unit 1 + extra midterm

origins of Judaism, christianity, islam

• judaism: started by the Hebrews

• christianity: started following the crucification of Jesus of nazareth (who was trying to revitalize Judaism from corruption)

• Islam: started by muhammad ibn Abdullah after having an religious experience stating that he was one of allah’s messengers, and needed to start a faith for the arabs

what are the commonalities among the three middle eastern traditions

all emerged from Jerusalem, build off each other, have reference to abraham

beliefs of Judaism, Islam, christianity

• judaism: monotheistic, saw God as compassionate + God of social justice

• Islam: monotheistic, saw quaran as words of allah

• Christianity: monotheistic, son, ghost, holy spirit, Bible = words of God

practices of Judaism, Christianity, Islam

• judaism: following 10 commandments, living morally, only accepting their god

• Christianity: prayer & scripture, living morally, following the bible

• Islam: prayer, pilgrimage to mecca, reading the quaran

sufis

practicers of sufism — mystical branch of islam that wanted a more personal interaction with the faith

sunnis

believe that muhammad’s successor should have been a wise religious leader who was elected

shiites (shia)

branch of Islam that believers muhammad’s successor should have been a blood relative

why was Jesus crucified

he was seen as a political rebel and social threat because his teachings stood up for those who were mistreated, threatening the roman’s rule

how did Christianity spread

• saint paul rode around teaching the word of Jesus, attracted people due to its inclusivity

• Constantine adopted it as official religion

  • caused it to get a hierarchical organization

• spread to ethiopia, Eritrea & east turkey

why did christianity have major splits

its massive geographic scope & different cultural backgrounds of different regions

impact of Islam on Arab society

• challenged their previously polytheistic views

• challenges their tribal clan structure

• implemented a new community — umma

impact of Islam socially

criticized common practices in mecca

• hoarding wealth

• exploitation of the poor

• charging high rates of interest on loans

• corrupt business practices

• abuse of women & rejection of widows/children

  • demanded social justice

how did Islam spread

muhammad unified arabia under islam by military power

• then created an empire by expanding outwards, bringing islam

  • justified by saying Muslims needed to be united

role of the ulama in Islamic society

• served as high level elites

  • teachers/preservers of islam

  • taught at colleges, attracting students around the world

origins of Hinduism, Buddhism, confucianism, daoism

• hinduism: developed along side india’s caste system

• Buddhism: started by siddhartha gautama after becoming spiritually enlightened after trying to find the root and cure of human suffering

• confucianism: started by confucius as a way to end china’s warring state

• daosim: started by Laozi as way to end china’s warring state

beliefs of Hinduism, Buddhism, confucianism, daoism

• hinduism: law of karma, rebirth/reincarnation, brahman

• buddhism: law of karma, rebirth/reincarnation,

• confucianism: moral behavior brings peace, society is filled with unequal relations so the person in power should treat the lower well in order to get respect

• daosim: in order to gain social harmony & peace we must reject society + withdraw into nature

  • live like the dao: unchanging principle that governs nature

practices of Hinduism, Buddhism, confucianism, daoism

• hindusim: study of the faith, meditation, rituals,

• Buddhism: meditation, following eightfold path, living modestly/morally, accepting reality

• confucianism: filial piety (honoring ancestors), education, rituals/ceremonies showing proper rules

• daosim: simple living, self-sufficient communities, limited gov., rejection of education

mahayana buddhism

more religious branch of Buddhism, more accessible for general public

• saw Buddha as deity

• centered on compassion

theravada buddhism

saw Buddha as wise teacher — rejected the idea of Buddha as deity, followers very disciplined

bhakti movement

devotional form of Hinduism centered on personal devotion and love for an Indian deity in order to gain salvation

neo-confucianism

revitalized version of confucianism that blended aspects of buddhism and daosim into confucianism

what is the goal to Hinduism and how is it achieved

goal- gain union with brahman, moksha (liberation)

achieved by:

• study

• devotion & meditation

goal of buddhism

achieving nirvana - enlightenment

similarities of Hinduism and buddhism

• idea that life is an illusion

• law of karma & rebirth cycle

• having to overcome the ego

• meditation

• hoping to be released from the cycle (moksha & nirvana)

differences of Buddhism with hindusim

• rejection of brahmins — their religious authority + rituals

• buddhist emphasis on the individual

• rejection of inequalities of caste system

what caused the decline of Buddhism in india

• monestaries wealth & economic intrests

• bhramin priest hostility

• competition with islam

• bhakti movement

tibetan buddhism

focussed on preparation for death

impact of confucianism in Chinese society

• blended with elite culture

• became center piece to Chinese education

• brought sense of democracy — power shouldn’t just be given

role of confucianism in Chinese government

• pointed out inequalities among citizens

• established expectations for higher classes & emperor

• mandate of heaven — right to rule

yin yang of confucianism and daoism

although opposites both are believed to be needed in order to gain balance & peace

impact of daosim on ordinary chinese

• became pop. religion

• became part of spiritual practices

• provided ideology for rebellions

song dynasty political organization

• organized bureaucracy

  • had censorate : looked over parts of gov.

  • used civil service exam to staff gov.

causes of Chinese economic revolution

• adopted of new agricultural tech & Champa rice

  • facilitated increases in food production & pop. growth

what occurred during the Chinese economic revolution

• urbanization

• increased industrial input — increasing the output

  • ex. metallurgy industry

• tech innovations

  • ex. printing, navigational/ship building

• creation of commercialized society

• infrastructure project

  • led to farmers specializing

societal changes during song dynasty’s golden age

• educated men became elites/valued

• women lost jobs

• foot binding : breaking the feet, good look for elite women

• women gained property rights

• education was promoted for some women

what were china’s interactions with Korea like

• tribute relations : gifts for peace

• adopted Confucian values for women and family image

  • restricted women’s rights

• set up bureaucracy & exam system

  • only elite took from interactions

what were china’s interactions with vietnam like

• tribute relations : gifts for peace

• elites adopted traditions: confucianism, Buddhism, daosim

• set up bureaucracy & exam system

• adopted art/writing styles

  • influence stayed with elites, pop. culture stayed dominant

what were china’s interactions with japan like

• voluntary borrowing

• tried to model bureaucracy

• adopted buddhism

  • culture adopted by elites, then spread to commoners — assimilated with culture creating unique identity

japanese politics post Chinese interactions

• tried to use bureaucracy — aristocrats took power

  • created family military forces: samurai & their culture: bushido

japanese religion & culture post Chinese interactions

• adopted buddhism

• local beliefs maintained: assimilation

  • japanese buddhism

• created court life aesthetic

• women maintained roles

• created distinct literary system

how did the Abbasids maintain power

• organized bureaucracy: maintained order across Dar al-islam

• military power: enforced rule

• religion: united population

what led to the collapse of the Abbasid caliphate

• devolution of centralized power from the caliph

• seljuk turks rose & gained political/military power from arabs

• mongol siege of Baghdad collapsed caliphate

sultanate of delhi

muslim outpost in India — set up through military invasion of Islamic turks

-had systematic rule

how did Mahmud of ghazni create new islamic states

through military power & expansion — launched invasions into India, created settlements & used tribute relations

what occurred within al-andalus (spain)

• peaceful relations of abrahamic faiths

  • religious tolerance & assimilation

• major growth in tech & innovations

how did al-mansur contribute to the end of the golden age of al-andalus

• started Christian persecution

  • plundering of churches

  • not allowing Christians & Muslims to interact

  • priests couldn’t carry Bible or cross

  • arab christians could only go certain places

christian reconquest of Spain

done by Isabella & Ferdinand

• forced Muslims & Jews to migrate

  • cultures kept interacting despite

what did the sand roads provided for dar al-islam

• development of new places

• spread of goods/religion

  • new crops — Islamic green rev.

• created economic growth

• developed technologies

intellectual developments in dar al-islam

• translation of texts — house of wisdom

  • blending/building of knowledge from different civilizations

  • ex. arab numeral systems & medicine

what led to mass Islamic conversion in india

• spiritual aspects

• social equality

• avoidance of non-muslim tax

• sufis = God filled men (valued)

scope of Muslim rule in India

• only converted 20-25%

• centered in northern india

• established cultural boarders

vijayanagar

massive Hindu empire — based in southern India in order to resist and prevent Islamic conversions from the north

khmer empire

based in southeast asia — used an organized bureaucracy & religion (hinduism/Buddhism) to maintain power and peace

-started by jayavarman II

internal challenges to Khmer rule

• rebellions by nobles who wanted independence

• conspiracies following succession

fall of Khmer empire

caused by great Thai migration — attacked and conquered Khmer

angkor wat

massive religious complex — Hindu & Buddhist, served as place of religious unity for empire

how did Buddhism shape srivijaya

used buddhist ideals in their political image & used it to justify their rule + maintain peace among their people

how did Hinduism & Buddhism shape funan

• developed societal & political norms

• modeled their state after Indian kingdoms (Hindu)

mayan empire

based in Yucatan: organized in competing city-states — constant war

-very artistically& intellectually based

how was Aztec empire created

• mexica built themselves up (military)

  • gained relations through mercenary service

• built their capital

• marriage alliances

  • triple alliance

    • brought warfare, was conquering empire

how was Aztec empire maintained

• claiming decent to earlier civilizations

• floating gardens: agricultural production

• commercialized economy

• united empire through rituals (ex. human sacrifice)

how was the Inca empire created

• built off earlier Andean societies

• united through military conquest

how was the Inca empire maintained

• formed an intrusive but organized bureaucracy

• had organized population records

• resettlement program

• cultural integration for conquered leaders

• requiring the acceptance of certain gods, but overall holding religious tolerance

• mita labor system

similarities between Incas & aztecs

• gender parallelism: women & men work in different but equal fields

  • same social & political hierarchies

how was cahokia built

started by mound building around the Mississippi river

how was Cahokia maintained

• organized politcs: chiefdom

• agricultural production

how was the ancestral pueblo society built

built on community + natural defense

how was the ancestral Pueblo society maintained

• good defenses

• agriculture

• religious unity

• social structure of kinship & clan systems

how was great Zimbabwe built & maintained

• built: grew as part of trading-post empire

• maintained:

  • participation in trade

    • gave money to maintain & defend themselves

  • religion — united people

how was the ethiopian state maintained

• alliances/diplomatic relations with nearby Muslim states

• military expansion

• economic development

how did feudalism provide order in medieval europe

created a hierarchical social order that gave power to some — running society

how did manorialism provide order in medieval europe

gave manor’s power which knights served, keeping order in the different reigns of the manors in return for land

how did the Catholic church influence society in medieval europe

• legitimized rulers

• unified society

• influence economy bc wealth

• brought war: crusades

how did the Catholic church influence culture in medieval Europe

• created moral codes

• controlled education systems

• influenced art/architecture

• facilitated cultural exchange + rejection of muslims

  • bc crusades

how did black death influence medieval europe

• seen as “divine punishment” -- questioning/rejection of church

• social tensions

• weakened feudalism

• wiped pops. out

how did the Renaissance change intellectual life in europe

put new emphasis on human’s and our abilities

• questioned religion

• pushed for science: scientific rev.

• developed new tech to spread ideas

• translated old texts to build off their knowledge

humanism

non-religious philosophy that focuses on the potential of human beings and their ability to lead ethical lives

secularism

political ideology that separates church and state, and aims to govern societies with a variety of religions

byzantine empire

continuation of holy roman empire meant to return glory to the greco-roman civilization

political organization of Byzantium

• tight centralized bureaucracy under emperor

• ceasaropapism: tight gov. relation with church

  • church was gov. department

role of the Orthodox church

• legitimized emperor’s rule

• gave cultural identity: “orthodox”

why did orthodoxy spread to rus

• unified diverse population

• linked rus to wider network of communication

  • allowed them to borrow from Byzantium

    • political organization

    • art/intellectual aspects

fall of Byzantium

• declined in power from civil wars & invasions

• fell with ottoman siege of Constantinople - 1453

limitations and benefits of western europe’s geography

• benefits:

  • internal trading

  • good climate (agriculture)

• limitations:

  • far from major trading routes

  • hard to unify western europe

how did the political organization of western Europe change over time

• developed as independent states with distinct culture

  • rulers didn’t have to compete with nobles or church

what were the impacts of the political change in western europe

• wars

  • enhanced status of military men

• technological development

what was the role of the Roman catholic church in western European society

• was one commonality among the states, unified & shared information between them

• legitimized rulers

what were urban-based merchants able to do in western europe

• create city-states

• laid groundwork for later systems

  • ex. parliaments & capitalism

high middle ages (1000-1300)

time with good climate & political security + stability

what occurred during the high middle ages

• population growth

• expansion and use of new land

• freeing of many from serfdom

agricultural developments that allowed the high middle ages

• use of better plow (heavy wheeled plow)

• using horses & chinese collar tech.

• three field crop rotation system

environmental impacts of agricultural developments that allowed for the high middle ages

• deforestation

• over fishing

• pollution from extreme human waste

industrial developments during European high middle age

used mechanical energy sources — increased production

• created new division of labor & more opportunities

women’s opportunities gained during europe’s high middle age

• gained access to urban professions + women’s guilds

• church lives offered (nuns) — provide power & education

  • opportunities didn’t last