Chapter 5 Section 2-Ancient India

Chapter 5 Section 2-Ancient India

Origins of Hinduism

Indian Society Divides

• Aryan society divided into groups. The groups were organized by people's occupations. Strict rules developed and people could not interact with others outside their group.

• The Varnas were the social divisions. The 4 varnas were: Brahmins or priests; Kshatriyas or rulers and warriors; Vaisyas or farmers, craftspeople and traders; Sudras or laborers adn non-Aryans.

The Caste System

Divided Indian society into groups based on a person's birth, wealth, or occupation. Once there were 3000 separate castes in India. Only rarely could people change castes. At the end of the Aryan period some people did not belong to a caste and could hold only unpleasant jobs. They were called the untouchables.

Caste Rules

• Sutras or guides listed all the rules for the caste system.

• People were not allowed to marry anyone in a different caste.

• People could not eat with people from another caste.

• People who broke the rules could be banned from their homes and their castes and then would become untouchables.

Multiple Select

How did a person become a member of a caste?

• They were born into the caste.

• They had the occupation of the caste.

• They paid money to join the caste.

• They prayed to the gods to be in a certain caste.

Brahmanism

• Aryan priests were called Brahmins, so the religion of the Aryans became known as Brahmanism.

The Vedas

• Aryan religion was based on the Vedas. There are four Vedas, each of which contain hymns and poems.

• The oldest of the Vedas is called the Rigveda, which was written before 1000 BC.

• Centuries later, Brahmins wrote down their thoughts about the Vedas and these thoughts were collected and called the Vedic texts.

• Sacrifices and rituals were performed from these Vedic texts.

• The Upanishads were written about 600 BC. These writings were done by religious students and teachers.

Multiple Select

What were some major beliefs of Hinduism?

• A universal spirit called Brahman created the universe and everything in it.

• Hindus believed in one god only.

• Hindus believed in reincarnation.

• Every person has a soul and will join Brahman eventually.

The Development of Hinduism

Eventually the ideas of the sacred Vedic texts blended with other ideas from other cultures. Hinduism developed from this blending. Hindus believe in many gods like: Brahma the Creator, Siva the Destroyer, and Vishnu the Preserver. Hindus believe that these many gods are part of a universal spirit called Brahman. Hindus also believe that everything in the world is part of Brahman.

Life and Rebirth

• Everyone has a soul, or atman inside them.

• The atman holds the person's personality and the qualities that make them who they are.

• They believe the person's ultimate goal should be to reunite their soul with Brahman.

• Hindus thing the world is an illusion and sometimes people have to live many lifetimes to see through the illusion and reunite their soul, so they can be reborn again and again into different bodies until they get it right. This process is called reincarnation.

Hinduism and the Caste System

• The type of physical form a person is reborn into depends on the person's karma in their former life. Evil actions will bring bad karma and you can be reborn into a lower caste.

• In contrast, good actions bring good karma and you can be reborn into a higher caste. In time good karma can lead to salvation which is called moksha.

• Hinduism teaches that each person has a dharma which is a set of spiritual duties to fulfill. You fulfill your dharma by accepting your station in life. This helped preserve the caste system so no one would question it.

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Multiple Choice

What determined how a person would be reborn?

• dharma

• moksha

• karma

• atman

Groups Reacted to Hinduism

Hinduism was widely followed in India, but some did not agree with the beliefs. Two groups were born from this: Jainism and Sikhism

Watch these two videos for interesting information on these two groups.