Chapter 7
Review and Discussion
Ancient India
Ganesha
Hinduism is generally regarded as the world's oldest
organized religion
Roots of Hinduism
• Who’s the founder?
• No original founder
• Grew out of early Aryan
beliefs in multiple Gods.
• Is there a sacred text?
• Beliefs come from the Vedas
and other Indian epics,
poems and songs
 Each believer sees Brahman
differently
Polytheistic or monotheistic ?
Hinduism is sometimes called a
polytheistic religion, but strictly speaking,
this is not entirely accurate.
 Hinduism believes in One God (Brahman),
but recognizes that the One God can
appear to humans in multiple names and
forms
 Three most important gods:
 Brahma-the Creator
 Vishnu-the preserver
 Shiva-the destroyer
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Characteristic of gods
Each god
represents a
characteristic of
Brahman.
 How many gods
exist?
 As many as 330
million gods
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Brahman the Creator
god of knowledge & intellect
Reincarnation
• What’s the ultimate goal
of existence?
• to achieve moksha, or
union with Brahman.
• What is reincarnation?
• the soul (atman) passes
through many lifetimes:
before it finally achieves
moksha
Methods to Achieve Moksha:
Karma
• Explain Karma
• the lifetime actions
that affect a person’s
fate
• Good choices leads to
higher rebirth
• Bad choices leads to
lower birth maybe a rat
or an ant
Methods to Achieve Moksha
• Ahimsa?
• Promote
nonviolence
toward all
living things
Methods to Achieve Moksha
• What is Dharma?
• Follow the
religious & moral
duties of your
varna or caste
• Code of conduct
for each caste
Harijan
"outside" the caste system
(once known as "untouchables")
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The “Untouchables”
were thought to be
dirty and un-pure.
There jobs consisted
of cleaning the
sewers and digging
graves
Represented about
20% of the population
Effects of the Caste: Duty
Ensured social order. How?
 Caste rules governed
every aspect of life:
clothes, foods, friendship,
marriage, job,
neighborhood and
education
 Law of Karma determined
caste
 It gave people a sense of
identity
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Hinduism
• What does the
red dot
represent?
• symbolizes the
mark of the
supreme being
and identifies
you as Hindu.
Hinduism
Today
• 3rd largest religion in
the world
• Estimated I billion
Hindus in the world.
• Mostly live in India
and Nepal.
India’s Caste System
Still Alive Today!
• Though the castes system is now
illegal by Indian law - its “duties” still
remain a strong social influence.
• There are very few who will ignore the
“duties” but if it happens it is generally
in the urban areas.
India’s Caste System
Still Alive Today!
“They died for love…”
• In 2002, two teenagers (16 & 17) killed
by their father and brother for
“dating” outside their caste!
• Another young female teen in 2000
was hung in public display for her
young male lover to see what
happens when you venture outside
your caste!
• None of these were give a proper
Hindu funeral, all of the family
members and the village ignored this
key Hindu teaching.
Rise of Buddhism
• Many Hindus grew dissatisfied
with religion looking for more
spirituality.
Siddhartha Gautama
• Born around 566
BCE
• Founder of
Buddhism
• Grew up an Indian
prince surrounded
by wealth and luxury
• Saddened by
amount of suffering
by people.
Enlightenment Comes:
The Bodhi Tree Experience
“Enlightened after forty-
nine days of deep
meditation and fasting
• Siddhartha became the
enlightened one,
“Buddha” and discovered
the Four Nobles Truths:
Buddha: The Enlightened
One
“Four Noble Truths”:
1. All life is full of suffering
2. The cause of suffering is
wrong desires like wealth
and power
3. The only cure for suffering
is to overcome desire
4. The way overcome is by
following the “Noble Eightfold Path.”
1
The Teachings of the
Buddha
•It is important
to live a moral
life.
•Enlightenment
is achieved
through
meditation.
1
The Teachings of the
Buddha
• What is the ultimate
goal?
•reach nirvana, or union
with the universe and
release from the cycle of
rebirth.
• Life is no longer filled
with suffering and pain!
Spread of Buddhism
How Buddhism Spread from
India to East Asia
Spread of Buddhism
•How did Buddhism
Spread?
•Missionaries and
Traders helped to
spread Buddhism
across India to many
parts of Asia.
•Two largest groups of
Buddhists are the
Mahayana and
Theravada
Theravada Vs. Mahayana
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Theravada “way of the elders”
Southeast Asia (parts of southwest China, Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar,
Malaysia, Indonesia, Thailand) and parts of Vietnam
Follow the original teachings of Buddhism
Buddha was a great teacher not a god and individuals could reach
enlightenment through his teachings
the bodhisattva is seen as seeking enlightenment so that, once awakened,
he may efficiently aid other beings with the expertise of supreme wisdom
Mahayana “large vehicle
Practiced in Japan, Korea, China, Mongolia, Tibet and Nepal
Buddha was a god and pay homage to Buddha like deities who came in the
form of men and believe they can be saved by the faith in these gods
Allowed for a broader interpretation of the teachings of Buddhism because
Buddha had not provided for all the answers
Zen Buddhism
Believe in simplicity, harmony, and tranquility
Enlightenment comes from deep meditation and revelation
Bodhisattva is one who delays his own final and complete enlightenment in
order to save all sentient beings out of his enormous compassion. He is on a
mission to liberate all sentient beings, and only then will he rest and
complete his own enlightenment.
Jainism
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Who is the founder?
Mahavira (540-468 BCE)
What did it emphasize?
the holiness of all living beings and went into extremes
to not kill anything
Extremist
 went naked and starved themselves to death
 Less extreme
 devoted themselves to commerce and banking
and avoided agriculture
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Jainism VS. Buddhism
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Similarities
provided alternatives to Vedic religion and the
authority of the Brahmin priests.
Offered an alternative path to salvation through
individual inquiry into the nature of the self
Focused on the individual and rejected the caste
system
Difference (Buddhist)
rejected Jainist asceticism (self-denying) and chose a
more popular “Middle Path” of moderation.
rejected the emphasis on gods of other religions
Emphasized minimizing desire and went searching for
spiritual truth
offered the possibility of escape from the eternal cycle
of reincarnations.
2
Empires of India
The Maurya Empire
Maurya rulers created a strong central
government. These rulers:
• supervised the building of roads
and harbors.
• collected taxes and managed stateowned factories.
• created royal courts.
The Maurya Empire
Maurya rulers created a strong central
government. These rulers:
• created a secret police force to
report on corruption, crime, and
dissent, or opposing ideas.
• trained warriors to guard the royal
palace.
Asoka - The Most Honored
King
Became emperor in 268 B.C.E
 Converted to Buddhism and rejected violence
 Help his people “his children” by making roads
and planting trees
 Promoted Buddhism but preached tolerance of
other religions
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Mauryan Empire. (324 -184 B.C.E)
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The Mauryan Empire
overcame natural and geographic obstacles, as well as India’s
complex social hierarchy, to politically unify India.
Legacy
The Mauryan Empire’s longest-lasting impact was to expedite
the formation of a common Indian civilization.
Particularly important was the conversion of the Mauryan ruler
Ashoka to Buddhism, resulting in the spread of Buddhist
influence.
Even after the collapse of the Mauryan Empire, there continued
to be economic, cultural, and intellectual development that was
at least partially due to Mauryan rule.
The Guptas 320 – 550 C.E.
2
Under the Guptas, India enjoyed a
period of great cultural achievement.
“Golden Age”
Learning…
Scholars taught many subjects
at Hindu and Buddhist schools.
The Golden Age of the
Guptas
2
Under the Guptas, India enjoyed a
period of great cultural achievement.
Medicine…
Doctors treated illnesses with
herbs, performed surgery, set
broken bones, and vaccinated
against smallpox.
The Golden Age of the
Guptas
2
Under the Guptas, India enjoyed a
period of great cultural achievement.
Mathematics…
Mathematicians invented
system of numbers we use
today and developed decimal
system and concept of zero.
The Golden Age of the
Guptas
2
Under the Guptas, India enjoyed a
period of great cultural achievement.
Architecture…
Builders designed magnificent
stone temples and domeshaped shrines called stupas.
Family Life
• The ideal was the joint family, in which extended
family all lived under one roof.
• The family was patriarchal. The father or oldest
male had absolute authority.
• Family wishes came before individual wishes.
• Early on, children learned family duties, such as
obedience of caste rules.
• Parents had a duty to arrange good marriages for
their children, based on caste and family interests.
• The status and freedom of women decreased over
time. A woman’s duties were to marry, obey her
husband, and raise children.
Indian women during the Gupta Empire? What important factors
affected those women’s lives?
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Gupta literary works reveal
standing had declined noticeably since the Vedic period.
This decline was due in large part
to the emergence of a nonagricultural middle class, which
placed a high value on the acquisition and inheritance of
property.
Women lost
the right to own and inherit property.
barred from participating in many religious ceremonies.
Marriage
(Young age 6 or 7) practice intended to ensure that a woman
would behave according to her husband’s wishes.
Ritual of Sati
The most extreme example of Indian women’s position in which
a widow was expected to cremate herself on her husband’s
Discuss the ways that early Southeast Asia participated in the
world system.
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Location
the strategic location of Southeast Asia in the global trade
routes connecting China, India, and the Mediterranean.
expanded trade networks and contributed goods
The impressive navigational skills
riding the monsoon winds and interpreting wave patterns,
clouds, swells, and winds led them to explore the Indian and
Pacific Oceans and knit together the shores of India, East Asia,
and the islands of the Pacific.
Religion
Hindu/Buddhist culture served as a source of knowledge,
prestige, and legitimacy for rulers
They fused Indian religious and political ideas and methods
with their own traditions to create a unique culture.
Legacy
important role as a linkage and contributor to the world system
by sailing and trading, absorbing and sharing in the world