1 / 26

South Asia

South Asia. South Asia has geographic features that set it apart from the rest of Asia. Geographic features have contributed to cultural diversity in the region. The earliest civilization in South Asia developed in the Indus Valley. Flooding & storms. Indus Valley Civilization.

serena
Download Presentation

South Asia

An Image/Link below is provided (as is) to download presentation Download Policy: Content on the Website is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use and may not be sold / licensed / shared on other websites without getting consent from its author. Content is provided to you AS IS for your information and personal use only. Download presentation by click this link. While downloading, if for some reason you are not able to download a presentation, the publisher may have deleted the file from their server. During download, if you can't get a presentation, the file might be deleted by the publisher.

E N D

Presentation Transcript

  1. South Asia South Asia has geographic features that set it apart from the rest of Asia. Geographic features have contributed to cultural diversity in the region. The earliest civilization in South Asia developed in the Indus Valley

  2. Flooding & storms

  3. Indus Valley Civilization • Largest of world’s earliest civilizations (2500 BCE) • Why do you think this civilization grew in the area that it did? • Lasted for about 1000 years

  4. Arrival of the Aryans • Nomadic and Warlike • Had iron weapons • Skilled Charioteers

  5. The Vedas • Oral religious tradition • Eventually written down when Aryans developed written language of Sanskrit • Hymns • Prayers • Rituals

  6. The Rig Veda • Among the most ancient religious texts still in existence • “When there is harmony between the mind, heart and resolution then nothing is impossible. ” • “For the successful accomplishment of any work one needs sharp intellect and the will to perform relentless Karma. ”

  7. Yoga Began in the Vedas • Yoga comes from the Rig Veda- “Yuj”- the act of yoking, harnessing, attaching = union with the supreme the source • Excavations from the Indus-Valley civilization show us the evidence of yoga’s existence even during that period. Excavators found depictions engraved on soapstone seals that resemble yogi like figures.

  8. Hindu Mythology began with the Vedas • Indra is the king of the gods and ruler of the heavens. Indra is the god of thunder and rain and a great warrior, a symbol of courage and strength. • Brahma- Creator • Vishnu- Preserver • Shiva- destroyer

  9. Rule by Rajah • Hereditary Chiefs • Ruled Villages

  10. Social Classes • Brahmans = Priests • Kshatriys = Warriors • Vaisyas = Landowners, merchants, herders • Sudras = Servants (in modern day the Dalit class)

  11. 8 Fold Path followed in Buddhist Teachings

  12. Lord Mountbatten • Last British Viceroy of India • In 1947 had to decide what form the partition of India would take and when it would happen

  13. Indian National Congress and The Muslim League • Mohandas Gandhi and Muhammad Ali Jinnah (first Governor General of the new state of Pakistan) • Gandhi and Nehru(First Prime Minister of India)

  14. Mohandas Gandhi • Called Mahatma (Great Soul) by his followers • He practiced non-violent resistance • The idea of Satyagraha or “truth force”- The idea of loving one’s enemy that comes from Hindu, Buddhist and Christian religions • The goal was to “convert the wrongdoer” • He was influenced by the American writer Henry David Thoreau’s writing which talked of civil disobedience = the refusal to obey unjust laws • Spinning Wheel: He made this the symbol of India’s struggle for freedom by giving up Western ways, dressing in a simple cotton garments, and encouraging traditional Indian industries like spinning cotton • The Salt March: 1930 he used Satyagraha to protest the salt tax that Britain imposed on Indians. 200-mile march to the sea to gather sea water to make salt, which was against the law. He was arrested by the government, but the movement gained international support and made the people in Britain debate whether it should keep India as a colony. • Fasting: In an act of non-violence, on several occasions Gandhi fasted (refrained from eating or drinking), in order to make his point. He fasted against injustices such as the treatment of the Dalit caste and against people acting out in violence.

  15. End to British Rule = Partition • 1946 widespread rioting broke out between Muslims and Hindus • One cause to the riots were deeply rooted in differences between religious beliefs (see your note on the clash of beliefs between Muslims and Hindus) • A second cause was that Hindus saw Muslims as foreign conquerors, because of the 300 hundred year rule of the Mughal sultans • 1947 Indian Independence Act passed by British parliament • India gains freedom from British rule • Lord Mountbatten, the last British Viceroy , sees to it that British soldiers leave India • Act also provided for the partition of India into two separate nations: • Pakistan (Muslim dominated) • India (Hindu dominated) • Partition led to an explosion of violence, Muslims killing Hindus and vice versa. Gandhi was sickened by the violence and refused to celebrate India’s independence.

  16. “The light has gone out of our lives….there is darkness everywhere”- JawaharlalNehru (1st prime minister of india) • Gandhi is killed by one of his own Hindu followers (an extremist), who believed Gandhi had betrayed the Hindu people by peacefully working with Muslims. One million people attended Gandhi’s funeral

More Related