Arrival of the Aryans

1. Arrival of the Aryans

2. A fair skinned people that originated somewhere near the Caspian and Black Sea region • They were semi-nomadic, living in tribal communities and herding sheep, goats and cattle with a little farming on the side • They were able to cover great distances because they had horses and light, spoke-wheeled chariots • They were warlike and glorified fighting • The society was very male dominated and probably very hierarchical • They had no writing, but spoke a language which we now call “Proto Indo-European” Who were the Aryans?

3. Who were the Aryans? • For reasons we don’t know, they spread out of their homeland from c. 2000 BC • They went southeast into Iran and eventually over the Hindu Kush into India • They went west into Anatolia, Greece, Italy and as far as England and Ireland • As they moved, their language spread – it is parent language of many major world languages today (guess which)

4. Archeologists believe they crossed into the Indus Valley around 1500 BC • This is around when the Indus Valley Civilization was declining • Did they destroy Mohenjo-Daro and Harappa? Or did they just take advantage of a society already on the decline? • After 1500 BC, they began to settle in the Indus region and gradually spread across the Indo-Gangetic Plain to the east

5. Guess the Meaning

6. When the Aryans arrived in India they didn’t have a written language • Instead, they passed down their teachings orally from generation to generation in the form of stories, poems, epics and other wisdom literature • This oral literature was maintained by Brahmin priests; each Brahmin family had a section and were responsible for keeping an exactly copy in memory • At some point, they developed a written language, which we call Sanskrit, and wrote everything down in “books of knowledge” or Vedas • So we call the time from 1500 BC – 500 BC the Vedic Period. • The Vedas are the foundation of later Hindu religion and philosophy The Vedas

7. Blend of polytheism and monotheism – many gods but all considered different aspects of a single divine force • The gods were mainly good and helpful; if something bad happened, it was the work of demons • Some of the most important gods were: • INDRA (king of the gods; god of war and thunder) • AGNI (god of fire; killed demons; messenger to other gods) • VARUNA (god of rivers/rain; all seeing; protector of law) • But there were many others • These and most other gods were male Religious Beliefs

8. Religious practice put a big emphasis on sacrifices called “YAGNA”; the sacrifices were very complicated and some took a year to prepare • Another practice was to drink “SOMA” which might have caused hallucinations • The priests would also chant thousands of different “MANTRAS” which praised the gods and gave people special powers Religious Rituals

9. Creation myths – everything came out of one seed, including gods and people • Was Vedic Hinduism the religion of the Aryans or did it come from the Indus Valley people? Probably both. • From now, we should probably call them Indo-Aryans • Eventually, the religion evolved into today’s Hinduism, but we’ll learn more about that later Religious Beliefs

10. Brahmins = priests • only ones allowed to study and teach the Vedas • Kshatriyas = warriors and villages chiefs were • they could study the Vedas but not teach them • Vaisyas = artisans, merchants, and farmers • they could not study or teach the Vedas • Sudras = servants • they did the jobs that no one else wanted • A person was born into a varna, socialized only with other members of their varna, married in their varna, and died a member of their varna; they could not move up or down within the system Social Hierarchy (Varnas)

11. Mooo! • Wealth was determined by how many cows you had, so they couldn’t be eaten • Cows are still considered holy today

12. MAHABHARATA UPANISHADS Other Epics and Religious Texts RAMAYANA