Chapter 3 Section 1
The Indo-Europeans
Indo-Europeans, Steppes, Migration,
Hittites, Anatolia, Aryans, Vedas, Brahmin,
Caste, Mahabharata
Setting the Stage
 We just learned about the first civilization that arose
along river valleys
 As these large cities began to decline people began to
leave
 Warfare and changes to environment called for the
migration to a new land
Indo-Europeans Migrate
 The Indo-Europeans were
a group of nomadic
peoples who came from
the steppes
 Steppes: dry grasslands
north of the Caucasus
 Primarily pastoral people
who herded cattle, sheep,
and goats
The Indo-European Language
Family
 Language of Indo-Europeans
similar to modern languages of
Europe & parts of Asia
 English, Spanish, Persian, and
Hindi all have roots to their
language
 Slavic speakers went north
 Celtic, Germanic, & Italic
speakers moved west
 Greek & Persian went south
An Unexplained Migration
 There is no reason for the
nomadic people to leave their
homeland
 Between 1700 and 1200 B.C.
they began to move outward
 Migration: movements of a
people from one region to
another
The Hittite Empire
 2000 B.C. the Hittites began to
occupy Anatolia
 Anatolia is located in modern-day
Turkey
 City-States came together in 1650 B.C.
to form an empire
 Hattusas became the capital
 Dominated southwest Asia for 450
years
 Had issues with both Mesopotamia &
Egypt
Hittites Adopt and Adapt
 Adopted an international language
“Akkadian”
 Borrowed ideas about literature, art,
politics, & law from Mesopotamia
 Blended their own traditions with
those of more advanced people
 What is this called?
Chariots & Iron Technology
 Excelled at war
 Had war chariots
 1500 B.C. Hittites were able to
work with iron and integrate it
into their weapons of war
 However their empire fell around
1190 B.C.
- Multiple invasions
- Tribes attacked and burned the
capital city
Aryans Transform India
 2000 B.C. Aryans crossed over into
the Indus Valley of India
 No archaeological record but the
Vedas
 Vedas: picture of Aryan life, four
collections of prayers, magical spells,
instructions for rituals
 Rig Veda contains 1028 hymns to
Aryan gods
 Elder orally passed down the
information until it was written down
 How accurate can oral stories be?
A Caste System Develops
 Aryans vs. Dasas
 Aryans were taller, lighter in
skin color, and spoke a
different language
 Aryans were pastoral
people while the Dasas
lived in communities
protected by walls
A Caste System Develops
Continued
 Four groups arranged based on
occupation
- Brahmins ((priests)
- Warriors
- Traders & landowners
- Peasants
Arranged social classes
Shudras were laborers who did work
Aryans would not do
Varna “skin color” set social class
A Caste System Develops
Continued
 Castes: system of social
classes
 Could be born into your social
class or move into that class
 Determined the work you did, who
you could marry, and who you
could eat with
 Obsessed with cleanliness
considered those impure
“untouchables”
Aryan Kingdoms Arise
 Aryans began to expanded their
settlements
 1000 B.C. one major kingdom
arose called “Magadha”
 Mahabharata: great epic of India and
struggle for power
 Discusses how a young warrior
should properly live, fight, and die
Chapter 3 Section 2
Hinduism & Buddhism
Develop
Reincarnation, Karma, Jainism, Siddhartha
Gautama, Enlightenment, & Nirvana
Setting the Stage
 Aryans & Non-Aryans followed their own religions
 As the two intermingled so did their belief system
 What is this called again?
 Complexity of their religions, made people questions
the world & their place in it
 Also began to question the power of the priests
Hinduism Evolves Over
Centuries
 Hinduism is a religious belief that
developed slowly over a long period
of time
 Some aspects that people practice
today are traced back to ancient times
(Example: weddings)
 Recite daily verses from the Vedas
 What is the Vedas again?
 Hinduism can’t be traced to one
founder
Origins
 Between 750 & 550 B.C. Hindu teachers
tried to interpret the Vedic hymns
 Wrote down their interpretations in the
Upanishads; include dialogues &
discussions
 Moksha: state of perfect understanding of
all things
 Atman: individual soul of a living being
 Brahman: world soul that unties all Atman
Beliefs
 See religion as a way of liberating
the soul from illusions,
disappointments, & mistakes
 Reincarnation (rebirth): an
individuals soul is reborn until
moksha is achieved
 Soul’s karma follows into
reincarnation
 Karma influences your life
circumstances
Path to Moksha
 3 paths to moksha:
- path of right thinking
- path of right action
- path of religious
devotion
Hinduism Changes &
Develops
 Hinduism has been through many
changes over the past 2500 years
 Example: Brahman was seen as
having the personality of three gods,
these gods lost their importance
 Devi “great mother goddess” grew in
importance
 Hindus choose the deity they want
to worship
Hinduism & Society
 Ideas about karma & reincarnation
strengthened the caste system
 Good Karma brought good fortune while
bad karma brought bad fortune
 Beliefs influenced every aspect of their
life
- What you could eat
- Personal cleanliness
- How you could dress
Hindus still turn to their religion for
guidance
New Religions Arise
 As the Upanishads was created
two other religions were created
(Jainism & Buddhism)
 Jainism
- Founder: Mahavira born 599
B.C. 527 B.C.
- Believed everything in the
universe had a soul
- Nonviolence
- 5 Millions follower live in India
Chapter 3 Section 2
Continued
The Buddha Seeks
Enlightenment
 Developed out the same religious
questioning in Hinduism
 Founder: Siddhartha Gautama
 Born into a noble family in Nepal
 His prophecy: if stayed at home he
would be a world leader but if he left
the house he would become a
universal spirit
 Family separated him from the world
Siddhartha’s Quest
 At 29 years old, he left the palace four
times
- 1st time he saw an old man
- 2nd time he saw a sick man
- 3rd time he saw a corpse
- 4th time he saw a holy man who
seemed at peace with himself
(Decided to spend his life searching for
religious truth & an end to life
suffering)
Siddhartha’s Quest Continued
 Spent 6 years seeking enlightenment
 Tried many things to reach an
enlightened state
 For 49 days he meditated under a
large fig tree, and finally understood
the cause of suffering in the world
 Buddha “the enlightened one”
Origins
 Preached his first sermon to people who had
accompanied him on the wanderings
 Four Noble Truths
- 1st: Life is filled with suffering & sorrow
- 2nd: The cause of all suffering is people’s selfish desire
for the temporary pleasures of this world
- 3rd: The way to end all suffering is to end all desires
- 4th: The way to overcome such desires and attain
enlightenment is to follow the Eightfold path, which is
called the middle way between desires and self-denial
Beliefs
 Eightfold path: “guide to behavior”
[Like a staircase; have to master one stair at
a time]
 Nirvana: release from selfishness & pain
 Believed in reincarnation but rejected
the caste system
 They do not believe in many gods
 Want to reach a state of perfect
understanding, like in Hinduism
The Religious Community
 5 disciples were admitted to the
Sangha “religious community”
 Originally for monks & nuns, now is for
the entire religious community
 “3 Jewels” of Buddhism
- Sangha
- Buddha
- Dharma “teachings or doctrine”
Buddhism & Society
 Admitted women into the
religious order
 Promise to live a life of
poverty, to be nonviolent, and
to not marry
 Spread Buddha’s teachings
 Monastery’s created
(Nalanda became a university)
Teachings/Books
 Teachings written down after
Buddha’s death
 Sacred literature
- Commentaries
- Rules about monastic life
- Manuals on how to mediate
- Legends about the Buddha’s
previous reincarnations
Buddhism in India
 Spread throughout Asia
 Unable to gain significant
support in India
 Believe that Hinduism
adapted some of the ideas of
Buddhism
(Felt no need to convert to
Buddhism)
Buddhism in India
Continued
 India is still an importance place
for Buddhists
 Visits places associated with
Buddha’s life
- Kapilavastu “birthplace”
- Gaya “fig tree he meditated under”
- Varanasi “first sermon”
Trade & the Spread of
Buddhism
 Trade played an important
role in the spread of
Buddhism
 As products spread and
people migrated to new
areas, the ideas of
Buddhism went with it
 Cultural Diffusion!
Chapter 3 Section 3
Seafaring Traders
Minoan, Aegean Sea, Knossos, King Minos,
Phoenicians
Setting the Stage
 Buddhism spread to Southeast Asia & East Asia
through Buddhist traders
 What was this process called?
 In the Mediterranean the same process will take but
with ideas and products
 New ideas of writing, governing, and worshiping their
gods.
Minoans Trade in the
Mediterranean
 Minoans: powerful seafaring people
who dominated trade in eastern
Mediterranean from 2000 to 1400 B.C.
 Crete, a large island in the Aegean
Sea
 Traded pottery, swords, & figurines
 Also shared their unique architecture,
burial customs, & religious rituals (huge
influence on Greece)
Map of Mediterranean
Unearthing a Brilliant
Civilization
 Knossos: Minoan capital city
 Archaeologist found remains of an
advanced/thriving city
 Named civilization Minoa after
King Minos
 Myth of the Minotaur & Labyrinth
Unearthing a Brilliant
Civilization Cont.
 Wall paintings showed their love
of nature & beautiful things
 Enjoyed sports (boxing, wrestling, &
bull leaping)
 Women played a role in religious
ceremonies & were equal
 Mother Earth Goddess ruled over
the other gods
 Sacrificed bulls & other animals
(evidence of one human sacrifice)
Minoan Culture’s Mysterious
End
 Civilization ended around 1200
B.C. (unclear why it ended)
 1700 B.C. a great disaster destroyed
Minoan towns & cities but they rebuilt
the city
 1450 B.C. series of earthquakes
followed by a volcanic eruption and a
Tsunami, still went on to thrive for 300
years
 Why do you think the Minoans didn’t
survive?
Phoenicians Spread Trade &
Civilization
 Phoenicians: seafaring people
of Southwest Asia, 1100 B.C.
established colonies in the
Mediterranean
 City States included Byblos,
Tyre, & Sidon
 Remarkable shipbuilders &
seafarers
 Greek Historian Herodotus
Phoenician Ship
Commercial Outposts around
the Mediterranean
 Built colonies along the
shore of Africa, Sardinia, &
Spain (30 miles apart-length
that could be traveled in a
day)
 Carthage: greatest
Phoenician colony founded in
814 B.C.
 Traded goods they obtained
as well as their own goods
Phoenicia’s Great Legacy:
The Alphabet
 Phonetic system of writing: one sign
stands for one sound
 Word Alphabet comes from them
 Introduced their writing system to
others, Greeks adopted the
Phoenician alphabet
 Easier for people to learn to read &
write
 Assyrians & Persian Empire took
control of their civilization
Ancient Trade Routes
 Trade connected civilization
that were far apart
 Travel down Arabian Sea to
Persian Gulf or Red Sea
 Exchanged products,
information, goods,
religious beliefs, art, and
ways of living
 What is this called again?
Chapter 3 Section 4
The Origins of Judaism
Palestine, Canaan, Torah, Abraham,
Monotheism, Covenant, Moses, Israel, Judah,
Tribute
Setting the Stage
 Phoenicians lived in a region at the
eastern end of the Mediterranean
Sea that was eventually called
Palestine
 Canaan was the ancient home to
the Hebrews
 Their history, legends, and moral
laws were a major influence on
Western culture as well as
Christianity & Islam
The Search for a Promised
Land
 Palestine’s location made it a
cultural crossroads
(connected to Asia & Africa
as two huge Empires)
 Connected to Mediterranean &
Red Sea
 According to the Bible,
Canaan was land promised to
the Hebrews
From Ur to Egypt
 Torah: early history written in the
first 5 books of the Hebrew Bible
 Abraham chosen as the “father”
of the Hebrew people
 Lived in Ur in Mesopotamia around
1800 B.C. took his family/people
and moved to Canaan.
 Descendants eventually moved to
Egypt
The God of Abraham
 Hebrews were Monotheists
 Monotheism: belief in a single god
 “Yahweh” was their god, not a
physical being so no physical
images were made of him
 Covenant: promise from god to
protect the Hebrews for their
promise to obey
Moses and the Exodus
 Hebrews move to Egypt
due to drought and
famine
 Originally treated with
honor but eventually
forced into slavery for their
beliefs
“Let My People Go”
 Hebrews fled Egypt
between 1300 & 1200 B.C.
called it “the Exodus”
 Remember it during
Passover
 Moses led them out of
slavery
A New Covenant
 Traveling along the Sinai
Peninsula, Moses stop to pray
on top of the mountain to pray
 God gave Moses the Ten
Commandments
 Became the civil and
religious laws of Judaism
 Formed a new covenant
The Land and People of the
Bible
 Wandered for 40 years
before resettling in Canaan
 Organized into 12 tribes
 Judges would be chosen to
provide Judicial and Military
leadership during a crisis
Hebrew Law
 Women duty was to raise her
children and provide moral
leadership
 Rules that regulated social &
religious behaviors
 Code interpreted by prophets
 Duty to worship God and live
justly with one another
The Kingdom of Israel
 Canaan was a hard place to
live (arid desert, rocky
wilderness, grassy hills, dry,
hot, & had little water)
 Expanded north and south
Saul and David Establish a
Kingdom
 Interacted with Philistines
another group in the area that
threatened their position in the
land
 Judah was the only large tribe
left (term Judaism)
 1020 to 922 B.C. Hebrews
united under 3 kings: Saul,
David, & Solomon
 Kingdom called Israel
Saul and David Establish a
Kingdom Continued
 Saul first king chosen for driving
out the Philistines
Seen as a jealous man, portrayed
a “tragic man”
 Son-in-law; David took over
Very popular leader, establish
Jerusalem, & founded a
dynasty
Solomon Builds the Kingdom
 962 B.C. Solomon, David’s son,
took the thrown
 Powerful Hebrew king, built a
trade empire with the
Phoenicians
 Beautified Jerusalem, built a
great temple in honor of God
 Also built a royal palace
The Kingdom Divides
 Solomon’s building required high
taxes and strained the finances
 Forced labor caused discontent
 Northern Jews revolted & in 922
B.C. divided the kingdom in two
 Israel was in the north, Judah
was in the south
 Confusing relationship
The Babylonian Captivity
 738 B.C. both kingdoms
began paying tribute “peace
money” to Assyria
 725 B.C. Assyrians attacked
 722 B.C. conquered
kingdom of Israel
The Babylonian Captivity
Continued
 Judah held out but was eventually
conquered by Babylonians
 King Nebuchadnezzar attacked
and the Jerusalem fell in 586
B.C.
 Exile in Babylon, Ezekiel urged
them to keep their religion alive
 Persian King Cyrus the Great
allowed them to return in 539 B.C.