Ancient India
Cierra, Sanjana and Hubert
S.P.R.I.T.E (Social)
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Ancient India was composed of four main
social classes and within those classes
contained castes.
People born in these social classes could not
leave these classes.
These social classes were composed of people
like priests, warriors, farmers and those below
them.
Outside all of these people were the
“Untouchables” which were excluded.
S.P.R.I.T.E (Social cont.)
*Mohenjo-Daro*
S.P.R.I.T.E (Social cont.)
Building Architecture & Infrastructure: The ancient houses has
early sanitation systems, access to city water, were about the same
size and were made of dry bricks. There was also citadels used for
defending these settlements. A noticeable characteristic is that
there is no high built buildings. These settlements are set up with a
wall around the perimeter used to regulate trade, defense and
protection against floods.
S.P.R.I.T.E (Political)
Ancient India had tribal style governments
with a king or Raja as the leader.
 Essentially there were many small republics
with the Raja as the leader of everything
that could have been advised by council
men.
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S.P.R.I.T.E (Religious)
Hindus made up 70% of the Ancient Indus
civilization helped organize education, social
standing and daily living.
 Religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism and
Jainism gained many followers in Ancient
India.
 Ramayana and Mahabharata were one of
the two great epics of Hinduism.
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Story Time
The Birds and the Shivering Monkeys
This is another interesting tale/ story from the collection of Hitopadesha Tales. Once upon a time, there was a huge
tree on the banks of a river. The tree made a comfortable home for the family of birds who had built their nests on its
branch. The birds were living there happily as the tree with its widespread branches sheltered them from scorching sun
and
heavy
rains.
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One day, when the sky was overcast with dark clouds, it rained very heavily. Some monkeys who were playing nearby
the tree got drenched and ran for shelter under the tree. All of them were shivering with cold. When the birds saw the
monkeys in the pitiable condition, one of the birds said,” O Monkeys, you would not have to shiver like this, if you had
built a home like us. You would not have to suffer like this. If we can build our nest with small beaks, then why cant
you. By God’s grace, you have two hands and two legs. Why don’t you make a nice shelter for yourselves?”
On hearing this, the monkeys got annoyed and swore to teach a lesson to the birds. They said to themselves, “These
birds are not afraid of the rain or of cold wind. They are living comfortably that is why they are criticizing us like this. Let
the rain stops, we’ll show them how to build home”. As soon as the rain stopped, the monkeys climbed up the tree and
destroyed the nests of the birds. They also broke the birds’ eggs and threw the young ones down.
The poor birds flew here and there in misery. They were full of regret for their words and realized that they should not
have given advice that was not asked. Advice should only be given to learned, wise and to those who ask for it.
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Moral: Never give advice to fools.
*Acquired from http://www.culturalindia.net/indian-folktales/hitopadesha-tales/birds-and-shivering-monkeys.html*
S.P.R.I.T.E (Intellectual)
The Ancient Indians intensely studied
mathematics, religion, philosophy and
writing.
 Ancient India was the only civilization at that
time that didn’t have slavery.
 Peaceful philosophies such as a unique
sense of peace and harmony stemmed from
Ancient India.
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S.P.R.I.T.E (Technological)
The letters of the Indus alphabet were
arranged in a systematic way
 These letters were classified due to the
location of the sound in the vocal cords
 The Ancient Indians also invented the first
precise measuring system.
 As well as the most precise measurement
tools.
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S.P.I.T.E (Technology Conti.)
Sanskrit
S.P.R.I.T.E (Economic)
The Indus civilization focused on agriculture
and trade.
 Due to the location of the Indus Valley
trading was done from near and far.
 There was trading from Central Asia, the
Arabian Peninsula and Mesopotamia.
 Besides agriculture many people created
pottery, jewelry, metal work and weaponry.
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Work Cited
Works Cited
"Ancient India Government." - Government In Ancient India. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Feb. 2014.
"Ancient Man and His First Civilizations." The Indus Valley: The Beginnings of Indian Culture -. N.p.,
n.d. Web. 07 Feb. 2014.
"Contribution of India to the World - (Gayatri Mantra,Vedas,Scientific Spirituality,
AWGP)." Contribution of India to the World - (Gayatri Mantra,Vedas,Scientific Spirituality, AWGP).
N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Feb. 2014.
"Harappan (Indus Valley) Civilization | Harappa and Mohenjo Daro Excavations - Ancient Indian
History." YouTube. YouTube, 28 May 2012. Web. 07 Feb. 2014.
"Indian Folktales." - Folk Tales of India, Indian Folklore, Folk Tales from India. N.p., n.d. Web. 07 Feb.
2014.
"INDUS RIVER VALLEY CIVILIZATION." Indus River Valley Civilization. N.p., 12 Sept. 2011.
Web. 05 Feb. 2014.
Ramírez, Susan E., Peter N. Stearns, Samuel S. Wineburg, and Steven A. Goldberg. "Chapter 4 Ancient
India and China." Holt World History: Human Legacy. Austin, TX: Holt, Rinehart and Winston, 2008.
N. pag. Print.
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