November+7+-+Indian+Civilization

=Indian Civilization=

Despite its relative geographic isolation, India has long been the center of trade between East and West. The vedic period extends from about 1500 B.C., Aryan tribes settled in northern India. They were more advanced than the native Indian population, the Dasas. The Aryans brought with them early forms of language--Sanskrit--and of a religion--Hinduism--that would become very important to Indian culture. It took over one thousand years for the Aryans and the Dasas to become fully integrated. During this period various alternative religions emerged, most notably Buddhism, which challenged the Hindu hereditary class structure.

The origins of Hinduism, though unknown, may date to 1500 B.C. At the center of Hindu religions thought is the idea of Brahman, the indivisible essence of all spiritual reality. Brahman is a god who represents creation, preservation, and destruction. In later Hinduism, Brahman's three functions were divided among three gods: Brahma, the creator; Vishnu, the preserver; and Shiva, the destroyer. The idea of karma is central to Hindu thought. Karma involves a kind of moral cause-and-effect. People's spirits are reincarnated and have many successive existences. The social structure of ancient Indian society derives from these religious concepts, and is based on the divisions of society into four distinct classes or castes: Brahmins serve Hindu society's priests and leaders; Kshatrivas, who were originally the kings and aristocrats, and more recently have been its administrators and politicians; Vaishyas, originally the entrepreneurs and more recently the professionals; the Shudras are the laborers. Outcasts, who fall outside the four main castes, are considered "untouchable." The cast system has continued to be the governing principle of Indian society for two thousand years.

Look at the following video to learn more about the caste system of India: Look at the following video to learn more about the history of Hinduism:

The earliest Indian literature was composed by the Aryans, the nomads who migrated to India around 1500 B.C. Composed between 1500 and 100 B.C., in Sanskrit, it consists of a set of hymns known as //The Vedas//. All later works derive from these Vedic songs. Other early writings include //The Upanishshads//, an anthology of philosophical poems added later to //The Vedas; The Ramayana,// the older Hindu epic and most popular work of Indian literature, which focuses on the story Prince Rama; and //The Mahabharata,//the story of a pair of rival warring families composed over a period of more than eight hundred years.

One of the earliest loose federations of regional governments was the empire of the Maurya. Chandragupta Maurya, effectively the first emperor of India, reigned from 324 B.C. to 301 B.C. The most important Maurya emperor was Ashoka, who assumed the throne in 269 B.C. His forty-year reign marked a critical turning point in Indian history, the emergence of Buddhism as a political force in India. The emperor sent missionaries throughout India spreading the Buddhist faith.

Buddhism began with Siddhartha Gautma Sakya (ca. 563 - 483 B.C.), who experienced a mental epiphany after meditating for forty-nine days. The Buddha spent forty-five years as a wondering preacher, whose goal was to help others achieve enlightenment. The Buddha challenged Hindu religious practices, claiming these practices granted too much power to the Brahmins and were disconnected from everyday spiritual life. The Buddha responded by providing an alternative religion in which the individual had to find his or her own way to enlightenment. Buddhism is a religion without a god, and without the concept of immortality. There is only enlightenment. Buddhist thought is based on the Four Noble Truths, which includes the notion that the cause of life's suffering is selfishness.

Look at the following video to learn more about the beginnings of Buddhism:

The earliest Indian art extant today dates from the Maurya period, and in particular memorial buildings, or stupas, dedicated to Buddha. Emperor Ashoka had a large number of stone columns built to memorialize Buddha. These pillars usually had capitals. One of the most magnificent is a lion capital from a pillar at Sarnith from about 250 B.C. which reveres the lion as king of the animal world while honoring the Buddha as king among religious teachers. The seven-foot sculpture originally had a large stone wheel on the lions' shoulders which signifies the wheel of the law of //dharma//. At Sanchi in central India, th3e large stupa, completed during the first century B.C., contains four carved stone gates adorned with symbols associated with Buddha. The four gates of the stupa represent the four corners of the universe.

The Gupta empire lasted from the fourth to the sixth century A.D. During this era India flourished culturally and commercially. The Gupta empire eventually succumbed to the invading Huns. From the early eighth century Islamic influences began to appear in India, culminating five hundred years later when northern India fell under Turkish Islamic control and Buddhism was eclipsed.

Gupta art is associated with the deeply spiritual figure of the Buddha. The Buddhas sculpted in the Gupta style, such as //Standing Buddha// from the early fifth century A.D., appear calm and serene. Something of this serenity appears in the cave paintings from the Ajanta caves, late fifth century A.D.

Ancient Indian literature contains many folktales, including stories about he lives of the Buddha before he achieved enlightenment. //The Pancatantra//, composed during the second or third century A.D., is a group of stories designed with practical advice about getting on in the world.

While Buddhism flourished during the Gupta era, the Gupta monarchs themselves were increasingly attracted to Hinduism. Temples and sculptures of Hindu gods began to appear, and continued to proliferate well into the fifteenth and sixteenth century, when Muslim kings from Persia took control of most of the subcontinent. The structure and design of the Hindu temple were established in a series of ancient texts called shastras. One of the most magnificent of medieval Hindu temples is the majestic Kandariya Mahadeo temple at Khajuraho, dating from the eleventh century.

Islam began to have a powerful influence in India in the twelfth century. In 1192, Afghan king Muhammad of Ghur defeated the Hindus and celebrated by erecting a mosque on the site of Delhi's largest Hindu temple. Islam took firm hold and was responsible for the creation of some of the greatest monuments in Indian culture, including the Taj Mahal, built in Agra from 1630-48 by a Muslim as a mausoleum for his wife. By the twentieth century, relations between Hindus and Muslims reached a crisis point, and in 1947, after a violent partition, the independent Muslim state of Pakistan was born.

Indian sculptors of the tenth to twelfth century produced the dancing //Shiva Nataraja//, the most famous of Hindu icons. It continues to be produced in southern India today. The poetry of the twelfth century mystic Mahadeviyakka, the foremost woman poet before the modern era, represents the genre of bhakti or devotional religious poetry. Her poems employ images of physical love to convey a sense of spirituality. Indian music is essentially melodic. It is rarely written out as a score, to allow improvisation. Although serving as entertainment, Indian music is rich in religious associations. The most important instrument in Indian music is the human voice. The sitar, a lute-shaped instrument with an extended neck, is the chief instrument used in playing ragas. Ragas are musical compositions designed to convey a distinct mood such as hatred or pity.

Questions:

1. The Vedic period extends from about a. 1500 B.C. to 300 B.C. b. 325 B.C. to 185 B.C. c. 400 A.D. to 550 A.D. d. A.D. 5509 to A.D. 1526

2. When the Aryan tribes from the west settled in northern India in 1500 B.C., what religion did the Aryans bring with them? a. Islam b. Jainism c. Hinduism d. Buddhism

3. Who is the divine source of all being in the Hindu religion? a. Brahman b. Sakyamuni c. Mahavira d. Shiva

4. In Hinduism, Brahman's three functions are divided among three gods. Which of the follwoing is not one of the gods? a. Brahma b. Shiva c. Vishnu d. Lakshmi

5. In Hinduism, who is the most popular of the three gods? a. Shiva b. Brahma c. Vishnu d. Kali

6. Vishnu is to Lakshmi as Shiva is to a. Kali b. Krishna c. Brahma d. Brahman

7. In the Hindu class structure, what caste is at the top of the social order? a. Shudras b. Vaishyas c. Brahmins d. Kshatrivas

8. In the Hindu caste system, a lawyer is considered to be i what caste? a. Shudras b. Vaishyas c. Brahmins d. Kshatrivas

9. What is the earliest Indian literature? a. //The Vedas// b. //The Mahahharata// c. //The Ramayana// d. //The Upanishads//

10. What Hindu classic explains key Hindu ideas such as maya and karma? a. //The Vedas// b. //The Mahahharata// c. //The Ramayana// d. //The Upanishads//

11. Who wrote //The Ramayana//, the oldest of Hindu epics? a. Valmiki b. Mahavira c. Ashoka d. Ravana

12. Mahavira was the founder of a. Islam b. Jainism c. Buddhism d. Hinduism

13. Who was the first emperor of India? a. Maurya b. Ashoka c. Valmiki d. Bharatha

14. Under whose reign did Buddhism emerge as a political force in India? a. Valmiki b. Bharatha c. Ashoka d. Maurya

15.The Four Noble Truths and the Eight-Fold Path are based on a. Islam b. Hinduism c. Buddhism d. Jainism

16. The earliest significant body of Indian art extant today dates from the a. Vedic period b. Maurya period c. Gupta empire d. Mogul empire

17. The lion capital from a pillar at Sarnath capital was built during the a. Vedic period b. Maurya period c. Gupta empire d. Mogul empire

18. Where did Buddha first preach about //dharma//? a. Ajanta b. Sarnath c. Sanchi d. Khajhuraho

19. What do the four carved stone gates of the Sanchi stupa symbolize? a. the four seasons b. the four corners of the universe c. China, Japan, Korea, and India d. Greece, China, Italy, and India

20. The Gupta empire lasted from the a. first to t he fourth century A.D. b. fourth to the six century A.D. c. sixth to the eighth century A.D. d. eighth to the tenth century A.D.

21. What does the //abhaya// mudra signify? a. clarity and fulfillment of all wishes b. the path to enlightenment c. reassurance, blessing, and protection d. wheel of //dharma//

22. The //Standing Buddha// characterizes the a. Vedic Buddhist style b. Gupta Buddhist style c. Maurya Buddhist style d. Hindu dynasties Buddhist style

23. In the //Seated Buddha//, from Sarnath, Gupta, fifth century A.D., in what position are Buddha's hands? a. //dhyana// mudra b. //dharmachakra// mudra c. //abhaya// mudra d. //varada// mudra

24. What collection of ancient Indian literature consits of 547 tales that describe the lives the Buddha passed through before achieving enlightenment? a. //The Vedas// b. //Jataka// c. //Pancatantra// d. //Ramayana//

25. The structure and design of the Hindu temple were established in the series of ancient texts called a. mudras b. shastras c. samsuras d. stupas

26. What medium was the most favored by the southern Indian Chola dynasties from the tenth to the twelfth century? a. gold b. bronze c. white marble d. sandstone

27. Which of the follwoign is a Hindu icon? a. //Standing Buddha// b. //Bodhisattva Padmapani// c. //Vishnu Narayana on the Cosmic Waters// d. //Shiva Nataraja (Lord of the Dance)//

28. What is the most important instrument in the performance of Indian music? a. sitar b. drum c. tambura d. human voice

29. What is the chief instrument used in playing ragas? a. voice b. sitar c. drum d. tambura

30. The opera, //Satyagraha//, means "holding fast to the truth" and refers to a. the Hindu caste system b. Mahavira's founding of Jainism c. Siddhartha's journey to enlightenment d. Gandhi's nonviolent method of non-cooperation and civil disobedience