Life in Ancient India
Religion, Rulers, and
Contributions
What is Hinduism?
 Hinduism is a blend of many religions.
 It is polytheistic – there are many gods.
1 of 3 Main Hindu Gods
 Brahman is the one god which lives in
everything.
Reincarnation
 Hindus believe that when a person dies, the
soul is reborn in the body of another living
thing.
dharma
 Dharma is doing the right thing. (Example: it
is a man’s duty to protect the women in his
family.)
 Dharma is what you GIVE.
karma
 Karma is what comes back to you.
 Karma is what you GET.
The Goal of Hinduism
 Live a good life and do good things and you
will be rewarded.
Buddhism
 Siddhartha Gautama was a young Hindu
prince →lived life of luxury→changed his life
after he saw suffering.
Buddhism
 Did not accept all
Hindu beliefs.
 Meditated – looked
inside himself for
answers.
 Followers called him
Buddha –
“Enlightened One”
Buddhism
 Eightfold
Path –
moral
code of
conduct
to make
yourself
better.
Buddhism
 If you follow code,
– Released from reincarnation
– You will find nirvana: eternal peace
Rulers
 Chandragupta (chun druh GUP tuh)
 Strong, ruthless leader who enlarged his
kingdom to include most of India.
Chandragupta’s Rule
 He had absolute power.
 He had a huge army including a herd of
9,000 war elephants.
Chandragupta’s Legacy
 His rule was harsh, but he brought order
and peace to the people.
 He spent his wealth on irrigation systems,
roads for trade, and encouraging crafts and
mining to improve his empire.
Asoka
 Chandragupta’s grandson
 Further expanded the empire
Asoka’s Leadership
 At first, Asoka was a warrior.
 After the bloody Battle of Kalinga that killed
many thousands of people, he changed.
Asoka’s Leadership, part 2
 He converted to
Buddhism.
 He gave up war &
violence.
 He built hospitals, and
dug wells along the road
so people & animals
would not be thirsty.
 He encouraged people
not to judge others.
Contributions
 Invented a technique of printing cloth
Contributions
 Progress in philosophy and literature
Contributions
 Invented the decimal and number systems
that we use today.