Pontic Steppe
73-425: Caucasus East Asia Eastern Europe Northern Europe Pontic Steppe Northern/Eastern Steppe Europe South Asia Steppe Europe Caucasus India Indo-Aryans Iranians East Asia Europe East Asia Europe Indo-Aryan Iranian Indo-Aryan Iranian Others European The Kurgan hypothesis (also known as
146-525: A Caucasian language . Genetics Competing hypotheses Indian religions Indian religions as a percentage of world population Indian religions , sometimes also termed Dharmic religions or Indic religions , are the religions that originated in the Indian subcontinent . These religions, which include Buddhism , Hinduism , Jainism , and Sikhism , are also classified as Eastern religions . Although Indian religions are connected through
219-468: A Northern European origin . The view of a Pontic origin was still strongly supported, including by the archaeologists V. Gordon Childe and Ernst Wahle . One of Wahle's students was Jonas Puzinas , who became one of Marija Gimbutas's teachers. Gimbutas, who acknowledged Schrader as a precursor, painstakingly marshalled a wealth of archaeological evidence from the territory of the Soviet Union and
292-444: A patriarchal warrior society, a process visible in the appearance of fortified settlements and hillforts and the graves of warrior-chieftains: The process of Indo-Europeanization was a cultural, not a physical, transformation. It must be understood as a military victory in terms of successfully imposing a new administrative system, language, and religion upon the indigenous groups. In her later life, Gimbutas increasingly emphasized
365-784: A "turning point between the Vedic Hinduism and Puranic Hinduism". The Shramana movement, an ancient Indian religious movement parallel to but separate from Vedic tradition, often defied many of the Vedic and Upanishadic concepts of soul (Atman) and the ultimate reality (Brahman). In 6th century BCE, the Shramnic movement matured into Jainism and Buddhism and was responsible for the schism of Indian religions into two main philosophical branches of astika, which venerates Veda (e.g., six orthodox schools of Hinduism) and nastika (e.g., Buddhism, Jainism, Charvaka, etc.). However, both branches shared
438-512: A collection of Tamil and later Sanskrit scriptures chiefly constituting the methods of temple construction and creation of murti , worship means of deities, philosophical doctrines, meditative practices, attainment of sixfold desires and four kinds of yoga. The worship of tutelary deity , sacred flora and fauna in Hinduism is also recognized as a survival of the pre-Vedic Dravidian religion. Ancient Tamil grammatical works Tolkappiyam ,
511-535: A half-human, half-buffalo monster attacking a tiger, which may be a reference to the Sumerian myth of such a monster created by goddess Aruru to fight Gilgamesh . Some seals show a man wearing a hat with two horns and a plant sitting on a throne with animals surrounding him. Some scholars theorize that this was a predecessor to Shiva wearing a hat worn by some Sumerian divine beings and kings. In contrast to contemporary Egyptian and Mesopotamian civilisations,
584-457: A king was considered to be divine by nature and possessed religious significance. The king was 'the representative of God on earth' and lived in a "koyil", which means the "residence of a god". The Modern Tamil word for temple is koil . Titual worship was also given to kings. Modern words for god like "kō" ("king"), "iṟai" ("emperor"), and "āṇḍavar" ("conqueror") now primarily refer to gods. These elements were incorporated later into Hinduism like
657-540: A lord of animals; and often depicted as having three eyes. The seal has hence come to be known as the Pashupati Seal , after Pashupati (lord of all animals), an epithet of Shiva. While Marshall's work has earned some support, many critics and even supporters have raised several objections. Doris Srinivasan has argued that the figure does not have three faces, or yogic posture, and that in Vedic literature Rudra
730-596: A migratory pattern out of the Pontic Steppe at the relevant time but also suggest the possibility that the population movement involved was more substantial than earlier anticipated and invasive. Gimbutas believed that the expansions of the Kurgan culture were a series of essentially-hostile military incursions in which a new warrior culture imposed itself on the peaceful, matrilinear , and matrifocal (but not matriarchal ) cultures of " Old Europe " and replaced it with
803-792: A plausible explanation for the spread of at least some of the Indo-European languages, and suggest that the alternative theories such as the Anatolian hypothesis , which places the Proto-Indo-European homeland in Neolithic Anatolia , are less likely to be correct. Arguments for the identification of the Proto-Indo-Europeans as steppe nomads from the Pontic–Caspian region had already been made in
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#1732782910812876-531: A retrospective view from a much later Hindu perspective. An early and influential work in the area that set the trend for Hindu interpretations of archaeological evidence from the Harrapan sites was that of John Marshall , who in 1931 identified the following as prominent features of the Indus religion: a Great Male God and a Mother Goddess; deification or veneration of animals and plants; symbolic representation of
949-506: A subject of debate among scholars. While Radhakrishnan , Oldenberg and Neumann were convinced of Upanishadic influence on the Buddhist canon, Eliot and Thomas highlighted the points where Buddhism was opposed to Upanishads. Buddhism may have been influenced by some Upanishadic ideas, it however discarded their orthodox tendencies. In Buddhist texts Buddha is presented as rejecting avenues of salvation as "pernicious views". Jainism
1022-644: A unitary view of the universe with 'God' (Brahman) seen as immanent and transcendent in the forms of Ishvara and Brahman . This post-Vedic systems of thought, along with the Upanishads and later texts like the epics (the Ramayana and the Mahabharata ), is a major component of modern Hinduism. The ritualistic traditions of Vedic religion are preserved in the conservative Śrauta tradition. Since Vedic times, "people from many strata of society throughout
1095-535: Is a contradiction in terms since Vedic religion is very different from what we generally call Hindu religion – at least as much as Old Hebrew religion is from medieval and modern Christian religion. However, Vedic religion is treatable as a predecessor of Hinduism." The rishis , the composers of the hymns of the Rigveda , were considered inspired poets and seers. The mode of worship was the performance of Yajna , sacrifices which involved sacrifice and sublimation of
1168-519: Is derived from the Turkic word kurgan ( курга́н ), meaning tumulus or burial mound. The steppe theory was first formulated by Otto Schrader (1883) and V. Gordon Childe (1926), then systematized in the 1950s by Marija Gimbutas , who used the term to group various prehistoric cultures, including the Yamnaya (or Pit Grave) culture and its predecessors. In the 2000s, David Anthony instead used
1241-590: Is evident, many of these features are already present in the oldest known Indo-Aryan language , the language of the Rigveda (c. 1500 BCE), which also includes over a dozen words borrowed from Dravidian. This represents an early religious and cultural fusion or synthesis between ancient Dravidians and Indo-Aryans, which became more evident over time with sacred iconography, traditions, philosophy, flora, and fauna that went on to influence Hinduism, Buddhism, Charvaka, Sramana, and Jainism. Throughout Tamilakam ,
1314-414: Is known as the Vedic period , which lasted from roughly 1750 to 500 BCE. The Vedic Period is most significant for the composition of the four Vedas, Brahmanas and the older Upanishads (both presented as discussions on the rituals, mantras and concepts found in the four Vedas), which today are some of the most important canonical texts of Hinduism, and are the codification of much of what developed into
1387-577: Is the Avestan language term (corresponding to Vedic language ṛta ) for a concept of cardinal importance to Zoroastrian theology and doctrine. The term "dharma" was already used in Brahmanical thought, where it was conceived as an aspect of Rta. Major philosophers of this era were Rishis Narayana, Kanva, Rishaba , Vamadeva , and Angiras . During the Middle Vedic period, the mantras of
1460-616: Is the result of gross misinterpretation of the cultural history of Eastern, Central, and Northern Europe. In the 2000s, Alberto Piazza and Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza tried to align the Anatolian hypothesis with the steppe theory. According to Piazza, "[i]t is clear that, genetically speaking, peoples of the Kurgan steppe descended at least in part from people of the Middle Eastern Neolithic who immigrated there from Anatolia ." According to Piazza and Cavalli-Sforza (2006),
1533-538: Is the ultimate foundation of everything; it is "the supreme", although this is not to be understood in a static sense. [...] It is the expression of the primordial dynamism that is inherent in everything...." The term rta is inherited from the Proto-Indo-Iranian religion , the religion of the Indo-Iranian peoples prior to the earliest Vedic (Indo-Aryan) and Zoroastrian (Iranian) scriptures. " Asha "
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#17327829108121606-548: The Eastern Bloc that was not readily available to Western scholars, revealing a fuller picture of prehistoric Europe. When it was first proposed in 1956, in The Prehistory of Eastern Europe, Part 1 , Gimbutas's contribution to the search for Indo-European origins was an interdisciplinary synthesis of archaeology and linguistics. The Kurgan model of Indo-European origins identifies the Pontic–Caspian steppe as
1679-541: The Globular Amphora culture to the west. From these kurganized cultures came the immigration of Proto-Greeks to the Balkans and the nomadic Indo-Iranian cultures to the east around 2500 BC. Gimbutas defined and introduced the term " Kurgan culture " in 1956 with the intention of introducing a "broader term" that would combine Sredny Stog II , Pit Grave (Yamnaya), and Corded ware horizons (spanning
1752-533: The Great Bath at Mohenjo-daro is widely thought to have been so used, as a place for ritual purification. The funerary practices of the Harappan civilisation is marked by its diversity with evidence of supine burial; fractional burial in which the body is reduced to skeletal remains by exposure to the elements before final interment; and even cremation. The documented history of Indian religions begins with
1825-606: The Indus River Valley buried their dead in a manner suggestive of spiritual practices that incorporated notions of an afterlife and belief in magic. Other South Asian Stone Age sites, such as the Bhimbetka rock shelters in central Madhya Pradesh and the Kupgal petroglyphs of eastern Karnataka, contain rock art portraying religious rites and evidence of possible ritualised music. The religion and belief system of
1898-707: The Kurgan theory , Kurgan model , or steppe theory ) is the most widely accepted proposal to identify the Proto-Indo-European homeland from which the Indo-European languages spread out throughout Europe and parts of Asia . It postulates that the people of a Kurgan culture in the Pontic steppe north of the Black Sea were the most likely speakers of the Proto-Indo-European language (PIE). The term
1971-598: The Vedas ). The older Upanishads launched attacks of increasing intensity on the ritual. Anyone who worships a divinity other than the Self is called a domestic animal of the gods in the Brihadaranyaka Upanishad. The Mundaka launches the most scathing attack on the ritual by comparing those who value sacrifice with an unsafe boat that is endlessly overtaken by old age and death. Scholars believe that Parsva ,
2044-649: The domestication of the horse followed by the use of early chariots . The first strong archaeological evidence for the domestication of the horse comes from the Sredny Stog culture north of the Azov Sea in Ukraine , and would correspond to an early PIE or pre-PIE nucleus of the 5th millennium BC. Subsequent expansion beyond the steppes led to hybrid, or in Gimbutas's terms "kurganized" cultures, such as
2117-458: The historical Vedic religion , the religious practices of the early Indo-Aryans , which were collected and later redacted into the Samhitas (usually known as the Vedas ), four canonical collections of hymns or mantras composed in archaic Sanskrit . These texts are the central shruti (revealed) texts of Hinduism . The period of the composition, redaction, and commentary of these texts
2190-537: The history of India , they constitute a wide range of religious communities, and are not confined to the Indian subcontinent. Evidence attesting to prehistoric religion in the Indian subcontinent derives from scattered Mesolithic rock paintings. The Harappan people of the Indus Valley civilisation , which lasted from 3300 to 1300 BCE (mature period 2600–1900 BCE), had an early urbanized culture which predates
2263-603: The "Kurgan culture": Gimbutas's original suggestion identifies four successive stages of the Kurgan culture: In other publications she proposes three successive "waves" of expansion: The Kurgan hypothesis describes the initial spread of Proto-Indo-European during the 5th and 4th millennia BC. As used by Gimbutas, the term "kurganized" implied that the culture could have been spread by no more than small bands who imposed themselves on local people as an elite. This idea of PIE and its daughter languages diffusing east and west without mass movement proved popular with archaeologists in
Kurgan hypothesis - Misplaced Pages Continue
2336-534: The "ancient, classical, mediaeval and modern periods" periodisation. An elaborate periodisation may be as follows: The earliest religion followed by the peoples of the Indian subcontinent, including those of the Indus Valley and Ganges Valley , was likely local animism that did not have missionaries . Evidence attesting to prehistoric religion in the Indian subcontinent derives from scattered Mesolithic rock paintings such as at Bhimbetka , depicting dances and rituals. Neolithic agriculturalists inhabiting
2409-549: The 1970s (the pots-not-people paradigm). The question of further Indo-Europeanization of Central and Western Europe, Central Asia and Northern India during the Bronze Age is beyond the scope of the Kurgan hypothesis, and far more uncertain than the events of the Copper Age, and subject to some controversy. The rapidly developing fields of archaeogenetics and genetic genealogy since the late 1990s have not only confirmed
2482-610: The 19th century by the German scholars, Theodor Benfey (1869) and Victor Hehn [ de ] (1870), followed notably by Otto Schrader (1883, 1890). Theodor Poesche had proposed the nearby Pinsk Marshes . In his standard work about PIE and to a greater extent in a later abbreviated version, Karl Brugmann took the view that the urheimat could not be identified exactly by the scholarship of his time, but he tended toward Schrader's view. However, after Karl Penka 's 1883 rejection of non-European PIE origins, most scholars favoured
2555-557: The 23rd Jain tirthankara lived during this period in the 9th century BCE. Jainism and Buddhism belong to the śramaṇa traditions. These religions rose into prominence in 700–500 BCE in the Magadha kingdom., reflecting "the cosmology and anthropology of a much older, pre-Aryan upper class of northeastern India", and were responsible for the related concepts of saṃsāra (the cycle of birth and death) and moksha (liberation from that cycle). The shramana movements challenged
2628-645: The 23rd Tirthankara, was a historical figure. The Vedas are believed to have documented a few Tirthankaras and an ascetic order similar to the shramana movement. Buddhism was historically founded by Siddhartha Gautama , a Kshatriya prince-turned-ascetic, and was spread beyond India through missionaries. It later experienced a decline in India, but survived in Nepal and Sri Lanka , and remains more widespread in Southeast and East Asia . Gautama Buddha , who
2701-536: The 2nd century BCE due to his significant patronage of the religion. His reign is considered a period of growth and influence for the religion, although Jainism had flourished for centuries before and continued to develop in prominence after his time. The early Dravidian religion constituted of non- Vedic form of Hinduism in that they were either historically or are at present Āgamic . The Agamas are non- vedic in origin and have been dated either as post-vedic texts. or as pre-vedic oral compositions. The Agamas are
2774-480: The 4th to 3rd millennia in much of Eastern and Northern Europe). The Kurgan archaeological culture or cultural horizon comprises the various cultures of the Pontic–Caspian steppe in the Copper Age to Early Bronze Age (5th to 3rd millennia BC), identified by similar artifacts and structures, but subject to inevitable imprecision and uncertainty. The eponymous kurgans (mound graves) are only one among several common features. Cultures that Gimbutas considered as part of
2847-473: The Indus Valley lacks any monumental palaces, even though excavated cities indicate that the society possessed the requisite engineering knowledge. This may suggest that religious ceremonies, if any, may have been largely confined to individual homes, small temples, or the open air. Several sites have been proposed by Marshall and later scholars as possibly devoted to religious purpose, but at present only
2920-454: The Indus Valley people has received considerable attention, especially from the view of identifying precursors to deities and religious practices of Indian religions that later developed in the area. However, due to the sparsity of evidence, which is open to varying interpretations, and the fact that the Indus script remains undeciphered, the conclusions are partly speculative and largely based on
2993-413: The Proto-Indo-European (PIE) urheimat , and a variety of late PIE dialects are assumed to have been spoken across this region. According to this model, the Kurgan culture gradually expanded to the entire Pontic–Caspian steppe, Kurgan IV being identified with the Yamnaya culture of around 3000 BC. The mobility of the Kurgan culture facilitated its expansion over the entire region and is attributed to
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3066-640: The Vedas were summarized in Upanishads , which are commonly referred to as Vedānta , variously interpreted to mean either the "last chapters, parts of the Veda" or "the object, the highest purpose of the Veda". The early Upanishads all predate the Common Era, five of the eleven principal Upanishads were composed in all likelihood before 6th century BCE, and contain the earliest mentions of yoga and moksha . The śramaṇa period between 800 and 200 BCE marks
3139-630: The Vedic religion and Hindu religions". The late Vedic period (9th to 6th centuries BCE) marks the beginning of the Upanisadic or Vedantic period. This period heralded the beginning of much of what became classical Hinduism, with the composition of the Upanishads , later the Sanskrit epics , still later followed by the Puranas . Upanishads form the speculative-philosophical basis of classical Hinduism and are known as Vedanta (conclusion of
3212-559: The Vedic religion. The documented history of Indian religions begins with the historical Vedic religion , the religious practices of the early Indo-Aryan peoples , which were collected and later redacted into the Vedas , as well as the Agamas of Dravidian origin. The period of the composition, redaction, and commentary of these texts is known as the Vedic period , which lasted from roughly 1750 to 500 BCE. The philosophical portions of
3285-461: The Yajurveda and the older Brahmana texts were composed. The Brahmans became powerful intermediairies. Historical roots of Jainism in India is traced back to 9th-century BC with the rise of Parshvanatha and his non-violent philosophy. The Vedic religion evolved into Hinduism and Vedanta , a religious path considering itself the 'essence' of the Vedas, interpreting the Vedic pantheon as
3358-676: The Yamna-culture may have been derived from Middle Eastern Neolithic farmers who migrated to the Pontic steppe and developed pastoral nomadism. Wells agrees with Cavalli-Sforza that there is " some genetic evidence for migration from the Middle East." Nevertheless, the Anatolian hypothesis is incompatible with the linguistic evidence. David Anthony 's The Horse, the Wheel and Language describes his "revised steppe theory". He considers
3431-605: The authoritarian nature of this transition from the egalitarian society centered on the nature/earth mother goddess ( Gaia ) to a patriarchy worshipping the father/sun/weather god ( Zeus , Dyaus ). J. P. Mallory (in 1989) accepted the Kurgan hypothesis as the de facto standard theory of Indo-European origins, but he distinguished it from an implied "radical" scenario of military invasion. Gimbutas' actual main scenario involved slow accumulation of influence through coercion or extortion, as distinguished from general raiding shortly followed by conquest: One might at first imagine that
3504-566: The core Yamnaya culture and its relationship with other cultures as a point of reference. Gimbutas defined the Kurgan culture as composed of four successive periods, with the earliest (Kurgan I) including the Samara and Seroglazovo cultures of the Dnieper – Volga region in the Copper Age (early 4th millennium BC). The people of these cultures were nomadic pastoralists , who, according to
3577-498: The core beliefs of Hinduism. Some modern Hindu scholars use the "Vedic religion" synonymously with "Hinduism". According to Sundararajan, Hinduism is also known as the Vedic religion. Other authors state that the Vedas contain "the fundamental truths about Hindu Dharma" which is called "the modern version of the ancient Vedic Dharma" The Arya Samaj is recognize the Vedic religion as true Hinduism. Nevertheless, according to Jamison and Witzel ... to call this period Vedic Hinduism
3650-401: The economy of argument involved with the Kurgan solution should oblige us to accept it outright. But critics do exist and their objections can be summarized quite simply: Almost all of the arguments for invasion and cultural transformations are far better explained without reference to Kurgan expansions, and most of the evidence so far presented is either totally contradicted by other evidence, or
3723-592: The evidence for Marshall's hypothesis to be "terribly robust". Some of the baetyls interpreted by Marshall to be sacred phallic representations are now thought to have been used as pestles or game counters instead, while the ring stones that were thought to symbolise yoni were determined to be architectural features used to stand pillars, although the possibility of their religious symbolism cannot be eliminated. Many Indus Valley seals show animals, with some depicting them being carried in processions, while others show chimeric creations . One seal from Mohen-jodaro shows
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#17327829108123796-500: The figure as a deity, its association with the water buffalo, and its posture as one of ritual discipline, regarding it as a proto-Shiva would be going too far. Despite the criticisms of Marshall's association of the seal with a proto-Shiva icon, it has been interpreted as the Tirthankara Rishabha by Jains and Vilas Sangave or an early Buddha by Buddhists. Historians like Heinrich Zimmer , Thomas McEvilley are of
3869-490: The fire was believed to reach God. Central concepts in the Vedas are Satya and Rta . Satya is derived from Sat , the present participle of the verbal root as , "to be, to exist, to live". Sat means "that which really exists [...] the really existent truth; the Good", and Sat-ya means "is-ness". Rta , "that which is properly joined; order, rule; truth", is the principle of natural order which regulates and coordinates
3942-518: The havana sámagri (herbal preparations) in the fire, accompanied by the singing of Samans and 'mumbling' of Yajus , the sacrificial mantras. The sublime meaning of the word yajna is derived from the Sanskrit verb yaj, which has a three-fold meaning of worship of deities (devapujana), unity (saògatikaraña), and charity (dána). An essential element was the sacrificial fire – the divine Agni – into which oblations were poured, as everything offered into
4015-529: The history of India, namely the Hindu, Muslim, and British periods. This periodisation has been criticised, for the misconceptions it has given rise to. Another periodisation is the division into "ancient, classical, medieval, and modern periods", although this periodization has also received criticism. Romila Thapar notes that the division of Hindu-Muslim-British periods of Indian history gives too much weight to "ruling dynasties and foreign invasions", neglecting
4088-626: The legendary marriage of Shiva to Queen Mīnātchi who ruled Madurai or Wanji-ko , a god who later merged into Indra . Tolkappiyar refers to the Three Crowned Kings as the "Three Glorified by Heaven". In the Dravidian-speaking South, the concept of divine kingship led to the assumption of major roles by state and temple. Ernst Wahle Ernst Wahle (March 25, 1889, in Magdeburg – January 21, 1981)
4161-520: The model, by the early 3rd millennium BC had expanded throughout the Pontic–Caspian steppe and into Eastern Europe . Genetics studies in the 21st century have demonstrated that populations bearing specific Y-DNA haplogroups and a distinct genetic signature expanded into Europe and South Asia from the Pontic-Caspian steppe during the third and second millennia BC. These migrations provide
4234-501: The objective. Both Jainism and Buddhism spread throughout India during the period of the Magadha empire. Buddhism flourished during the reign of Ashoka of the Maurya Empire , who patronised Buddhist teachings and unified the Indian subcontinent in the 3rd century BCE. He sent missionaries abroad, allowing Buddhism to spread across Asia. Jainism began its golden period during the reign of Emperor Kharavela of Kalinga in
4307-559: The operation of the universe and everything within it. "Satya (truth as being) and rita (truth as law) are the primary principles of Reality and its manifestation is the background of the canons of dharma, or a life of righteousness." "Satya is the principle of integration rooted in the Absolute, rita is its application and function as the rule and order operating in the universe." Conformity with Ṛta would enable progress whereas its violation would lead to punishment. Panikkar remarks: Ṛta
4380-506: The opinion that there exists some link between first Jain Tirthankara Rishabha and Indus Valley civilisation. Marshall hypothesized the existence of a cult of Mother Goddess worship based upon excavation of several female figurines, and thought that this was a precursor of the Hindu sect of Shaktism . However the function of the female figurines in the life of Indus Valley people remains unclear, and Possehl does not regard
4453-406: The orthodoxy of the rituals. The shramanas were wandering ascetics distinct from Vedism. Mahavira, proponent of Jainism, and Buddha (c. 563-483), founder of Buddhism were the most prominent icons of this movement. Shramana gave rise to the concept of the cycle of birth and death, the concept of samsara , and the concept of liberation. The influence of Upanishads on Buddhism has been
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#17327829108124526-443: The phallus ( linga ) and vulva ( yoni ); and, use of baths and water in religious practice. Marshall's interpretations have been much debated, and sometimes disputed over the following decades. One Indus valley seal shows a seated figure with a horned headdress, surrounded by animals. Marshall identified the figure as an early form of the Hindu god Shiva (or Rudra ), who is associated with asceticism, yoga , and linga; regarded as
4599-451: The related concepts of yoga, saṃsāra (the cycle of birth and death) and moksha (liberation from that cycle). The Puranic Period (200 BCE – 500 CE) and Early Medieval period (500–1100 CE) gave rise to new configurations of Hinduism, especially bhakti and Shaivism , Shaktism , Vaishnavism , Smarta , and smaller groups like the conservative Shrauta . The early Islamic period (1100–1500 CE) also gave rise to new movements. Sikhism
4672-692: The royal lineage of Ayodhya. Buddhism emphasises enlightenment (nibbana, nirvana) and liberation from the rounds of rebirth. This objective is pursued through two schools, Theravada, the Way of the Elders (practiced in Sri Lanka, Burma, Thailand, SE Asia, etc.) and Mahayana, the Greater Way (practiced in Tibet, China, Japan, etc.). There may be some differences in the practice between the two schools in reaching
4745-515: The social-economic history which often showed a strong continuity. The division in Ancient-Medieval-Modern overlooks the fact that the Muslim conquests took place between the eight and the fourteenth centuries, while the south was never completely conquered. According to Thapar, a periodisation could also be based on "significant social and economic changes", which are not strictly related to a change of ruling powers. Smart and Michaels seem to follow Mill's periodisation, while Flood and Muesse follow
4818-401: The subcontinent tended to adapt their religious and social life to Brahmanic norms", a process sometimes called Sanskritization . It is reflected in the tendency to identify local deities with the gods of the Sanskrit texts. During the time of the shramanic reform movements "many elements of the Vedic religion were lost". According to Michaels, "it is justified to see a turning point between
4891-476: The ten anthologies Pattuppāṭṭu , the eight anthologies Eṭṭuttokai also sheds light on early religion of ancient Dravidians. Seyon was glorified as the red god seated on the blue peacock, who is ever young and resplendent, as the favored god of the Tamils. Sivan was also seen as the supreme God. Early iconography of Seyyon and Sivan and their association with native flora and fauna goes back to Indus Valley Civilization. The Sangam landscape
4964-471: The term "Kurgan culture" so imprecise as to be useless, and instead uses the core Yamnaya culture and its relationship with other cultures as points of reference. He points out: The Kurgan culture was so broadly defined that almost any culture with burial mounds, or even (like the Baden culture) without them could be included. He does not include the Maykop culture among those that he considers to be Indo-European-speaking and presumes instead that they spoke
5037-415: Was called an "awakened one" ( Buddha ), was born into the Shakya clan living at Kapilavastu and Lumbini in what is now southern Nepal. The Buddha was born at Lumbini, as emperor Ashoka 's Lumbini pillar records, just before the kingdom of Magadha (which traditionally is said to have lasted from c. 546–324 BCE) rose to power. The Shakyas claimed Angirasa and Gautama Maharishi lineage, via descent from
5110-489: Was classified into five categories, thinais , based on the mood, the season and the land. Tolkappiyam, mentions that each of these thinai had an associated deity such Seyyon in Kurinji -the hills, Thirumaal in Mullai -the forests, and Kotravai in Marutham -the plains, and Wanji-ko in the Neithal -the coasts and the seas. Other gods mentioned were Mayyon and Vaali who were all assimilated into Hinduism over time. Dravidian linguistic influence on early Vedic religion
5183-466: Was established by a lineage of 24 enlightened beings culminating with Parshvanatha (9th century BCE) and Mahavira (6th century BCE). The 24th Tirthankara of Jainism, Mahavira, stressed five vows, including ahimsa (non-violence), satya (truthfulness), asteya (non-stealing), and aparigraha (non-attachment). As per Jain tradition, the teachings of the Tirthankaras predates all known time. The scholars believe Parshva , accorded status as
5256-582: Was founded in the 15th century on the teachings of Guru Nanak and the nine successive Sikh Gurus in Northern India . The vast majority of its adherents originate in the Punjab region . During the period of British rule in India , a reinterpretation and synthesis of Hinduism arose, which aided the Indian independence movement . Scottish historian James Mill , in his seminal work The History of British India (1817), distinguished three phases in
5329-496: Was not a protector of wild animals. Herbert Sullivan and Alf Hiltebeitel also rejected Marshall's conclusions, with the former claiming that the figure was female, while the latter associated the figure with Mahisha , the Buffalo God and the surrounding animals with vahanas (vehicles) of deities for the four cardinal directions. Writing in 2002, Gregory L. Possehl concluded that while it would be appropriate to recognise
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