Indus Valley CivilizationIndus Valley Civilizationa Primary Phase Culturelittle or no continuity with the

following culturesforgotten until the 19th Century

◦rediscovered by the British

Harappan CultureHarappan CultureIndus valley

◦not desert◦well-watered and heavily forested

500 miles along the river valley◦10-20 times larger than

Mesopotamia or Egypt

India

Hydraulic CultureHydraulic Culturelike Egypt and Mesopotamiaagriculture and flood-controlsignificant industry and tradecities very common

Indus ValleyIndus Valley

Lack of Sources Lack of Sources literate culture

◦we cannot read the writing◦writing on bricks and seals◦did not use paper or clay tablets

“Unicorn” seal + writing

More seals

…and more seals...

Seated “yogi” : early Shiva?

Reasonable Reasonable generalizationsgeneralizationsrapid development: early 2,000s

B.C.roughly contemporary with Egypt

and Mesopotamiaearly village culturechanging rapidly to urban

civilization

Generalizations, con’t Generalizations, con’t cities dominated both economic

and political activityorigins of the people are unclear

◦similar to the Mediterranean type

Major CitiesMajor CitiesHarappa and Mohenjo-daro

◦surrounded by smaller cities, towns, and villages

one situated in the northone situated in the south

Cities, con’tCities, con’tuniform culture over a wide areacities built on a common plan

◦a grid: always NS and EW axes with twelve smaller grids

◦kiln-dried brick

Grid map of Mohenjo-daro

Mohenjo-daro : aerial view

Mohenjo-daro view of the “Citadel”

The “Great Bath”

another view of the “Great Bath”

view of a small, side street

looks like a small tower, but actually it is a neighborhood well

A bathroom on a private residence

A public well in Harappa, or perhaps an ancient laundromat...

A large drain or sewer

Monumental architectureMonumental architecturevery-large scale buildingwalled cites, with fortified

citadelsalways on the same scalepalaces, temples

Architecture, con’t Architecture, con’t large grain storage facilities near

templesa theocracy ??planned economy

Harappan granary

CitiesCitiesvery densely populatedhouses: two to three storiesevery house is laid out the same

Culture and SocietyCulture and Societyadvanced agriculturesurplus productiontextiles: wool and cottondomesticated animals and fish

Bronze Age technologyBronze Age technologyno swordsspears and bowsstone arrow heads

SocietySocietydominated by priests ?from the fortified palaces and

temples ?power base: fertility ?deities: male and female, both

nudebull worship and phallic symbols

A priest? A bull

TradeTradewith lower Mesopotamiabut gradually declined

DeclineDeclinedomination of an indigenous

people ?◦who rebelled ?

foreign invasion?gradual decline ?

Combination of ChangesCombination of Changesclimate shift: the monsoon

patternsfloodingdestruction of the forestsmigrations of new peoples: the

Aryans

The Aryan InvasionsThe Aryan InvasionsIndus civilization on the verge of

collapseabout 1500 B.C.settlement by a nomadic people

◦the Aryans

Possible route of the Aryan invasions

The AryansThe Aryansnot to be confused with Hitler’s

“Aryans”these Aryans speak an Indo-

European dialectrelated to other languages like

Greek and Latin

Map of Language FamiliesMap of Language Families

The Aryans, con’t The Aryans, con’t they called themselves “Aryans”their land: “Aryavarta”

◦land of the Aryans

Gradual settlementGradual settlementover a long period of timegradual infiltration more primitive than the earlier

culture

Settlement, con’t Settlement, con’t new society by 1,200 B.C. or solittle evidencenot literateno record system

Oral TraditionOral Traditionpassed down from priests and

singerswritten down in the 500’sThe Vedas

◦“Veda” means “knowledge”

The The VedasVedasour primary source

◦early Aryan tradition◦later Hindu religion

four “vedas”◦the Rig Veda is the oldest

Krishna with Arjuna on the battlefield of Kuruksketra

2 points to the first person who can tell whether this is a modern or ancient painting and why?

Krishna reveals himself to Arjuna in his manifold aspects

The The VedasVedasoral poetrycome to have a sacred characterprovide some historical

information

The AryansThe Aryansrestless, warlike peopletall, blue-eyed, fair-skinneddescribe the indigenous

population as◦short, “black”, noseless, and slaves

The Aryans, con’tThe Aryans, con’toriginally pastoralistsfamily, clan, tribe (typical Indo-

Europeans)eventually settled down to

farmingliving in villages

The Aryans, con’t The Aryans, con’t villages and kingdoms constantly

fightingwarchiefs and kingsaristocrats and freemen

The Aryans, con’tThe Aryans, con’tfond of fighting, drinking, chariot

racing, gambling chasing women and bragging about their spears◦any modern comparisons ???

fond of taking soma◦a psychedelic drug◦probably psychotropic mushrooms

Aryans and HindusAryans and HindusAryans give rise to Hindu societybut different characteristics

◦cows: they ate them◦classes, but no castes◦priests subordinate to the nobility

the Mahabharata

The Iron Age: new sourcesThe Iron Age: new sourcesthe Vedas: passed on orallythe Brahamanas:

interpretations on the Vedasthe Upanishads: interpretations

and symbolic studies◦forerunners of later dissenting

literature

Strain of changeStrain of changeIron Age change causes strain on

the class systemblurring of lines between Aryans

and Daas◦answered with the caste system

Caste SystemCaste Systemskin colorritual purity“Us--Them” feelingsdivine order of four castes

Caste System (“Varnas”)Caste System (“Varnas”)Brahmins: the priestsKshatriyas: the warriorsVaisyas: merchants and

peasantsSudras: non-Aryans

Caste system, con’tCaste system, con’tproduced by Brahminsliterature emphasized the divine

orderhierarchical relationshipinheritance and marriage

Caste system in practiceCaste system in practicewarrior class did not always

accept itnor the other classesthe process of evolution is still

going onthe most powerful organizer of

Indian society◦thousand of castes today

CastesCastesdefine a person’s social universedefine a person’s standard of

conductdefine a person’s expectationsdefine a person’s futuredefine how a person deals with

others