India and China

1. India and China Chapter 3

2. Early Civilization in India • India is very diverse with more than 110 languages and 1,000 dialects spoken today • The Indian subcontinent is made up of core regions including mountain ranges, river valleys, dry interior plateau, and fertile coastal plains • The Himalayan Mountains are the highest in the world • Monsoons are the primary feature of India’s climate • A monsoon is warm, moist air blown from the southwest in summer and cold, dry air in the winter • The monsoon brings heavy rains which helped crops to grow; if the rain didn’t come, then the crops would be destroyed and thousands would starve

3. Early Civilization in India • Civilizations emerged in river valleys of the Indus River between 3000-1500BC • Two cities in particular flourished for hundreds of years: Harappa (huh-RA-puh) and Mohenjo-Daro (moh-HEHN-joh DAHR-oh) • Both cities were carefully planned (cookie-cutter homes) with advanced drainage that took waste out of the home and chutes that took trash to street level garbage bins • Rulers based power on belief in divine existence and carried out trade with other Mesopotamians

4. Early Civilization in India • The Indus River civilizations were weakened by natural disasters until they were brought to an end by the Aryans • Aryans were central Asians who moved across the Hindu Kush mountain range and created a new Indian society after conquering the Harappans • They would eventually control most of India

5. Early Civilization in India • Aryans were pastoral people until they settled in India where they began farming regularly • This came about due to the use of iron as tools such as plows and irrigation • The planted rice, grain, veggies, cotton, and spices • They had a written language known as Sanskrit • The writings showed that India was full of warring kingdoms because of rajas (princes) who fought with each other for their property, women, and treasure

6. Early Civilization in India • The conquest of India by the Aryans had a lasting effect on their culture • Class division that the Aryans set up during their reign over India is still in place today with only minor changes • The caste system determines your occupation, economic potential, and position in society (based partly on skin color and birth) • Aryans were light-skinned who looked down on the dark-skinned, despite the fact that the dark-skinned was more advanced

7. Early Civilization in India Five Major Divisions of Indian Caste System

8. Early Civilization in India • Indian life was based on the family • It was ideal to have at least three generations living together • The oldest male had legal authority over the entire family • Only males were educated, could inherit property (some exceptions), and could become priests • Upper-class men had to complete 12 years of education before getting married • Divorce was not allowed, but a second wife could be taken if the first was unable to bear children • They had arranged marriages, since females were considered a drain on the parents economically • Women were to throw themselves onto their husbands pyres (burning clothes at a funeral) if the husband was deceased

9. Please read pages 77-79 Please complete the following chart: Early Civilization in India

10. New Empires in India • Warring between kingdoms kept India from becoming politically unified which helped the Persians, Greeks and Macedonians come in and take over • The Macedonian King Alexander the Great captured the western part of India and gave rise to the first dynasty there called the Mauryan Dynasty

11. New Empires in India • The new Indian state was founded by Chandragupta Maurya (CHUN-druh-GUP-tah MAH-oor-yuh) • He drove out foreign forces • Established the capital in the Ganges Valley (northern India) called Pataliputra • The king divided the empire into provinces which he appointed governors to rule • He had a large army and a secret police force • This was due to a fear of assassination • He would always have food tested before eating it • He never slept in the same bed more than one night in a row

12. New Empires in India • The Mauryan Empire began in 324 BC • Chandragupta Maurya was followed by his grandson Asoka (uh-SHOH-kuh) • Asoka was consider the greatest ruler in the history of India • He used Buddhist ideals to guide his rule • He set up hospitals for people and animals • He ordered that trees and shelter be put up for weary travelers to rest • He was king under time of great trade and prosperity • After his death in 232 BC the Mauryan Empire began to decline and disappeared in 183 BC when the last ruler was killed

13. New Empires in India • After the Mauryan Empire fell, several new kingdoms arose around India, particularly in Bactria (now Afghanistan) • In 1st C nomadic warriors established the Kushan Kingdom • They spread for 2 centuries throughout northern India • They were prosperous due to the trade that traveled across their lands • This trade route became known as the Silk Road, because China’s silk was one of the more valuable goods that passed through

14. New Empires in India • The Silk Road cut through the mountains northwest of India • It had come into existence somewhere between 200 BC and 100 AD and covered about 4000 miles • People transported goods using camels • They traveled through Antioch, Syria which was a port at the Mediterranean Sea • There the goods could be shipped to Rome and Greece • Only luxury goods traveled the Silk Road due to the danger and expense of it • This is why the Romans referred to China as Serica, meaning “Land of Silk”

15. New Empires in India • The Kushan kingdom ends in 320 AD when the Persians overran it • Samudragupta expanded the Gupta kingdom all the way into middle India • It became known as a dominant political force • They were actively engaged in trade with China, SE Asia and the throughout the Mediterranean area • Many people traveled along the trade routes as religious pilgrims (people who travel to religious places)

16. New Empires in India • The Gupta rulers were very successful, owning silver and gold mines as well as vast lands • Despite their success, they will be taken over in the 5th C. by nomadic Huns • A military commander will briefly revive their empire, but it will fall completely apart after his death in the 7th C.

17. New Empires in India • India has been a large contributor to culture • Literature: The Mahabharata (muh-HAH-BAH-ruh-tuh • World’s longest poem (90,000 stanzas) • Describes a war between Aryan cousins seeking control over the kingdom • The most famous section of the poem, called Bhagavad Gita (BAH-guh-VAHD GEE-tuh) is a sermon by the god Krishna • Krishna says, “In taking action, one must not worry about success or failure. One should only be aware of the moral rightness of the act itself.”

18. New Empires in India • Architecture: Most architecture is related to religion • Three main types of structures: pillar, stupa, and rock chamber • Pillar: most famous, usually placed at sites related to Buddha’s life, has message by Buddha • Stupa: originally designed to hold relics (such as lock of Buddha’s hair) but later became a place for devotion • Rock Chamber: designed to house monks and hold religious ceremonies

19. New Empires in India • Science: Ancient Indians were very advanced in science and math • They were aware that the Earth was a sphere that rotated on its axis around the sun • Aryabhata was one of the first people to use Algebra • Indians introduced the concept of zero and came up with the symbol (0) for it. • As Arabs conquered parts of India, they adopted the India systems, today we call it the Indian-Arabic numerical systems (0, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6…)

20. Early Chinese Civilizations • The Huang He (HWONG-HUH), or Yellow River, carries yellow silt from Mongolia to the Pacific Ocean (2,900 miles) • The Chang Jiang (CHONG-JYONG), or Yangtze River flows 3,400 miles across China until emptying in the Yellow Sea • The area between these two rivers began to emerge as one of the great food-producing areas in the ancient world

21. Early Chinese Civilizations • Despite this large area of fertile fields, only 10% of China’s land is suitable for farming (US has 19%) • The rest of the land is mountains and deserts • These barriers isolated China from the rest of Asia • The contact they did have with outsides was marked by conflict in attempts to keep their precious farmlands

22. Early Chinese Civilizations • Historians say that the beginning of Chinese civilization was founded with the Xia (SYAH) dynasty over 4,000 years ago • Little is known about them • They were replaced by the Shang Dynasty (1750-1045 B.C.)

23. Early Chinese Civilizations • The Shang dynasty was a farming society ruled by an aristocracy • Aristocracy: an upper class whose wealth is based on land and whose power is passed on from one generation to another • The king ruled from the capital of Anyang and his kingdom was divided into territories run by warlords • The importance of their king is evident by way they buried him with his faithful servants in royal tombs (similar to rulers in Egypt)

24. Early Chinese Civilizations • The Chinese believed in supernatural forces • To communicate with gods, they write questions on bones, such as “Will the king be victorious in battle?” Then they would put a metal rod into the center, causing the bone to crack • The priests would interpret the crack, and store the bones • This is how we know so much about the Shang period

25. Early Chinese Civilizations • The king and his family were at the top of society • The king along with other aristocrats waged war, served as officials and were the chief landowners • Most people in the Shang dynasty were peasants who farmed the aristocrats land

26. Early Chinese Civilizations • The Chinese believed in life after death • They often provided human sacrifices for the king to have companions on their journey to the next world • They practiced “ancestor worship” which is when you burn replicas so that those objects may accompany the departed • This is still practiced by some Chinese today • The Shang are most remembered for the art of bronze casting

27. Early Chinese Civilizations • The last Shang rulers were so wicked that the state of Zhou (JOH) to revolt • The Zhou dynasty lasted between 1045-256 BC, the longest dynasty in Chinese history • The Zhou king ruled in the same way the Shang had (king was head, appointed other aristocrats, rest of people were peasants)

28. Early Chinese Civilizations • The Zhou did make some changes • They began the Mandate of Heaven • The Mandate says that Heaven kept order in the universe through the Zhou kingdom • The Zhou king was chosen to rule because of his talent and virtue • He was responsible for ruling all of nature and the people with goodness and efficiency • The king was to rule the proper “Way”, called Dao—this protected the people from natural disasters and bad harvest • If the king failed he would be overthrown

29. Early Chinese Civilizations • The Zhou dynasty went through the pattern of rise, decline and then collapse • After breaking into several small territories a civil war broke out • Warfare included iron weapons, infantry and cavalry • In 221 BC the Qin (CHIN) dynasty gained control

30. Early Chinese Civilizations • Read pg. 92 “Life during the Zhou Dynasty” through pg. 97. • Write a half-page summary of what life was like during the Zhou dynasty • Be sure to include “finial piety” • Write a one page summary of Confucianism, Daoism and Leaglism

31. Rise and Fall of Chinese Empires • The ruler of Qin was Qin Shihuangdi (CHIN SHUR-HWONG-DEE), who took the throne at the age of 13 • Legalism was adopted as the regime’s official ideology • Those who opposed the policies were punished or executed • Books opposing their views were burned

32. Rise and Fall of Chinese Empires • The Qin dynasty was a centralized bureaucracy divided into three parts: • The civil division • The military division • The censorate: inspectors who made sure the government officials were doing their job—this became a common position for future Chinese dynasties • If these officials were found guilty of wrong doing, they were executed

33. Rise and Fall of Chinese Empires • Qin Shihuangdi unified the Chinese • Created a single monetary system • Ordered the building of roads throughout the empire • Most roads lead out from the capital, Xianyang (SYEN-YONG) (modern day Xian) • He also extended the boards of China to the Red River (now part of Vietnam)

34. Rise and Fall of Chinese Empires • The Qin emperor’s concern came from the north • The Gobi were nomadic people who were well known for the skills as cavalry men • Many Chinese communities began building walls to keep the Gobi out • Qin Shihuangdi supported the idea and expanded the project—today it is called the Great Wall of China

35. Rise and Fall of Chinese Empires • The first Qin emperor had angered many Chinese • When he did in 210 BC he would be the last to rule a Qin dynasty • Four years later, the Han Dynasty took over • The Han Dynasty was founded by Liu Bang (LYOH BONG), a peasant who became known as Han Gaozu (Exalted Emperor of Han)

36. Rise and Fall of Chinese Empires • The Han Empire did away with Legalism and began following Confucian principals • They did keep the centralized government and they choose officials based on merit instead of birth • Because the population grew so quickly, the government had to maintain an efficient bureaucracy to keep the state in order

37. Rise and Fall of Chinese Empires • The Han rulers expanded the Chinese empire out further, extended all the way to the South China Sea • Read p. 102-103 • Write a half page summary about what life was like under the Qin and Han Dynasties