AWH Unit 3: Ancient India

Ancient Indian Civilizations

1

This is the oldest civilization in India, which developed around the Indus River Valley. 

Harappan Civilization

1

This culture rose to power in Eastern India around the Ganges River, and may have taken power after invading India from Central Asia.

Aryans

2

This ancient language was developed and used in ancient India (its writing is pictured here).

Sanskrit

2

This social structure, which at one time contained more than 3,000 distinct levels, further subdivided the four varnas (Brahmins, Kshatriyas, Vaisyas, and Sudras) into smaller sub-groups.

Caste System

3

These sacred texts led to the development of Brahmanism, and continue to be held as holy texts by the largest religion in India today. What are these texts called?

The Vedas

Indian Religion

1

This is the largest Indian religion today, which developed from the earlier faith called Brahmanism.

Hinduism

1

This concept, which says that people store up rewards or consequences for themselves based on their actions during their life, can either be "good" or "bad" and would have drastic implications for a person's religious and social future.

Karma

2

This term, called samsara in India, means that a person's spirit, or atman, will be reborn into a new body for an indeterminate number of lives, until achieving salvation.

Reincarnation

2

This group, which made up about 5% of ancient Indian population, was outside of the social hierarchy system and was considered "unclean" by the majority of society.

Untouchables

3

These are religious rituals and rites of passage that are supposed to help prepare a person for the next stage of life. For example, name giving ceremonies are one of these rituals.

samskaras

Buddhism

1

This is the name of the historical individual who took on the title of "The Buddha"

Siddhartha Gautama

1

This term refers to the ultimate state of peace that Buddhists believe a person can achieve during their lifetime.

Nirvana

2

According to the Buddha, this is the cause of suffering in the world.

Desire

2

According to Buddhism, these ideas establish the cause of suffering, and describe how a person can eliminate that suffering from their life.

The Four Noble Truths

3

This term describes the Buddhist practices that a person should follow in their day-to-day life in order to eventually reach ultimate peace.

The Eightfold Path