classical era

3.1 - geography and religion of china and india

learning goals

determine the setting of the classical era and what makes a civilization classical

the classical era was when ==trade increased== and major belief systems were created.

locate classical civilizations on a map

gupta empire - south asia, 320 - 550 ce

ancient greece - mediterranean sea, 600 bce - 600 ce

maurya empire - south asia, including gupta empire, 321 bce - 180 bce

han empire - east asia, 200 bce - 460 ce

roman empire - mediterranean sea, 509 bce to 476 ce

qin dynasty - east asia, 221 bce - 209 bce

describe the interconnected nature of the classical era

there were four major world trade routes in the 15th century: mediterranean sea compley, silk roads, trans-saharan trade routes, and indian ocean complex. most of these overlap.

classical india

explain how geography affected the development of classical civilizations in india

india is located on asia. there are large mountains present called the himalayas, the presence of these mountain ranges in north and east india led to those who lived in india to have ==limited communication with others.== many civilizations began in the indo-gangetic plan because the indus and ganges river allowed for farming, transportation, etc.

historical circumstances that led to the rise of classical civilizations in india

the historical turning point which led to the creation of permanent settlements in india was the ==neolithic revolution.== the first civilizations in india developed near the river, they were called harappa and mohenjo-daro. hinduism originated in india and still dominates it today, but buddhism was the religion that the mauryan empire supported.

hinduism and buddhism

https://sites.google.com/student.gananda.org/jamminjancie/kids/school o

identify and describe the major beliefs, practices, and sacred texts of hinduism

there was no single founder or date known of hinduism. they have a sacred text called the vedas. hinduism originated in the indus river valley (present day india). there are over 900 million followers. the three main texts were the rig veda, the upanishads, and mahabharata and bhagavad gita. hinduism was a polytheistic religion, and believed in many gods as different forms of the same god, called brahman.

for most of indian history, hindu society has been divided into castes. ==the four major social classes in hindu society were sudras, vaisyas, kshatriyas, and brahmins. brahmins are at the top of the caste system==. their job is to be priests. kshatriyas were warriors. vaisyas were herders, farmers, merchants, and craftspeople. sudras were farm workers, servants, and laborers. the lowest group in hindu society is not an official part of the caste system. they are called dalits, also known as an untouchable and are responsible for “unclean work”.

each person in hindu society is supposed to follow their dharma, as determined by their caste. this ensures that all jobs are done in the society. if a person follows the dharma of their caste, then they will have good karma. if they do not complete their duties, then they will have bad karma. karma is important because hindus believe that when they die, they go through the process of reincarnation. ==if someone has good karma when they die, they will be reborn into a higher caste==. if they do not follow their dharma, and as a result, have bad karma, then they will be reborn into a lower caste. they might even be born as an animal.

==hindus believe that the goal of life is to escape the cycle of death and rebirth. they can do this by achieving “union with brahman.” also known as moksha==. to reach that goal, a person needs to climb the caste ladder until they are brahmins, then they have to fulfill the brahmin’s dharma so they have good karma at the end of their life.

identify and describe the major beliefs, practices, and sacred texts of buddhism

the founder of buddhism was siddhartha gautama, and buddhism was founded in 480 bce. the name of their sacred text was tripitaka. buddhism originated in india and has around 487 million followers. the three categories of the tripitaka are: the code of ethics, accounts of teachings, and verily commentary on teachings. buddhists believe that until you reach nirvana, you will be reincarnated. enlightenment is a still and empty mind, this is achieved by high meditation. to follow the middle way, you must avoid the “two extremes”, sensual happiness (luxury) and self-mortification(discipline). ==the name of the four principles buddha taught were: suffering, cause of suffering, cessation of suffering, and path.== buddhists believe that to eliminate desire and then suffering, you should follow the noble truth of the cessation of suffering. to reach enlightenment, you need a still and empty mind, to do this you must realize the four noble truths and follow the eightfold path.

classical china

explain how geography affected the development of classical civilizations in china

china is located on asia. the mountain range to the southwest of china was the himalayan mountains, these mountains most likely led to no (or very few) contact between chinese and people from south/west of the mountain range. the west part of china was mostly deserts or mountains, so ==eastern china was used for agriculture purposes==. four geographic features that helped isolate china and develop their way of life were the ==himalayan mountains, kunlun mountains, pacific ocean, and tien shan mountains.==

confucianism and daoism were two philosophies developed during the zhou dynasty. the mandate of heaven would move from ruler to ruler because it was believed tyranny and disorder was a sign that new rulers were needed.

belief systems

contextualize the founding of chinese philosophies, including confucianism, daoism, and legalism

identify and describe the major beliefs, practices, and sacred texts of confucianism, daoism, and legalism.

confucianism

confucianism was founded in china, during the late zhou dynasty. the founder was ==confucius==. this government maintained order in society by keeping the best interest of his people before himself and reinforcing and respecting the five relationships. the ==five relationships== are: a king and his subjects, a husband and his wife, parents and their children, older siblings and younger, and friend and a friend. the ==final piety== was respect and devotion to ones parents and ancestors. meritocracy was the belief that all officials were chosen for moral qualities that would help set an example for their people. civil service examinations were examinations to recrute imperial officials and candidates must memorize confucianism teachings.

daoism

daoism was founded in china during the late zhou dynasty and was founded by lao tzu. ==daos tried to stay away from politics== and would live in small communities in harmony with nature. they followed dao (the way) and they believed that nature has a way and people should accept that way. wu-wei was non-action, which means to do nothing unnatural (no one should have excessive desires because they cause injury to self and others). daoism disagreed with confucianism because they believed rather than focusing on ritual they should cultivate te (virtue or power received from dao).

legalism

legalism was founded in china during the late zhou dynasty by hsun tzu. the government maintained order in society by keeping a strong government to enforce rules and clear and strict walls.

• fa (law or principal) - law rewards people who obey, and harshly punishes people who don’t.
• shu (method, control, or art) - no one can fathom rulers motivation, mortality isn’t important in legalism, and special methods/secrets are put in place by the ruler.
• shi (legitimacy, power, or charisma) - the position of the ruler has power, rather than the ruler having power. ==(power comes from the position.)==

3.2 - empires and dynasties of china and india

define and explain the aspects of a “golden age” for civilizations

golden ages are ==periods of great wealth, prosperity, stability, and cultural and scientific achievement.==

indian dynasties

mauryan empire

explain how ahsoka used buddhism to gain, consolidate, and maintain the power of the maurya empire

ahsoka maurya was the significant leader. he gained power by his family creating an empire (by conquering other kingdoms in brutal war) and ==inherited power throne of mauryan==. he consolidated power by ==going to war against rulers of a section of india (kalinga)==, during this war more than 100,000 people were killed, after winning he controlled all of the indian subcontinent, and felt very guilty after the war. ahsoka maintained power by ==converting to buddhism== and created government policies/laws based on those buddhist teachings. he ==created edicts==, large towers with laws inscribed on them, he did this to spread expectations. his laws focused on: expressing religious freedom and tolerance, assistance to the poor and elderly, and medical faculties.

gupta empire

contextualize the gupta ==golden age== and explain its impact on india, other religions, and later periods in history.

the significant leader of the gupta empire was chandragupta the second. the government was very stable because there was ==success from pursuing favorable military alliances==. the government funded many innovations and used tribute money to fund government projects/soldiers. they had a strong economy from their standardized money and utilizing silk roads. they also ==placed many empathis on trade==: having many trade routes in the indian ocean, regulating and taxing trade, and encouraging trade and transmission of ideas. they achieved many things including mathematic discoveries (decimal system, ==zero as a place holder==), astronomy (earth being a sphere, 365 days in a year, and eclipses occurring because of sun and movement alignment). they were also some of the first to standardize money and tax trade.

chinese dynasties

qin dynasty

explain how shi huangdi used legalism to gain, consolidate, and maintain the power of the qin dynasty

from 221 bce to 206 bce. the important leader was qin shi huangdi. they ==followed legalism== and had an authoritarian form of government.

qin shi huang di gained power by inheriting the throne, then ==took over other territories by force.== he conquered and unified china, using spies, briber, and alliances. he also has very large armies. he consolidated power by replacing feudalism with bureaucracy. he melted rivals weapons and made them into 12 metal human figures. ==he also burnt confucian books and executed confucian scholars who opposed his legalist views.== the main thing he did to consolidate power was by taking power from his enemies. he maintained power by simplifying and establishing standards in the chinese writing system. money was also simplified, as he replaced various coins with one coin. there were vast unified system of detailed laws.

han dynasty

contextualize the han golden age and explain its impact on china, other regions, and later periods in history

==golden age== from 206 bce to 220 ce. liu bang wudi was the important leader. they followed ==confucianism== and had a meritocracy form of government. they also ==developed a civil service exam system for government jobs.==

there was much stability during this period because liu bang: replaced many kings with members of his own family to prevent revelions, opened silk roads, and promoted confucianism. they had a ==strong economy because== of trading. they opened the silk road and increased trade because of the emphasis they placed, making the roads safe. there was much value on silk because both greeks and romans didn’t have it. they had ==many achievements including==: inventing paper (kept the process secret and overtime it spread west), invention of printing (led to duplication of important religious texts, government documents, and instructional texts and literature. there was also an increase of literacy, learning, and sharing of knowledge. other things they created were: magnetic compasses (to help travelers), seis mograph (to determine direction of earthquakes), and junk (a military and trade ship).

3.3 - classical greece

geography of ancient greece

explain how geography affected the development of classical civilizations in greece

classical greece was located in europe and was located near the mediterranean sea. they had ==city states,== which were independent and isolated cities. each city state had its own culture, social structure, and government. unlike classical india and china: classical greece isn’t located in a major river valley, is surrounded by water, made of islands, and has less space available for farming. there were many mountains in greece which led to land unusable for faming, having difficulties producing crop surplus, and areas were separated from each other which led to little cultural diffusion.

government types

describe the differences between governments of classical greece

the first type of government is a monarchy, where ruling power was passed down in family lines with a single ruler (kings). the positive of monarchy was that the people would be protected, they payed taxes, obeyed laws, and defended on the king for defense. a negative to monarchy was that there would be harsh treatment. the king relied on heavily armored soldiers to enforce his rule and ensured the people payed taxes and obeyed his laws.

other city states practiced oligarchy, when ruling power would be in the hands of a few leaders. the positive for this one is also protection, and the negative is that most citizens would have little say in how a city state was run because power would be in the hand of a few.

tyranny was when ruling power is in control often by illegal means. at first, they would make changes citizens first wanted to see and give all citizens a say. but as time went on, the ruler would become harsh and greedy. completely disregarding the people who put him in power.

democracy, the ruling power is in the hands of all people. the positive part of this was that citizens were able to make decisions (however citizens didn’t include women, slaves, or resident aliens) and that all decisions were made through public debate.

based on pervious readings on geography and government, the geography of classical greece lead to the development of of the above systems of government? city-states were very separated and each city state developed their own type of government, including the types above.

athen vs. sparta

describe the differences between the city-states of sparta and athens

based on percales speech, athenians most valued freedom (the ability to live as one pleases). based on xenophon’s text, spartans most valued strength and toughness. women’s purpose in athens was to be in the home, to rear children. they didn’t have the same freedom as males. however, life for women in sparta was different, they were suppose to be fit for childbearing and raise strong sparta men.

athens golden age

persian wars

peace and prosperity

percies brought peace to the athens during the greek golden age by ==creating the delian league== (alliance) to control other greek city states and to keep the persian empire at bay. pericles also moved the delian league treasury to athens to bring prosperity. arts, literature, and philosophy were also promoted during this time.

explain how and why classical greece lost power

the spartans emerged victories over the athens in the peloponnesian war because the persians provided sparta with funds to build a stronger fleet and because sparta was more powerful on land. the persians sent funds to build the stronger fleets because they wanted the spartans to continue fighting the athenians for them, to get them weaker before they would have to fight them. in retrospect, the spartans shouldn’t have accepted the persians assistance because it prolonged the war and got the greeks weaker, which then led to the downfall of greece.

3.4

3.5