Chapter 4:

1. Chapter 4: Early Societies of Southeast Asia

3. Geography

4. Geography • India is a subcontinent, with many diverse climates and geographical features. • The northern plain is fertile due to the Indus and Ganges Rivers. • The Deccan Plateau is dry and sparsely populated. • Winds called monsoons bring summer rains. India depends on monsoons to grow their crops. There is often too much or too little rain when the rains come.

7. Harappan Civilization 3300 BCE - 2400 BCE

8. Foundations of Harappan Society • The Indus River • Silt-enriched water from the Hindu Kush & Himalayan ranges • Major society built by Dravidian peoples, 3000-2500 BCE • Cultivation of cotton before 5000 BCE, early cultivation of poultry • Decline after 1900 BCE • Major cities: Harrapa (Punjab region and Mohenjo-daro (Southern Indus River) • 70 smaller sites excavated (total 1,500)

9. Indus Valley Cities (2500 – 1500 BCE) • There were two prominent cities on the Indus River: Harappa & Mohenjo-Daro. • These cities were incredibly well planned: • Grid pattern streets • Water Systems (plumbing) with heated public baths and brick sewers. • The wealthy even had two story buildings with indoor bathrooms and garbage chutes. • Each city was dominated by a structure built upon a hill that served as a stronghold, such as a citadel.

11. Mohenjo-daro Ruins • Population c. 40,000 • Standardized weights & measurements evident throughout the region • Specialized labor • Widespread trade

12. Citadel Of Mohenjo-Daro

13. Aerial View of Mohenjo-Daro

14. Citadel, Mohenjo-Daro

15. The Great Bath, Mohenjo-Daro

16. Bath Area, Mohenjo-Daro

17. Well, Mohenjo-Daro

18. A Main Street, Mohenjo-Daro

19. Granery, Mohenjo-Daro

20. Pottery, Mohenjo-Daro

21. Bison Seal, Mohenjo-Daro

22. A Horned-God Seal, Mohenjo-Daro

23. A Male Head, Mohenjo-Daro Dravidian

24. A Priest-King, Mohenjo-Daro

25. Necklace, Mohenjo-Daro

26. Public Well, Harappa

27. Drain, Harappa

28. Unicorn Seal?, Harappa

29. Harappan Society and Culture • Evidence of social stratification • Dwelling size, decoration • Great influence on later Indian culture • Statues, figurines and illustrations reflect a tradition of art and metallurgy • Venerated goddesses of fertility

30. Female Figures, Harappa

31. Female Figures, Harappa

32. Bull Figurine, Harappa

33. Elephant Figurine, Harappa

34. Burial Pottery, Harappa

35. Male Skeleton, Harappa

36. Female Skeleton with Child, Harappa

37. Harappan Writing Undecipherable to date.

38. Mysterious End of Harappan Civilization • Reasons for disappearance unclear • Excessive deforestation, loss of topsoil • Earthquakes? • Flooding? • Evidence of unburied dead • Disappearance by 1500 BCE • Harappan traditions survived – agricultural practices, religious beliefs, and urban traditions

39. The Vedic Age (1500 BCE - 500 BCE)

40. Aryan Migration • pastoral  depended on their cattle. • warriors  horse-drawn chariots.

41. Aryan Migrations • Aryans, lighter-skinned invaders from the north • Dravidians, darker-skinned sedentary inhabitants of Harappa • Color Bias • Socio-Economic Implications • Difficulty of theory: no evidence of large-scale military conquest

42. The Early Aryans • Pastoral economy: sheep, goats, horses, cattle • Vegetarianism not widespread until many centuries later • Religious and Literary works: The Vedas • Sanskrit: sacred tongue • Prakrit: everyday language, evolved into Hindi, Urdu, Bengali • Four Vedas (wisdom), most important Rig Veda • 1,028 hymns to gods

43. The Vedas • 1200 BCE-600 BCE. • written in SANSKRIT. • Hindu core of beliefs: • hymns and poems. • religious prayers. • magical spells. • lists of the gods and goddesses. Rig Veda oldest work.

44. The Vedic Age • Conflicts between Aryans and indigenous dasas (“enemies,”“subjects”) • Aryans fighting Dravidians • Also Aryans fighting each other • Chiefdoms: Rajas • Early concentration in Punjab, migrations further south • Development of iron metallurgy • Increasing reliance on agriculture • Tribal connections evolve into political structures

45. Varna: The Caste System • Origins in Aryan domination of Dravidians • Brahmin, Priest • Kshatriya, Warrior • Vaishya, Merchant • Sudra, Commoner • Harijan: “Untouchables; Pariahs” • Jati system of subcastes • Related to urbanization, increasing social and economic complexity

46. Varna (Social Hierarchy) Brahmins Kshatriyas Vaishyas Shudras Pariahs [Harijan]  Untouchables

47. The Caste System Brahmins WHO IS… Kshatriyas • The mouth? • The arms? • The legs? • The feet? Vaishyas Shudras What is aJATI?

48. Patriarchy in Ancient Indian Society • “rule of the father” • A social order that stood alongside the caste system, and varna hierarchy • Enforced in the The Lawbook of Manu • Dealt with proper moral behavior and social relationships • Caste, Jati, inheritance through male line

49. Aryan Religion • Major deity of Rig Veda: Indra, war god • Elaborate ritual sacrifices to gods • Role of Brahmins important • Soma • C. 800 BCE some movement away from sacrificial cults • Mystical thought, influenced by Dravidians

50. Sadhus: an Indian mystic or ascetic