Classical+India

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 * Assignment 1.1** //Political Institution, a Comparitive Slideshow between India and China//


 * Assignment 1.2** //ESPIRIT in// //__India__//

2. India produced most of its goods ( not really a middleman) -> textiles, steel, iron, goods, domestication of larger animals 3.artisans = important + craft guilds 4.active trade routes in land and sea and in the Mediterranean and China and traded through the Atlantic sea || 1. Difference in the social hierarchy divided Religious institution and interactions between between social classes were limited. 2. Vedic/Brahman priests emerged as the highest social class 3. Men were generally the dominant force who had the power to own property, while women were treated as possessions. 4. Social system developed b/c of conqueror/conquered way of living → Kshatriyas + Brahmin priest were on top (warriors + priest + governors), → Vaisyas, traders, Sudras, laborers. → untouchables → transferred dead bodies + lowest of all + touching these people would defile the ranks || 2. Buildings/ edifices/ religious altars illustrate the prominence of religion in India → Meenakshi Sundareswarar + portrayed the path towards enlightenment and multitude of gods 3. Prior to 600BCE, India had no real central government, but Chandragupta was the first to unite the nation into the Gupta Dynasty 4. The guptas sponsored a mailing system, and retained a strong large army 5. government was mostly autocratic 6.Less development in Central government, more in regional and local government; 7. There were autocratic (absolute rule) king but also autocratic assemblies -> large armies b/c of control issues w/ large regional powers 8.Allowed regional rulers to maintain power, as long as they are loyal to the Gupta Dynasty and their dominance + stationed personal representative to ensure loyalty. 9. Indian religion did not affect political institutions, but focused priests as leaders of authority; Buddhist leaders focused more on cultural values than state values, and Hinduism usually influence rulers into believing that they were derived by the gods. theocracy 10. Authorities ruled in favor of the Caste System which allowed for the ruled/rule to live together b/c everyone was on a different level, they wouldn't have to interfere with another class, such as no one can eat with someone of lower class and no one was to marry anyone lower, 11. no language similar causing distant relationships || 2. Because India was in the center of civilizations across Eurasia, trade had brought distinct new flavors into the cultural heritage of China. → Alexander the Great conquered many lands, and brought to India the Hellenistic values of Rome/Greece/Gothic society. 3. India was ruled in regions, although not purposefully. They regions were separated by the Himalayas, the Indus/Ganges Rivers. This allowed for cultural diversity. || → established India's first empire ie. Mauryans built largest Indian empire 2. gods/goddesses were based on nature, and elements of the gods/ → Indra = god of thunder and strength 3.Gautama accoladed for creating Buddhism 4. believed in Dharma → current of energy + sent missionaries around to Europe to establish roots but didn't work out. 5. Indian religion, Hinduism/buddism, -> valued nature and believed in several gods (polythesitic) buddism is divided forces 6. Animals viewed as religious, emphasized the point that Indians treat most of their lives with respect and dignity 7. reincarnation -> no afterlife → show signs of good-will to rebirth in higher class or lower class 8. Brahma -> holy essence formed everyone in the world. 9. Indians stressed importance on nature and good will, by dividing the gods into different nature levels -> reinforced caste system ||
 * Economic || 1. both countries were influenced by trade.
 * Social || //Illustration 1: Caste System - divided social class system / no social mobility//
 * Political || 1. Allowed for belief in multiple religions, Hinduism/Buddhism separating an already divided civilization
 * Interaction || 1. Contrary to being an agricultural state, Indian trade allowed to stronger distinctions in art, language, and intellectual life.
 * Religion || 1. developed Buddhism b/c of increasing materialism of priest class
 * Intellectual || 1. Art encompassed animals, religion, and powerful depictions of gods and goddesses

//Illustration 2: Meenakshi Sundareswarar - dedicated to Shiva + extremely large = labor + reliigous influence in culture// → influence of religion emphasized through art 2. Developed learning and emphasized the learning process 5.Development of medicine, plastic surgery, and astronomy 6. Cultural difference amongst regional groups allowed for disconnection of unity || → Vedas = books emphasizing the language through hymns, and knowledge; Mahabharata, Rmanaya, Upanishads 2.more advanced than other parts like iron making an steel works than china/world -> introduced textiles 3.Ironmaking = large industry + superior steel 4.texttile tech = cotton, cashmere, calico 5.invented modern number system and negative numbers → showed signs of finding the circumference of the globe + advanced mathematics || S. Social activities were grouped into a strong representation of social classes, who all followed a certain standard of living, without much interference in the lives of those outside their class system, and most activities of the caste system lead to social patterns that survived the aging of India. P. India preferred the style of Regionalism rather than uniting the entire nation under one single cetnral rule, as Chandragupta had done, mostly on part because of climate differences, geographic differences, and language, trade, econimc barriers. I. India's interactions between other neighboring nations was adequatly distinct, because India was located within the center of all activity within eurasia, connecting to Africa by sea, the middle-east through land, Greece/Rome through horseback, and China through sea and caravans. R. Religion was the basis of most activities in India, resulting in influencing the pronounced definition of cultural activities and Social interactions and beliefs. I. Intellectual life in India was greater than that of most other nations, afterall they were credited with being the first civilization to discover the Arab numeral system that included Zero and Negative/decimal numbers T. Technology developed greatly in India with religious influence and advanced indian civilization further than most countries. || **Assignment 1.3** Key Terms
 * 1) astronomical advancements in astronomy and mathematics
 * 2)  negative numbers + zeros -> math Pythagorean theorem
 * Technological || 1. promoted Sanskrit + developed it even further, first language
 * Main Idea || E. The economic activities of India depended mostly on India's agricultural heritage and recent discoveries of Steel, Iron, and textiles, and trade encompassed the regions of Greece, Rome, the Middle East, Africa, and China.


 * Aryans || Indo-European herders and hunters originally from central Asia, who migrated into India during the Vedic and Epic ages ( 1500 - 1000BCE). They extended Indian agriculture from Indus River Valley to the Ganges Valley. Aryans passed down literary epics that described preclassical period of Indian history, which were eventually recorded in the Vedas in Sanskrit. Agriculture allowed the Aryans to become more settled, and thus, able to develop tight levels of village organization that became characteristics in Indian society and politics. Family structure emphasized patriarchal controls and extended family relationships relatives. Aryans also devised first caste system of Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaisyas, Sudras, and the untouchables. Aryans also brought with them, a polytheistic religion, bearing resemblance to that of Greek and Scandinavian mythology. ||
 * Ashoka || grandson of Chandragupta, Ashoka became the first to govern two provinces. He extended Mauryan conquests, gaining control of all but the southern tip of India, through warfare. He conquered regions, often with bloodthirty tactics. He is a Buddhist convert, believing in dharma and propagated it, while also honoring Hinduism. Ashoka sent Buddhist missionaries to Hellenistic kingdoms in the Middle East and Sri Lanka. He urged humane behavior on the part of his officials and insisted that they oversee the moral warfare of his empire. He worked to improve communication and and trade, sponsoring a road network dotted with wells and rest stops for travellers. ||
 * Gupta || emerged in 320 C.E., after a hundred years of political instability following the fall of the Kushan empire in 220 C.E. Gupta rulers preferred to negotiate with local princes and intermarry with their families, expanding influence without constant fighting. The empire was smaller than that of Mauryan, but provided India with the greatest period of political stability. The empire was eventually succumbed by the Huns in 535 C.E. ||
 * Caste system || caste system began to take shape in the Vedic and Epic age, b/c of Aryans. Aryans often viewed indigenous people inferior. Varnas partly enforced divisions. At the top of the pyramid, stood the warrior/ governing class, “Kshatriyas, priestly class, brahmins at the top, succeeded by the Vaisyas, traders and farmers, and Sudras, common laborers. A fifth group, the untouchables”, . Marriage between classes was forbidden and was a capital punishment. The basic castes divided into smaller subgroups, called jati, wach with distinctive occupations and confined to its social class by birth. Social mobility =/= true ||
 * Hinduism || religion of India's majority. Hinduism was conveyed in the Upanishads, as a divine force + supported by elites because of brahmin position in caste. Hindus believed in the idea that the basic holy essence, brahma, formed a part of everything in the world. Divine aspects of brahma took form in several gods, ie. Vishnu, the preserver, and Shiva, the destroyer. Another aspect of Hinduism, is the idea of reincarnation, in which, one's spirit does not die when bodies do, but pass into other beings, either human or animal. Hinduism reinforced the caste system, giving peasants hope in a better life in the future and communion with the divine spirit. ||
 * Sanskrit || first literary language of the Indians. Sanskrit language was prevalent in the epic,Vedas. During the Epic Age, between 1000 and 600 B.C.E., epics such as, Mahabharata, Ramayana, and Upanishads emerged,. → development of language didn't spread all over =/= one united lang + concentration in political gov't ||
 * Upanishads || Pre-classical poems → influenced religious beliefs + aided in language (Sanskrit) They conveyed Hinduism as a divine force. Upanishads also conveyed nature as a divine force. ||
 * Dharma || the law of moral consequences, a kind of ethical guide that might unite and discipline the diverse people under his rule. Dharma stresses inner study and meditation, building from the divine essence within each creature, rather than adherence to a fixed set of moral rules. Hindus often referred to their religion as dharma, or the moral path. ||
 * Buddhism || Provided an overwhelming obstacle to Brahmin authority in India, challenging a diverse cultural range in India + impacted gender roles + social hierarchy => created first Indian Empire. ||
 * Tamils || sea faring peoples along the southern coast, usually outside the large empires of northern India were particularly active traders. Thse southern Indians, the Tamils, traded cotton, sliks, dyes, drugs, gold, and ivory, with the Hindus, often earning great fortunes. ||
 * Chandragupta Maurya || seized power along the Ganges River in 322 B.C.E., becoming the first of the Mauryan dynasty of Indian rulers. Chandragupta and his successors maintained large armies with thousands of chariots and elephant borne troops. The Mauryan rulers also developed a sustantial bureaucracy, even sponsoring a postal service. His style of government was autocratic, relying on the ruler's personal and military power ||
 * Gurus || mystics who gathered disciples around them, and the brahman priests agreed on certain doctrines, as Hinduism became an increasingly formal religion by the centuries of the common era. ||
 * Bhagavad Gita || epic poem, a classic sacred hymn in which a warrior is sent to do battle against his own relatives. The Hindu ethic explains how devout Hindus could be aggressive merchants or eager warriors. The Hindus referred to Gita as the manifestation of god. It contained over 700 verses. ||