Eastern Civilizations Test
Study Guide
1. _Aryan_ invaders, invaded India by way of the ___Hindu Kush___ Mountains
2. Brought to India by the Aryans, the ______Vedas_________- four collections of
prayers, hymns, spells, and instructions for performing rituals
3. The Aryans established their superiority over the darker skinned Dasas by
creating a _______Caste System____________________
4. What does the following quote refer to?
"It is better to the work of your own caste poorly than to do the work of another
caste well"
_Carry out your Dharma (role) and stick to your
caste_____________________________
5. The religion Hinduism is considered: Polytheistic
6. Founder of Hinduism: _______None__________
7. _____Upanishads___- written dialogue between a student and a teacher. They
explore how one can liberate his or herself from worldly desires through Moksha
8. ______Moksha_____- a state of perfect understanding of all things as explained in
Hinduism
9. The solution (salvation) for Hinduism includes: Achieve moksha and become one
with Brahman by releasing yourself from selfish wants and desires
10. Dharma- Being virtuous in your rule
Karma- Your actions or deeds
Samsara- the cycle of reincarnation
11. Chandragupta Maurya leader of the _____Mauryan_empire. Had a son named
___Asoka__who promoted Buddhism after seeing the carnage of war
12. Mauryan empire accomplishments
 Extensive road system
 Religious Tollerance
 Free Hospitals
 Great Economy
13. The Gupta Empire aka India’s ____Golden__ age led by____Chandra Gupta___
14. Gupta Empire Contributions:
 Matriarchal households
 Art, Literature
 Concept of zero
 Concept of a round earth
15. _____Siddhartha Gautama_______ was the founder of Buddhism
16. __0__= Number of gods in Buddhism.
17. -Life is Suffering
-The cause of suffering are peoples selfish desires
-End suffering by cutting yourself off from selfish desires
-overcome desire through the eight fold path
These are called the ___The Four Noble Truths________
18. Salvation (solution)in Buddhism- Follow the __eight fold path__ to reach nirvanarelease from ___Selfishness and Pain______
19. __Hinduism__remained in India while _______Buddhism___ spread to China
20. The warring states period led to the decline of the __Zhou___ empire
21. ___Confucius __thought that respect, being virtuous was the basis of a good
government
22. The five major relationships

Ruler to Subject

Father to Son

Husband to Wife

Older Brother to Younger Brother

Friend to Friend
23. Filial Piety- Focuses on the appropriate relationship between an authority figure
and a subordinate
24. Laozi created the philosophy of _____Toaism___
25. The ____Yin and Yang____symbol describe the necessary balance in the world
26. ___Han Fei____ created the philosophy of Legalism, while ____Shi Huangdi____
was the emperor who put it into practice in the Qin dynasty
27. The idea that people were naturally evil and always acted to avoid punishment
while simultaneously trying to achieve gains; Thus, the law must severely punish
any unwanted action, while at the same time reward those who follow it, is the
belief of ____Legalism___
28. __Shi Huangdi___ ordered more than 460 scholars in the capital to be buried
alive during the Qin dynasty
29. The ____Great Wall of China______, which protected China’s northern border
from invaders, as well as the ______Terracotta soldiers____ which was a stone
army that protected ____Shi Huangdi_______’s tomb, were both built during the
__Qin__ dynasty
30. __ Liu Bang____ of the Han dynasty established a ______ Bureaucracy, or top
down rule.
31. ____Civil Service jobs______ are government jobs that civilians obtain by taking
examinations.
32. The __Silk_ Road, which was used by Chinese and Indian Empires to trade with
other civilizations.
33. The Han dynasty made the following contributions

Paper

Collar Harness

Water Mill