Ancient India Vocabulary

a large landmass that is smaller than a continent

• peninsula

• subcontinent

• country

• island

seasonal wind, especially in the Indian Ocean and southern Asia

• hurricane

• wind storm

• monsoon

• tsunami

the first written language of India

• sandskrit

• hieroglyphics

• mycenaean

• vedas

a teacher

• coach

• raja

• buddhist

• guru

major religion that developed in ancient India; main belief: all souls are part of one universal spirit

• Hinduism

• Buddhism

• Jainism

• Indian

a good or bad force created by a person's actions; it determines whether a person's soul will be reborn into a higher or lower form of life

• nirvana

• karma

• luck

• dharma

religion founded by Siddhartha Gautama; main belief: inner peace comes from ending desire.

• Hinduism

• Jainism

• Buddhism

• Indian

religion that does not believe in a supreme being; it emphasizes nonviolence and respect for all living things

• Hinduism

• Jainism

• Buddhism

• Indian

a person who travels to places of religious importance

• Buddhist

• nomad

• pilgrim

• priest

a special, dome-shaped building meant to honor the Buddha

• supta

• temple

• synagogue

• raja