Early River Civilizations

Indus Valley

Physicalgeography of India

India is a subcontinent of Asia (attached to the continent but surrounded on 3 sides by water)Ancient Indian myth

River god/goddess

Brahmaputra River

Starts high up in the HimalayasMonsoon: large wind that often brings a high volume of rainEventually joins the Ganges River

Deccan Plateau

area between the Eastern and Western GhatsPlateau: elevated area of land that is flatter than a mountainDifferent areas to the plateau

Eastern & Western Ghats

Western Ghats: higher, steep slopes, narrow valleys, thick forests, wet climateEastern Ghats: climate not as wet, several rivers that rarely flood

Ganges River

Flows across most of northern IndiaCarries rich sediment to the northern plains of IndiaKnown to flood during the rainy season

Himalaya Mountains

Located along India’s northern borderMt. EverestNatural barrier

Hindu Kush Mountains

Khyber Pass : 28-mile long gap between the mountains

Connects central Asia to the Indian subcontinent

Indus River

Begins in the HimalayasFlows through Pakistan and empties into the Arabian SeaIndus River Valley contains some of the best farmland in the world

Thar Desert

In Northern India – mostly sand and stoneHeat is usually unbearable; dust storms commonVariety of wildlife: lizards, snakes, gazelles, quail, ducks, geese

Farming settlements sprang up in the Indus valley region as early as 6500 BCE

Harappan society and its neighbors, ca. 2000 B.C.E.

Harappan Culture

Indus valleynot desertwell-watered and heavily forested

500 miles along the river valley

Foundations of Harappan Society

The Indus RiverSilt-enriched water from mountain ranges

Major society built by Dravidian peoples, 3000-2500 BCEMajor cities: Harrapa and Mohenjo-Daro

Agriculture: flood-controlsignificant industry and trade

cities very common

Lack of Sources literate culture

Seals

Carved pictographsMany animals found Unclear what they were used for

“Unicorn” seal + writing

More seals

…and more seals...

rapid development: early 2,000s B.C.E.roughly contemporary with Egypt and Mesopotamia

cities dominated both economic and political activityorigins of the people are unclear

Major Cities

Harappa and Mohenjo-Darosurrounded by smaller cities, towns, and villages

one situated in the northone situated in the south

Mohenjo-Daro Ruins

Located in the Indus River valleyPopulation c. 40,000Regional centerStandardized weights evident throughout region

Cities, con’t

uniform culture over a wide areacities built on a common plan

a grid: always NS and EW axesCitadelBelow citadel – many houses and workshops

Grid map

of

Mohenjo-Daro

Mohenjo-Daro : aerial view

The Great Bath

Located in the citadel39’ long x 8’ deepHad available dressing rooms and drains to empty dirty water

The “Great Bath”

view of a small, side street

A bathroom on a private residence

A large drain or sewer

Monumental architecture

very-large scale buildingwalled cites, with fortified citadelsalways on the same scalepalaces, temples

Architecture, con’t

large grain storage facilities near templesa theocracy ??

Harappan granary

Sewer System

Carried waste away from housesHad a complex system of drains, pipes, wells, and bathrooms

Cities

very densely populatedhouses: two to three stories; flat roofsevery house is laid out the same

Culture and Society

advanced agriculturesurplus productiontextilesdomesticated animals and fishmen and women also dressed in colourful robes

Entertainment

Toys DiceGaming piecesFigurines

Bronze Age technology

no swordsspears and bowsstone arrow heads

Society

dominated by priests from the fortified palaces and temples ?power base?deities: male and female, both nudebull worship and phallic symbols

Trade

with lower Mesopotamiabut gradually declined

Decline

domination of an indigenous people ?foreign invasion?comets?

Combination of Changes

climate shift: the monsoon patternsfloodingdestruction of the forestsmigrations of new peoples: the Aryans

The Aryan “Invasion”

AryansDravidians, darker-skinned sedentary inhabitants of Harappa

Possible route of the Aryan invasions

The Early AryansPastoral economyReligious and Literary works: The Vedas

SanskritPrakritFour Vedas, most important Rig Veda

Settlement, con’t

gradual infiltrationnew society by 1,200 B.C.E. or sonot literateno record system

Oral Tradition

passed down from priests and singerswritten down in the 500’sThe Vedas

The Vedas

early Aryan traditionlater Hindu religion

four “vedas”the Rig Veda is the oldest

The Vedas

oral poetryprovide some historical information

The Aryans

restless, warlike peopletall, blue-eyed, fair-skinned

The Aryans, con’t

villages and kingdoms constantly fightingWar chiefsaristocrats and freemen

The Aryans, con’t

fond of fighting, etc.fond of taking soma

Aryans and Hindus

Aryans give rise to Hindu societybut different characteristics

cows: they ate themclasses, but no castespriests subordinate to the nobility

the Mahabharata

The Iron Age: new sources

the Vedasthe Brahamanas: interpretations on the Vedasthe Upanishads: interpretations and symbolic studies

Strain of change

Iron Age change causes strain on the class systemblurring of lines between Aryans and Dasa

Caste System, 1000 BCE

skin colorritual purity“Us--Them” feelingsdivine order of four castes

Caste System (“Varnas”)

Brahmins: the priestsKshatriyas: the warriorsVaisyas: merchants and peasantsSudras: non-Aryans

Caste system, con’t

literature emphasized the divine orderhierarchical relationship

Caste system in practice

warrior class did not always accept itthe most powerful organizer of Indian society

Castes

define a person’s social universedefine a person’s standard of conductdefine a person’s expectationsdefine a person’s futuredefine how a person deals with others