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Chapter 2 Study Guide: Ancient India
World History AP
Chapter Summary
Around 3000 B.C.E. a civilization arose along the banks of the Indus River in the
Indian subcontinent; this civilization, the Harappan, rivaled those of Egypt and the Middle
East. Because scholars are unable to decipher Harappan pictographs, this great culture is
not well understood. The Harappan civilization ended abruptly around 1500 B.C.E.,
possibly because of the invasion of the Aryans from the north. The mixture of Aryan and
Dravidian cultures combined to form the basis of modern Indian civilization. The
subcontinent is also the birthplace to two great religions – Hinduism and Buddhism, and
other faiths including Sikhism and Islam flourish here. India is greatly diverse in language,
religion, culture, and geography, thus making it difficult to achieve unity under a single
political leadership. Only the Mauryan dynasty succeeded in uniting this great civilization
in its early history before it too collapsed under the pressure of internal divisions. A distinct,
diverse Indian culture remained, however.
Chapter Outline
Background to the Emergence of Civilization in India
Harappan Civilization: A Fascinating Enigma
Political and Social Structures
Harappan Culture
A Lost Civilization?
Arrival of the Aryans
Early Aryans
Mauryan Empire
Caste and Class: Social Structures in Ancient India
Caste System
Daily Life in Ancient India
Economy
Escaping the Wheel of Life: The Religious World of Ancient India
Hinduism
Reincarnation
Buddhism: The Middle Path
Asoka, Buddhist Monarch
Rule of the Fishes: India after the Mauryas
Exuberant World of Indian Culture
Literature
Architecture and Sculpture
Science
Conclusion
World History AP: Chapter 2
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Chapter 2: Terms and Persons to Know
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Ganges River
Indus River valley
Dravidians
Aryans
Harappan civilization
Mohenjo-Daro
Aryans
Rigveda
raja
kshatriya
maharaja
dharma
Alexander the Great
Mauryan Empire
Chandragupta Maurya
Arthasastra
varna
castes
caste system
brahmin
vaisyas
sudras
jati
importance of family
importance of males
guru
females
sati
monsoon
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Hinduism
polytheism
Aryan gods
sacrifice
asceticism
yoga
Upanishads
Brahman
reincarnation
karma
Buddhism
Siddhartha Gautama
nirvana
Atman
bodhi
Middle Path
Jainism
Asoka
Kushan Kingdom
Vedas
Sanskrit
Mahabharata
Ramayana
pillar
stupa
rock chamber
syncretism
sciences
Mapwork
Map 2.1. Ancient Harappan Civilization
 How was the geographical site of Harappan civilization similar to that of Sumer?
 Locate the following features on the map: Indus river, Ganges river, Himalayan mountains.
 Look to the east: how far away were the cultures of Mesopotamia?
Map The Citadel at Mohenjo Daro
 What features indicate how the assembly hall, granary, college, and bath were to be defended?
 Why would the community's granary be located within the citadel? Why near the stair?
 What are the unmarked, small, connected chambers on this plan?
Map Alexander the Great’s Travels in Asia
 What kept Alexander from traveling farther into the Indian subcontinent?
Map 2.2. The Empire of Asoka
 What was the purpose of Asoka's pillar and rock edicts? What pattern do you discern in their placement?
 What happened to the Mauryan empire after Asoka's death?
Primary Sources
Hindu primary sources:
The Duties of a King: The Arthasastra
 At whose court did Kautilya apparently live?
World History AP: Chapter 2
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What similarities do you perceive between this passage and the excerpt from the Bhagavadgita that
introduced this chapter? How did these two literary works differ in purpose?
Social Classes in Ancient India: The Law of Manu
 How many castes are described in this treatise? What are their respective functions?
 What was the original Indian word for class (or caste)? What was its original meaning?
 Who is "the Self-Existent One"?
 What evidence does this document provide for the Hindu concern with sacrifice? With reincarnation?
 What defines a "twice-born person" (mentioned in the final paragraph)?
In the Beginning: The Upanishads
 What were the first things created?
 How does water flow from fire?
 How does this view of the beginnings differ from others that you know?
Jain Primary Source:
The Henpecked Monk: The Sutrakrtanga
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Why might Jainism have failed to become as popular in India as Hinduism or Buddhism?
What similarity do you see between this passage, the earlier excerpt from the Law of Manu, and certain
statements about women attributed to the Buddha?
Buddhist Primary Sources:
How to Achieve Englightenment: The Sermon at Benares
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Summarize the four noble truths in your own words.
Why is Buddha sometimes referred to as a reformer of Hinduism? What principles did he accept from
the earlier religion? Is karma important here?
According to this document, had Gautama himself reached Nirvana at the time he delivered this sermon?
Sources on the Lives of Women: Voices of Silence
 What characteristics of ancient Indian society and family make writings by women scarce?
 Of these three female points of view, which do you think expresses the greatest happiness? Why?
 Why are the last two writings anonymous?
 Is the writer of the third passage endorsing or rebelling against the woman's actions she describes?
Hindu Primary Sources:
Draupadi’s Humiliation: The Mahabharata
 How was the woman to be humiliated?
 Why might women be separated from men during their menstrual cycle?
The Monkey-King in Sri Lanka: The Ramayana
 Why was the Ramayana so popular with Indian audiences? What distinguishes this epic from the
contemporaneous Mahabharata?
 What evidence does this document provide for attentiveness to female sexuality in Indian art and
literature?
World History AP: Chapter 2