India & the Indian Ocean Basin
Introduction
 Indian Ocean stories included visions of vast wealth through
maritime trade
 India was a distinct land w/ its own customs, while
connected to a larger world of trade & communication from
E. Africa – SE Asia & China (economic integration)
 Port cities, network of sea-lanes & trading posts
 India influenced SE Asia (not as dominantly as China in E.
Asia)
 Adopted Indian political organization
 Hinduism & Buddhism spread (& Islam later)
 India was politically disunited, but culturally united through
Hinduism (although Islam spreads there)
India’s Muslim & Hindu Kingdoms
 India was politically divided from the end of the Gupta (mid-
6th century from White Hun pressure) until the Mughals
united most of the subcontinent in the 16th century
 Northern India
 Local rivals & Turkish invasions – disrupted society while
nomadic groups integrated into the caste system
 Harsha – temporarily restored unified rule in northern India
during the 7th century (even ambassadors w/ Tang China);
Buddhist, but had religious tolerance; free health care;
supported scholars & literature; no heir → disintegrated
Spread of Islam 814
Islam Expansion
India’s Muslim & Hindu Kingdoms (cont.)
 Islam in Northern India
 Sind (Indus River Valley) conquered by Umayyad, but
population remained Hindu & Buddhist w/ local rule
 Merchants spread Islam through settling in port cities
 Turkish invasion – Mahmud of Ghazni
 Delhi Sultanate (1206-1526) – mostly local Hindu princes who
reported back to Islamic gov’t at Delhi
 Southern India
 Mainly regional Hindu rulers, but less warfare than north
 Chola (850 – 1267) – navy & dominated trade in Indian Ocean;
decentralized gov’t led to collapse (local autonomy w/ tribute)
 Vijayanagar (1336-1565 in Deccan) – Hindu w/ Muslim trade
Indian Ocean Basin - Agriculture
 Trade increased during the postclassical period because
agricultural production increased, but the caste system
remained the most powerful organizing feature of India
 Agriculture & the Monsoon
 The monsoon required careful agricultural planning to avoid
drought & famine
 Southern India utilized dams, reservoirs, canals, wells &
tunnels to irrigate the land dependent on summer monsoon
 Population grew from 53 million in 600 to 105 million by 1500
 Urbanization – Delhi had 400,000 during the 14th century,
many other trading ports over 100,000
India’s Trade & Economic Development
 Internal Trade
 Regions were self-sufficient w/ staples of rice, wheat, barley & millet,
but specialty crops only grew in certain regions
 Ganges Valley – iron; Deccan plateau – copper; Coastal – salt;
Southern – pepper, saffron & sugar; southern areas benefited more
from trade (war disrupted northern areas while Chola had stability)
 Cross-Cultural Trade/External Trade
 Used monsoon winds even in classical period, but increasingly went
away from shorelines w/ monsoon predictability
 Dhows & junks – larger ships enabled larger cargoes (especially after
Song Dynasty advancements – 1000 tons of cargo)
 India was central to Indian Ocean trade – Cambay, Calicut & Quilon
became cosmopolitan centers of port city trade
Specialized Production in the Indian Ocean Basin
East
Africa
• Gold
• Ivory
• Slaves
SW Asia
• Incense
• Horses
• Dates
India
SE Asia
• Cotton textiles • Spices
• Carpet weaving
• Sugar refining
• Leather
tanning
• Stone carving
• Iron & steel
production
China
• Silk
• Porcelain
• Lacquer
ware
Indian Ocean
Dhow
Indian Ocean
Dhow
Chinese Junk
Zheng He’s Ship – Chinese Junk
Hinduism’s postclassical influence
 Temples served as economic & social centers – owned
agricultural lands & provided employment, organized
community agriculture, maintained surpluses, schooling for
boys, kept order, delivered tax receipts to Chola, served as
bankers & investors; i.e., crucial to economic health of India
 Caste & Society – the caste system has been adjusted &
adapted to accommodate migrations → increasingly
complex & helped to maintain order in a society w/o strong
centralized gov’ts
 Jati (subcastes) often took the form of workers’ guilds and
enjoyed political & economic influence
 Caste system increased in southern India during the
postclassical period through powerful temples & increased
internal trade w/ northern India
India’s postclassical religions
 Hindu & Islamic traditions increased, while Jainism &
Buddhism lost followers during the postclassical period
 Buddhist decline was hastened by Turkish invaders in the north
when stupas & libraries were destroyed
 Hinduism - pantheon of gods & spirits; predominant religion
of the southern areas
 Shiva & Vishnu became cult deities which promised salvation
 Shankara (9th century) – only disciplined logical reasoning
would lead to Brahman
 Ramanuja – intellectual efforts less important than personal
union with the deity w/ emphasis on Vishnu
Shiva as the
four-armed lord
of dancers –
Shiva crushes a
dwarf demon
symbolizing
ignorance
India’s postclassical religions (cont.)
 Islam – strict monotheism; predominantly in northern areas
 By 1500, ¼ of the population even though conquerors offered
little incentive to convert (never given high gov’t posts) –
mostly because lower castes hoped to escape discrimination
(although in vain)
 Sufis emphasized piety & devotion in India (therefore, similar
to Hinduism)
 Bhakti (12th century in southern India) – tried to combine
Hindu & Muslim – Shiva, Vishnu & Allah were all
manifestations of a universal deity, but was unsuccessful
India’s influence in SE Asia
 Merchants introduced Hinduism, Buddhism, Sanskrit
writings, Indian political organization (loose) & later, Islam
 Did not incorporate the caste system
 Continued to venerate indigenous deities & nature spirits
 SE Asian rulers consolidated power through trade
 Exporting: pearls, aromatics & animals skins
 Importing: textiles, gold, silver & metal goods
Southeast Asia Postclassical
Funan
Srivijaya
Singosari
Angkor
Majapahit
Melaka
(1st – 6th)
(7th – 11th)
(13th)
(9th – 15th)
(14th)
(15th)
P
Kingdom
Kingdom
Kingdom
Kingdom
Kingdom
Kingdom
E
Agri. based
&
controlled
trade
controlled
trade
controlled
trade
Agri.
based
controlled
trade
controlled
trade
R
Hindu
Buddhism
Blended H,
B & nature
Buddhism
Hindu
H → Islam
I/A
Extensive
irrigation
system
Powerful
navy
N
Mekong
Delta
Sumatra
Angkor
Thom &
Wat
Java
Cambodia
Powerful
navy &
mosques
Java
Melaka
Angkor Wat, Cambodia
Schwedagon Pagoda, Myanmar