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132-989: Vedic Sanskrit is the language of the extensive liturgical works of the Vedic religion , while Classical Sanskrit is the language of many of the prominent texts associated with the major Indian religions , especially Hinduism and the Hindu texts , but also Buddhism , and Jainism . Some Sanskrit Buddhist texts are also composed in a version of Sanskrit often called Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit or Buddhistic Sanskrit, which contains many Middle Indic ( prakritic ) elements not found in other forms of Sanskrit. Early works of Sanskrit literature were transmitted through an oral tradition for centuries before they were written down in manuscript form. While most Sanskrit texts were composed in ancient India , others were composed in Central Asia , East Asia or Southeast Asia . Sanskrit literature

264-585: A Christian understanding of religion, the original "God-given religion" was corrupted by priests, in this case Brahmins, and their religion, "Brahminism", which was supposedly imposed on the Indian population. Reformist Hindus, and others such as Ambedkar , structured their criticism along similar lines. Texts dating to the Vedic period, composed in Vedic Sanskrit , are mainly the four Vedic Samhitas , but

396-413: A better understanding of the Vedic religion and its shared heritage and theology with contemporary Hinduism, led scholars to view the historical Vedic religion as ancestral to modern Hinduism. The historical Vedic religion is now generally accepted to be a predecessor of modern Hinduism , but they are not the same because the textual evidence suggests significant differences between the two. These include

528-768: A center of the Ismaili sect of Islam. The Saffarid Dynasty of Zaranj occupied Kabul and the kingdom of Zunbil permanently in 871 AD. A new chapter of Muslim conquests began when the Samanid Dynasty took over the Saffarid Kingdom and Sabuktigin seized Ghazni . After the Decline of the Caliphate , Muslim incursions resumed under the later Turkic and Central Asian dynasties like the Saffarid dynasty and

660-414: A form of the ancient Vedic religion. It has also been suggested by Michael Witzel that Shinto , the native religion of Japan , contains some influences from the ancient Vedic religion. Brahmanism, also called Brahminism or Brahmanical Hinduism, developed out of the Vedic religion, incorporating non-Vedic religious ideas, and expanding to a region stretching from the northwest Indian subcontinent to

792-685: A kind of supplement ( khila ) to the Mahābhārata , is the Harivanhśa , which focuses on the figure of Krishna . In contrast to the Mahābhārata , the Rāmāyaṇa consists of only 24,000 ślokas divided into seven books, and in form is more purely regular, ornate epic poetry, a form of style which is the basis of the later Kāvya tradition. There are two parts to the story of the Rāmāyaṇa , which are narrated in

924-526: A period of thirty years and more. God be merciful to both father and son! Mahmud utterly ruined the prosperity of the country, and performed there wonderful exploits, by which the Hindus became like atoms of dust scattered in all directions, and like a tale of old in the mouth of the people. Their scattered remains cherish, of course, the most inveterate aversion towards all Muslims. This is the reason, too, why Hindu sciences have retired far away from those parts of

1056-503: A recon mission to Sindh in 653. The mission described Makran as inhospitable, and Caliph Uthman, probably assuming the country beyond the Indus was much worse, forbade any further incursions into Indian subcontinent. During the caliphate of Ali, many Hindus of Sindh had come under the influence of Shi'ism and some even participated in the Battle of Camel and died fighting for Ali. Under

1188-555: A result until 870 AD. Arab troops disliked being stationed in Makran. Fierce resistance stalled Arab progress repeatedly in the "frontier zone". and the Arabs had to focus on tribute extraction instead of systematic conquest as a result. Arabs launched several campaigns in eastern Balochistan between 661 and 681 AD. Four Arab commanders were killed during these campaigns, however, Sinan b. Salma managed to conquer parts of Makran including

1320-564: A separate people in the early 2nd millennium BCE. From the BMAC Indo-Aryan tribes migrated to the northwestern region of the Indian subcontinent , and the Vedic religion developed there during the early Vedic period ( c. 1500–1100 BCE) as a variant of Indo-Aryan religion, influenced by the remnants of the late Indus Valley Civilisation (2600–1900 BCE). During the late Vedic period ( c. 1100–500 BCE) Brahmanism developed out of

1452-536: A succession of inroads twelve or fourteen in number, into Gandhar – the present Peshwar valley – in the course of his proselytizing invasions of Hindustan. Fire and sword, havoc and destruction, marked his course everywhere. Gandhar which was styled the Garden of the North was left at his death a weird and desolate waste. Its rich fields and fruitful gardens, together with the canal which watered them (the course of which

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1584-573: A varied group of Hindu Tantric scriptures titled Tantras or Agamas. Gavin Flood argues that the earliest date for these Tantric texts is 600 CE, though most of them were probably composed after the 8th century onwards. Tantric literature was very popular during the "Tantric Age" (c. 8th to the 14th century) , a period of time when Tantric traditions rose to prominence and flourished throughout India. According to Flood, all Hindu traditions, Shaiva , Vaishnava , Smarta and Shakta (perhaps excepting

1716-461: Is a family feud in the royal house of the Kauravas (the descendants of Bharata), leading to a bloody battle at Kurukshetra . Over the centuries, an enormous mass of poetry, myths, legends, secondary tales, moral stories and more was added to the original core story. The final form of the epic is thus a massive 100,000 ślokas across 18+1 books. According to Winternitz, the Mahābhārata also shows

1848-577: Is dated back to 2nd millennium BCE. The Vedic beliefs and practices of the pre-classical era were closely related to the hypothesized Proto-Indo-European religion , and shows relations with rituals from the Andronovo culture , from which the Indo-Aryan people descended. According to Anthony, the Old Indic religion probably emerged among Indo-European immigrants in the contact zone between

1980-576: Is lacking. The Arabs moved east from Sindh in several detachments and probably attacked from both the land and the sea, occupying Mirmad (Marumada, in Jaisalmer ), Al-Mandal (perhaps Okhamandal in Gujarat) or Marwar, and raiding Dahnaj , not identified, al-Baylaman ( Bhilmal ) and Jurz (Gurjara country—north Gujarat and southern Rajasthan), and attacking Barwas ( Broach ). Gurjara king Siluka repelled Arabs from "Stravani and Valla", probably

2112-538: Is largely secular in subject-matter. On the other hand, the Classical Sanskrit language was much more formalized and homogeneous, partly due to the influence of Sanskrit grammarians like Pāṇini and his commentators. Sanskrit was an important language for medieval Indian religious literature. Most pre-modern Hindu literature and philosophy was in Sanskrit and a significant portion of Buddhist literature

2244-469: Is made of 1028 hymns named sūktas , composed of verses in strictly regulated meters. These are collected into saṃhitās . There are about 10,000 of these verses that make up the Ṛg·veda. The Ṛg·vedic hymns are subdivided into 10 maṇḍala s, most of which are attributed to members of certain families. Composition of the Ṛg·vedic hymns was entirely oral, and for much of its history, the Ṛg·veda has been transmitted only orally, written down likely no sooner than in

2376-480: Is not mentioned in the early layers of the historic Vedic religion texts such as the Rigveda . The later layers of the Rigveda do mention ideas that suggest an approach towards the idea of rebirth, according to Ranade. Muslim conquests in the Indian subcontinent Political Militant [REDACTED] Islam portal The Muslim conquests in the Indian subcontinent mainly took place between

2508-499: Is posited as that which existed before the creation of the universe, which constitutes all of existence thereafter, and into which the universe will dissolve, followed by similar endless creation-maintenance-destruction cycles. The post-Vedic period of the Second Urbanisation saw a decline of Brahmanism. With the growth of political entities, which threatened the income and patronage of the rural Brahmins including;

2640-505: Is rife with notions of witchcraft, derived from a much earlier period. The Brāhmaṇas (a subdivision within the Vedas) concern themselves with the correct application of Vedic ritual , and the duties of the Vedic priest ( hotṛ : 'pourer, worshiper, reciter') the word being derived from bráhman meaning 'prayer'. They were composed at a period in time by which the Vedic hymns had achieved the status of being ancient and sacred revelations and

2772-602: Is significantly different from the historical Vedic religion. The Vedic religion has roots in the Indo-Iranian culture and religion of the Sintashta ( c. 2200–1750 BCE) and Andronovo ( c. 2000–1150 BCE) cultures of Eurasian Steppe . This Indo-Iranian religion borrowed "distinctive religious beliefs and practices" from the non-Indo-Aryan Bactria–Margiana culture (BMAC; 2250–1700 BCE) of south of Central Asia , when pastoral Indo-Aryan tribes stayed there as

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2904-481: Is still partially traceable in the western part of the plain), had all disappeared. Its numerous stone built cities, monasteries, and topes with their valuable and revered monuments and sculptures, were sacked, fired, razed to the ground, and utterly destroyed as habitations. The Ghaznavid conquests were initially directed against the Ismaili Fatimids of Multan, who were engaged in an ongoing struggle with

3036-618: Is unclear if the theory in diverse Vedic texts actually reflect the folk practices, iconography, and other practical aspects of the Vedic religion. The Vedic religion changed when Indo-Aryan people migrated into the Ganges Plain after c. 1100 BCE and became settled farmers, further syncretizing with the native cultures of northern India. The evidence suggests that the Vedic religion evolved in "two superficially contradictory directions", namely an ever more "elaborate, expensive, and specialized system of rituals", which survives in

3168-475: Is vast and includes Hindu texts , religious scripture , various forms of poetry (such as epic and lyric ), drama and narrative prose . It also includes substantial works covering secular and technical sciences and the arts. Some of these subjects include: law and custom , grammar , politics , economics , medicine , astrology - astronomy , arithmetic , geometry , music , dance , dramatics , magic and divination , and sexuality . Literature in

3300-1471: The Vivekacūḍāmaṇi , the Hanuman Chalisa , the Aṣṭāvakragītā , Bhaja Govindam , and the Shiva Tandava Stotra . Another group of later Sanskrit Hindu texts are those which focus on Hatha Yoga , and include the Dattātreyayogaśāstra (13th century), the Gorakṣaśataka (13th century) , the Haṭhayogapradīpikā (15th century) and the Gheraṇḍasaṁhitā (17th or 18th-century). Historical Vedic religion Traditional Pontic Steppe 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 historical Vedic religion , also called Vedicism or Vedism , and sometimes ancient Hinduism or Vedic Hinduism , constituted

3432-719: The Arabian Sea , not to start the conquest of India. Shortly after the Muslim conquest of Persia , the connection between the Sindh and Islam was established by the initial Muslim missions during the Rashidun Caliphate. The kingdoms of Kapisa - Gandhara in modern-day Afghanistan, Zabulistan , and Sindh (which then held Makran) in modern-day Pakistan, all of which were culturally part of Indian subcontinent since ancient times, were known as "The Frontier of Al Hind" to

3564-578: The BMAC religion. His rise to prominence was a peculiar trait of the Old Indic speakers. The oldest inscriptions in Old Indic, the language of the Rig Veda , are found in northern Syria, the location of the Mitanni kingdom. The Mitanni kings took Old Indic throne names, and Old Indic technical terms were used for horse-riding and chariot-driving. The Old Indic term r'ta , meaning "cosmic order and truth",

3696-613: The Battle of Rasil in 644 on the Indian Ocean coast, then reached the Indus River . Caliph Umar ibn Al-Khattab denied Suhail permission to carry on across the river. Al-Hakim ibn Jabalah al-Abdi, who attacked Makran in the year 649 AD, was an early partisan of Ali ibn Abu Talib. Abdullah ibn Aamir led the invasion of Khurasan in 650 AD, and his general Rabi b. Ziyad Al Harithi attacked Sistan and took Zaranj and surrounding areas in 651 while Ahnaf ibn Qais conquered

3828-705: The Bolan Pass . King Chach of Sindh sent an army against the Arabs, the Arabs were trapped when the enemy blocked the mountain passes, Haris was killed and his army was annihilated. Al-Muhallab ibn Abi Sufra took a detachment through the Khyber pass towards Multan in Southern Punjab in modern-day Pakistan in 664 AD, then pushed south into Kikan, and may have also raided Quandabil. Turki Shah and Zunbil expelled Arabs from their respective kingdoms by 670, and Zunbil began assisting in organizing resistance against

3960-609: The Brahmanas , Aranyakas , and some of the older Upanishads are also placed in this period. The Vedas record the liturgy connected with the rituals and sacrifices. These texts are also considered as a part of the scripture of contemporary Hinduism. Who really knows? Who will here proclaim it? Whence was it produced? Whence is this creation? The gods came afterwards, with the creation of this universe. Who then knows whence it has arisen? — Nasadiya Sukta , Rig Veda , 10:129-6 The idea of reincarnation , or saṃsāra ,

4092-608: The Brahmo Samaj and the Neo-Vedanta in the late 19th and early 20th century rejected the 'superstitions' of Puranic Hinduism, which in their view had deviated from the Vedic heritage, instead propagating a return to the Vedas and to restore an "imagined" original, rational and monotheistic ancient Hinduism with an equal standing as Protestant Christianity. In the 20th century, the neo-Hindu emphasis on Vedic roots, and

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4224-556: The Hepthalites of Herat and advanced up to Balkh by 653. Arab conquests now bordered the Kingdoms of Kapisa, Zabul and Sindh in modern-day Afghanistan and Pakistan. The Arabs levied annual tributes on the newly captured areas, and after leaving 4,000 men garrisons at Merv and Zaranj, retired to Iraq instead of pushing on against the frontier of India. Caliph Uthman b. Affan sanctioned an attack against Makran in 652, and sent

4356-497: The Hindu religion , treating the term Brahmanism as synonymous with Hinduism , and using it interchangeably. In the 18th and 19th centuries, Brahminism was the most common term used in English for Hinduism. Brahmanism gave importance to Absolute Reality (Brahman) speculations in the early Upanishads , as these terms are etymologically linked, which developed from post-Vedic ideas during the late Vedic era. The concept of Brahman

4488-660: The Kuru-Pancala realm , and expanded over a wider area after the demise of the Kuru-Pancala kingdom and its incorporation into the Magadha-based empires. It co-existed with local religions, such as the Yaksha cults. The word Brahmanism was coined by Gonçalo Fernandes Trancoso (1520–1596) in the 16th century. Historically, and still by some modern authors, the word 'Brahmanism' was used in English to refer to

4620-778: The Mamluk dynasty . With the Delhi Sultanate established, Islam was spread across most parts of the Indian subcontinent. In the 14th century, the Khalji dynasty under Alauddin Khalji , extended Muslim rule southwards to Gujarat , Rajasthan , and the Deccan . The successor Tughlaq dynasty temporarily expanded its territorial reach to Tamil Nadu . The disintegration of the Delhi Sultanate, capped by Timur's invasion in 1398, caused several Muslim sultanates and dynasties to emerge across

4752-611: The Mughal Empire in 1526, which was one of the three gunpowder empires . Emperor Akbar gradually enlarged the Mughal Empire to include a large portion of the subcontinent. Under Akbar, who stressed the importance of religious tolerance and winning over the goodwill of the subjects, a multicultural empire came into being with various non-Muslim subjects being actively integrated into the Mughal Empire's bureaucracy and military machinery. The economic and territorial zenith of

4884-708: The Mughal dynasty of India. Informed about civil war in South Asia, Timur began a trek starting in 1398 to invade the reigning Sultan Nasir-u Din Mehmud of the Tughlaq Dynasty in the north Indian city of Delhi. His campaign was politically pretexted that the Muslim Delhi Sultanate was too tolerant toward its "Hindu" subjects, but that could not mask the real reason being to amass the wealth of

5016-507: The Purāṇas found in the Vedic Brāhmaṇas . These poems were originally songs of praise or heroic songs which developed into epic poems of increasing length over time. They were originally recited during important events such as during the Vedic horse sacrifice (the aśvamedha ) or during a funeral. Another related genre were the "songs in praise of men" ( gatha narasamsi), which focus on

5148-538: The Rashidun Caliphate , long before any Arab army reached the frontier of India by land. Uthman ibn Abi al-As al-Thaqafi , the governor of Bahrain and Oman, had dispatched naval expeditions against the Sasanian coast, and further east to the borders of India, as confirmed by the contemporary Armenian historian, Sebeos . Uthman, on his own initiative and without the sanction of Caliph Umar , according to

5280-644: The Samanid Dynasty with more local capitals. They supplanted the Abbasid Caliphate and expanded their domains both northwards and eastwards. Continuous raids from these empires in the north-west of India led to the loss of stability in the Indian kingdoms. Under Sabuktigin , the Ghaznavid Empire found itself in conflict with the Kabul Shahi Raja Jayapala in the east. When Sabuktigin died and his son Mahmud ascended

5412-703: The Sramanic movement , the conquests of eastern empires from Magadha including the Nanda Empire and the Mauryan Empire , and also invasions and foreign rule of the northwestern Indian Subcontinent which brought in new political entities. This was overcome by providing new services and incorporating the non-Vedic Indo-Aryan religious heritage of the eastern Ganges plain and local religious traditions, giving rise to contemporary Hinduism . This "new Brahmanism" appealed to rulers, who were attracted to

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5544-849: The Srautas ) became influenced by Tantric works and adopted some Tantric elements into their literature. There are also numerous other types of Hindu religious works, including prose and poetry. Among prose works there are important works like the Yoga-Vāsiṣṭha (which is important in Advaita Vedanta ), the Yoga-Yājñavalkya and the Devi Mahatmya (a key Shakta work). When it comes to poetry, there are numerous stotras (odes), suktas and stutis , as well as other poetic genres. Some important works of Hindu Sanskrit poetry include

5676-415: The Zeravshan River (present-day Uzbekistan ) and (present-day) Iran. It 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 (BMAC). This syncretic influence is supported by at least 383 non-Indo-European words that were borrowed from this culture, including the god Indra and

5808-429: The Ṛgveda , but also contains several prose formulas. It is called the book of sacrificial prayers yajus . The last of the four, the Atharvaveda , both by the internal structure of the language used and by comparison with the Ṛg·veda, is a much later work. However, the Atharvaveda represents a much earlier stage of thought of the Vedic people, being composed mainly of spells and incantations appealing to demons, and

5940-513: The "Doomed Army". Abd al-Rahman ibn Muhammad ibn al-Ash'ath next led 20,000 troops each from Kufa and Basra (dubbed the "Peacock Army" due to the splendor of their equipment and the participation of numerous members of Arab nobility). His methodical 699 AD campaign made gains, but he was contemptuously rebuked by Hajjaj at every step. When Ibn al-Ash'ath paused his operation to consolidate, Hajjaj insulted him and ordered an immediate advance. This unreasonable demand led to mutiny. The mutiny

6072-408: The 11th century. After the capture of Lahore and the end of the Ghaznavids , the Ghurid ruler Muhammad of Ghor laid the foundation of Muslim rule in India in 1192. In 1202, Bakhtiyar Khalji led the Muslim conquest of Bengal , marking the easternmost expansion of Islam at the time. The Ghurid Empire soon evolved into the Delhi Sultanate in 1206, ruled by Qutb ud-Din Aibak , the founder of

6204-460: The 13th and the 18th centuries, establishing the Indo-Muslim period . Earlier Muslim conquests in the subcontinent include the invasions which started in the northwestern subcontinent (modern-day Pakistan ), especially the Umayyad campaigns during the 8th century. Mahmud of Ghazni , Sultan of the Ghaznavid Empire , preserved an ideological link to the suzerainty of the Abbasid Caliphate and invaded vast parts of Punjab and Gujarat during

6336-445: The 13th century severely damaged Indian Sanskrit scholarship and the dominance of Islamic power over India eventually contributed to the decline of this scholarly language, especially since Muslim rulers promoted Middle Eastern languages. However, Sanskrit remains in use throughout India, and is used in rituals, religious practice, scholarship, art, and other Indian traditions. Five chronologically distinct strata can be identified within

6468-420: The Abbasid Caliph, al-Qadir Billah. Ghaznavid's rule in Northwestern India (modern Afghanistan and Pakistan) lasted over for 175 years, from 1010 to 1187. It was during this period that Lahore assumed considerable importance, apart from being the second capital, and later the only capital of the Ghaznavid Empire . At the end of his reign, Mahmud's empire extended from Kurdistan in the west to Samarkand in

6600-581: The Arabs in 728 AD, and saw off two Abbasid invasions in 769 and 785. Abbasids attacked Kabul several times and collected tribute between 787 and 815 AD and extracted tribute after each campaign. Abbasid's Governor of Sindh, Hisham (in office 768–773) raided Kashmir, recaptured parts of Punjab from Karkota control, and launched naval raids against ports of Gujarat. These raids like other Abbasid Naval raids launched in 776 and 779 AD, gained no territory. Arabs occupied Sindian (Southern Kutch) in 810, only to lose it in 841. Civil war erupted in Sindh in 842 AD, and

6732-404: The Arabs in Makran. This was the beginning of a prolonged struggle between the rulers of Kabul and Zabul in modern-day and Pakistan against successive Arab governors of Sistan, Khurasan and Makran. The Kabul Shahi kings and their Zunbil kinsmen successfully blocked access to the Khyber Pass and Gomal Pass routes into India from 653 to 870 AD, while modern Balochistan, Pakistan, comprising

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6864-411: The Arabs. Makran had been conquered by Chach of Aror in 631 AD, but ten years later, it was described as "under the government of Persia" by Xuanzang , who had visited the region in 641. The first clash between a ruler of an Indian kingdom and the Arabs took place in 643, when Arab forces defeated Rutbil, the King of Zabulistan in Sistan . Arabs led by Suhail b. Abdi later defeated a Sindhi army in

6996-469: The British East India Company seized control of much of the Indian subcontinent up till 1857. Throughout the 18th century, European powers continued to exert a large amount of political influence over the Indian subcontinent, and by the end of the 19th century most of the Indian subcontinent came under European colonial domination , most notably the British Raj until 1947. The first ever recorded incursion by Arabs in India occurred around 636/7 AD, during

7128-441: The Chagai area, and established a permanent base of operations by 673 AD. Rashid b. Amr, the next governor of Makran, subdued Mashkey in 672 CE. Munzir b. Jarood Al Abadi managed to garrison Kikan and conquer Buqan by 681 CE, while Ibn Harri Al Bahili conducted several campaigns to secure the Arab hold on Kikan, Makran and Buqan by 683 AD. Zunbil saw off Arab campaigns in 668, 672 and 673 by paying tribute. Although Arabs occupied

7260-482: The Delhi Sultanate. Timur's invasion did not go unopposed, however, and he did meet some resistance during his march to Delhi, most notably with the Sarv Khap coalition in northern India, as well as the Governor of Meerut . Although impressed and momentarily stalled by the valour of Ilyaas Awan , Timur was able to continue his relentless approach to Delhi, arriving in 1398 to combat the armies of Sultan Mehmud, already weakened by an internal battle for ascension within

7392-432: The Ganges valley. Brahmanism included the Vedic corpus, but also post-Vedic texts such as the Dharmasutras and Dharmasastras , which gave prominence to the priestly ( Brahmin ) class of the society, Heesterman also mentions the post-Vedic Smriti ( Puranas and the Epics), which are also incorporated in the later Smarta tradition . The emphasis on ritual and the dominant position of Brahmans developed as an ideology in

7524-418: The Habbari dynasty occupied Mansurah, and by 871, five independent principalities had emerged, with the Banu Habbari clan controlling in Mansurah, Banu Munabbih occupying Multan, Banu Madan ruling in Makran, and Makshey and Turan falling to other rulers, all outside direct Caliphate control. Ismaili missionaries found a receptive audience among both the Sunni and non-Muslim populations in Multan, which became

7656-434: The Indian subcontinent further accelerating the geopolitical disintegration of the Indian subcontinent. The Maratha Empire replaced Mughals as the dominant power of the subcontinent from 1720 to 1818. The Muslim conquests in Indian subcontinent came to a halt after the Battle of Plassey (1757), the Battle of Buxar (1764), Anglo-Mysore Wars (1767–1799), Anglo-Maratha Wars (1775–1818) and Anglo-Sikh Wars (1845–1848) as

7788-414: The Indian subcontinent, such as the Gujarat Sultanate , Malwa Sultanate , Bahmani Sultanate , Jaunpur Sultanate , Madurai Sultanate , and the Bengal Sultanate . Some of these, however, were followed by Hindu reconquests and resistance from the native powers and states, such as the Telugu Nayakas, Vijayanagara , and Rajput states under the Kingdom of Mewar . The Delhi Sultanate was replaced by

7920-459: The Indus, clearing the region up to Budha. Some towns like Nerun and Sadusan ( Sehwan ) surrendered peacefully. Muhammad bin Qasim moved back to Nerun to resupply and receive reinforcements sent by Hajjaj. The Arabs crossed the Indus further South and defeated the army of Dahir, who was killed. Brahmanabad , then Alor ( Aror ) and finally Multan , were captured alongside other in-between towns with only light Muslim casualties. Arabs marched up to

8052-413: The Mamluk (1206–1290), the Khalji (1290–1320), the Tughlaq (1320–1414), the Sayyid (1414–51), and the Lodhi (1451–1526). By the mid-century, Bengal and much of central India was under the Delhi Sultanate. The Tughlaqs conquered Delhi with the support of the Khokhar tribes who formed the vanguard of the army. The Tughlaqs claimed to be "bound to all Indians by ties of blood and relation". Under

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8184-419: The Mughals was reached at the end of the 17th century, when under the reign of emperor Aurangzeb the empire witnessed the full establishment of Islamic Sharia through the Fatawa al-Alamgir . The Mughals went into a sudden decline immediately after achieving their peak following the death of Aurangzeb in 1707, due to a lack of competent and effective rulers among Aurangzeb's successors. Other factors included

8316-401: The Near East but owed them no allegiance. They based their laws on the Quran and the sharia and permitted non-Muslim subjects to practice their own religions if they paid the jizya (poll tax). They ruled from urban centers, while military camps and trading posts provided the nuclei for towns that sprang up in the countryside. Perhaps the most significant contribution of the Sultanate

8448-584: The Northeast, and from the Caspian Sea to the Punjab in the west. Although his raids carried his forces across Northern and Western India, only Punjab came under his permanent rule while Kashmir , the Doab , Rajasthan, and Gujarat remained nominal under the control of the local Indian dynasties. In 1030, Mahmud fell gravely ill and died at age 59. As with the invaders of three centuries ago, Mahmud's armies reached temples in Varanasi , Mathura , Ujjain , Maheshwar , Jwalamukhi, Somnath and Dwarka . Mu'izz al-Din , better known as Shahāb-ud-Din Muhammad Ghori

8580-401: The Sanskrit epics. Examples include the Yogabhāṣya on the Yoga Sūtras , Shankara's Brahmasūtrabhāṣya, the Gītābhāṣya and Śrī Bhāṣya of Ramanuja (1017–1137), Pakṣilasvāmin Vātsyāyana 's Nyāya Sūtra Bhāṣya and the Matharavṛṭṭi (on the Sāṁkhyakārikā ). Furthermore, over time, secondary commentaries (i.e. a commentary to a commentary) also came to be written. There are

8712-445: The Sultanate before it was conquered by Zahiruddin Babur in 1526, who subsequently founded the Mughal dynasty that ruled from the 16th to the 18th centuries. Tīmūr bin Tara gh ay Barlas , known in the West as Tamerlane or "Timur the lame", was a 14th-century warlord of Turco-Mongol descent. He had conquered much of western and central Asia, and founded the Timurid Empire (1370–1507) in Central Asia which survived until 1857 as

8844-470: The Turks of the Khwarizmian Empire, whiles his armies continued to advance through Northern India, raiding as far as Bengal . Mu'izz al-Din returned to Lahore after 1200. In 1206, Mu'izz al-Din had to travel to Lahore to crush a revolt. On his way back to Ghazni his caravan rested at Damik near Sohawa (which is near the city of Jhelum in the Punjab province of modern-day Pakistan). He was assassinated on 15 March 1206, while offering his evening prayers by

8976-440: The Umayyads (661–750 AD), many Shias sought asylum in the region of Sindh, to live in relative peace in the remote area. Ziyad Hindi was one of those refugees. Mu'awiya I established the Umayyad rule over the Arabs after the First Fitna in 661 AD, and resumed expansion of the Muslim empire. Al-Baladuri wrote that, "In the year 44 H. (664 A.D.), and in the days of the Khalif Mu'awiya, Muhallib son of Abu Safra made war upon

9108-482: The Vedic and the Classical language differ in numerous respects. The Vedic literature that survives is almost entirely religious, being focused on the prayers, hymns to the gods ( devas ), sacrifices and other concerns of the Vedic religion . The language of this archaic literature (the earliest being the Rigveda ), Vedic Sanskrit , is different in many ways (and much less regular) than the "classical" Sanskrit described by later grammarians like Pāṇini . This literature

9240-418: The Vedic religion include, among others: the Soma rituals; Fire rituals involving oblations ( havir ); and the Ashvamedha ( horse sacrifice ). The rites of grave burials as well as cremation are seen since the Rigvedic period. Deities emphasized in the Vedic religion include Dyaus , Indra , Agni , Rudra and Varuna , and important ethical concepts include satya and ṛta . Vedism refers to

9372-514: The Vedic religion, as an ideology of the Kuru - Panchala realm which expanded into a wider area after the demise of the Kuru-Pancala realm and the domination of the non-Vedic Magadha cultural sphere. Brahmanism was one of the major influences that shaped contemporary Hinduism , when it was synthesized with the non-Vedic Indo-Aryan religious heritage of the eastern Ganges plain (which also gave rise to Buddhism and Jainism ), and with local religious traditions. Specific rituals and sacrifices of

9504-469: The abduction of Rāmā's wife, Sītā by king Rāvaṇa of Lankā, leading Rāma to carry out to expedition to the island to defeat the king in battle and recover his wife. The Purāṇa are a large class of Hindu scriptures which cover numerous topics such as myth, legends of the Hindu gods , cosmogony , cosmology , stories of ancient kings and sages, folk tales, information about temples, medicine, astronomy, grammar and Hindu theology and philosophy . Perhaps

9636-490: The ancient Vedic religion. According to Heinrich von Stietencron , in 19th century western publications, the Vedic religion was believed to be different from and unrelated to Hinduism. Instead, Hinduism was thought to be linked to the Hindu epics and the Puranas through sects based on purohita , tantras and Bhakti . In response to western colonialism and (Protestant) proselytizing, Hindu reform movements like

9768-402: The area North of Jaisalmer and Jodhpur , and the invasion of Malwa but were ultimately defeated by Bappa Rawal and Nagabhata I in 725 AD near Ujjain. Arabs lost control over the newly conquered territories and part of Sindh due to Arab tribal infighting and Arab soldiers deserting the newly conquered territory in 731 AD. Al Hakam b. Awana Al Kalbi founded the garrison city of Al Mahfuza on

9900-509: The areas of Kikan or Qiqanan, Nukan, Turan, Buqan, Qufs, Mashkey and Makran, would face several Arab expeditions between 661 and 711 AD. The Arabs launched several raids against these frontier lands, but repeated rebellions in Sistan and Khurasan between 653 and 691 AD diverted much of their military resources in order to subdue these breakaway provinces and away from expansion into Al Hind. Muslim control of these areas ebbed and flowed repeatedly as

10032-716: The areas south of Helmand in 673 permanently Zunbil defeated Yazid b. Salm's army in 681 AD at Junzah, and Arabs had to pay 500,000 dirhams as ransom to get free their prisoners. Al-Hajjaj ibn Yusuf Al Thaqifi , who had played a crucial role during the Second Fitna for the Umayyad cause, was appointed the governor of Iraq in 694 AD. Hajjaj received governorship of Khurasan and Sistan in 697 and he sponsored Muslim expansions in Makran , Sistan, Transoxiana and Sindh. The Arab's hold on Makran weakened when Arab rebels seized

10164-457: The army marched along the coast to Tiaz in Makran, where the army of Makran joined him, and the combined force moved to the Kech valley. Muhammad subdued the restive towns of Fannazbur and Armabil, finally completing the conquest of Makran. Then the army met up with the reinforcements and catapults sent by sea near Debal and took Debal through assault. From Debal, the Arabs moved towards north along

10296-839: The assassins from the Ismaili Muslim sect. Muhammad Ghoris successors established the first dynasty of the Delhi Sultanate , while the Mamluk Dynasty in 1211 (however, the Delhi Sultanate is traditionally held to have been founded in 1206) seized the reins of the empire. Mamluk means "slave" and referred to the Turkic slave soldiers who became rulers. The territory under control of the Muslim rulers in Delhi expanded rapidly. Several Turko-Afghan dynasties ruled from Delhi:

10428-508: The authority of non-Vedic textual sources. The Vedic religion is described in the Vedas and associated with voluminous Vedic literature, including the early Upanishads , preserved into the modern times by the different priestly schools. The religion existed in the western Ganges plain in the early Vedic period from c. 1500–1100 BCE, and developed into Brahmanism in the late Vedic period ( c. 1100–500 BCE). The eastern Ganges plain

10560-578: The belief in an afterlife instead of the later developed reincarnation and samsāra concepts. Nevertheless, while "it is usually taught that the beginnings of historical Hinduism date from around the beginning of the Common Era," when "the key tendencies, the crucial elements that would be encompassed in Hindu traditions, collectively came together," some scholars have come to view the term "Hinduism" as encompassing Vedism and Brahmanism, in addition to

10692-632: The brāhmaṇa (priestly) class of society." During the late Vedic period, the Brahmanas and early Upanishads were composed. Both Vedism and Brahmanism regard the Veda as sacred, but Brahmanism is more inclusive, incorporating doctrines and themes beyond the Vedas with practices like temple worship, puja, meditation, renunciation, vegetarianism, the role of the guru, and other non-Vedic elements important to Hindu religious life. The terms ancient Hinduism and Vedic Hinduism have also been used when referring to

10824-551: The central concept of the Rig Veda , was also employed in the Mitanni kingdom. Old Indic gods, including Indra , were also known in the Mitanni kingdom. The Vedic religion was the product of "a composite of the Indo-Aryan and Harappan cultures and civilizations". White (2003) cites three other scholars who "have emphatically demonstrated" that Vedic religion is partially derived from the Indus Valley civilization . It

10956-656: The closure of the Vedas proper. Of these later "Upaniṣads" there are two categories of texts: Sūtra style aphoristic literature continued to be composed on numerous topics, the most popular being on the different fields of Hindu philosophy . The main Sūtra texts (sometimes also called kārikās ) on Hindu philosophy include: The various Sanskrit literature also spawned a large tradition of commentary texts, which were called Bhāṣyas , Vṛṭṭis, Ṭīkās, Vārttikas and other names. These commentaries were written on numerous genres of Sanskrit texts, including on Sūtras, on Upaniṣads and on

11088-502: The country conquered by us, and have fled to places which our hand cannot yet reach, to Kashmir, Benares, and other places. And there the antagonism between them and all foreigners receives more and more nourishment both from political and religious sources. During the closing years of the tenth and the early years of the succeeding century of our era, Mahmud the first Sultan and Musalman of the Turk dynasty of kings who ruled at Ghazni , made

11220-591: The days of the Turks, when they seized the power in Ghazna under the Sâmânî dynasty , and the supreme power fell to the lot of Nasir-addaula Sabuktagin. This prince chose the holy war as his calling, and therefore called himself al-Ghazi ("the warrior/invader"). In the interest of his successors, he constructed, to weaken the Indian frontier, those roads on which afterwards his son Yamin-addaula Mahmud marched into India during

11352-524: The eastern side of a lake near Brahmanabad. Hakam next attempted to reclaim the conquests of Junaid in Al Hind. Arab records merely state that he was successful, Indian records at Navasari details that Arab forces defeated "Kacchella, Saindhava, Saurashtra, Cavotaka, Maurya and Gurjara" kings. The city of Al Mansura was founded near Al Mahfuza by Amr b. Muhammad. Al Hakam next invaded the Deccan in 739 with

11484-556: The expensive and bloody Mughal-Rajput Wars and the Mughal–Maratha Wars . The Afsharid ruler Nader Shah's invasion in 1739 was an unexpected attack which demonstrated the weakness of the Mughal Empire. This provided opportunities for various regional states such as Rajput states , Mysore Kingdom , Sindh State , Nawabs of Bengal and Murshidabad , Maratha Empire , Sikh Empire , and Nizams of Hyderabad to declare their independence and exercising control over large regions of

11616-672: The first ruler of the dynasty, Ghiyath al-Din Tughlaq, the Tughlaq court wrote a war ballad known as the Vaar in the Punjabi language , describing the introduction of Ghazi Malik's rise to the throne. This was the earliest known Vaar in Punjabi poetry. The Tughalqs attacked and plundered Malwa, Gujarat, Mahratta, Tilang, Kampila, Dhur-samundar, Mabar, Lakhnauti, Chittagong, Sunarganw and Tirhut. The Tughlaqs chose Daulatabad in southern India as

11748-414: The five genuine books. The first revolves around the events at the court of King Daśaratha at Ayodhya with one of his wives vying for the succession of the throne to her own son Bharata in place of the one chosen by the king, Rāma . The second part of the epic is full of myth and marvel, with the banished Rāma combating giants in the forest, and slaying thousands of demons. The second part also deals with

11880-635: The foothills of Kashmir along the Jhelum in 713 AD, and stormed the Al-Kiraj (possibly the Kangra valley). Muhammad was deposed after the death of Caliph Walid in 715 . Jai Singh, son of Dahir captured Brahmanabad and Arab rule was restricted to the Western shore of the Indus. Sindh was briefly lost to the caliph when the rebel Yazid b. Muhallab took over Sindh in 720. Junaid b. Abd Al Rahman Al Marri became

12012-400: The glorious deeds of warriors and princes, which also developed into long epic cycles. These epic poems were recited by courtly bards called sūtas , who may have been their own caste and were closely related to the warrior caste . There was also a related group of traveling singers called kusilavas. Indian kings and princes seem to have kept bards in their courts which sung the praises of

12144-441: The governor of Sindh in 723 AD. He conquered Debal, defeated and killed Jai Singh, secured Sindh and Southern Punjab and then stormed Al Kiraj (Kangra valley) in 724 AD. Junaid next attacked a number of Hindu kingdoms in what is now Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh aiming at permanent conquest, but the chronology and area of operation of the campaigns during 725–743 is difficult to follow because accurate, complete information

12276-571: The heroic tales of the Bharata tribe. Most of this literature was probably compiled between the 3rd century BCE and the 3rd century CE by numerous authors, with the oldest preserved parts not much older than around 400 BCE. Already in the Ṛgveda, the Bharatas find mention as a warlike tribe, and the Brāhmaṇas also speak of Bharata , the son of Duṣyanta and Śakuntalā . The core of the Mahābhārata

12408-499: The history of al-Baladhuri , had also launched two naval raids against ports of the Indian subcontinent, the first of these raids targeted Thane (a small town near Mumbai ) and Bharuch (a city in Gujarat ). The second raid targeted Debal (a town near Karachi ). The assault on Thane, the first recorded Arab raid on India, was commanded by Uthman's brother al-Hakam, who also led the raid on Bharuch. The following raid on Debal

12540-605: The influence of the Brahmin class , which he argues was engaged in a project of appropriating the poetry of the bards (which was mainly a secular heroic literature) in order to infuse it with their religious theology and values. The most influential part of the Mahābhārata is the Bhagavadgītā , which became a central scripture for the Vedanta school and remains widely read today. Another important associated text, which acts as

12672-695: The inhabitants of the Deccan to become Muslim. These elite colonists from the capital of Delhi were Urdu-speakers , who carried the Urdu language to the Deccan. During the time of Delhi Sultanate, the Vijayanagara Empire resisted attempts of Delhi Sultanate to establish dominion in the Southern India , serving as a barrier against invasion by the Muslims. The Sultans of Delhi enjoyed cordial, if superficial, relations with Muslim rulers in

12804-663: The intention of permanent conquest, but was decisively defeated at Navsari by the viceroy Avanijanashraya Pulakeshin of the Chalukya Empire serving Vikramaditya II . Arab rule was restricted to the west of Thar desert. When the Abbasid Revolution overthrew the Umayyads in 750 AD after the Third Fitna , Sindh became independent and was captured by Musa b. K'ab al Tamimi in 752 AD. Zunbil had defeated

12936-416: The king, recite poems at festivals and sometimes even recite poetry in battle to embolden the warriors. While there were certainly other epic cycles, only two have survived, the Mahābhārata and the Rāmāyaṇa . The Mahābhārata is in a sense not just a single 'epic poem', but can be seen as a whole body of literature in its own right, a massive collection of many different poetic works built around

13068-541: The language had changed sufficiently so that the priests did not fully understand the Vedic texts. The Brāhmaṇas are composed in prose, unlike the previous works, forming some of the earliest examples of prose in any Indo-European language . The Brāhmaṇas intend to explain the relation between the sacred text and ritual ceremony. The later part of the Brāhmaṇas contain material which also discuss theology and philosophy . These works were meant to be imparted or studied in

13200-529: The language of Urdu (literally meaning "horde" or "camp" in various Turkic dialects) was born during the Delhi Sultanate period as a result of the mingling of Sanskritic Hindi and the Persian, Turkish, Arabic favoured by the Muslim invaders of India . The Sultanate suffered significantly from the sacking of Delhi in 1398 by Timur , but revived briefly under the Lodi Dynasty. This was the final dynasty of

13332-715: The last of Ghaznavid territory under his control. His early campaigns in the Indian Subcontinent were against the Qarmatians of Multan. In 1191, he invaded the territory of Prithviraj III of Ajmer , who ruled his territory from Delhi to Ajmer in present-day Rajasthan , but was defeated at the First Battle of Tarain . The following year, Mu'izz al-Din assembled 120,000 horsemen and once again invaded India. Mu'izz al-Din's army met Prithviraj's army again at Tarain, and this time Mu'izz al-Din won; Govindraj

13464-476: The later period of the Brāhmaṇas when a vast mass of ritual and customary details had been accumulated. To address this, the Sūtras are intended to provide a concise survey of Vedic knowledge through short aphoristic passages that could be easily memorized. The Sūtras forego the need to interpret the ceremony or custom, but simply provide a plain, methodical account with the utmost brevity. The word sūtra , derived from

13596-461: The literature of Vedic Sanskrit : The first three are commonly grouped together, as the Saṃhitās comprising the four Vedas: ṛk, atharvan, yajus, sāman, which together constitute the oldest texts in Sanskrit and the canonical foundation both of the Vedic religion, and the later religion known as Hinduism. The Ṛg·veda, the first and oldest of the four Vedas, is the foundation for the others. The Ṛg·veda

13728-444: The modern era. Divisions Sama vedic Yajur vedic Atharva vedic Vaishnava puranas Shaiva puranas Shakta puranas Hindu Sanskrit texts are subdivided into two classes: The first traces of Indian epic poetry are seen in the Vedic literature , among the certain hymns of the Ṛgveda (which contain dialogues), as well as the Ākhyānas (ballads), Itihāsas ('traditional accounts of past events') and

13860-647: The most influential of these texts is the Bhāgavata Purāṇa , a central text for Vaishnava theology. Other Purāṇas center on different gods, like the Shiva Purāṇa and the Devī Bhāgavata Purāṇa . The principal Upaniṣads can be considered Vedic literature since they are included within the Brahmanas and Aranyakas . However, numerous scriptures titled "Upaniṣads" continued to be composed after

13992-461: The oldest form of the Vedic religion , when Indo-Aryans entered into the valley of the Indus River in multiple waves during the 2nd millennium BCE. Brahmanism refers to the further developed form of the late Vedic period which took shape at the Ganges basin around c. 1000 BCE. According to Heesterman, "It is loosely known as Brahmanism because of the religious and legal importance it places on

14124-498: The opinion that the Arabs raids may have been failures. and forced the Arabs to retreat. The raid on Debal may have occurred in 643 AD and faced success, but it is unlikely as Umar was still the Caliph and Uthman was unlikely to disobey his directive on sea raids, and the source reporting this is deemed unreliable. The motivation for these expeditions may have been to seek plunder or to attack pirates to safeguard Arabian trade in

14256-570: The peace and calm of the forest, hence their name the Āraṇyaka s ("Of the forest") The last part of these are books of Vedic doctrine and philosophy that came to be called Upaniṣads ("sitting down beside"). The doctrines in the Vedic or Mukhya Upaniṣads (the main and most ancient Upaniṣads) were later developed into the Vedānta ( "end of the Vedas" ) system. The Vedic Sūtras were aphoristic treatises concerned either with Vedic ritual ( Kalpa Vedanga ) or customary law. They arrived during

14388-486: The pirates. Hajjaj sent two expeditions to Sindh, both of which were defeated. Al Hajjaj next equipped an army built around 6,000 Syrian cavalry and detachments of mawali from Iraq, six thousand camel riders , and a baggage train of 3,000 camels under his Nephew Muhammad bin Qasim to Sindh. His artillery of five catapults were sent to Debal by sea ("manjaniks"). Muhammad bin Qasim departed from Shiraz in 710 AD,

14520-679: The present-day srauta -ritual, and "abstraction and internalization of the principles underlying ritual and cosmic speculation" within oneself, akin to the Jain and Buddhist tradition. Aspects of the historical Vedic religion still continue in modern times. For instance, the Nambudiri Brahmins continue the ancient Śrauta rituals, and the complex Vedic rituals of Śrauta are practiced in Kerala and coastal Andhra . The Kalash people residing in northwest Pakistan also continue to practice

14652-401: The province, and Hajjaj had to send expeditions under three governors between 694 and 707 AD before Makran was partially recovered by 694 AD. Al Hajjaj also fought against Zunbil in 698 and 700 AD. The 20,000 strong army led by Ubaidullah ibn Abu Bakra was trapped by the armies of Zunbil and Turki Shah near Kabul in 698 AD, and lost 15,000 men to thirst and hunger, earning this force the title of

14784-741: The provinces of the Abbasid Caliphate in conjunction with their compatriots of the Fatimid Caliphate in North Africa and the Middle East; Mahmud apparently hoped to curry the favor of the Abbasids in this fashion. However, once this aim was accomplished, he moved onto the looting of Indian temples and monasteries. By 1027, Mahmud had captured parts of North India and obtained formal recognition of Ghazni's sovereignty from

14916-604: The recent synthesis. The Vedic religion refers to the religious beliefs of some Vedic Indo-Aryan tribes, the aryas , who migrated into the Indus River valley region of the Indian subcontinent after the collapse of the Indus Valley Civilisation . The Vedic religion, and subsequent Brahmanism, center on the myths and ritual ideologies of the Vedas, as distinguished from Agamic , Tantric and sectarian forms of Indian religion, which take recourse to

15048-496: The religious ideas and practices prevalent amongst some of the Indo-Aryan peoples of the northwest Indian subcontinent ( Punjab and the western Ganges plain) during the Vedic period ( c. 1500–500 BCE). These ideas and practices are found in the Vedic texts , and some Vedic rituals are still practiced today. The Vedic religion is one of the major traditions which shaped modern Hinduism , though present-day Hinduism

15180-436: The ritual drink Soma . According to Anthony, Many of the qualities of Indo-Iranian god of might/victory, Verethraghna , were transferred to the adopted god Indra, who became the central deity of the developing Old Indic culture. Indra was the subject of 250 hymns, a quarter of the Rig Veda . He was associated more than any other deity with Soma , a stimulant drug (perhaps derived from Ephedra ) probably borrowed from

15312-575: The root siv- , 'to sew', thus meaning 'sewn' or 'stitched together' eventually became a byword for any work of aphorisms of similar concision. The sutras in many cases are so terse they cannot be understood without the help of detailed commentaries. The main types of Vedic Sūtras include the Śrautas ūtras (focusing on ritual), Śulbasûtra (on altar construction), Gṛhyasūtras which focus on rites of passage and Dharmasūtras . Most ancient and medieval Hindu texts were composed in Sanskrit, either epic Sanskrit (the pre-classical language found in

15444-414: The same frontier, and advanced as far as Banna [ Bannu ] and Alahwar [ Lahore ], which lie between Multan and Kabul ." After 663-665 CE, the Arabs launched an invasion against Kapisa, Zabul and what is now Pakistani Balochistan . Abdur Rahman b. Samurra besieged Kabul in 663 AD, while Haris b Marrah advanced against Kalat after marching through Fannazabur and Quandabil and moving through

15576-548: The second administrative capital of the Delhi Sultanate. The Delhi Sultanate forced migration of the Muslim population of Delhi, including his royal family, the nobles, Syeds, Sheikhs and 'Ulema to settle in Daulatabad. The purpose of transferring the entire Muslim elite to Daulatabad was to act as propagandists who would adapt Islamic religious symbolism to the rhetoric of empire, and so the Sufis could by persuasion bring many of

15708-535: The second half of the first millennium of the Common Era. The Sāmaveda is not an original composition: it's almost entirely (except 75) made of stanzas taken from the Ṛgveda and rearranged with reference to their place in the Soma sacrifice. This book is meant to be sung to certain fixed melodies, and may thus be called the book of chants, sāman . The Yajurveda like the Sāman is also largely made of verses taken from

15840-428: The supernatural powers and the practical advice Brahmins could provide, and resulted in a resurgence of Brahmanical influence, dominating Indian society since the classical Age of Hinduism in the early centuries CE. Nowadays, the term Brahmanism, used interchangeably with Brahminism , is used in several ways. It denotes the specific Brahmanical rituals and worldview as preserved in the Śrauta ritual, as distinct from

15972-609: The throne in 998 AD, Ghazni was engaged in the North with the Qarakhanids when the Shahi Raja renewed hostilities in east once again. In the early 11th century, Mahmud of Ghazni launched seventeen expeditions into Indian subcontinent. In 1001, Sultan Mahmud of Ghazni defeated Raja Jayapala of the Hindu Shahi Dynasty of Gandhara (in modern Afghanistan), in the Battle of Peshawar and marched further towards

16104-516: The two main Indian epics) or classical Sanskrit (Paninian Sanskrit). In modern times, most ancient texts have been translated into other Indian languages and some in Western languages. Prior to the start of the common era, the Hindu texts were composed orally, then memorized and transmitted orally, from one generation to next, for more than a millennium before they were written down into manuscripts. This verbal tradition of preserving and transmitting Hindu texts, from one generation to next, continued into

16236-462: The west of Peshawar (in modern Pakistan) and, in 1005, made it the center for his forces. In 1030, Al Biruni reported on the devastation caused during the conquest of Gandhara and much of northwest India by Mahmud of Ghazni following his defeat of Jayapala in the Battle of Peshawar in 1001: Now in the following times no Muslim conqueror passed beyond the frontier of Kabul and the river Sindh until

16368-607: The wide range of popular cultic activity with little connection with them. Brahminism also refers specifically to the Brahminical ideology, which sees Brahmins as naturally privileged people entitled to rule and dominate society. The term is frequently used by anti-Brahmin opponents , who object against their domination of Indian society and their exclusivist ideology. They follow the outline of 19th century colonial rulers, who viewed India's culture as corrupt and degenerate, and its population as irrational. In this view, derived from

16500-579: Was a conqueror from the region of Ghor in modern Afghanistan . Before 1160, the Ghaznavid Empire covered an area running from central Iran east to the Punjab, with capitals at Ghazni on the banks of Ghazni river in present-day Afghanistan, and at Lahore in present-day Pakistan . In 1173, Muhammad of Ghor was crowned Ghazni. In 1186, he conquered Lahore ending the Ghaznavid empire and bringing

16632-650: Was also written in either classical Sanskrit or Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit . Many of these Sanskrit Buddhist texts were the basis for later translation into the Chinese Buddhist Canon and Tibetan Canon . Many Jain texts were also written in Sanskrit, like the Tattvartha sutra , Bhaktamara Stotra , etc. Classical Sanskrit also served as a common language of scholarship and elites (as opposed to local vernacular who were only understood regionally). The invasions of northern India by Islamic powers in

16764-498: Was commanded by another brother, al-Mughira. The raids were probably launched in c.  636 according to al-Baladhuri. These expeditions were not sanctioned by Caliph Umar and Uthman escaped punishment only because there weren't any casualties. The raids on Thane and Bharuch may have been successful as the Arabs had lost no men during these raids, but al-Baladhuri does not specifically state these raids as successful,( al-Balādhurī 1924 , p. 209), so some scholars are of

16896-716: Was dominated by another Indo-Aryan complex, which rejected the later Brahmanical ideology and gave rise to Jainism and Buddhism , and the Maurya Empire . The Indo-Aryans were speakers of a branch of the Indo-European language family which originated in the Sintashta culture and further developed into the Andronovo culture , which in turn developed out of the Kurgan culture of the Central Asian steppes . The commonly proposed period of earlier Vedic age

17028-647: Was its temporary success in insulating the subcontinent from the potential devastation of the Mongol invasion from Central Asia in the 13th century, which nonetheless led to the capture of Afghanistan and western Pakistan by the Mongols (see the Ilkhanate Dynasty). Under the Sultanate, "Indo-Muslim" fusion left lasting monuments in architecture, music, literature, and religion. In addition it is surmised that

17160-453: Was put down by 704 AD, and Al-Hajjaj granted a 7-year truce to Zunbil. Meds pirates operated from their bases at Kutch , Debal and Kathiawar and during one of their raids had kidnapped Muslim women travelling from Sri Lanka to Arabia , thus providing the casus belli against Sindh Raja Dahir . Raja Dahir of Sindh had previously refused to return Arab rebels from Sindh and furthermore, he now expressed his inability to punish

17292-490: Was slain, Prithviraj executed and Mu'izz al-Din advanced onto Delhi. Within a year, Mu'izz al-Din controlled North-Western Rajasthan and Northern Ganges-Yamuna Doab. After these victories in India, and Mu'izz al-Din's establishment Delhi as the capital of his Indian provinces, Multan was also incorporated as a major part of his empire. Mu'izz al-Din then returned east to Ghazni to deal with the threat on his eastern frontiers from

17424-488: Was transmitted orally during the Vedic period, only later was it written down. Classical Sanskrit literature is more varied and includes the following genres: scripture (Hindu, Buddhist and Jain), epics , court poetry ( kavya ), lyric, drama , romance, fairytale, fables, grammar , civil and religious law ( dharma ), the science of politics and practical life, the science of love and sexual intercourse ( kama ), philosophy , medicine, astronomy, astrology and mathematics , and

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