Chapter 7

Indian Civilization Hinduism and Buddhism

Early India 2500 to 1500 B.C.E

The first known Indigenous people of

the Indus valley were known as the

Dasas, or Pre-Aryan. They built

complex cities around the Indus and

Ganges Rivers…

The Vedic Period 1500 to 300 B.C.E

Sometime around 1500 B.C.E.

peoples from Russia and Central Asia

begin to settle in Northern India.

• Brought early forms of language,

Sanskrit… and Hinduism.

Hinduism The word Hinduism derives from the

word Sindhu, the Sanskrit name for

the Indus River. The Indus and the

Ganges River were used to purify...

Hindu worship focuses on a pantheon

of gods/supernatural…

In Hinduism the ideal life has four

basic basic goals:

1) Dharma: human righteousness

2) Artha: accumulation of success

3) Kama: pursuit of spiritual love

4) Moksha: release from pleasure

Ganesha (centre) with Shiva (top left),

Devi (top right), Vishnu (bottom left)

and Surya (bottom right);

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WcrZr6aNHfw

Hindu Gods… At the Center of Hindu religious

thought is the idea of BRAHMAN

(sometimes called Brahmanism)

Brahman is best explained in 3 Gods:

1. Brahma: source of being the

creator…

1. Vishnu: the preserver,

forgiveness, and love…

1. Shiva: the destroyer, disease and

death…

Brahma, the god who created knowledge and then universe

Hindu Gods cont.

• Vishnu is usually described as

having dark complexion of water-

filled clouds and having four arms.

• He is depicted as a pale blue

being, as are his incarnations Rama

and Krishna.

• Vishnu holds a lotus flower in

his lower left hand. Mace in his

lower right hand. Conch in his

upper left hand. Discus weapon

in the upper right hand…

Four Armed Vishnu

Vishnu cont…

The Sudarshana Chakra is a

spinning, disk-like weapon with 108

serrated edges used by the Hindu

god Vishnu.

Four Armed Vishnu https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-tKT-dKp07M

Hindu Gods cont.

The main iconographical attributes

of Shiva are the third eye on his

forehead, the snake Vasuki around

his neck, the adorning crescent

moon, the holy river Ganga flowing

from his matted hair, the trishula as

his weapon and the damaru as his

musical instrument.

• The word is derived from the

Sanskrit root śarv-, which

means "to injure" or "to kill”.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqC1QrFSBBA

Hindu Class

Structure Among the worship of multiple

gods and natural forces, the social

structure of India is largely based

on the division of society into

four distinct classes, or castes…

• Brahmins - Priests

• Kshatriyas - Warriors

• Vaishyas - Merchants

• Shudras - Servants • Dalits, or outcasts… fall outside

of the main four…

“Untouchables” Group of Brahmanas, 1913

Brahmins – Priests

At the top of the social order, the

Brahmins serve as Hindu Society’s

priests, leaders, seers, and religious

authorities…

• Brahmins attained the highest

spiritual knowledge…

• Begin the study of the vedras

early in childhood…

• Responsible for religious

rituals in temples and

homes… Births, weddings,

birthdays, pilgrimages, etc.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=442Yb2XXZQo

Kshatriyas - Warriors

In ancient times were Hindu

society’s kings and aristocratic

warriors, but more recently have

been its administrators, politicians,

and civil authorities. • It was considered their duty

(dharma) to acquire knowledge

of weapons and governance.

• The science of weaponry

(dhanurveda) was one of the

13 branches of learning.

• Allowed to take up trade and

choose their wives.

Untouchables – The Dalits, are seen as “untouchable” and

therefore avoided by members of other castes. • The word "Dalit” means "ground", "suppressed”, or "broken". • The untouchables clean the streets, sewers, and vegetation… • Clean up after major events and dispose of the dead… • Dalits are born into their status…

Dharavi is a slum in Mumbai, founded in the 1880s during the British colonial era. The colonial government expelled

Dalits, along with their traditional profession of leather and tannery work, from Mumbai (Bombay) peninsula to create

Dharavi. Currently, about 20% of the Dharavi population are Dalits, compared to 16% nationwide. Dalits live together

with other castes, tribes, and Muslims, who constitute 33% of Dharavi's population.

Dharavi has severe problems with public health, due to the scarcity of toilet facilities, due in turn to the fact that most housing and 90% of

the commercial units in Dharavi are illegal. As of November 2006 there was only one toilet per 1,440 residents in Dharavi. Mahim Creek, a

local river, is widely used by local residents for urination and defecation, leading to the spread of contagious diseases. The area also suffers

from problems with inadequate drinking water supply.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s_0X0wIvqVM

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iTSRHiOA2Ag

Buddhism

One of the most widely practiced

religions/philosophies that

encompasses a variety of traditions,

beliefs and spiritual practices largely

based on the teachings of Siddhārtha

Gautama, more commonly known as

Buddah.

• Buddha lived and taught in the

northeastern part of India sometime

between the 6th & 4th centuries BCE.

• The ultimate goal is the attainment

of the sublime state of Nirvana, or

ENLIGHTENMENT.

• The three Jewels of Buddhism:

Buddha, Dharma, Sangha…

The Buddah

• The Buddha's birthplace is

argued to be in Lumbini…

• His father, is said to be King

Śuddhodana head of the

Shakya clan…

• The center capital of the

Shakya was Kapilavastu…

• Given the name Siddhartha

"he who achieves his aim”.

• Baby would either become a

great king or a holy man.

The Dharma In Buddhism dharma means

"cosmic law and order”, and is

applied to the teachings of the

Buddha…

The Four Noble Truths are at

the center of Buddhist teachings.

1. The truth of dukkha

(suffering, anxiety,

unsatisfactoriness). 2. The origin of dukkha,

selfishness, and desire… 3. The cessation of dukkha… 4. The truth of a path…

At the age of 35, Siddhartha sat in meditation under a Ficus religiosa tree now called the Bodhi Tree

in the town of Bodh Gaya and vowed not to rise before achieving enlightenment. After many days,

he finally destroyed the fetters of his mind, thereby liberating himself from the cycle of suffering and

rebirth, and arose as a fully enlightened being (Skt. samyaksaṃbuddha).

Buddhism is practiced by an estimated 488 million, 495 million, or 535 million

people as of the 2010s, representing 7% to 8% of the world's total population.

China is the country with the largest population of Buddhists, approximately 244

million or 18.2% of its total population. They are mostly followers of Chinese

schools of Mahayana, making this the largest body of Buddhist traditions. Mahayana,

also practiced in broader East Asia, is followed by over half of world Buddhists.