[Development in EAST ASIA] 1.1: The Song Dynasty

Power of SONG CHINA

How did the Song Dynasty maintain and justify its power?

• Confucianism

  • A philosophy that taught human society is hierarchical by nature, which is to say, society was composed of unequal relationship

    • The greater entity should treat the lesser entities with concern and benevolence while the lesser entity should suck it up.

      • If everyone lived according to their rules - Harmony

  • Key Ideas:

    • Filial Piety: The practice of honoring one’s ancestors and parents

  • Starting the Tang Dynasty, Confucianism experienced a revival, and was carried into the Song Rule

  • Neo-Confucianism - What made it new was the influence of Buddhist and Daoist philosophical ideas

  • Women were relegated to the subordinate position in the hierarchy.

    • Women’s legal rights were restricted and property became their husbands and no remarried

      • Foot binding

• Imperial bureaucracy

  • A governmental entity that carries out the will of the emperor.

    • During the Song Dynasty, the imperial bureaucracy grew in scope and help maintain their rule

      • Civil Service exam: heavily based on Confucian classics

        1. The bureaucracy was staffed was only the most qualified men - awarded by merit

• China Influences its neighbors

  • Korea empires were independent politically because they were able to maintain a tribute relationship with china

    • Korean court used a similar civil service examination to staff their bureaucracy

    • Korea adopted many Confucian principles which organized their family structure

    • Korea went even further than China in marginalizing the role of women.

  • Heian Japan adopted cultural trait voluntarily

  • Vietnam was independent politically but participated in a tribute relationship

    • Elite members of Vietnam society adopted:

      • Confucianism

      • Buddhism

      • Chinese literary techniques

      • Civil service examination system

        • But they did not marginalize their women

• Buddhism in Sing China

  • Originated in South Asia → China

    • Buddhist beliefs

      • Four Noble Truths

        • Life is suffering

        • We suffer because we crave

        • We cease suffering when we cease craving

        • The eightfold path leads to the cessation of suffering and craving

      • Eightfold Path

        • OUtlines the principles and practices that Buddhist must follow

          • A moral lifestyle and the practice of meditation

    • Theravada Buddhist

      • mainly restricted to monks

    • Mahayana Buddhist

      • Emphasized that Buddhist teachings were available to all, and not just a select few

      • Emphasized compassion

      • Made the Buddha into an object of devotion

    • Tibetan

      • Same basic doctrines as the other, with a few additions

      • Emphasized more mystical practices

        • Lying prostrate

        • Elaborate imaginings of deities

  • Economy in the Song Dynasty

    • Commercialization of economy

      • Paper money

    • Iron & Steel production

    • Agricultural innovation

      • Champa Rice → Vietnam

        • Drought resistant

        • Harvestable Twice a tear

          • Effectively doubled agricultural output

    • Transportation innovation

      • Grand Canal

      • Magnetic compass

      • New shipbuilding techniques - JUNKS

[Development in DAR-AL-ISLAM] 1.2: Islamic Empires

Three Major Religions

• Judaism

  • Ethnic religion of the jews

  • Originated in the Middle East

  • Monotheistic: One god

• Christianity

  • Prophet: Jesus Christ

• Islam

  • Prophet: Muhamad

    • Salvation would be found in righteous action like almsgiving, prayers, and fasting

New Islamic States arise

• Abbasid Caliphate

  • Ethnically Arab

  • In power during Golden Age of Islam

    → Soon fragmented —> Several new islamic empires began to rise in its place (Made up of Turkic, non Arab people)

    • Turkic Muslim Empires

      • Seljuk Empire

        • Central Asia

        • Brought in my the abbasid as military force

      • Mamluk Sultanate

        • Egypt

        • Under the leadership of Saladin

        • enslaved fierce turkic warriors

      • Delhi Sultanate

        • South Asia

        • northern ruled over the Indian population

• Continuity in Muslim Empires

  • Military in charge of Administration

  • Implemented Sharia Law

    • A code of laws established in the Quran

• Continued Expansion of Islam

  • Military Expansion

    • Delhi Sultanate

  • Merchant Activity

    • Trade

  • Muslim Missionaries

    • Sufis → Sufism: Emphasized mystical experiences

• Intellectual Innovations and transfers

  • Mathematics

  • House of wisdom

[State Building in SOUTH ASIA] 1.3: SOUTH ASIA & SE ASIA

Belief Systems

• Hinduism

  • Polytheistic Belief system

  • ultimate goal of believers is to reunite their individual souls to the all pervasive world soul known as Brahman (reincarnation)

  • Provided the condition for the unified culture in India

    • Caste system

• Islam

• Buddhism

Belief Systems Change

Change in religion

• Hinduism

  • Bhakti Movement → Encouraged believers to worship one particular god

    • Rejected the hierarchy of Hinduism

    • Encouraged spiritual experiences regardless of social status

• Islam

  • Sufism → movement of more mystical experiences

• Buddhism

  • Became more exclusive

State Building in South Asia

• Rajput Kingdom

• Vijayanagara Empires

Sea-Based States in SouthEast Asia

• Srivijaya Empire → taxes on water route

• Majapahit Empire → Tributary

Land-Based States in SouthEast Asia

• Sinhala Dynasty

• khmer Empire

[State Building in the AMERICAS] 1.4: Human Sacrifice?!

MesoAmerican Civilizations

• Maya Civilization

  • Urban centers

  • Writing system

  • Mathematics

    • Maya State Building

      • State structure was basically a decentralized collection of city-states that were frequently at war with one another

      • Fought to create a vast network of tributary states among neighboring regions

      • Emphasized Human sacrifices

• Aztec Empire

  • (MAYA) Political power → Decentralized power, Tributary system, religious motivation

Andean Civilizations

• Inca Empire

  • MIT’A System

    • Required the labor of all people for a period of time each year to work on state projects like mining or military service

      

North American Civilizations

Mississippian Culture

• Political structure → powerful chiefs and rules town and extended political power over smaller settlements (hierarchical)

[State Building in AFRICA] 1.5: AFRICA STATES!

State Building in Sub-Saharan Africa

Swahili Civilization (Focused on Trade) → Good importants from farmers

• Merchants were interested in:

  • Gold

  • Ivory

  • Timber

  • Slaves

• Islam became a dominant belief

  • Conversion among the Swahili elite took place voluntarily → connected them to wider economic world of DAR-AL-ISLAM

  

Great ZimBabwe → Indian ocean trade

State building in West & East Africa

• Hausa Kingdoms → Gained power through trade (Trans-Saharan Trade)

• -

• Ethophia → Christianity

  • Grew wealthy through trade (Indian Ocean Network)

  • Centralized power

[Developments in Europe] 1.6: Europe = Pretty weak

Christianity dominates Europe

• Christianity in Europe

  • Eastern Orthodox Christianity → helped maintain power

  • Roman Catholic Christianity

• Crusade fought Muslims in distant lands

Political decentralization in the west

• No large empires in Europe

• Socia, political, and economic order was organized in a system known as feudalism

  • A system of allegiances between powerful lords, monarchs, and knights

  • Manorialism: Peasants were bound to land and worked it in exchange for protection from the lord and his military forces

  • Surfs: Bound to the land

• Monarchs in various states began to gain power and centralize their state by introducing large militaries and bureaucracies