Do Now: What are the cornerstones of Civilization

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Do Now What are the cornerstones of Civilization

• Objectives Examine ancient Indus Valley
  Civilization

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Indus Valley Civilization
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Indus Valley Civilization

• Many cities existed but we will focus on
• Mohenjo Daro
• Harappa
• Which countries does the Indus Valley
  Civilization Lie Within?

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Harappa (Another Name of the Civilization)Compar
ative Timeline

• For timeline purposes2500BCE
• Early Harappa
• 3300-2800BCE
• Mature Harappa
• 2500BCE
• Late Harappa
• Through 1700BCE

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The Gateway to Harappa
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The Story According to the Experts

• Harappa (Indus Valley) Civilization
• Settled in the Indus River Valley
• Developed efficient agricultural methods
• Cities built near irrigation systems
• System of writing (seals have been found)
• Never deciphered

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Life Giving Floods

• Farmers planted after the floods in mid to late
  summer and harvested in spring before drought.
• Wheat, barley and other crops provided food.
  Goats were also domesticated
• Stone walls (citadels) were erected to stop
  violent floods. These walls became the walls of
  densely populated cities.

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Harappa
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Mohenjo Daro
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Cities

• Well planned
• Straight streets laid out in grid pattern to
  facilitate easy movement
• Houses were well built and protected
• Huge citadels protected the cities from floods
• Hygiene was seen as important so the cities were
  clean.

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Citadel of Mohenjo Daro
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Indoor Plumbing

• Cities pumped water from reservoirs and wells
  into houses.
• Working plumbing drained from houses to central
  locations in the cities
• This helped keep cities clean

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Trading

• Extensive trading took place
• Single mast small vessels were built
• Metals, pottery and beads were traded
• Internal trade was established
• Food and Ornamental Objects

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Government and System of Weights and Measures

• Municipal governments provided order to the
  settlements
• They established an amazingly accurate system of
  weights and measures that facilitated trade and
  provided a foundation for accurate architectural
  planning

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Legacy

• One of the most advanced civilizations of the
  period.
• Declined in 1700BCE
• Probably due to invaders and the cooling and
  drying of the land. The rivers began diverting
  and drying.

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1700bcDeclined due to

• climate shift the monsoon patterns
• Flooding
• destruction of the forests
• migrations of new peoples the Aryans

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The Aryans

• Not to be confused with Hitlers Aryans
• These Aryans speak an Indo-European dialect
• Related to other languages like Greek and Latin

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The Aryan Invasion

• Aryans, lighter-skinned invaders from the north
• Dravidians, darker-skinned sedentary inhabitants
  of Harappa
• Color Bias
• Socio-Economic Implications
• Implications of Theory?

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The Aryans

• Restless, warlike people
• Tall, blue-eyed, fair-skinned
• Describe the indigenous population as
• short, black, noseless, and slaves

• villages and kingdoms constantly fighting
• war chiefs and kings
• aristocrats and freemen

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Possible route of the Aryan invasions
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The Aryans

• They called themselves Aryans
• Their land Aryavarta
• land of the Aryans

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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, most important Rig Veda
• 1,028 hymns to gods

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Oral Tradition

• Passed down from priests and singers
• Written down in the 500s
• The Vedas
• Veda means knowledge

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The Vedas

• Our primary source
• early Aryan tradition
• later Hindu religion
• 4 VedasLiterary worksfoundation of Hinduism
• the Rig Veda is the oldest

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VarnaCaste

• There are 4 castes
• Brahmin Priests and teachers
• Kshatriya Warriors and Nobility
• Vaishya Merchants and Agriculturalists
• Shudra Servants and Labor
• PanchamaDalits, Untouchables or Outcastes
• More recently referred to as Harijans by Gandhi

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Subcaste/Jati

• Jati refers to a subcaste system
• Members of Jati are linked to the group
  economically.
• Determines who a person can exchange food with
• Most importantly, it determines who you can
  marry.
• Sanskritization The ability to change jati.
• Act like a Jati above your own
• Marry into that Jati

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How did this take shape?

• No universally accepted theory
• Aryan Invasion Aryans put themselves on top and
  it developed from there
• Vedas make little mention of Varna
• Bhagavad Gita and the Manusmriti Varna
  Originated from god

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Life in the Caste System

• Marry within caste and usually within Jati
• Usually arranged marriages but children are often
  allowed input
• Very important celebration that may last up to 3
  days.
• Couple takes 7 steps around flames to bond
  themselves together for life
• Diet, Clothing and Employment

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So What

• Negative
• Social stratification
• Unemployment
• Human Rights?
• Constitution Outlaws Caste System

• Positive
• Provides structure and stability
• It is the traditional way of life
• Falls in line with Hindu beliefs of Samsara,
  Karma and Dharma
• Determines Identity
• Creates a Community of Support

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Sanskrit

• The earliest of the ancient languages
• The language of the Vedas
• Only studied by the upper castes
• Used mostly in religious rituals

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Temples, Symbols and Holidays

• Temples were not important early but are now more
  common
• Some important symbols
• Om or Aum Is a symbol and a sound of Brahman
  (god) often used in
• Diwali- Hindu New Year
• Holi- Spring celebration the coming of Krishna

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Hindu Trinity
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Other Gods