Ancient India Terms

Janapadas, Maha-janapadas

A janapada was a large political district in India which began around 700 BCE. They had states with capitals and political administrations. By 500-400 BCE there were 16 large maha-janapadas in northern India. This is significant because Magadha, one of the four largest states, became an imperial power after it conquered all the other states as well as Alexander the Great's army.

Asoka Maurya

Asoka was the third ruler of the Mauryan empire and the son of Bindusara Maurya. He ruled from 265-238 bce and brought the maurya empire to its greatest extent. the empire held as many as 100 million people. he is significant because he brought general peace to India and diminished the importance of the Brahmin castes. Also because of his road systems throughout India that encouraged trade and he wrote edicts that promoted religious tolerance

Asoka Pillar

Asoka's pillars were constructed by Asoka and there are at least seven of them. The pillars have inscriptions in Brahmi on them that contain information about Asoka's rule and identity. They are significant becasue they proclaim religious tolerance and display the effect of Buddhism on Asoka's rule.

Bindusara Maurya

Bindusara Maurya was the son of Chandragupta Maurya and ruled from 297-272 bce. he is best known for expanding the Mauryan empire even further than his father. he is significant because he fathered the most praised mauryan emperor Asoka.

Chandragupta Maurya

Chandragupta Maurya was the founder of the Maurya empire. He ruled from 321-297 BCE. He is significant because he beat Alexander the Great and took over the rest of India, creating the first empire in India.

Chandra Gupta 2

He ruled from 380-415 ce and was the son of Samudra gupta. He conquered the shakas and established alliances with powerful lineages through marriage. he is significant because he gain control over the Arabian Sea ports for the first time in 5 centuries and had a golden age under his rule.

Hinduism

Hinduism is the combination of the religious beliefs and practices of people in India. This religion believes in a caste system, where each person has a social, economic, and ritual position, which is inherited and cannot change. The religion also believes in four major goals in life and strict ruules between men and women. This religion is significant because both the Mauryan (excluding the later reign of Asoka) and Guptan empires ruled under this religion's ideology which influenced the laws and justice system.

Golden Age of India

India experienced a golden age under the Gupta empire. Literature was no longer oral and now written. Grammar rules were set and scholars, artists, and humanists, were patronized. this is significant because out of this golden age came many important literature and and law codes.

Indo-Aryan

Indo-Aryan is a subgroup of the Indo-Iranian branch of Indo-European group of languages. The Indo-Aryan language descends from Sanskrit. This is significant because the Aryan immigrants spoke this language and would later take over all of India except the Southern tip.

Kalidasa, Shakuntala

Shakuntala by playwright Kalidasa was the first Sanskrit drama to to be translated into a Western language. Kalidasa is also known for his lyrical poem "Meghaduta." he is significant because it shows the golden age in india and also the value of drama and the arts during the Gupta empire.

Skanda Gupta

Skanda Gupta ruled from 455-67 ce and was one of the last Gupta emperors. he is significant because in 460 ce he repulsed the first huna invasions.

Sunga dynasty

The Sunga dynasty lasted from 185-173 bce and ruled Magadha when the mauryan empire dissolved into states. IT was run by king Menander, an Indo-greek, who inherited the empire in Afghanistan and Bactria from Alexander the Great. This is significant because it allowed for greek influence and customs on India, including, greek coinage which reflect the link of India to the silk routes.

Battle of Kalinga

The battle of Kalinga was between the kingdom of Kalinga and the Mauryan empire in 260 bce during Asoka's reign. This is significant because this battle made Asoka want to be a different ruler, so he converted to Buddhism which changed his outlook during the rest of his reign.

Caste System

The caste system is a Hindu Belief that people are born with social, economic, and ritual position that is inherited by the parents. It makes for unequal and different status under law as well as governs private behavior. This is significant because the Mauryan empire enforced the caste distinctions as part of their Hindu religious practices.

Vedas

The four Vedas are the "Rigveda", "Samaveda," "Yajurveda," and "Atharva Veda" They are religious accounts of the Aryan people, who also wrote them. They are written in Sanskrit and were written between 1500 and 1200 BCE. They are significant because they give historical information regarding conquests and immigrations, but also because they are part of Hinduism which was the religion in India.

Hindu's 4 major goals

The four major goals of life are: artha (wealth), kama (sensual pleasure), dharma and moksha. This is significant because theses goals were part of the Mauryan internal functions and part of Hindu philosophy

Artha-sastra of Kautilya

This book is a practical and shrewd handbook that gives advice on how to unite an empire. It was written by Kautilya. This is significant because the advice was utilized by the mauryans to run their empire.

Buddhism

This is a religion that originates from the teachings of Siddhartha Guatama that suffereing is an inherant part of life. this religion was founded by siddhartha guatama (the buddha) who lived and originated from India. This is significant because Asoka Maurya converted to Buddhism and changed his ideals to conform to Buddhist value.

Guilds

a guild is a sworn association of people who gather for a common purpose (usually economic). This is significant because during the Mauryan empire guilds worked to set regulations on weights, measures, and quality control.

Samudra Gupta

he is the son of Chandra Gupta 1 and ruled from 330-380 ce. he is known for his military conquests which were very great and recorded on the Asoka pillar at Allahabad. He is significant because he extendeed the empire includin to the mountainous kingdoms of India which were hard to access.

Chandra Gupta 1

he ruled from 320-330 ce and was the founder of the guptan empire. he came to power in the ganges valley after marrying a princess of powerful lineage. he is significant because he founded a dynasty and created India's second empire.

tamil culture

in SE india Tamil was the dominant language and it created very expressive literature. Tamilian poetry called sangam poetry was written from 100 bce to 250 ce. it is significant because it grapples with themes of love amidst warfare and strife which shows the type of society in SE india.

Mahabharata

the "Mahabharata" is one of India's two great epics. It is the longest poem in the world and tells the story of a civil war between two branches of a family. It explores themes of life, death, family, warfare, and duty. It is significant because it provides valuable information about social structures and values in ancient India.

Ramayana

the "Ramayana" is one of India's greatest epics. It was composed by Valmiki around 700 BCE in Sanskrit. the story is about a mythical king named Rama's victory over Ravana the demon king of Sri Lanka. This is signficant because it reveals the ways of life and values of ancient India, but also because it is a national epic for many countries due to Priests, saliors, and merchants carrying it to SE asia

13th major rock edict

the 13th major rock edict is a proclaimation of Asoka's acceptance of Dharma and his promise of nonviolence. THis was made after Asoka converted to Buddhism. This is significant because it shows a change in the values Asoka had as a leader and it also promoted religious tolerance

Hunas

the Hunas were a nomadic branch of the Xiongnu Mongol tribe. the Hunas ruled parts of India from their capital in Bamiyan, Afghanistan. They were known especially for their great cruelty. they are significant because they ruined buddhist monasteries, ended the Guptan empire and dimmed the culture of n. india

Shakas

the Shakas ruled parts of western india from 94 bce to 20 ce and also invaded western india. they were a tribal group. they are significant because they conquered the sunga dynasty and continued the pattern of tribal groups invading dynasties

kushanas

the kushanas was a tribal group that displaced the shakas. Kaniska (78-103 ce) the kushana king promoted buddhism. They are significant because they brought trade and asian silk routes to flourish by being under a single ruler

Laws of Manu

the sanskrit law codes that were used during the Gupta empire. it had laws for the specific behavioral normal of each caste in hinduism. it elaborated on hindu beliefs and institutionalized the position of priests. it is significant because it was revised and studied during the gupta empire by scholars

Sanskrit

this is the sacred language of hinduism. during the Gupta empire Panini created a handbook on Sanskrit grammar in his book Astadhayayi. this is significant because it was the official language for correspondence during the gupta empire

Astadhyayi, Panini

this was a handbook on the essentials of sanskrit grammar. it was written by Panini(400 bce). This was significant because the Gupta empire used sanskrit for official correspondance and lots of literature in sanskrit was being written