Nighaṇṭu ( Sanskrit : निघण्टु , IPA: [nɪɡʱɐɳʈʊ] ) is a Sanskrit term for a traditional collection of words, grouped into thematic categories, often with brief annotations. Such collections share characteristics with glossaries and thesauri , but are not true lexicons , such as the kośa of Sanskrit literature. Particular collections are also called nighaṇṭava .
137-553: While a number of nighantavas devoted to specialized subjects exist, the eponymous Nighantu of the genre is an ancient collection, handed down from Vedic times . It was the subject of the Nirukta , a commentary, together with a treatise on etymology, by Yaska . Technically, Yaska's Nirukta should designate his commentary only, but traditionally the Nighantu has been understood to be included in it. According to Yaska (Nirukta 1.20),
274-440: A "hierarchical order of estates which reflected a division of labor among various social classes". The Vedic period estates were four: Brahmin priests and warrior nobility stood on top, free peasants and traders were the third, and slaves, labourers and artisans, many belonging to the indigenous people, were the fourth. This was a period where agriculture, metal, and commodity production, as well as trade, greatly expanded, and
411-644: A body of teachings incorporating esoteric tantric techniques, may be viewed as a separate branch or tradition within Mahāyāna. The Theravāda branch has a widespread following in Sri Lanka as well as in Southeast Asia, namely Myanmar , Thailand , Laos , and Cambodia . The Mahāyāna branch—which includes the East Asian traditions of Tiantai , Chan , Pure Land , Zen , Nichiren , and Tendai
548-782: A group of people who settled in Sutlej, Ghagger, and the Upper Ganga/Yamuna Valleys, loosely classified with the early Aryans who migrated to India in the beginning of the Vedic period. It's also thought that the groups that introduced the painted grey ware culture also brought iron technology to the Indo-gangetic plains, making this pottery a momentous mark of the Northern Indian Iron Age. The style of grey-ware often includes clay wheel-thrown into
685-467: A more settled, agricultural way of life. The second half of the Vedic period was characterised by the emergence of towns, kingdoms , and a complex social differentiation distinctive to India, and the Kuru Kingdom 's codification of orthodox sacrificial ritual . During this time, the central Ganges Plain was dominated by a related but non-Vedic Indo-Aryan culture, of Greater Magadha . The end of
822-537: A phenomenon known as Greco-Buddhism . An example of this is evidenced in Chinese and Pali Buddhist records, such as Milindapanha and the Greco-Buddhist art of Gandhāra . The Milindapanha describes a conversation between a Buddhist monk and the 2nd-century BCE Greek king Menander , after which Menander abdicates and himself goes into monastic life in the pursuit of nirvana. Some scholars have questioned
959-633: A purely indigenous origin of the Indo-Aryans is outside the academic mainstream. The knowledge about the Aryans comes mostly from the Rigveda - samhita , i.e. the oldest layer of the Vedas , which was composed c. 1400–1000 BCE. They brought with them their distinctive religious traditions and practices. The Vedic beliefs and practices of the pre-classical era were closely related to
1096-537: A small kingdom to the east of Magadha (on the door step of modern-day West Bengal ), formed the eastern boundary of the Vedic culture. Yadavas expanded towards the south and settled in Mathura . To the south of their kingdom was Vatsa which was governed from its capital Kausambi . The Narmada River and parts of North Western Deccan formed the southern limits. The newly formed states struggled for supremacy and started displaying imperial ambitions. The end of
1233-406: A smooth texture, ash-grey in color, and often decorated with black ink, creating small circular patterns, sometimes spirals, swastikas, or sigmas. Grey-ware pottery is almost exclusively drinking ware, and tends to have three different forms: narrow-waisted, tall drinking glasses, middle-sized drinking goblets, and drinking vases with outturned lips. There was a distinct grey ware culture surrounding
1370-544: A year. The horse was followed by a chosen band of warriors. The kingdoms and chiefdoms in which the horse wandered had to pay homage or prepare to battle the king to whom the horse belonged. This sacrifice put considerable pressure on inter-state relations in this era. This period saw also the beginning of the social stratification by the use of varna , the division of Vedic society in Brahmins , Kshatriya , Vaishya and Shudra . The Kuru kingdom declined after its defeat by
1507-475: 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 the fire was believed to reach God. People prayed for abundance of rain, cattle, sons, long life and gaining 'heaven'. Vedic people believed in
SECTION 10
#17327731417631644-559: Is difficult to "pin down" whether the Kurus were a true "state" or a complex chiefdom , as the Kuru kings notably never adopted royal titles higher than "rājan," which means "chief" rather than "king" in the Vedic context. The Middle Vedic Period is also characterized by a lack of cities; Bellah compares this to early state formation in ancient Hawaii and "very early Egypt," which were "territorial states" rather than "city-states," and thus "it
1781-450: Is greatly important to this culture, as pottery was often used as a "grave good", being buried with the bodies of the dead. Buried alongside the skeletons, we typically see various pots on top of the body, averaging at about 5 or less pieces of pottery per grave. Within this culture we typically see two kinds of pottery: gray ware, or red ware. Black and red ware culture was coined as a term in 1946 by Sir Mortimer Wheeler. The pottery, as
1918-401: Is heard"). The mode of worship was the performance of sacrifices ( Yajna ) which included the chanting of Rigvedic verses (see Vedic chant ), singing of Samans and 'mumbling' of sacrificial mantras ( Yajus ). Yajna involved sacrifice and sublimation of the havana sámagri (herbal preparations) in the fire accompanied by the chanting of the Vedic mantras. The sublime meaning of the word yajna
2055-472: Is mentioned in some hymns, there is no indication of the use of coins. Metallurgy is not mentioned in the Rigveda , but the word ayas and instruments made from it such as razors, bangles, axes are mentioned. One verse mentions purification of ayas . Some scholars believe that ayas refers to iron and the words dham and karmara refer to iron-welders. However, philological evidence indicates that ayas in
2192-511: Is now customary to render both recensions together, with the additions of the longer recension in parentheses. Vedic period The Vedic period , or the Vedic age ( c. 1500 – c. 500 BCE ), is the period in the late Bronze Age and early Iron Age of the history of India when the Vedic literature, including the Vedas ( c. 1500 –900 BCE), was composed in
2329-633: Is predominantly practised in Nepal , Bhutan , China , Malaysia , Vietnam , Taiwan , Korea , and Japan . Tibetan Buddhism , a form of Vajrayāna , is practised in the Himalayan states as well as in Mongolia and Russian Kalmykia . Japanese Shingon also preserves the Vajrayana tradition as transmitted to China . Historically, until the early 2nd millennium , Buddhism was widely practiced in
2466-400: Is scholarly disagreement on whether insight was seen as liberating in early Buddhism or whether it was a later addition to the practice of the four jhānas . Scholars such as Bronkhorst also think that the four noble truths may not have been formulated in earliest Buddhism, and did not serve in earliest Buddhism as a description of "liberating insight". According to Vetter, the description of
2603-640: Is shown by a large increase in epigraphic and manuscript evidence in this period. However, it still remained a minority in comparison to other Buddhist schools. Mahāyāna Buddhist institutions continued to grow in influence during the following centuries, with large monastic university complexes such as Nalanda (established by the 5th-century CE Gupta emperor, Kumaragupta I ) and Vikramashila (established under Dharmapala c. 783 to 820) becoming quite powerful and influential. During this period of Late Mahāyāna, four major types of thought developed: Mādhyamaka, Yogācāra, Buddha-nature ( Tathāgatagarbha ), and
2740-450: Is the world's fourth-largest religion , with over 520 million followers, known as Buddhists , who comprise seven percent of the global population. It arose in the eastern Gangetic plain as a śramaṇa movement in the 5th century BCE, and gradually spread throughout much of Asia. Buddhism has subsequently played a major role in Asian culture and spirituality, eventually spreading to
2877-474: Is vast, with many different textual collections in different languages (such as Sanskrit , Pali , Tibetan , and Chinese ). Buddhist schools vary in their interpretation of the paths to liberation ( mārga ) as well as the relative importance and "canonicity" assigned to various Buddhist texts , and their specific teachings and practices. Two major extant branches of Buddhism are generally recognized by scholars: Theravāda ( lit. ' School of
SECTION 20
#17327731417633014-638: The Aditya gods or sometimes the cow). Rivers, especially Saraswati , were also considered goddesses. Deities were not viewed as all-powerful. The relationship between humans and the deity was one of transaction, with Agni (the sacrificial fire) taking the role of messenger between the two. Strong traces of a common Indo-Iranian religion remain visible, especially in the Soma cult and the fire worship, both of which are preserved in Zoroastrianism . Ethics in
3151-838: The Dharmaguptaka school. The Islamic conquest of the Iranian Plateau in the 7th-century, followed by the Muslim conquests of Afghanistan and the later establishment of the Ghaznavid kingdom with Islam as the state religion in Central Asia between the 10th- and 12th-century led to the decline and disappearance of Buddhism from most of these regions. The origins of Mahāyāna ("Great Vehicle") Buddhism are not well understood and there are various competing theories about how and where this movement arose. Theories include
3288-549: The Gita of Mahabharata , are essential parts of these later developments. The reconstruction of the history of Vedic India is based on text-internal details, but can be correlated to relevant archaeological details. Linguistically, the Vedic texts could be classified in five chronological strata: In northern India, some very early depictions of deities appear in the art of the Indus Valley Civilisation , but
3425-695: The Milindapanha version, expressing doubts whether Menander was Buddhist or just favourably disposed to Buddhist monks. The Kushan empire (30–375 CE) came to control the Silk Road trade through Central and South Asia, which brought them to interact with Gandharan Buddhism and the Buddhist institutions of these regions. The Kushans patronised Buddhism throughout their lands, and many Buddhist centres were built or renovated (the Sarvastivada school
3562-708: The Ochre Coloured Pottery culture , the Gandhara grave culture , the Black and red ware culture and the Painted Grey Ware culture. Ochre coloured pottery culture was first found approximately between 1950 and 1951, in western Uttar Pradesh, in the Badaun and Bisjuar district. It is thought that this culture was prominent during the latter half of the 2nd millennium, within the transition between
3699-469: The Pali canon . The history of Indian Buddhism may be divided into five periods: Early Buddhism (occasionally called pre-sectarian Buddhism ), Nikaya Buddhism or Sectarian Buddhism (the period of the early Buddhist schools), Early Mahayana Buddhism , Late Mahayana, and the era of Vajrayana or the "Tantric Age". According to Lambert Schmithausen Pre-sectarian Buddhism is "the canonical period prior to
3836-670: The Puranas , envisions a much older chronology for the Vedic culture. In this view, the Vedas were received by the seven rishis thousands of years ago. The start of the reign of Vaivasvata Manu , the Manu of the current kalpa (aeon) and the progenitor of humanity, is dated by some as far back 7350 BCE. The Kurukshetra War , the background-scene of the Bhagavad Gita , which may relate historical events taking place ca. 1000 BCE at
3973-603: The Rigveda refers only to copper and bronze, while iron or śyāma ayas , literally "black metal", first is mentioned in the post-Rigvedic Atharvaveda , and therefore the Early Vedic Period was a Bronze Age culture whereas the Late Vedic Period was an Iron Age culture. The transition of Vedic society from semi-nomadic life to settled agriculture in the later Vedic age led to an increase in trade and competition for resources. Agriculture dominated
4110-399: The Rigveda refers to both eastern and western oceans. Individual property ownership did not exist and clans as a whole enjoyed rights over lands and herds. Enslavement ( dasa , dasi ) in the course of war or as a result of non-payment of debt is mentioned. However, slaves worked in households rather than production-related activities. Texts considered to date to the Vedic period are mainly
4247-431: The Rigveda , such as 3.44–45, indicate the absence of strict social hierarchy and the existence of social mobility: O, Indra, fond of soma , would you make me the protector of people, or would you make me a king, would you make me a sage who has drunk soma , would you impart to me endless wealth. The institution of marriage was important and different types of marriages— monogamy, polygyny and polyandry are mentioned in
Nighantu - Misplaced Pages Continue
4384-451: The Rigveda . Both women sages and female gods were known to Vedic Aryans. Women could choose their husbands and could remarry if their husbands died or disappeared. The wife enjoyed a respectable position. People consumed milk, milk products, grains, fruits and vegetables. Meat eating is mentioned; however, cows are labeled aghnya (not to be killed). Clothes of cotton, wool and animal skin were worn. Soma and sura were popular drinks in
4521-578: The Sintashta culture , from which arose the subsequent Andronovo horizon. The Indo-Aryans migrated through the adjacent Bactria – Margiana area (present-day northern Afghanistan ) to northwest India, followed by the rise of the Iranian Yaz culture at c. 1500 BCE, and the Iranian migrations into Iran at c. 800 BCE. Some Indian writers and archaeologists have opposed
4658-682: The Tarim Basin . The first documented Buddhist texts translated into Chinese are those of the Parthian An Shigao (148–180 CE). The first known Mahāyāna scriptural texts are translations into Chinese by the Kushan monk Lokakṣema in Luoyang , between 178 and 189 CE. From China, Buddhism was introduced into its neighbours Korea (4th century), Japan (6th–7th centuries), and Vietnam ( c. 1st –2nd centuries). During
4795-565: The Theravada tradition had not established any deities, but were epistemologically cautious rather than directly atheist . Later Buddhist traditions were more influenced by the critique of deities within Hinduism and therefore more committed to a strongly atheist stance. These developments were historic and epistemological as documented in verses from Śāntideva 's Bodhicaryāvatāra , and supplemented by reference to suttas and jātakas from
4932-584: The Upanishads , the final phase of the Vedic era, was approximately contemporaneous with a new wave of state formations, linked to the beginning of urbanization in the Ganges Valley: along with the growth of population and trade networks, these social and economic changes put pressure on older ways of life, setting the stage for the Upanishads and the subsequent śramaṇa movements, and the end of
5069-536: The Vedas are based on the concepts of Satya and Rta . Satya is the principle of integration rooted in the Absolute. Whereas, Ṛta is the expression of Satya, which regulates and coordinates the operation of the universe and everything within it. Conformity with Ṛta would enable progress whereas its violation would lead to punishment. Around the beginning of the Common Era, the Vedic tradition formed one of
5206-503: The Vedic tradition formed one of the main constituents of " Hindu synthesis ". Archaeological cultures identified with phases of Indo-Aryan material culture include the Ochre Coloured Pottery culture , the Gandhara grave culture , the black and red ware culture and the Painted Grey Ware culture (PGW). The early Vedic age is historically dated to the second half of the second millennium BCE. Historically, after
5343-589: The epistemological tradition of Dignaga and Dharmakirti . According to Dan Lusthaus , Mādhyamaka and Yogācāra have a great deal in common, and the commonality stems from early Buddhism. During the Gupta period (4th–6th centuries) and the empire of Harṣavardana ( c. 590 –647 CE), Buddhism continued to be influential in India, and large Buddhist learning institutions such as Nalanda and Valabahi Universities were at their peak. Buddhism also flourished under
5480-445: The rajan was to protect the tribe. He was aided by several functionaries, including the purohita (chaplain), the senani (army chief), dutas (envoys) and spash (spies). Purohita performed ceremonies and spells for success in war and prosperity in peace. In the later Vedic period, the tribes had consolidated into small kingdoms, which had a capital and a rudimentary administrative system. To aid in governing these new states,
5617-699: The transmigration of the soul , and the peepul tree and cow were sanctified by the time of the Atharvaveda . Many of the concepts of Indian philosophy espoused later like Dharma , Karma etc. trace their root to the Vedas . The main deities of the Vedic pantheon were Indra , Agni (the sacrificial fire ), and Soma and some deities of social order such as Mitra – Varuna , Aryaman , Bhaga and Amsa, further nature deities such as Surya (the Sun), Vayu (the wind) and Prithivi (the earth). Goddesses included Ushas (the dawn), Prithvi and Aditi (the mother of
Nighantu - Misplaced Pages Continue
5754-436: The Śramaṇa traditions. New ideas developed both in the Vedic tradition in the form of the Upanishads, and outside of the Vedic tradition through the Śramaṇa movements. The term Śramaṇa refers to several Indian religious movements parallel to but separate from the historical Vedic religion , including Buddhism, Jainism and others such as Ājīvika . Several Śramaṇa movements are known to have existed in India before
5891-426: The "surface" level, in which graves are covered with huge stone slabs. In the lower stage, excavators found that these graves are typically 2–3 feet deep, and covered with stones on top. After digging out the stones, skeletons were found facing southwest to northeast, with the head facing one direction, and the hands laying on top of one another. Female skeletons were often found wearing hair pins and jewelry. Pottery
6028-515: The 1200s. The Silk Road transmission of Buddhism to China is most commonly thought to have started in the late 2nd or the 1st century CE, though the literary sources are all open to question. The first documented translation efforts by foreign Buddhist monks in China were in the 2nd century CE, probably as a consequence of the expansion of the Kushan Empire into the Chinese territory of
6165-561: The 6th century BCE (pre-Buddha, pre- Mahavira ), and these influenced both the āstika and nāstika traditions of Indian philosophy . According to Martin Wilshire, the Śramaṇa tradition evolved in India over two phases, namely Paccekabuddha and Savaka phases, the former being the tradition of individual ascetic and the latter of disciples, and that Buddhism and Jainism ultimately emerged from these. Brahmanical and non-Brahmanical ascetic groups shared and used several similar ideas, but
6302-683: The Bhairava Vidyapitha tantras. Ronald M. Davidson meanwhile, argues that Sanderson's claims for direct influence from Shaiva Vidyapitha texts are problematic because "the chronology of the Vidyapitha tantras is by no means so well established" and that the Shaiva tradition also appropriated non-Hindu deities, texts and traditions. Thus while "there can be no question that the Buddhist tantras were heavily influenced by Kapalika and other Saiva movements" argues Davidson, "the influence
6439-684: The Buddha advised meditation practices and ethical precepts rooted in non-harming . Widely observed teachings include the Four Noble Truths , the Noble Eightfold Path , and the doctrines of dependent origination , karma , and the three marks of existence . Other commonly observed elements include the Triple Gem , the taking of monastic vows , and the cultivation of perfections ( pāramitā ). The Buddhist canon
6576-484: The Buddhist path may initially have been as simple as the term "the middle way". In time, this short description was elaborated, resulting in the description of the eightfold path. According to numerous Buddhist scriptures, soon after the parinirvāṇa (from Sanskrit: "highest extinguishment") of Gautama Buddha, the first Buddhist council was held to collectively recite the teachings to ensure that no errors occurred in oral transmission. Many modern scholars question
6713-514: The Chinese Tang dynasty (618–907), Chinese Esoteric Buddhism was introduced from India and Chan Buddhism (Zen) became a major religion. Chan continued to grow in the Song dynasty (960–1279) and it was during this era that it strongly influenced Korean Buddhism and Japanese Buddhism. Pure Land Buddhism also became popular during this period and was often practised together with Chan. It
6850-663: The Elders ' ) and Mahāyāna ( lit. ' Great Vehicle ' ). The Theravada tradition emphasizes the attainment of nirvāṇa ( lit. ' extinguishing ' ) as a means of transcending the individual self and ending the cycle of death and rebirth ( saṃsāra ), while the Mahayana tradition emphasizes the Bodhisattva ideal , in which one works for the liberation of all sentient beings. Additionally, Vajrayāna ( lit. ' Indestructible Vehicle ' ),
6987-732: The Indian subcontinent before declining there ; it also had a foothold to some extent elsewhere in Asia, namely Afghanistan , Turkmenistan , Uzbekistan , and Tajikistan . The names Buddha Dharma and Bauddha Dharma come from Sanskrit : बुद्ध धर्म and बौद्ध धर्म respectively ("doctrine of the Enlightened One" and "doctrine of Buddhists"). The term Dharmavinaya comes from Sanskrit: धर्मविनय , literally meaning "doctrines [and] disciplines". The Buddha ("the Awakened One")
SECTION 50
#17327731417637124-463: The Indus Valley civilization and the end of Harrapan culture. This pottery is typically created with wheel ware, and is ill-fired, to a fine to medium fabric, decorated with a red slip, and occasional black bands1. When this pottery was worked with, it often left an ochre color on the hands, most likely because of water-logging, bad firing, wind action, or a mixture of these factors. This pottery
7261-578: The Kingdoms of the Indo-Greeks , Indo-Scythians , and Indo-Parthians . This period culminated with the Kushan and Gupta Empire , which resulted in the "Hindu Synthesis". While Vedic society was relatively egalitarian in the sense that a distinct hierarchy of socio-economic classes or castes was absent, the Vedic period saw the emergence of a hierarchy of social classes . Political hierarchy
7398-515: The Kshatriya and Shudra. The Purusha Sukta visualised the four varnas as hierarchical, but inter-related parts of an organic whole. Despite the increasing social stratification in the later Vedic times, hymns like Rigveda IX.112 suggest some amount of social mobility: "I am a reciter of hymns, my father a physician, and my mother grinds (corn) with stones. We desire to obtain wealth in various actions." Household became an important unit in
7535-474: The Kuru-Panchala region but were not the only Indo-Aryan people in northern India, transitioned from semi-nomadic life to settled agriculture in north-western India. Possession of horses remained an important priority of Vedic leaders and a remnant of the nomadic lifestyle, resulting in trade routes beyond the Hindu Kush to maintain this supply as horses needed for cavalry and sacrifice could not be bred in India. The Gangetic plains had remained out of bounds to
7672-410: The Naigama and the 151 names of the Daivata in detail. A full word-by-word commentary on the Naighantuka was written by Devarajayajvan , some time before the 14th CE. A critical edition of the Nighantu and the Nirukta was published in the 1920s by Lakshman Sarup. In it, two major recensions were identified, one longer than the other, indicating additions at untraceable yet relatively early dates. It
7809-402: The Nighantu was a collection of rare or difficult words gathered by earlier sages for easier understanding of Vedic texts that perhaps they may not have fully understood themselves. The collection comprises five adhyāya s or chapters, in three kāṇḍa s or books: Yaska's Nirukta covers the Naighantuka somewhat synoptically, often merely echoing a given gloss, but deals with the 278 words of
7946-416: The Theravada Majjhima Nikaya and Sarvastivada Madhyama Agama contain mostly the same major doctrines. Richard Salomon , in his study of the Gandharan texts (which are the earliest manuscripts containing early discourses), has confirmed that their teachings are "consistent with non-Mahayana Buddhism, which survives today in the Theravada school of Sri Lanka and Southeast Asia, but which in ancient times
8083-589: The Vedic Period, which was followed by the Mahajanapada period. According to George Erdosy, archaeological data for the period from 1000 to 600 BCE shows a two-tiered settlement pattern in the Ganges Valley, with some "modest central places," suggestive of the existence of simple chiefdoms , with the Kurukshetra district itself displaying a more complex (albeit not yet urbanized) three-tiered hierarchy. Subsequently, (after 600 BCE) there are four tiers of site sizes, including large towns and fortified cities, consistent with an urbanized state-level society. Economy in
8220-425: The Vedic era texts including the early Upanishads and many Sutras important to later Hindu culture were completed. The Kuru Kingdom , the earliest Vedic "state", was formed by a "super-tribe" which joined several tribes in a new unit. To govern this state, Vedic hymns were collected and transcribed, and new rituals were developed, which formed the now orthodox Śrauta rituals. Two key figures in this process of
8357-460: The Vedic period is marked by linguistic, cultural and political changes. The grammar of Pāṇini marks a final apex in the codification of Sutra texts, and at the same time the beginning of Classical Sanskrit . Meanwhile, in the Kosala-Magadha region, the shramana movements (including Jainism and Buddhism ) objected the self-imposed authority and orthodoxy of the intruding Brahmins and their Vedic scriptures and ritual. According to Bronkhorst,
SECTION 60
#17327731417638494-411: The Vedic period was sustained by a combination of pastoralism and agriculture. There are references, in the Rigveda , to the leveling of fields, seed processing, and storage of grains in large jars. War bounty was also a major source of wealth. Economic exchanges were conducted by gift giving, particularly to kings ( bali ) and priests ( dana ), and barter using cattle as a unit of currency. While gold
8631-401: The Vedic period witnessed the rise of true cities and large states (called mahajanapadas ) as well as śramaṇa movements (including Jainism and Buddhism ) which challenged the Vedic orthodoxy. The Vedic period saw the emergence of a hierarchy of social classes that would remain influential. Vedic religion developed into Brahmanical orthodoxy , and around the beginning of the Common Era,
8768-432: The Vedic society, of which soma was sanctified by religion. Flute ( vana ), lute ( vina ), harp, cymbals and drums were the musical instruments played and a heptatonic scale was used. Dancing, dramas, chariot racing and gambling were other popular pastimes. The emergence of monarchical states in the later Vedic age led to a distancing of the rajan from the people and the emergence of a varna hierarchy. The society
8905-468: The Vedic tribes because of thick forest cover. After 1000 BCE, the use of iron axes and ploughs became widespread and the jungles could be cleared with ease. This enabled the Vedic Aryans to extend their settlements into the western area of the Ganga-Yamuna Doab. Many of the old tribes coalesced to form larger political units. The Vedic religion was further developed with the emergence of the Kuru kingdom, systematising its religious literature and developing
9042-422: The Vinaya (monastic rule), and this caused a split with the conservatives who rejected this change, they were called Mahāsāṃghikas . While most scholars accept that this happened at some point, there is no agreement on the dating, especially if it dates to before or after the reign of Ashoka. Buddhism may have spread only slowly throughout India until the time of the Mauryan emperor Ashoka (304–232 BCE), who
9179-404: The West in the 20th century. According to tradition, the Buddha instructed his followers in a path of development which leads to awakening and full liberation from dukkha ( lit. ' suffering or unease ' ). He regarded this path as a Middle Way between extremes such as asceticism or sensual indulgence. Teaching that dukkha arises alongside attachment or clinging ,
9316-406: The age of 80 in Kushinagar , India. The Buddha's teachings were propagated by his followers, which in the last centuries of the 1st millennium BCE became various Buddhist schools of thought , each with its own basket of texts containing different interpretations and authentic teachings of the Buddha; these over time evolved into many traditions of which the more well known and widespread in
9453-690: The ancient religion Jainism , is also claimed to be ksatriya by his early followers. ) According to early texts such as the Pali Ariyapariyesanā-sutta ("The discourse on the noble quest", MN 26) and its Chinese parallel at MĀ 204, Gautama was moved by the suffering ( dukkha ) of life and death, and its endless repetition due to rebirth . He thus set out on a quest to find liberation from suffering (also known as " nirvana "). Early texts and biographies state that Gautama first studied under two teachers of meditation, namely Āḷāra Kālāma (Sanskrit: Arada Kalama) and Uddaka Ramaputta (Sanskrit: Udraka Ramaputra), learning meditation and philosophy, particularly
9590-422: The banks of the river Parushni (modern day Ravi ). The battle was fought between the tribe Bharatas , led by their chief Sudas , against a confederation of ten tribes. The Bharatas lived around the upper regions of the river Saraswati , while the Purus, their western neighbours, lived along the lower regions of Saraswati. The other tribes dwelt north-west of the Bharatas in the region of Punjab . Division of
9727-413: The collapse of the Indus Valley Civilisation , which occurred around 1900 BCE, groups of Indo-Aryan peoples migrated into north-western India and started to inhabit the northern Indus Valley . The Indo-Aryans represented a sub-group that diverged from other Indo-Iranian tribes at the Andronovo horizon before the middle of the 2nd millennium BCE. The Indo-Iranians originated in
9864-496: The commandments of gods ( avrata ). Their speech is described as mridhra which could variously mean soft, uncouth, hostile, scornful or abusive. Other adjectives which describe their physical appearance are subject to many interpretations. However, some modern scholars such as Asko Parpola connect the Dasas and Dasyus to Iranian tribes Dahae and Dahyu and believe that Dasas and Dasyus were early Indo-Aryan immigrants who arrived into
10001-558: The culture. Gandhara grave culture refers to the protohistoric cemeteries found in the Gandhara region, stretching all the way from Bajuar to the Indus. These cemeteries seem to follow a set grave structure and "mortuary practice", such as inflexed inhumation and cremation. This culture is thought to occur in 3 stages: the lower, in which burials take place in masonry lined pits, the upper, in which urn burials and cremations are added, and
10138-467: The development of different schools with their different positions". The early Buddhist Texts include the four principal Pali Nikāyas (and their parallel Agamas found in the Chinese canon) together with the main body of monastic rules, which survive in the various versions of the patimokkha . However, these texts were revised over time, and it is unclear what constitutes the earliest layer of Buddhist teachings. One method to obtain information on
10275-456: The development of the Kuru state were the king Parikshit and his successor Janamejaya , transforming this realm into the dominant political and cultural power of northern Iron Age India . The most well-known of the new religious sacrifices that arose in this period were the Ashvamedha (horse sacrifice). This sacrifice involved setting a consecrated horse free to roam the kingdoms for
10412-625: The earliest Mahāyāna sūtras to include the first versions of the Prajnaparamita series, along with texts concerning Akṣobhya , which were probably composed in the 1st century BCE in the south of India. There is no evidence that Mahāyāna ever referred to a separate formal school or sect of Buddhism, with a separate monastic code (Vinaya), but rather that it existed as a certain set of ideals, and later doctrines, for bodhisattvas. Records written by Chinese monks visiting India indicate that both Mahāyāna and non-Mahāyāna monks could be found in
10549-600: The early texts, which has led most scholars to conclude that Gautama Buddha must have taught something similar to the Four Noble Truths , the Noble Eightfold Path , Nirvana , the three marks of existence , the five aggregates , dependent origination , karma and rebirth . According to N. Ross Reat, all of these doctrines are shared by the Theravada Pali texts and the Mahasamghika school's Śālistamba Sūtra . A recent study by Bhikkhu Analayo concludes that
10686-834: The economic activity along the Ganges valley during this period. Agricultural operations grew in complexity and usage of iron implements ( krishna–ayas or shyama–ayas , literally black metal or dark metal) increased. Crops of wheat, rice, and barley were cultivated. Surplus production helped to support the centralised kingdoms that were emerging at this time. New crafts and occupations such as carpentry, leather work, tanning, pottery, astrology, jewellery, dying, and winemaking arose. Apart from copper, bronze, and gold, later Vedic texts also mention tin, lead, and silver. Panis in some hymns refers to merchants, in others to stingy people who hid their wealth and did not perform Vedic sacrifices. Some scholars suggest that Panis were semitic traders, but
10823-558: The ending of the mental defilements ( asavas ), the ending of suffering, and the end of rebirth in saṃsāra . This event also brought certainty about the Middle Way as the right path of spiritual practice to end suffering. As a fully enlightened Buddha , he attracted followers and founded a Sangha (monastic order). He spent the rest of his life teaching the Dharma he had discovered, and then died, achieving " final nirvana ", at
10960-514: The establishment of the pottery, but while the culture is significant, grey ware has only made up 10–15% of found Vedic pottery, a majority of the pottery red ware, as grey ware pottery was seen as a "highly valued luxury". The Puranic chronology , the timeline of events in ancient Indian history and mythology as narrated in post-Vedic Hindu texts such as the Mahabharata , the Ramayana and
11097-411: The evidence for this is slim. Professions of warriors, priests, cattle-rearers, farmers, hunters, barbers, vintners and crafts of chariot-making, cart-making, carpentry, metal working, tanning, making of bows, sewing, weaving, making mats of grass and reed are mentioned in the hymns of the Rigveda . Some of these might have needed full-time specialists. There are references to boats and oceans. Book X of
11234-436: The exact signification of these artifacts, or even the culture and the periodization to which they belonged. Some examples of artistic expression also appear in abstract pottery designs during the Black and red ware culture (1450–1200 BCE) or the Painted Grey Ware culture (1200–600 BCE), with finds in a wide area, including the area of Mathura. Archaeological cultures identified with phases of Vedic material culture include
11371-648: The following millennium, coinciding with the Indo–Aryan migration during the Vedic period, is devoid of such remains. It has been suggested that the early Vedic religion focused exclusively on the worship of purely "elementary forces of nature by means of elaborate sacrifices", which did not lend themselves easily to anthropomorphological representations. Various artefacts may belong to the Copper Hoard culture (2nd millennium CE), some of them suggesting anthropomorphological characteristics. Interpretations vary as to
11508-549: The four Vedas , but the Brahmanas , Aranyakas and the older Upanishads as well as the oldest Śrautasutras are also considered to be Vedic. The Vedas record the liturgy connected with the rituals and sacrifices performed by the 16 or 17 Śrauta priests and the purohitas . The rishis , the composers of the hymns of the Rigveda , were considered inspired poets and seers (in post-Vedic times understood as "hearers" of an eternally existing Veda , Śruti means "what
11645-428: The heartland of Āryāvarta , is dated in this chronology at c. 3100 BCE . Buddhism Buddhism ( / ˈ b ʊ d ɪ z əm / BUUD -ih-zəm , US also / ˈ b uː d -/ BOOD - ), also known as Buddha Dharma , is an Indian religion and philosophical tradition based on teachings attributed to the Buddha , a wandering teacher who lived in the 6th or 5th century BCE . It
11782-497: The historicity of this event. However, Richard Gombrich states that the monastic assembly recitations of the Buddha's teaching likely began during Buddha's lifetime, and they served a similar role of codifying the teachings. The so called Second Buddhist council resulted in the first schism in the Sangha . Modern scholars believe that this was probably caused when a group of reformists called Sthaviras ("elders") sought to modify
11919-651: The hypothesised Proto-Indo-European religion and the Indo-Iranian religion. Funeral sacrifices from the Sintashta culture show close parallels to the sacrificial funeral rites of the Rigveda , while, according to Anthony, the Old Indic religion probably emerged among Indo-European immigrants in the contact zone between the Zeravshan River (present-day Uzbekistan ) and (present-day) Tajikistan. It
12056-434: The idea that it began as various groups venerating certain texts or that it arose as a strict forest ascetic movement. The first Mahāyāna works were written sometime between the 1st century BCE and the 2nd century CE. Much of the early extant evidence for the origins of Mahāyāna comes from early Chinese translations of Mahāyāna texts, mainly those of Lokakṣema . (2nd century CE). Some scholars have traditionally considered
12193-529: The increasing power of the king, their influence declined. By the end of the later Vedic age, different kinds of political systems such as monarchical states ( rajya ), oligarchical states ( gana or sangha ), and tribal principalities had emerged in India. According to Michael Witzel 's analysis of the Kuru Kingdom , it can be characterized as the earliest Vedic "state", during the Middle Vedic Period. However, Robert Bellah observes that it
12330-510: The king Janaka , whose court provided patronage for Brahmin sages and philosophers such as Yajnavalkya , Uddalaka Aruni , and Gargi Vachaknavi ; Panchala also remained prominent during this period, under its king Pravahana Jaivali . By the 6th century BCE, the political units consolidated into large kingdoms called Mahajanapadas . The process of urbanisation had begun in these kingdoms, commerce and travel flourished, even regions separated by large distances became easy to access. Anga ,
12467-423: The kings and their Brahmin priests arranged Vedic hymns into collections and developed a new set of rituals (the now orthodox Śrauta rituals) to strengthen the emerging social hierarchy . The rajan was seen as the custodian of social order and the protector of rashtra (polity). Hereditary kingship started emerging and competitions like chariot races, cattle raids, and games of dice, which previously decided who
12604-449: The later Vedic age. The variety of households of the Vedic era gave way to an idealised household which was headed by a grihapati . The relations between husband and wife, father and son were hierarchically organised and the women were relegated to subordinate and docile roles. Polygyny was more common than polyandry and texts like Tattiriya Samhita indicate taboos around menstruating women. Various professions women took to are mentioned in
12741-462: The later Vedic texts. Women tended to cattle, milked cows, carded wool; were weavers, dyers, and corn grinders. Women warriors such as Vishpala , who lost a leg in battle, are mentioned. Two female philosophers are mentioned in the Upanishads. Patrick Olivelle , in his translation of the Upanishads, writes that "the fact that these women are introduced without any attempt to justify or to explain how women could be engaged in theological matters suggests
12878-426: The main constituents of the " Hindu synthesis ". Vedic religion survived in the srayta ritual, whereas ascetic and devotional traditions like Yoga and Vedanta acknowledge the authority of the Vedas , but interpret the Vedic pantheon as a unitary view of the universe with 'God' (Brahman) seen as immanent and transcendent in the forms of Ishvara and Brahman . Later texts such as the Upanishads and epics, namely
13015-621: The maintenance of a political state during succession and wars to resist invasion. During the Middle Ages, Buddhism slowly declined in India, while it vanished from Persia and Central Asia as Islam became the state religion. The Theravada school arrived in Sri Lanka sometime in the 3rd century BCE. Sri Lanka became a base for its later spread to Southeast Asia after the 5th century CE ( Myanmar , Malaysia , Indonesia , Thailand , Cambodia and coastal Vietnam ). Theravada Buddhism
13152-412: The meditative attainment of "the sphere of nothingness" from the former, and "the sphere of neither perception nor non-perception" from the latter. Finding these teachings to be insufficient to attain his goal, he turned to the practice of severe asceticism , which included a strict fasting regime and various forms of breath control . This too fell short of attaining his goal, and then he turned to
13289-587: The meditative practice of dhyana . He famously sat in meditation under a Ficus religiosa tree—now called the Bodhi Tree —in the town of Bodh Gaya and attained "Awakening" ( Bodhi ). According to various early texts like the Mahāsaccaka-sutta, and the Samaññaphala Sutta , on awakening, the Buddha gained insight into the workings of karma and his former lives, as well as achieving
13426-426: The modern era are Theravada , Mahayana and Vajrayana Buddhism. Historically, the roots of Buddhism lie in the religious thought of Iron Age India around the middle of the first millennium BCE. This was a period of great intellectual ferment and socio-cultural change known as the "Second urbanisation" , marked by the growth of towns and trade, the composition of the Upanishads and the historical emergence of
13563-419: The name suggests, typically has a black rim/inside surface, and a red lower half on the outside of the piece. Red-ware pottery tends to fall into two categories: offering stands, or cooking vessels. Most of these pieces of pottery were open-mouthed bowls that were burnished, painted, or slipped on one side; however, jars, pots and dishes-on-stands have also been found in small quantities. Black and red ware, and
13700-617: The non-Vedic Salva tribe , and the political center of Vedic culture shifted east, into the Panchala kingdom on the Ganges, under King Keśin Dālbhya (approximately between 900 and 750 BCE). Later, in the 8th or 7th century BCE, the kingdom of Videha emerged as a political center farther to the East, in what is today northern Bihar of India and southeastern Nepal , reaching its prominence under
13837-491: The northern Indian subcontinent , between the end of the urban Indus Valley Civilisation and a second urbanisation , which began in the central Indo-Gangetic Plain c. 600 BCE. The Vedas are liturgical texts which formed the basis of the influential Brahmanical ideology, which developed in the Kuru Kingdom , a tribal union of several Indo-Aryan tribes . The Vedas contain details of life during this period that have been interpreted to be historical and constitute
13974-466: The notion of a migration of Indo-Aryans into India, and argued for an indigenous origin of the Indo-Aryans . In this view, "the Indian civilization must be viewed as an unbroken tradition that goes back to the earliest period of the Sindhu-Sarasvati (or Indus) tradition (7000 or 8000 BCE)." Though popular in India, and reflecting Indian views on Indian history and religion, the idea of
14111-596: The oldest core of Buddhism is to compare the oldest extant versions of the Theravadin Pāli Canon and other texts. The reliability of the early sources, and the possibility to draw out a core of oldest teachings, is a matter of dispute. According to Vetter, inconsistencies remain, and other methods must be applied to resolve those inconsistencies. According to Schmithausen, three positions held by scholars of Buddhism can be distinguished: According to Mitchell, certain basic teachings appear in many places throughout
14248-627: The origins of early Vajrayana has been taken up by various scholars. David Seyfort Ruegg has suggested that Buddhist tantra employed various elements of a "pan-Indian religious substrate" which is not specifically Buddhist, Shaiva or Vaishnava. According to Indologist Alexis Sanderson , various classes of Vajrayana literature developed as a result of royal courts sponsoring both Buddhism and Saivism . Sanderson has argued that Buddhist tantras can be shown to have borrowed practices, terms, rituals and more form Shaiva tantras. He argues that Buddhist texts even directly copied various Shaiva tantras, especially
14385-656: The precise dates are uncertain, although the 5th century BCE seems to be the best estimate. Early texts have the Buddha's family name as "Gautama" (Pali: Gotama), while some texts give Siddhartha as his surname. He was born in Lumbini , present-day Nepal and grew up in Kapilavastu , a town in the Ganges Plain , near the modern Nepal–India border, and he spent his life in what is now modern Bihar and Uttar Pradesh . Some hagiographic legends state that his father
14522-493: The primary sources for understanding the period. These documents, alongside the corresponding archaeological record, allow for the evolution of the Indo-Aryan and Vedic culture to be traced and inferred. The Vedas were composed and orally transmitted with precision by speakers of an Old Indo-Aryan language who had migrated into the northwestern regions of the Indian subcontinent early in this period. The Vedic society
14659-426: The relatively high social and religious position of at least women of some social strata during this period." Early Vedic Aryans were organised into tribes rather than kingdoms. The chief of a tribe was called a rajan . The autonomy of the rajan was restricted by the tribal councils called sabha and samiti . The two bodies were, in part, responsible for the governance of the tribe. The rajan could not accede to
14796-402: The same monasteries, with the difference that Mahāyāna monks worshipped figures of Bodhisattvas, while non-Mahayana monks did not. Mahāyāna initially seems to have remained a small minority movement that was in tension with other Buddhist groups, struggling for wider acceptance. However, during the fifth and sixth centuries CE, there seems to have been a rapid growth of Mahāyāna Buddhism, which
14933-603: The schisms, each Saṅgha started to accumulate their own version of Tripiṭaka (triple basket of texts). In their Tripiṭaka, each school included the Suttas of the Buddha, a Vinaya basket (disciplinary code) and some schools also added an Abhidharma basket which were texts on detailed scholastic classification, summary and interpretation of the Suttas. The doctrine details in the Abhidharmas of various Buddhist schools differ significantly, and these were composed starting about
15070-560: The service of the higher varnas . The effects of Rajasuya sacrifice depended on the varna of the sacrificer. Rajasuya endowed Brahmana with lustre, Kshatriya with valour, Vaishya with procreative power and Shudra with stability. The hierarchy of the top three varnas is ambiguous in the later Vedic texts. Panchavamsha Brahmana and verse 13.8.3.11 of the Shatapatha Brahmana place Kshatriya over Brahmana and Vaishya, whereas, verse 1.1.4.12 places Brahmana and Vaishya over
15207-467: The society he grew up in may have been invented and interpolated at a later time into the Buddhist texts. Various details about the Buddha's background are contested in modern scholarship. For example, Buddhist texts assert that Buddha described himself as a kshatriya (warrior class), but Gombrich writes that little is known about his father and there is no proof that his father even knew the term kshatriya . ( Mahavira , whose teachings helped establish
15344-552: The sramana culture arose in " Greater Magadha ," which was Indo-European, but not Vedic. In this culture, kshatriyas were placed higher than Brahmins, and it rejected Vedic authority and rituals. Greater Magadha reached its zenith under the Maurya Empire . Meanwhile, the Achaemenid invasion of Cyrus and Darius I of the Indus valley in the early 6th century BCE marks the beginning of outside influence, which continued in
15481-577: The subcontinent before the Vedic Aryans. Likewise, Bronkhorst has argued that the central Ganges Plain was dominated by a related but non-Vedic Indo-Aryan culture, a difference also noted by Samuel. Accounts of military conflicts in between the various tribes of Vedic Aryans are also described in the Rigveda . Most notable of such conflicts was the Battle of the Ten Kings , which took place on
15618-651: The support of the Pāla Empire (8th–12th centuries). Under the Guptas and Palas, Tantric Buddhism or Vajrayana developed and rose to prominence. It promoted new practices such as the use of mantras , dharanis , mudras , mandalas and the visualization of deities and Buddhas and developed a new class of literature, the Buddhist Tantras . This new esoteric form of Buddhism can be traced back to groups of wandering yogi magicians called mahasiddhas . The question of
15755-441: The surrounding culture, began its spread during the neolithic period and continues until the early medieval period in India, as well as being found in parts of West Asia and Egypt. There are many theories about the process of its creation, the most popular being the use of an inverted firing technique, or a simultaneous oxidation and reduction firing. Painted grey ware culture is a significant pottery style that has been linked to
15892-692: The third century BCE and through the 1st millennium CE. According to the edicts of Aśoka , the Mauryan emperor sent emissaries to various countries west of India to spread "Dharma", particularly in eastern provinces of the neighbouring Seleucid Empire , and even farther to Hellenistic kingdoms of the Mediterranean. It is a matter of disagreement among scholars whether or not these emissaries were accompanied by Buddhist missionaries. In central and west Asia, Buddhist influence grew, through Greek-speaking Buddhist monarchs and ancient Asian trade routes,
16029-467: The three Vedic sacrificial fires, reinterpreting and explaining them as ethical conduct. The Śramaṇa religions challenged and broke with the Brahmanic tradition on core assumptions such as Atman (soul, self), Brahman , the nature of afterlife, and they rejected the authority of the Vedas and Upanishads . Buddhism was one among several Indian religions that did so. Early Buddhist positions in
16166-494: The throne without their approval. The distinction between the two bodies is not clear. Arthur Llewellyn Basham , a noted historian and indologist , theorises that sabha was a meeting of great men in the tribe, whereas, samiti was a meeting of all free tribesmen. Some tribes had no hereditary chiefs and were directly governed by the tribal councils. Rajan had a rudimentary court which was attended by courtiers ( sabhasad ) and chiefs of sects ( gramani ). The main responsibility of
16303-619: The waters of Ravi could have been a reason for the war. The confederation of tribes tried to inundate the Bharatas by opening the embankments of Ravi, yet Sudas emerged victorious in the Battle of Ten Kings. The Bharatas and the Purus merged into a new tribe, the Kuru , after the war. After the 12th century BCE, as the Rigveda had taken its final form, the Vedic society, which is associated with
16440-569: The Śramaṇa traditions also drew upon already established Brahmanical concepts and philosophical roots, states Wiltshire, to formulate their own doctrines. Brahmanical motifs can be found in the oldest Buddhist texts, using them to introduce and explain Buddhist ideas. For example, prior to Buddhist developments, the Brahmanical tradition internalised and variously reinterpreted the three Vedic sacrificial fires as concepts such as Truth, Rite, Tranquility or Restraint. Buddhist texts also refer to
16577-743: The Śrauta ritual. It is associated with the Painted Grey Ware culture (c.1200–600 BCE), which did not expand east of the Ganga-Yamuya Doab. It differed from the related, yet markedly different, culture of the Central Ganges region, which was associated with the Northern Black Polished Ware and the Mahajanapadas of Kosala and Magadha . In this period the varna system emerged, state Kulke and Rothermund, which in this stage of Indian history were
16714-578: Was "a syncretic mixture of old Central Asian and new Indo-European elements", which borrowed "distinctive religious beliefs and practices" from the Bactria–Margiana culture , including the god Indra and the ritual drink Soma . The Rigveda contains accounts of conflicts between the Aryas and the Dasas and Dasyus. It describes Dasas and Dasyus as people who do not perform sacrifices ( akratu ) or obey
16851-658: Was a Śramaṇa who lived in South Asia c. 6th or 5th century BCE. Followers of Buddhism, called Buddhists in English, referred to themselves as Sakyan -s or Sakyabhiksu in ancient India. Buddhist scholar Donald S. Lopez asserts they also used the term Bauddha , although scholar Richard Cohen asserts that that term was used only by outsiders to describe Buddhists. Details of the Buddha's life are mentioned in many Early Buddhist Texts but are inconsistent. His social background and life details are difficult to prove, and
16988-472: Was a king named Suddhodana , his mother was Queen Maya. Scholars such as Richard Gombrich consider this a dubious claim because a combination of evidence suggests he was born in the Shakya community, which was governed by a small oligarchy or republic-like council where there were no ranks but where seniority mattered instead. Some of the stories about the Buddha, his life, his teachings, and claims about
17125-635: Was a public supporter of the religion. The support of Aśoka and his descendants led to the construction of more stūpas (such as at Sanchi and Bharhut ), temples (such as the Mahabodhi Temple ) and to its spread throughout the Maurya Empire and into neighbouring lands such as Central Asia and to the island of Sri Lanka . During and after the Mauryan period (322–180 BCE), the Sthavira community gave rise to several schools, one of which
17262-495: Was also during the Song that the entire Chinese canon was printed using over 130,000 wooden printing blocks. During the Indian period of Esoteric Buddhism (from the 8th century onwards), Buddhism spread from India to Tibet and Mongolia . Johannes Bronkhorst states that the esoteric form was attractive because it allowed both a secluded monastic community as well as the social rites and rituals important to laypersons and to kings for
17399-937: Was apparently mutual". Already during this later era, Buddhism was losing state support in other regions of India, including the lands of the Karkotas , the Pratiharas , the Rashtrakutas , the Pandyas and the Pallavas . This loss of support in favor of Hindu faiths like Vaishnavism and Shaivism , is the beginning of the long and complex period of the Decline of Buddhism in the Indian subcontinent . The Islamic invasions and conquest of India (10th to 12th century), further damaged and destroyed many Buddhist institutions, leading to its eventual near disappearance from India by
17536-423: Was determined by rank, where rājan (tribal king or chieftain) and rājanya (tribal nobility) stood at the top, the viś (the common people) in the middle, and the dāsa and dasyu (non-Indo-Aryan servants) at the bottom. The words Brahamana and Kshatriya occur in various family books of the Rigveda , but they are not associated with the term varna . The words Vaishya and Shudra are absent. Verses of
17673-549: Was divided into four social groups— Brahmanas , Kshatriyas , Vaishyas and Shudras . The later Vedic texts fixed social boundaries, roles, status and ritual purity for each of the groups. The Shatapatha Brahmana associates the Brahmana with purity of parentage, good conduct, glory, teaching or protecting people; Kshatriya with strength, fame, ruling, and warfare; Vaishya with material prosperity and production-related activities such as cattle rearing and agriculture; Shudras with
17810-491: Was found all throughout the doab, most of it found in the Muzaffarnagar, Meerut, and Bulandshahr districts, but also existing outside these districts, extending north and south of Bahadrabad. This pottery does, however, seem to exist within different time frames of popularity, ochre colored pottery seeming to occur in areas such as Rajasthan earlier than we see it in the doab, despite the doab being heavily associated with
17947-488: Was particularly favored), especially by Emperor Kanishka (128–151 CE). Kushan support helped Buddhism to expand into a world religion through their trade routes. Buddhism spread to Khotan , the Tarim Basin , and China, eventually to other parts of the far east. Some of the earliest written documents of the Buddhist faith are the Gandharan Buddhist texts , dating from about the 1st century CE, and connected to
18084-515: Was patriarchal and patrilineal . Early Indo-Aryans were a Late Bronze Age society centred in the Punjab , organised into tribes rather than kingdoms, and primarily sustained by a pastoral way of life. Around c. 1200 –1000 BCE the Aryan culture spread eastward to the fertile western Ganges Plain. Iron tools were adopted, which allowed for the clearing of forests and the adoption of
18221-478: Was represented by eighteen separate schools." However, some scholars argue that critical analysis reveals discrepancies among the various doctrines found in these early texts, which point to alternative possibilities for early Buddhism. The authenticity of certain teachings and doctrines have been questioned. For example, some scholars think that karma was not central to the teaching of the historical Buddha, while other disagree with this position. Likewise, there
18358-584: Was the Theravada school which tended to congregate in the south and another which was the Sarvāstivāda school, which was mainly in north India. Likewise, the Mahāsāṃghika groups also eventually split into different Sanghas. Originally, these schisms were caused by disputes over monastic disciplinary codes of various fraternities, but eventually, by about 100 CE if not earlier, schisms were being caused by doctrinal disagreements too. Following (or leading up to)
18495-449: Was the court, not the city, that provided the center, and the court was often peripatetic." Romila Thapar characterizes Vedic-era state formation as being in a condition of "arrested development," because local chiefs were relatively autonomous, and because surplus wealth that could have been directed towards state-building was instead used for the increasingly grandiose rituals that also served to structure social relations. The period of
18632-665: Was the dominant religion in Burma during the Mon Hanthawaddy Kingdom (1287–1552). It also became dominant in the Khmer Empire during the 13th and 14th centuries and in the Thai Sukhothai Kingdom during the reign of Ram Khamhaeng (1237/1247–1298). The term "Buddhism" is an occidental neologism, commonly (and "rather roughly" according to Donald S. Lopez Jr. ) used as a translation for
18769-475: Was worthy of becoming a king, became nominal. Rituals in this era exalted the status of the king over his people. He was occasionally referred to as samrat (supreme ruler). The rajan's increasing political power enabled him to gain greater control over the productive resources. The voluntary gift offering ( bali ) became compulsory tribute; however, there was no organised system of taxation. Sabha and samiti are still mentioned in later Vedic texts, though, with
#762237