spiritual power
called brahman, which lives in everything.
Hindus believe that there is more than one
path to the truth.
HINDU GODS AND GODDESSES
 The gods and goddesses of
Hinduism stand for different
parts of brahman.
 “God is one, but wise people
know it by many names.”
 The most important Hindu
gods:
 Brahma-The Creator
 Vishnu-The Preserver
 Shiva, the Destroyer
HINDU GODS AND GODDESSES
 Hindu gods take many
different forms, called
avatars.
 An avatar is the
representation of a Hindu
god or goddess in human
or animal form.
HINDU GODS AND GODDESSES
Brahma is believed to
have been born from a
golden egg.
Known as the Creator.
He is not as widely
worshiped as Vishnu
or Shiva.
HINDU GODS AND GODDESSES
 Vishnu is a kindly god who is
concerned with the welfare
of human beings.
 Vishnu visits earth from time
to time in different forms.
 He does this to guide
humans or to protect them
from disaster.
HINDU GODS AND GODDESSES
 Unlike Vishnu, Shiva is
not concerned with
human matters.
 He is very powerful.
 Shiva is responsible for
both the creative and
destructive forces of the
universe.
THE TEACHINGS OF HINDUISM
 Even though there are many different forms of Hinduism and Hindus
believe there are many paths to god, there are a few central beliefs that
are contained in religious writings or sacred texts.
TEACHINGS OF HINDUISM-THE UPANISHADS
 The Upanishads (oo Pan uh
shadz)- a religious text for Hindus
 Upanishad means “sitting near a
teacher”
 The Upanishads is in the form of
a question by students and
answers by teachers.
 “Who created the world?”
 “Brahman is the creator, the
universal soul.
THE TEACHINGS OF HINDUISMREINCARNATION
 Reincarnation-rebirth of the soul
 When a person dies, the soul is reborn in the body of another living





thing.
Hindus believe that every living thing has a soul (All Dogs Go To
Heaven).
The actions of a person in this life affect their fate in the next.
Faithful followers of Hinduism will be reborn into a higher position.
Those whose acts have been bad may be born into a lower caste, or
may even return as animals.
If a person leads a perfect life, they may be freed from this cycle of
death and rebirth and become one with brahman.
A HINDU’S DUTIES
 To become one with brahman,
one must obey his or her
dharma.
 Dharma-the religious and moral
duties of each person
 i.e. It is a man’s duty to protect
the women in his family.
 Another important ideas of
Hinduism is ahimsanonviolence.
 People and living things are a
part of brahman and therefore
must be treated with respect.
THE PRACTICE OF HINDUISM
 Hinduism believes that there is more than
one path to the truth, so it allows its
followers to worship in many different ways.
 The Yogas
 Yoga exercises help free the soul




from the cares of the world.
Physical activity
Giving to the poor
Learning the sacred texts
Honoring a personal god
THE PRACTICE OF HINDUISM
Private Devotion
Hindus worship in public by praying and
performing rituals in temples.
They choose a personal god, build a home alter
to it, and offer it food, gifts and prayers.
A Hindu’s devotion to the god brings the soul
closer to brahman.
MEET BABY LALI
LALI
 Lali and she was born in North India with a condition called Craniofacial
Duplication.
 She has all the face features duplicated, except her ears. And just as it
happened in the case of the girl with multiple legs, she is being treated
as an Hindu goddess.
 Her father says, that she is just like a normal child, that means that
apparently she has no difficulties living her life, except for the stares of
other people. She’s even capable to drink form the two mouths and
control all the four eyes according to a hospital official.
 She’s now receiving many visits a day of up to 100. People who visit her
want to offer respect, receive blessings and offer money to help.
LALI
MEET LAKSHMI
 A toddler in India was born with
eight limbs and is believed by
some to be the reincarnation of
the multi-limbed Hindu god
Vishnu.
LAKSHMI
 Polymelia is a birth defect involving
limbs, in which the affected individual
has more than the usual number of
limbs. In humans and most landdwelling animals, this means having
five or more limbs. The extra limb is
most commonly shrunken and/or
deformed.
 The causes may be several.
Sometimes an embryo starts as
conjoined twins, but one twin
degenerated completely except for
one or more limbs, which end up
attached to the other twin.
Sometimes small extra legs between
the normal legs are caused by the
body axis forking.
LAKSHMI
SECTION 2 ASSESSMENT
 Comprehension and Critical
Thinking
 1. (a-b), 2. (a-b), 3. (a-b)
SECTION 3 THE BEGINNINGS OF BUDDHISM
Section 3 Objectives:
Learn about the
Buddha and his
teaching.
Find out how
Buddhism was
received inside and
outside India
THE BEGINNINGS OF BUDDHISM
 A young Hindu prince once lived a life of luxury in his palace in India.
 He had never witnessed old age, sickness, or death.
 At age 30, the prince left the palace and saw three things that changed
his life:
 An old man
 A very sick man
 A dead body
 This suffering and death troubled the man, and he decided to give up
his wealth, family, and life of ease in order to find the cause of human
suffering.
THE BEGINNINGS OF BUDDHISM
This young man’s name was Siddhartha Gautama
(sih DAHR tuh GOW tuh muh).
He wandered for 7 years and finally found his
answer to human suffering.
He fasted and meditated under a fig tree for 49
days and became “enlightened”.
His solution to human suffering developed the
major world religion: Buddhism.
THE BUDDHA AND HIS TEACHINGS
 Gautama originally tried
to gain knowledge from
Hindu priests, but later
rejected that.
 He decided to look
inwardly so he began to
meditate: to focus the
mind inward in order to
find spiritual awareness.
THE BUDDHA AND HIS TEACHINGS
 For the next 45 years,
Gautama traveled across
India and shared his
knowledge.
 He attracted many followers
who called him the Buddha
(BOO duh), which means
“Enlightened One”.
 His teachings became known
as Buddhism.
THE FOUR NOBLE TRUTHS
 The four Noble Truths are:
 that pain is part of mankind's everyday life;
 that our cravings of all kinds are the cause of this pain;
 the way to avoid pain is to free oneself of these
cravings;
 and that this can be achieved by following the Eightfold
Path.
THE MIDDLE WAY
Buddhism teaches
people to follow the
Middle Way, or
Eightfold Path.
By following this path,
a person avoids a life
of extreme pleasure or
extreme unhappiness.
THE MIDDLE WAY, OR EIGHTFOLD PATH
1. Right Understanding: Having faith in the
Buddhist view of the universe
2. Right Intention: Making a commitment to
practice Buddhism
3. Right Speech: Avoiding lies and mean or abusive
speech
4. Right Action: Not taking life, not stealing, and
not hurting others
THE EIGHTFOLD PATH
5. Right Livelihood: Rejecting jobs and occupations
that conflict with Buddhist ideals
6. Right Effort: Avoiding bat attitudes and
developing good ones
7. Right Mindfulness: Being aware of one’s own
body, feelings, and thoughts
8. Right Concentration: Thinking deeply to find
answer to problems
RELEASE FROM REINCARNATION
 To find this Middle Way, the Buddha taught that people
must act unselfishly toward others and treat people fairly.
 They must tell the truth at all times.
 They should avoid violence and the killing of any living
thing.
 If people follow the Buddha’s path, their suffering will end.
 They will eventually find nirvana, or lasting peace.
 By reaching nirvana, people will be released from the cycle
of reincarnation.
FOLLOWERS OF BUDDHISM
 Buddhism also taught:
 All people are equal
 Any one of any background from anywhere could follow the
path to nirvana
 Social class in the caste system did not matter.
 Buddhism has priests.
 Anyone could be a priest and study to be a monk regardless
of social class
 Encouraged followers to establish monasteries
 Urged monks to become missionaries
BUDDHISM INSIDE AND OUTSIDE OF INDIA
 After the Buddha’s death, his
teachings spread throughout
India, but did not stick for
long.
 Hinduism gradually regained
favor among those in power.
 Over time, Buddhism almost
died out completely in India,
but for a time, Buddhism and
Hinduism existed side by
side.
SLEEPING BUDDHA
THE BUDDHA
HINDUS AND BUDDHISTS: SHARED BELIEFS
Both believe it is
wrong to harm other
living creatures
Both value
nonviolence
Both believe in
dharma and the cycle
of reincarnation
BUDDHISM SPREADS TO OTHER COUNTRIES
 Buddhism first took root
in China.
 From China, Buddhism
spread to Korea and
Japan.
 Today, Buddhism is still a
huge part of cultures of
countries such as Japan,
the Koreas, China, Tibet,
and Vietnam.
REVIEW AND RECAP
 http://movies.netflix.com/WiPlayer?movieid=70159632&trkid=4213507