World Civilizations - India Flashcards

7855371409	Indus and Ganges	The two major river systems in India	0
7855371410	The Harappans	The first Indian civilization	1
7855371411	What were the two Harappan cities and what are their importance?	- Mohenjodaro and Harappus - Important archaeological finds	2
7855371412	What are the Harappans known for?	Trade, especially with the Akkadians, their contemporaries	3
7855371413	How were Harappan cities organized?	- In a grid system - Shows signs of city planning	4
7855371414	Harappan writing	- We can't read it - Doesn't have a name	5
7855371415	Why did the Harappans fall?	- Nobody knows - Could be overuse of resources, irregular flooding of the Indus, or outside invaders	6
7855371416	The Dravidians	- A dark skinned people from Africa - Peaceful farmers - Conquered by Aryans	7
7855371417	Who founded Hinduism?	Indo-European Aryans	8
7855371418	The three main gods of Hinduism	- Vishnu - Shiva - Kali	9
7855371419	Vishnu	- One of two main gods of Hinduism - Solar deity - Benign patron god who protects humans - Can take human form	10
7855371420	Shiva	- One of two main gods of Hinduism - God of destruction and rebirth - Not evil, not Satan - Good things can come from restarting	11
7855371421	Kali	- Goddess of Hinduism - Mother goddess and goddess of death - Represents the embodiment of ancient Indian attitudes toward women - Represents both good and evil	12
7855371422	Mahavira	- Founder of Jainism - Born to the elite, a soldier - Abandoned the comfort of being an elite noble, as it got in the way of self-consciousness - Died of starvation due to eating one grain of rice a day	13
7855371423	Buddha	- Siddhartha Gautama - The awakened/enlightened one - Founder of Buddhism - Grew up in comfort and privilege, sheltered from evil - Sneaked out and saw death, sickness, and suffering - Became enlightened	14
7855371424	Jainism	- One of the three main religions in India - Founded by Mahavira - Practices extreme asceticism - Avoids all comforts in life, as well as violence - Appeals to lower classes	15
7855371425	Buddhism	- One of the three main religions in India - All life is suffering - The source of suffering is desire - To stop suffering you must follow the eightfold path and end desire - Avoids extremes, strives for a moderate lifestyle - Hedonism and asceticism are bad - Many believe in reincarnation - Goal is to reach nirvana	16
7855371426	Dharma	- Two meanings - In Hinduism, your destiny and place in life - Defined by birth and caste - If you follow your place, you'll be reborn as something better in your next life - In Buddhism, the teachings of the Buddha	17
7855371427	Ahimsa	- Non-violence - A concept which applies to all three religions	18
7855371428	Karma	-Sanskrit word meaning "action" -the belief that actions in this life, whether good or bad, will decide your place in the next life; every action has an equal reaction (good or bad) in the future	19
7855371429	Nirvana	- State of perfect nothingness and absolute peace - Achieved by following your Dharma, contemplating, and meditating - Achievable on Earth or after being reincarnated - A concept of Buddhism	20
7855371430	Caste system	- Social class founded by the Aryans - They called it the Varnas - Decided by religious purity and skin color - Subdivided into hundreds of smaller classes called jatis - Almost impossible to leave your class - Divided into four classes	21
7855371431	Brahmans	The clergy/priest caste	22
7855371432	Kshatriyas	- The warrior/elite caste - The most powerful caste	23
7855371433	Vaishiyas	The commoner/farmer/merchant/artisan caste	24
7855371434	Shudras	- The slave/untouchables caste	25
7855371435	Aryans	- Made up of Indo-European tribes - Conquered the Dravidians - Dominant power in India, governed most of it - Made Sanskrit - Made the Caste system (called it the Varnas) - Allowed the growth and development of Hinduism (did not make it) - Made the Vedas	26
7855371436	Sanskrit	- Developed by the Aryans - The first major form of writing in India - Somewhat similar to Cuneiform	27
7855371437	Vedas	- Written compositions of religious nature - Hymns, chants, moralistic stories, guide to life - Most famous is the Rigveda - Basis of Hinduism - Made by the Aryans	28
7855371438	Rigveda	- Most famous Veda - Contains the world's origins and is still used in Hindu prayer today	29
7855371439	Alexander the Great	- Conquered a small portion of India - Entire army quit on him at the Indus river and he retreated - Left behind local kings and princes to rule his small conquered areas	30
7855371440	Chandragupta	- Overthrew the rulers installed by Alexander - Founded the first major Indian empire: the Mauryan dynasty - Patron of Jainism despite being an elite	31
7855371441	Ashoka	- Last king of the Mauryan dynasty - Reign was hegemonic - Started off as a conqueror, later found religion - Became Buddhist but was religiously tolerant - Erected pillars and issued edicts that favorably described him - Spread Buddhism throughout India - Conquered Kalinga	32
7855371442	Edicts of Ashoka	- Written in Prakrit language - Describes Ashoka as a paternalistic ruler who took care of his subjects and made them prosperous, as opposed to the tactic of scaring subjects into submission	33
7855371443	Kushansa Dynasty	- Contemporaries of the Romans - Traders (with Rome, the East, and the Silk Road) - Formed a very small kingdom which showed continuity, change, and adaptation - Coins had Greek alphabet which was adapted for Indian languages	34
7855371444	Gupta Dynasty	- A kingdom which did not conquer much but had a longer reign and more influence - Brought about the golden age of India - Increase in art, literature, and architecture - Favored Hinduism but was religiously tolerant - After they fell, many kingdoms reemerged which were patrons of the arts	35
7855371445	Mauryan Dynasty	- First dynasty - Began after Chandragupta defeated the Alexander-installed rulers - Short lived - Ended after Ashoka due to civil war	36
7855371446	Mahabharata	- Indian epic writing - Describes war between cousins for control of an empire - Hero is Arjuna	37
7855371447	Ramayana	- Indian epic writing - Hero is Rama, an exiled would-be king - Recounts Rama's war with Ravana over the kidnapping of Sita, Rama's wife	38
7855371448	What is the importance of India's epic writings?	- They are used as religious and moral stories -One should only be aware of moral rightness of the act itself -If you make a vow/promise, you must keep that vow/promise (stay true to your word)	39
7855371449	Kalidasa	- Poet of Gupta era - Wrote "The Cloud Messenger," in which an exiled male spirit shares grief and longing for his wife	40
7855580413	Samsara	(Hinduism) Reincarnation; being reborn over and over until you reach moksha	41
7855580414	Moksha	(Hinduism) Liberation from reincarnation/moksha/cycle of rebirth	42
7855580415	Atman	(Hinduism) Eternal soul/self	43