Ancient India

Dharma

A set of laws that set behavioral standards for all individuals and classes in Indian society (caste duties)

Caste System

A set of rigid social classifications that determined one's occupation, social class, and their chances of ultimate salvation 1.) Brahmins: priestly class of people considered to be at the top of the social scale -- considered to be possessed by a supreme god 2.) Kshatriyas: the warrior class (came from Brahman's arms) 3.) Vaisya: the commoner class filled with merchants -- permitted to hunt and keep cattle in return for clearing the local land of pests and beasts (came from Brahman's legs) -Can be twice-born a term referring to a ceremony at puberty where Indian boys transitioned into adulthood with the sacred thread 4.) Sudras: peasants or artisans or worked at other forms of manual labor 5.) Dalits/Pariahs/Untouchables: originated as a slave class consisting of prisoners of war, criminals, (collecting trash, handling dead bodies, butchers etc.)

Scipio Africanus

Acquired the honorific "Africanus" for his victory of the Battle of Zama. Legend of Scipio said no descendant of him could lose a battle in North Africa

Senate

Advised the consuls -- composed of about 300 prominent patrician landowners and aided by patrician Praetor who administered the civil law

Mauryan Empire

After the brief Greek conquest of the Indian subcontinent, Chandragupta Maurya drove the Greeks out and established the Mauryan Empire at Pataliputra in the Ganges Valley -Not much is known of his empire remains imply his reign relied on the lost work written by Megasthenes a Greek ambassador to the Mauryan Court -Empire was divided into provinces that were ruled by governors; at first these governors were picked by Chandragupta however they eventually became hereditary instead •Provinces were dived into districts each under a chief magistrate appointed by the governor •At the base of the government pyramid was the village where most of the Indian people lived. Village was governed by a council of elders

Rigveda

An ancient work that was written down after the Aryans arrived in India it is one of the several collections of sacred instructions and rituals

Mohenjo Daro

"City of the Dead" -- divided into large walled neighborhoods, large houses, bathrooms including advanced drainage system with the sewage being taken out of the city by underground systems -Remains of this city can be found and surviving skeletons here show the last people seemed to be in fear or of flight such as the peoples remains at Pompeii

Asoka

Chandragupta's grandson created the highest point for their empire. His reign was devoted to military expansion and conquest -Converted to Buddhism during his reign and had a reputation for compassion and is India's most famous ruler

Bhagavad Gita

Concepts of Karma and Dharma were laid out in the Bhagavad which was a part of a huge Hindu epic

Sudras

Descendants of the conquered populations -- Laborers - Came from Brahman's feet

Chandragupta

Established the Mauryan Empire -Paranoid ruler who was afraid of assassination-- all food was tasted in his presence before he ate it, never slept in the same bed twice, created a board of censors to investigate treason

Punic Wars

Fought to combat the growing powerful Carthage which was a Phoenician imperial state with intentions to control western Mediterranean trade 1.) First War: resulted in the Roman conquest of Sicily, Rome's first oversea province. In this war, Hamilcar Barca and his father Hannibal Barcas father gained reputation as a brilliant general 2.) Second War: pushed Rome to its limits, was fought in the Italian peninsula. Hannibal invaded Italy through the Brenner Pass and destroyed Roman armies. 3.) Third War: led to the fall of Carthage. Carthaginian heartland became the Roman province of Africa

Gautama Buddha

Founder of Buddhism was a native of a small kingdom who ventured out to find the true meaning of life after he experienced the pain of someone dying can bring. It is said he was meditating under a tree he achieved enlightenment as to the meaning of life - He began to teach the enlightenment he had found which created Buddhism

Vardhamana Mahavira

Founder of Jainism a contemporary of Buddha

Plebeians

Lower class of the Roman social order

Sanskirt

One of the earliest known versions of Indo-European

Bodhisattvas

One who achieved Moksha and voluntarily returned to help others achieve it

Karma

One's rebirth in the next life is determined by one's action in this life and this concept is governed by Dharma aka caste duties - Main goal of karma was to be released and escape the cycle of existence

Upanishads

Originally known as Vedas; they were the key religious writings of the Aryans

Brahmins

Priests-- at the top of the social scale -- considered to be possessed by a supreme god - Came from Brahman's head

Zhou Dynasty

Replaced Shang -Longest dynastic period in Chinese History -Went through several periods, each one weaker than its last-- considered a Golden age in Chinese tradition -Statesmen like King Wen, King Wu, and the Duke of Zhou were idealized. By the end of Zhou, most elements of Chinese Civilization was present and most sources of Chinese thought are present -- these are known as the Five Classics and the Four books. -Architectural Forms become present -- Rammed earth floors, Use of post and beam, Gables, and City walls made of rammed earth -Site direction of major buildings fixed by Zhou: Buildings always faced South, toward Golden-Red Phoenix. East was the land of the Blue Dragon. West was land of the White Tiger. Back always to the Black North, site of winter and invaders.

Shang Dynasty

Replaced Xia Know more about this Dynasty than Xia because: -clear evidence of writing. -masters of bronze work. -used war chariots. -massive human sacrifice. -Ideographic nature of language firmly fixed (For Ex: Woman (pregnant woman kneeling) Son (child, because of the big head) Woman + Son = Good)

Aryans

Replaced the Harappans around 1500 BCE spread across most of Indian sub-continent -Origin is not 100% known scholars believe the migrated to the Indian subcontinent form Central Asia -Spoke and wrote an Indo-European language, Sanskrit, which evolved into the Hindi modern of times. -Had bronze weapons and war chariots eventually acquired iron most likely from Hittites -Allowed them to create iron plow along with an irrigation system which helped them clear dense jungles along the Ganges River -- this created the Ganges Valley

Nirvana

The Buddhist version of Brahman, involves an extinction of selfhood and a final reunion with the great world soul

Mahayana Buddhism

The Mahayana (Great Vehicle) School held that one could live in the world, marry, have children, practice a profession, and still gain enlightenment.

Moksha

The release of the Atman (human soul) to Merge with Brahman

Samsara

To reach Brahman or the spiritual force and an eternal soul we must go through many life cycles and that is what Samsara is the cycle of lives until we reach Brahman

Patricians

Upper class of the Roman social order who had strong commitment to the state

Hinduism

Brahman is the final destiny of the human soul, the Atman. However, the atman cannot merge with Brahman until it realizes that the physical world is misleading. It is illusion (Maya). Everything that is material is illusory. The true reality is spiritual.

Xia Dynasty

-First Chinese State-- doubted by historians until the 1990s - Marks first appearance of Chinese civilization

Kautilya

Brilliant advisor and a court official for Chandragupta. His name has been attached to a treatise on politics called the Arthasastra which reflects his views (like Niccolo Machiavelli)

Four Noble Truths

Buddha claimed Moksha could be achieved by understanding these truths: 1.) Life is suffering 2.) Suffering is caused by craving 3.) Craving can be extinguished 4.) Eightfold path is the way to extinguish craving

Raja

Each Aryan tribe was led by a chieftain called a Raja who was assisted by a council of elders composed of other leading members of the community of a warrior class known as Kshatriya -Claimed to be representatives of the gods but not viewed as gods -After a while the Aryan society grew large and that caused them to be promoted to Kings called maharajas

Brahmanism

Earliest form of Aryan religion; its practices gave birth to Hinduism - Brahman meant Great World Soul from Brahmanism reincarnation became a belief

Code of Manu

Early treatise on social organization and behavior in ancient India

Eightfold path

The handbook of quenching desire; calls for right of knowledge, right purpose, right speech, right conduct, right occupation, right effort, right awareness, and right meditation

Hannibal

Hamilcar Barcas father and was a brilliant war general from Carthage

Battle of Zama

Hannibal's army was destroyed and Carthage forced to make peace. Spain was absorbed into Rome's growing empire.

Jainism

Jains believed that the path to Moksha ran through a commitment to three great principles: 1.) Non-violence against any creature (Ahimsa) 2.) Non-absolutism (there is no single correct viewpoint) 3.) Non-possessiveness (renunciation of worldly things) - They emphasized self-discipline and asceticism and were vegetarians.

Twelve Tables

Romans first written body of law; these were twelve planks placed in the center of Rome that had the laws carved into them

Consuls

Roman Republic was ruled by the wealthy; two patrician Consuls were the chief administrative officers and led legions in warfare

Harappan Civilization

The first Indian civilization in the Indus Valley and its branches. -River valley civilization based on agriculture wheat, barley, rice, and cotton seeds -Stone age technology like old kingdom Egypt with mud brick villages and huts -Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro were the main cities -No centralized monarchy just roughly 1500 towns and cities loosely connected by trade which were ruled by landlords and rich merchants -No real known reason of why the civilization crashed however climate change, natural disasters, epidemic and the Aryans are all theories