Global 9 Honors Final Exam Review Notes
Brahmins and Moksha
Brahmins (priests) who lived a moral and virtuous life (positive karma) leads to moksha after death.
Moksha: Enlightenment and eternal union with Brahman, the universal soul. It can only be achieved by Brahmins who lived a moral and virtuous life, leading to positive karma after death.
Moksha ends the cycle of samsara.
Samsara: Reincarnation after death. Although the body dies, the soul lives on in multiple bodies until someone achieves moksha.
Harappan Civilization
South Asia's first civilization, belonging to people known as the Dravidians.
They never united into a single kingdom, but two cities of Harappa and Mohenjo-daro dominated the region.
The two cities were believed to be the centers of political and economic life in the river valley.
Greatest achievements of these urban centers included complex urban planning (gridded cities, sewage system, showers, garbage chutes).
Relatively little is known about them because of their undeciphered writing script.
There is evidence of long-distance trade with other ancient civilizations, such as Persia, Mesopotamia and Egypt.
Harappan civilization began to decline around 1900 BCE, and the river valley was completely abandoned by 1500 BCE.
Some possible reasons for their collapse are natural disasters such as floods or earthquakes.
The most commonly accepted theory is the environmental deterioration after centuries of deforestation and loss of topsoil.
Confucianism
Beliefs: All men, particularly those serving in government, should be intelligent, benevolent, respectful, and selfless.
Five Relationships: Ruler to subject, father to son, etc., determines how people should interact with one another by labeling the superior and inferior roles.
Roles were determined by status, age, and gender.
Filial Piety: Utmost respect and devotion to parents and elders, particularly men. Heavily emphasized during the Han Dynasty.
Major works: The Analects, teachings compiled by Confucius' students.
Daoism
Beliefs: Dao means "The Way."
Goal is to find balance in nature and through spontaneous, effortless action.
Daoists also believe in the balance of the forces of Yin and Yang.
Encourages passivism, disengagement, and essentially anarchy: "the best government is the one that governs least."
Daoists were also fierce critics of Confucianism.
Doctrine of Wuwei: disengage from politics and public life - attempts to improve society will only make things worse.
Chinese citizens often practiced both Confucianism and Daoism, being "Confucian by day and Daoist by night" (Confucianism was used as public policy, while Daoism was a private pursuit).
Major works: The Daodejing, written by Lao Tzu.
Legalism
Beliefs: Political philosophy that states that humans are naturally selfish, and authoritarian governments are the only way to maintain law and order in society.
Intellectualism and literacy are discouraged and distrusted, and law is considered more important than morality.
Harsh punishments for minor crimes; "the ends justify the means."
Major works: The Book of Lord Shang & Han Feizi.
Shi Huangdi
Emperor who reunites all of China in 221 BCE.
Strictly enforces legalism throughout the empire.
Responsible for beginning construction of new roads, bridges, and canals across China, as well as the Great Wall, terracotta warriors, and standardized Chinese script, currency, and measurement system.
Buried Confucian scholars alive and burned countless books and documents from the Zhou Dynasty.
The Qin collapsed in 207 BCE, just three years after his death.
Han Wudi
Ruled the Han Dynasty for more than 50 years.
Built the Imperial University with Confucian curriculum.
Chandragupta Maurya
Founder of the Mauryan Empire (321-185 BCE), making him the first to unify India.
He created a strong centralized government based on the Achaemenid satrap system, which was installed in India after extending his empire into the Indus River valley.
Ashoka
Grandson of Chandragupta Maurya, and ruled at the height of the Mauryan Empire.
Converted to Buddhism after defeating the kingdom of Kalinga.
He built the famous rock and pillar edicts throughout his empire to promote Buddhism, preach ahimsa (nonviolence), and encourage citizens to be moral and kind.
Ashoka also spread Buddhism by sponsoring missionaries to travel along India's trade routes.
As a result of Ashoka's efforts, Buddhism temporarily became popular in India, but Hinduism would ultimately outlast it.
Ashoka improved the bureaucracy that Chandragupta Maurya built, established diplomatic relations with other countries, and created a common law code throughout the empire.
Maurya Empire
India's first unified empire (321 - 185 BCE).
In the 320s BCE, Alexander the Great conquered northern India but immediately left after his army mutinied.
This created a power vacuum that allowed Chandragupta Maurya to establish the empire.
The centralized governmental structure that Chandragupta Maurya established was able to thrive with the help of his top advisor, Kautilya, author of the Arthashastra (political guide used by Indian rulers, strictly reinforcing patriarchal and Hindu norms), and was further improved upon by Chandragupta Maurya's grandson, Ashoka.
After Ashoka's death, the Maurya Empire immediately began to decline, and completely collapsed just 50 years later.
Gupta Empire
India's second unified empire (320 - 550 CE), which achieved a golden age.
The empire was founded by Chandra Gupta, and reached its peak under his grandson Chandra Gupta II.
The Gupta had a decentralized political system, making it the exception to how most golden ages have occurred, but it was successful largely due to the tremendous wealth India received from Silk Road and Indian Ocean trade.
The Gupta had achievements in math (concept of zero, decimal system, ) and astronomy (radius of earth, solar calendar) led by Aryabhatta, as well as in medicine (diseases classified, inoculations, printed medicinal guides).
The Gupta Empire also experienced achievements in literature led by the poet Kalidasa, as well as finalizing the Hindu epic poems such as the Mahabharata (which includes the Bhagavad Gita).
The famous Buddhist monastery at Nalanda became a famous institute of learning as well, where philosophy, astronomy, and medicine were also studied.
The Gupta Empire collapsed as a result of invasions from the White Huns, who were nomads from Central Asia.
After the collapse of the Gupta Empire, India was unable to reunify for nearly a thousand years, proving how difficult it was for India to maintain political unity.
Hellenic Age
(800-323 BCE) Also known as the era of the city-states: Polis (singular), Poleis (plural).
The Hellenic Period is considered to begin in 800 BCE because this was when the city-states began to communicate with each other again, as evident in the beginning of the Olympic games in 776 BCE.
Each polis was independent from one another, with their only major cultural similarities being in language and religion.
The two most powerful city-states were Sparta (located in the Peloponnesian peninsula) and Athens.
Sparta was a highly militaristic society, where upwards of 80% of people were slaves known as helots.
Athens was the cultural center of Greece, and the founders of democracy and philosophy.
After winning the Persian Wars, Athens achieved a golden age (also known as the Age of Pericles) by conquering other poleis and forcing them to join the Delian League.
Golden age achievements included philosophy, art and architecture, and theater. The funds from the Delian League were used to rebuild, beautify, and improve the city of Athens (which was destroyed in the Persian Wars).
This ultimately forced Sparta to wage war against Athens, in a Greek civil war known as the Peloponnesian War, which is when Pericles gave his famous Funeral Oration.
Neolithic Revolution
Occurred from 10,000 BCE - 3,000 BCE, mostly in river valleys.
A gradual transition from small, nomadic groups of hunter-gatherers to larger, agricultural settlements all across the world.
Agriculture led to a food surplus, which led to massive population growth.
This created permanent civilizations, led to agricultural and technological advancements, specialization of labor, but made society extremely unequal (patriarchal and socially stratified).
Hierarchies were created to determine status, and land became the primary source of determining wealth.
Relationship between environment and religion
Earliest civilizations were settled along rivers due to the fertile soil and silt that was deposited after floods.
Floods were often dangerous and unpredictable, meaning they could either guarantee or destroy a successful harvest.
Because of this, they began to believe that the gods were directly responsible for every event in the natural world.
Mesopotamia was also entirely flat, making it easy for invaders to conquer the entire region. However, Sumerian culture remained dominant in Mesopotamia despite the rise and fall of various empires.
Mesopotamian political systems
Before empires, each city-state had their own king, ziggurat, and laws.
The earliest governments were established for irrigation and agricultural purposes, to ensure that food surpluses would continue.
After the establishment of empires in Mesopotamia, governments began to focus on maintaining order and creating a common culture across their growing empire by creating a codified law system.
As empires continued to expand over larger territories, stricter law systems became more common in an attempt to force conquered peoples into being obedient.
A common feature in these law codes was lex talionis ("law of retaliation"), where punishments were scaled based on social status.
Varna
Aryan term for the caste system, literally means "color".
It was originally used to segregate Aryans and Dravidians, but also outlined socio-economic status.
Originally, everyone fit into four main classes, and changing social classes within one's life was extremely rare.
One's varna, or caste, determined virtually every aspect of their life.
Varna was determined at birth, which Hindus believed was decided based on someone's karma and dharma from the previous life.
Hinduism is inextricably linked to the caste system because Hindus believed religious concepts determined one's caste.
Jati
Subcaste. As Indian civilization became more complex and job specialization continued to expand, not everyone fit into the four original social classes.
As a result, new subcastes were created to determine people's wealth and status in society.
Karma
The effects of all the actions throughout one's life that determines reincarnation in the next life.
Good karma results in being born in a higher caste; bad karma results in being born in a lower caste.
Dharma
Responsibilities and obligations that are specific to each caste or subcaste.
Since dharma is unique to each profession, dharma kept order and stability in society.
Moksha
Enlightenment and eternal union with Brahman, the universal soul.
Moksha is only achieved by Brahmins (priests) who lived a moral and virtuous life (positive karma) leading to moksha after death.
Peloponnesian War
Conflict between Athens and Sparta.
Sparta won, with assistance from the Persians.
This conflict was so destructive that it ultimately led to Greece being conquered first by Macedonian King Philip II, then Alexander the Great.
Hellenistic Age
(323 - 100 BCE) 323 BCE is the year that Alexander the Great died, after conquering Egypt, Persia, and northern India.
As a result of his conquest and subsequent death, three new Hellenistic empires were established and governed by his top generals (Seleucid Persia; Ptolemaic Egypt; Antigonid Macedon).
The empires were not evenly divided, as borders were established to resemble previous empires.
This era is characterized by an explosion of Greek culture and the blending of Greek, Egyptian, Persian, and Indian cultures Trade, philosophy, art, religion, and education all flourished during this time.
Athenian Democracy
Athens was first a monarchy, then an aristocracy, before finally becoming a democracy.
The first steps towards democracy began under Solon and was finalized under Cleisthenes.
The democratic system reached its height under the leadership of Pericles, but voting rights (suffrage) were only extended to land-owning Athenian adult men.
Despite their democratic ideals, women had no rights in Athenian society, and their counterparts in Sparta were actually treated better.
Nonetheless, the invention of Athenian democracy is considered one of the greatest achievements of the classical era. Their democracy and the funds taken from the Delian League were two main causes of their golden age.
Alexander's Conquests and Hellenism
Alexander conquered Greece, Anatolia, Egypt, Persia, and northern India.
All lands were briefly united under Alexander until his death in 323 BCE, but he spent his years as emperor focusing on further military conquest rather than governing. After his death, three Hellenistic empires were created.
The Antigonid in Macedon, Seleucid in Persia, and Ptolemaic in Egypt. These three empires cooperated to create law systems and promote trade between their empires. They also dominated trade across the Silk Road from Central Asia to the Mediterranean, which led to greater interest in the arts.
The new culture that was created is known as Hellenistic, due to the largely Greek influence, such as Greek language, religion, art, architecture (Greek columns), and more. As Greek culture spread, it blended with the Egyptian, Persian, and Indian cultures to create Hellenism.
The greatest example of cultural diffusion in the Hellenistic era was the great library at Alexandria in Egypt. Alexandria became one of the wealthiest cities in the world because of its role in Mediterranean trade. The library housed books from Egypt, Mesopotamia, and across the Mediterranean world. The cultural diffusion across the Hellenistic world led to advances in philosophy, math, and science (Stoicism and Epicureanism, Euclidean geometry, Archimedes Screw, Eratosthenes' circumference of the earth, etc.)
Roman Republic
Rome was originally governed by Etruscan kings, but were overthrown in 509 BCE and was replaced with a representative democracy.
The republic included three branches of government: the consuls (served one year terms), the senators (patricians who served for life) and the assembly. It also had a system of checks and balances to prevent the consolidation of absolute power.
Pax Romana
200 years of peace and prosperity under the Roman empire, beginning with Augustus (Octavian) in 27 BCE and concludes with the death of Marcus Aurelius in 180 CE.
During this time, Rome achieved relative peace within the empire, allowing trade to flourish. Rome's greatest architectural feats were built at this time including the Colosseum, the Pantheon and the Pont du Gard aqueduct. Because of these advancements and their impact on the future of Europe, this era is generally considered to be a golden age.
Punic Wars
Three wars fought between Rome and Carthage from approximately 240 BCE to 140 BCE.
The wars began over access to Sicily, the largest grain producer in the Mediterranean. Rome won all three wars, expanding their empire
Han Golden Age
Centralizing to Shi Huangdi - Replaced by Han Dynasty
curriculum, created a bureaucratic meritocracy and civil service exams, and was nicknamed the Martial Emperor for conquering Korea, Vietnam, and defeating the Xiongnu in Central Asia. He also monopolized iron and salt to fund the construction of new roads and bridges throughout China. The Han Dynasty reached its peak under him.
Royal Road
Primary road for transportation and communication throughout the western half of the Achaemenid Empire.
Used largely for the government to maintain power and communicate with the satraps, but also used to trade goods throughout the empire. By controlling three river valley civilizations, unique cultures, foods and goods were exchanged throughout the empire. Along the Silk and Royal Roads, caravanserais were constructed (inns and markets for people traveling the Royal Road by camel caravans) which improved trade and cultural diffusion across Central and Southwest Asia.
Characteristics of Achaemenid, Seleucid, Parthian, Sassanid Empires
Achaemenid: First and greatest of the Persian empires. Founded by Cyrus, and Darius was their greatest ruler. Their legacy includes the rise of Zoroastrianism; policies of toleration; a centralized government that relied on satraps; the creation of the qanat system, caravanserai, and the Royal Road; but ultimately were defeated by the Greeks in the Persian Wars and were conquered by Alexander the Great. Persepolis was the capital city, which was the center of government and heart of the empire until it was destroyed by Alexander.
Seleucid: Ruled by Alexander's general, Seleucus. One of three Hellenistic Empires, created after the death of Alexander in 323 BCE. The Hellenistic Empires were characterized by the overwhelming addition of Greek culture, and diffusion of cultural elements from Persia, Egypt, and India.
Parthian: The Parthians were semi-nomadic, but were able to build an empire through their strong cavalry by feeding them alfalfa. Although they tried to maintain the satrap system from earlier empires, they were inexperienced at governing. They collapsed due to internal rebellion and ongoing wars with the Romans.
Sassanid: Modeled themselves closely after the Achaemenids, and made Zoroastrianism the official religion of the empire. However, unlike the Achaemenids, they were not tolerant of other religions, specifically targeting and persecuting Christians. They were conquered by the Arabs in 651 CE, and Islam replaced Zoroastrianism.
Buddhism
Founded by Siddhartha Gautama during the 6th century BCE. After believing he achieved enlightenment (nirvana) while living an extremely ascetic lifestyle, fasting, and meditating, he sought to help others do the same. The core tenets of Buddhism are the Four Noble Truths and the Eightfold Path. Together, these teachings explain that life is full of suffering as a result of our constant desires, but that suffering can end if we learn to stop desiring altogether; and following the Eightfold Path trains us to do so. Since Buddhism states that anyone can achieve nirvana, Buddhists disavow the caste system in its entirety. However, both Buddhists and Hindus believe in reincarnation and the importance of ahimsa (nonviolence). Over time, Buddhism evolved into two different sects: Theravada ("lesser vehicle," original, ascetic version), and Mahayana ("greater vehicle," revised, more lenient version). Mahayana became the most popular sect, and was diffused across the Silk Roads to China, Korea, and Japan. Mahayana Buddhism includes bodhisattvas, who are Buddhists who are capable of attaining nirvana but delay doing so in order to assist others.