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CHAPTER 4

CHAPTER 4. EARLY SOCIETIES IN SOUTH ASIA. Indus River Valley Geography. The Indus River Floods twice yearly Silt-enriched water from Pamir and Himalayas mountain ranges (March and April) August monsoons Punjab (five waters) feeds the main stream of the Indus Mountains Hindu Kush (north)

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CHAPTER 4

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  1. CHAPTER 4 EARLY SOCIETIES IN SOUTH ASIA

  2. Indus River Valley Geography • The Indus River • Floods twice yearly • Silt-enriched water from Pamir and Himalayas mountain ranges (March and April) • August monsoons • Punjab (five waters) feeds the main stream of the Indus • Mountains • Hindu Kush (north) • Himalayas (northeast) • Sind Region (modern day Pakistan)

  3. Harappan society c. 2000 B.C.E.

  4. Foundations of Harappan Society • Major society built by Dravidian peoples, 3000-2500 BCE • Cultivation of cotton and agriculture before 5000 BCE • Early cultivation of poultry • Decline after 1900 BCE (mystery) • 70 smaller sites excavated (total ~1,500)

  5. Harappan and Mohenjo-Daro • Central location early society • Advanced Technology • Evidence of social stratification • Dwelling size, decoration • Harappan Civilization: matriarchal? • Influence on later Indian culture • Goddesses of fertility • Writing system contained more than 400 signs • most inscriptions can not be deciphered

  6. Harappan and Mohenjo-Daro • Regional center • Layout, architecture suggests public purpose • Broad streets, citadel, pool, sewage • Standardized weights evident throughout region • Specialized labor • Smaller towns on the coast engaged in trade with Sumer and areas around the Persian Gulf • Fishing communities and gathering seashells

  7. What does standardization tell us about early Indus Valley culture?

  8. What does standardization tell us about early Indus Valley culture? • Extensive exchange of goods within the region.

  9. What does standardization tell us about early Indus Valley culture? • Extensive exchange of goods within the region. • Strong central authority (regional)

  10. Decline of Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro • Abandoned 1900 BCE • The cause is not known. • Speculation • Cultural Breakdown • Natural Disasters • Geographical Impact • Resort to village based lifestyle • Farming and herding increase • Lack of interaction • Lack of leadership • Elites merge with common population.

  11. ARYAN INVASION • Aryans (noble), lighter-skinned invaders from the north • Migrated into northwest India c. 1500 B.C.E. • Vedic Age (1500 – 500 B.C.E.) • Dravidians (also called Dasas), darker-skinned sedentary inhabitants of Harappa • Early conflict • Caste (Varna) • Color Bias • Socio-Economic Implications • Difficulty of theory: no evidence of large-scale military conquest

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

  13. 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 hymms to gods

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

  15. Patriarchy in Ancient Indian Society • “rule of the father” • Enforced in the The Lawbook of Manu • Overwhelmed Harappan matriarchy? • Caste, Jati, inherited through male line

  16. Teachings of the Upanishads • Texts that represent blending of Aryan and Dravidian traditions • Composed 800-400 BCE, some later collections until 13th century CE • Brahman: the Universal Soul • Samsara: reincarnation • Karma: accounting for incarnations • Moksha: mystical ecstacy • Relationship to system of Varna

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