Ancient+India


 * ANCIENT INDIA ** 3000 B.C. - 500 A.D. Dylan and Sadie //"As a thousand sparks come forth from a fire, so too does an infinite number of souls come forth from the power of God." // -Mundaka Upanishad

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Caste System layout
= Untouchables =

**__Important Terms:__**

 * 1) Untouchables- people in the lowest caste, or social class. They collect trash and dispose of dead bodies, so they are considered "unclean" and must announce their status when around others so they won't corrupt the others.
 * 2) Mahabharata- A 90,000 stanza-long poem describing a war for control of the kingdom. It contains the Bhagavad Gita, a sermon by Krishna.
 * 3) Karma-The force generated by a person's actions. It determines what they'll be reborn as. If people do bad things, they will be reborn in a lower caste because of karma, and if people do good things, they'll be reborn into a higher caste.
 * 4) Dharma- The divine law of Hinduism. It is what requires all people to do their civil duty according to their social class.
 * 5) Sutte- An inhumane practice that demonstrates the gender inequality in India. A woman, if her husband died, would have to throw herself on his burning pyre so she would die as well. Men, however, were free to live and marry again.

Ganesh, a Hindu god Statue of Buddha = = =__**Important Indian People**__= 1. Siddhartha Gautama- This was the privileged young upperclass man who became the Buddha after his enlightenment at the Bo Tree. He founded the religion of Buddhism. 2. Asoka- His name means "2nd to Buddha," and he was the greatest ruler of Ancient India. During his regime, he 3.Chandragupta Mauyra- He was the first Indian emperor, and he founded the Mauyran Dynasty. In the Mauyran Dynasty, 4. Dali Lama- This name means "Ocean of Wisdom," and it refers to the spiritual leader of Buddhism. In current times, however, the Dali Lama is in exile. 5. Sir George Everest- The Welsh man who surveyed India for years, but didn't really discover Mt. Everest. It was named by Andrew Waugh in his honor.

Map of India =Overview=
 * This civilization started in the Indus River valley. The Himalaya Mountains, nicknamed "Place of the Snow" and the Hindu Kush Mountains were important because they prevented travel, thereby forcing India to create its own, unique culture. The Khyber pass within the Hindu Kush Mountains was the only way for invaders and traders to travel through the mountains and into India. **

**In 1500 B.C., the Aryans, a group of Indo-European nomads moved into the plains of Northern India and began to conquer the Harappans and create a new society. The Arayan's power slowly spread throughtout most of India. Once they settled into India they contributed the iron they had used to conquer India for peaceful inventions such as the plow. They also brought the knowledge of irrigation so they could become farmers. As nomads, the Aryans hadn't needed writing, but now they developed their own written language, called Sanskrit. **

=For More Information On:=
 * The major religion in India is Hinduism. Within the religion, there are many laws, rules, or codes that the people follow. The Law of Karma means that, based on people's actions in their past lives, good or bad things will happen to them in their current life. Hinduism also has Dharma, the divine law that declares the duties each person must do. Dharma regulates what people in a certain caste do. For example, Untouchables or Pariahs are required to handle corpses when needed and to take care of the trash. Therefore, they are unclean and not to be touched, hence the name. **
 * 1) ======[|The Architecture of Ancient India]======
 * 2) ======[|The Various Castes of Ancient India]======
 * 3) ======[|The Many Rulers of Ancient India]======
 * 4) ======[|Some Aspects of Ancient Indian Culture]======