Indus River Valley: Technology, Culture, and Religion

Technology and Culture

What we do know is that the Harappan civilization was extremely advanced. Their architects designed the city with well-planned layouts: the cities were walled and built on a grid system. They constructed levees (floodgates) and platforms to help their people avoid the worst effects of the floods. The buildings themselves were designed to maximize airflow creating their own version of air conditioning.

Image: Children’s games played with small board, dice, balls, and other figures were found in Harappan cities They must have had impressive engineers as well. Every home had a bathroom and sewers that took away the dirty water. They also created a great bath in the city of Mohenjo-Daro (see image), which archeologists think was used for bathing or religious ceremonies (or maybe both!).

The homes that archaeologists excavated left us a small picture of Harappan society – the homes are relatively similar (sewage, layout, airflow). This means there probably was not a wide gap between the rich and poor. Additionally, many of the homes had clay children’s toys and games (even an early version of chess!), which meant that there was free time.

Religion in the Vedic Period

About 200 years after the Harappan Civilization declined, a new group rose to importance in the Indus River Valley: the Vedic Peoples (also called Aryans). Those living in the Indus River Civilization founded the religion of Hinduism. It is the world’s oldest living (meaning still-practiced) religion. In fact, it is so old that no one knows exactly when it started! According to Hindu tradition, Hindu gods can appear in various forms, even as other gods. The most well-known Hindu gods are Brahma, Vishnu, Shiva, and Lakshmi. But Hinduism is very diverse and ancient Hindus practiced their religion in their own personal ways that revealed their devotion to different specific gods. During the 5^th and 4^th centuries BCE, the practice of Hinduism grew significantly.

Aryan, or Vedic, priests passed on the Hindu chants and hymns in the form of oral tradition long before they were written down in the Vedas. The Vedas are the four Books of Knowledge that contain the Hindu prayers, hymns, religious rituals, and philosophy written in Sanskrit. The Vedas explain the Hindu version of how the earth was created and how society was divided into Varna (four main classes) - priests, warriors and princes, merchants and farmers, and then servants. Over time, more social divisions emerged creating the caste system of Hinduism.

This is part of a Veda, written in Sanskrit, on material made from palm leaves. It was found in a Hindu temple At the end of the Vedic Period, new religions or philosophies challenged the beliefs written in the Vedas and Hindus added more literature to their scriptures. The new texts contained moral laws that focused on the relationship between self and reality and discussed selflessness and discipline. Hindus, then and now, believe that when people die their souls are reborn into a new body based on their behavior during their previous life. This is called reincarnation. According to Hindu tradition, a person's karma, or past actions, determines the status of a person's rebirth- the better the karma, the better the next life. This cycle of reincarnation only ends when a person has reached a full understanding of self and reality.

The Rise of Buddhism

Around 500 BCE, as Hinduism grew, another major world religion began in ancient India: Buddhism. Buddhism began with a spoiled, isolated prince named Siddhartha Gautama. When he was given a chance to see the world outside his kingdom, he was horrified by old age, sickness, and death. He decided to give up his old life and find freedom from suffering. He searched for Enlightenment (universal truth). First, he tried to deny himself almost everything, then he adopted the middle way (between being spoiled and suffering). He became the Buddha and spread the 4 Noble Truths -- the main "truth" is to give up desire in favor of living by the 8 Fold Path. The 8-Fold Path guides Buddhists to be selfless, non-violent, honest, and good with an emphasis on meditation.

The lessons of the Buddha were passed down orally and today there are many holy texts including the Tipitaka. Buddhism is different from the other religious faiths in Module 1 because some historians and religious scholars don’t consider it monotheistic or polytheistic since it does not focus on a creator god. This does not mean that all Buddhists cannot believe in any gods - many followers of Buddhism believe in gods and supernatural beings. Buddhism and Hinduism would gain followers as civilization spread through Southern and Eastern Asia. You will have a chance to learn more about the Buddha’s philosophy and its impact on India and China in Module 2.

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