Hinduism
The Buddha initially sought to end suffering by following the example of the _________.
What is ascetics
The two most significant epics of Ancient India:
Daily Double: What is the name of the popular sermon from the Mahabharata?
The lowest social rank in India was called the Untouchables, pariahs, outcastes or ...
What is Dalit/Kandala
The Great Being Purusha self-sacrifices to create the varna. What caste is created from his mouth?
Brahmin
According to my caste, I have a sacred duty or __________ and this influences my ___________ or destiny.
What is dharma; karma
What was the name of the man who would become the Buddha?
What is Siddhartha Gautama
Daily Double: Which caste was he from and which caste did he come to dislike? (need both for points)
In The Ramayana, the hero Rama, rescues his wife _____________ after she was captured by the demon-king _____________ and is aided by the monkey-king ______________.
Sita / Ravana / Hanuman
The two main cities of the pre-Vedic Indus valley river culture:
Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro
Buddhism rejects many aspects of Hindu belief, but retains a similar ideology relating to reincarnation. What is the Sanskrit term for reincarnation and how is it depicted through symbolism/iconograpy?
Samsara ; wheel or chakra or chariot wheel
Daily Double: What is the Hindu belief most similar to Nirvana?
Although the Aryans crossed the Hindu Kush mountains into India around the year ___________, Hinduism did not develop for another millennium when the _________________ were written.
What is 1500 BCE & Upanishads
The Buddha describes the two extremes of life to be avoided as ...
What is a life of pleasure and luxury and a life of self-torture.
In the Bhagavad Gita, the hero _________ is convinced of the need to follow his dharma by his friend ___________, who is really the god ___________ in disguise.
Who is Arjuna; Krisha; Vishnu
Describe the three gods of the Trimurti (need more than just their names -- need their manifestations as well)
What is 1) Brahma the creator 2) Vishnu the preserver 3) Shiva the destroyer
Which school of Buddhist thought considers only the Shakyamuni Buddha legitimate?
Theravada
Daily Double: In what year did the Shakyamuni Buddha die?
"Worn-out garments are shed by the body: Worn-out bodies are shed by the dweller within the body. New bodies are donned by the dweller, like garments."
What does the "dweller" refer to?
Atman
What are the Four Noble Truths?
What is 1) Life is suffering 2) Suffering is caused by desire 3) The way to end suffering is to end desire and 4) The way to end desire is to follow the Middle Path
What is the moral of the Bhagavad Gita?
The success or failure of an action does not matter, only whether it is morally correct according to one's dharma
Pillars, Stupas, Rock Chambers/Edicts
In what year did Ashoka's reign end?
232 BCE
Daily Double: What animal is the symbol of Ashoka?
Name the four ideals of Purusartha
What is dharma, artha, kama, moksha
In Mahayana Buddhism, the celestial beings who provide assistance for followers on the pathway to Nirvana are called:
Bodhisattvahs
Daily Double: In Theravada Buddhism, the goal is to become a "perfected one" or __________ and escape reincarnation.
The concept of dharma is emphasized in both of the major epics. Dharma is usually associated with varna, but identify two ways in which filial piety is emphasized in the epics.
Ramayana: Rama obeys father to banish to woods; Lakshman follows his older brother to woods; Sita remains true to Rama; Rama rescues Sita
Mahabharata: Arjuna worries about killing his kin.
Identify three ways in which women were not considered fully equal to men in Ancient India:
1) could not divorce 2) husband could take other wives 3) always a minor to someone in her family (father, husband, son) 4) could not inherit land or money 5) girls family had to pay dowry for her to get married 6) sati
Identify two geographic reasons for the immense agricultural productivity of the Indo-Gangetic Plain
1. Monsoon rains dependably fill rivers
2. Ganges river fed by snowmelt tributaries from the Himalayas and the Deccan Plateau
Daily Double: What is the name of the primary pathway through the mountains from Eurasia into the Indian subcontinent?