Ancient+India

** 3000 B.C. to 300 A.D. ** ** Ayushi and Elsa **


 * Ancient Indian civilization developed in the river valley of the Indus River. The major cities of this time were Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro. Both cities were divided by walls, with narrow lanes to separate the houses. Inhabitants of these cities had an advanced drainage system in which garbage was carried out beyond the city walls. Their economy was based on farming mainly rice. Every year the Indus River flooded, providing water for the crops. **

** Indo-European nomadic people, Aryans took over and based their culture in the Indian society in around 1500 B.C. They set up the caste system which was the social categories that determined a person’s position in society. The most prominent religion in ancient India was Hinduism. They believed that the soul is reborn in a different form after death, or reincarnation. Another religion was founded by Siddhartha Gautama, spiritual teacher from ancient India on whose teachings Buddhism was founded. He created the Four Noble Truths and Middle Path also known as the Eightfold Path. **

 ** Along with the influence of the religion, the Aryans also developed political unity in ancient India. After the fall of the Persian Empire, the Mauryan Dynasty came into power. The most powerful ruler of the Mauryan Dynasty, Chandragupta Maurya, drove out the Persians. His grandson, Asoka, expanded trade all throughout the empire. After his death in about 232 B.C., the empire fell and the Kushan Kingdom came into power. They traded along the Silk Road, which stretched from Changan to Mesopotamia. Once the Kushan Kingdom came to an end, the Kingdom of Guptas created a new Indian civilization. //Mahabharata// and //Ramayana// were the great epics of that time. Aryabhata, the most famous mathematician from the Gupta Empire, was one of first scientists to use algebra. He was the one who introduced the concept of zero. After the Arabs conquered parts of India, they adopted this system. Today it is called the Indian-Arabic numerical system. **  **__5 Most Important People:__** **1.** **Siddhartha Gautama- founded Buddhism, 2nd most important religion in Ancient India**  **2.** **Asoka- most powerful ruler for the Mauryan Dynasty, grandson of Chandragupta Mauyra**
 * 3.** **Aryabhata- famous mathematician who introduced the number 0 (zero)**
 * 4.** **Chandragupta Mauyra- drove out the Persians for his empire**
 * 5.** **Aryans- took over the Indus River Valley, spread the religion Hinduism**

**__5 Key Terms:__** **1.** **Caste System- the rigid categories that determined not only a person’s occupation and economic potential, but also his or her position in society**
 * 2.** **Hinduism- the most prominent religion in Ancient India**
 * 3.** **Reincarnation- the belief that the soul is reborn in a different form after death**
 * 4.** **Buddhism- the 2nd most prominent religion in Ancient India**
 * 5.** **Silk Road- during the Kushan Kingdom, the road which mostly silk was traded**

 **LINKS:**
 * **Religion in India Religion in India is really important to the people. This sites talks about the main religions in India.**
 * **Indian Festivals Site This site mentions most of the festivals that go around in India. It also gives information about upcoming events.**
 * **All Religions All the religions in Ancient India including the ones that people might miss.. **
 * **History of India This site has more links so that you can explore the events that happened during the ancient times .**
 * <span style="display: block; font-family: Georgia,serif; text-align: left;">**Indian History This site is about all the empires during ancient times. It covers most of the empires we talked above.**

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media type="youtube" key="FzOKUTJK8Wc" height="315" width="420" <span style="background-color: #ffffff; display: block; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; text-align: left;">"An insincere and evil friend is more to be feared than a wild beast; a wild beast may wound your body, but an evil friend will wound your mind." <span style="background-color: #ffffff; display: block; font-family: 'Times New Roman'; font-size: 16px; text-align: left;">~<span style="color: #660099; font-family: Verdana,Arial,Helvetica,sans-serif; font-size: 10pt; text-decoration: none;">[|Buddha]
 * **<span style="color: #e46c0a; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">1000 B.C. ** || * <span style="color: #00b050; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">Aryans begin composing the Vedas ||
 * **<span style="color: #e46c0a; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">563 B.C. ** || * <span style="color: #00b050; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">Gautama (the Buddha) is born ||
 * **<span style="color: #e46c0a; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">500 B.C. ** || * <span style="color: #00b050; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">Buddhism develops ||
 * **<span style="color: #e46c0a; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">480 B.C. ** || * <span style="color: #00b050; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">Gautama (the Buddha) dies ||
 * **<span style="color: #e46c0a; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">327 B.C. ** || * <span style="color: #00b050; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">Alexander the Great conquers NW India ||
 * **<span style="color: #e46c0a; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">301 B.C. ** || * <span style="color: #00b050; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">Chandragupta Maurya dies ||
 * **<span style="color: #e46c0a; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">232 B.C. ** || * <span style="color: #00b050; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">Asoka dies ||
 * **<span style="color: #e46c0a; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">100 A.D. ** || * <span style="color: #00b050; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">Silk Road connects China and Mesopotamia ||
 * **<span style="color: #e46c0a; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">320 A.D. ** || * <span style="color: #00b050; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">Gupta kingdom begins ||
 * **<span style="color: #e46c0a; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">415 A.D. ** || * <span style="color: #00b050; font-family: Georgia,serif; font-size: 14pt;">Chandragupta II ends his reign ||