Studied by 3 peopleWhere did ancient Indian civilization begin?
Indus River Valley by East Africans aka Dravidians
Who were the Aryans and what role did they play in ancient Indian history?
The Aryans were the Indo-Europeans that came through the Khyber Pass. They defeated the Natives (Dravidians) and created the Varna/caste System
Karma (Hinduism term)
the consequences (good or bad) that you receive based on your behavior
Dharma (Hinduism term)
about a person doing their duty and the many steps in life that change your Dharma; spiritual duty
Varna (Hinduism term)
The caste system
Moksha (Hinduism term)
liberation; freeing oneself
Reincarnated (Hinduism term)
to come back into the world as a different being after death
Samsara (Hinduism term)
endless wandering from life to life
Brahmin (Hinduism term)
head of society, gives directions.
Occupations: priests, teachers, philosophers, artists, religious leaders, etc
Has monopoly of literacy and knowledge - can and will exploit lower class
Kshatriya (Hinduism term)
Represents arms + chest of Purusha, meant to protect
Occupations: warlords, warriors, landowners, etc
Vaishya (Hinduism term)
Represent thighs and genitals of Purusha, providers of society
Occupations: merchants, artisans, businessmen, etc
Sudra (Hinduism term)
Represents feet of Purusha
Occupations: Servants, laborers, farmers
There is no concept of dignity of laborer
Dalits (Hinduism term)
Deals w/ disposal of dead bodies, cleaning human/animal waste
Not allowed to touch any member of other class
Purusha (Hinduism term)
a god that Hinduism worships, each caste represents a section of his body
What are the Varnas? Draw and know all levels of the Varna structure.
The Varna system is the caste system that kept ancient India under control
Levels are: Brahmin → Kshatriya → Vaishya → Sudra → Dalits/untouchables
Now give an example of each level (occupation) of the Varna structure.
Brahmin: religious leaders, teachers
Kshatriya: warriors, landowners
Vaishya: merchants, artisans
Sudra: servants, laborers
Dalits/untouchables: disposal of dead bodies, cleaning waste
Why was the caste system in India first created? What does it have to do with reincarnation?
To keep India under control and to make sure everything was peaceful.
It has to do with reincarnation because if one is in the Sudra caste and throughout their life they satisfy their Dharma, then when they are reborn as someone else, they will be in the caste one level up, in the Vaishya caste. The goal was to work your way up to be a Brahmin
Is there a founder of Hinduism? How has this affected the religion?
There is no founder or specific starting point of Hinduism
This makes the religion more abstract because everyone interprets it in different ways
How does someone achieve Moksha? Explain in detail using all of the terms above for Hinduism.
Someone achieves Moksha by satisfying their Dharma in each caste and getting to enlightenment at the final stage. They then are released from samsara and are enlightened
How does a minority maintain power of majority?
Through Varna system
This keeps everything under control and makes it much easier to maintain because everybody knows their place in society and doesn’t try to fight it
Note
Flashcard