class 12 History Theme 4

THINKERS BELIEFS AND BUILDINGS

1. CLASS -12 HISTORY Theme 4 thinkers beliefs and buildings cultural development TIMELINE : c. 600 BCE – 600CE PART- 1

2. THE BACKGROUND – SACRIFICES AND DEBATES EMERGENCE OF THINKERS LIKE PLATO, ARISTOTLE., BUDDHA , MAHAVIRA AND SOCRATES ETC. THEY TRIED TO FINDOUT ABOUT THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN HUMANS AND COSMIC ORDER (UNIVERSE). ALSO , THEY TRIED TO FIND OUT THE CHANGES WHICH WERE TAKING PLACE SOCIALLY AND ECONOMICALLY. SACRIFICIAL TRADITONS 1. VARIOUS BELIEFS WERE GIVEN IN RIGVEDA. 2. IT INCLUDED HYMNS IN PRAISE OF AGNI,INDRA SOMA. 3. THESE HYMNS WERE CHANTED WHEN PEOPLE PRAYED FOR GOOD HEALTH, CATTLE , SONS AND LONG LIFE. 4. TWO IMPORTANT SACRIFICES WERE DONE – RAJASUYA( consecration ceremony) AND ASHVAMEDA(sacrifice of horse).

3. INTRODUCTION 1. The main focus of this chapter will be on the cultural changes and developments taking place around this period. 2. It will focus on the emergence of new beliefs , ideas and thoughts. 3. Emergence of new schools of thought and thinkers - Buddhism and Jainism . 4 . All of it were expressed orally and also in written texts as well in architecture and sculptures. 5 . Sources : monuments, inscriptions , stupas and texts.

4. A GLIMPSE OF SANCHI 1. EUROPEANS WANTED TO TAKE AWAY PARTS OF SANCHI STUPA. 2.FRENCH AND ENGLISH TOOK THE PERMISSION OF SHAJEHAN BEGUM TO TAKE AWAY THE EASTERN GATEWAY BUT WAS INTEAD INSISTED TO TAKE AWAY PLASTER COPIES. ROLE OF BEGUMS OF BHOPAL TO PRESERVE SANCHI AND WHY SANCHI STUPA STILL SURVIVES? 1. SHAJEHAN BEGUM AND SULTAN JEHAN BEGUM FUNDED THE MONEY. 2. THEY ASKED TO TAKE PLASTER COPIES OF IT. 3. SULTAN JEHAN FUNDED THE MUSEUM AND THE GUEST WHERE JOHN MARSHAL WAS ALLOWED TO WRITE VOLUMES DEDICATED TO BOTH THE BEGUMS. 4.FUNDINGS WERE GIVEN FOR THE PUBLICATIONN OF VOLUME. 5. THUS, DECISIONS MADE MY BOTH THE BEGUMS WERE FRUITFUL ENOUGH WHICH IS WHY THE SANCHI STUPA IS PRESERVED.

5. DEBATES AND DISCUSSIONS 1. EMERGENCE OF 64 SCHOOLS OF THOUGHT. 2.TEACHERS TRAVELLED FROM PLACE TO PLACE TRYING TO CONVINCE EACH OTHER AND SOCIETY. 3. THE PLACES WHERE DEBATES AND DISCUSSION WERE DONE WERE KNOWN AS KUTAGARASHALA. 4. THE AUTHORITY OF VEDAS WAS QUESTIONED BY BUDDHA AND MAHAVIRA AND SUGGESTED THAT MAN CAN LIBERATE HIMSELF THROUGH SALVATION. 5. THIS WAS AGAINST THE BHRAMINICAL NORMS . NEW QUESTIONS- 1. MEANING OF LIFE 2.LIFE AFTER DEATH 3.NATURE OF ULTIMATE REALITY 5. IMPORTANCE OF SACRIFICES HUTS WITH POINTED ROOFS KUTAGARASHALA

6. How Buddhist texts were prepared and preserved The Buddha (and other teachers) taught orally – through discussion and debate. Men and women (perhaps children as well) attended these discourses and discussed what they heard. None of the Buddha’s speeches were written down during his lifetime. After his death (c . fifth-fourth century BCE) his teachings were compiled by his disciples at a council of “elders” or senior monks at Vesali ( Pali for Vaishali in present-day Bihar). These compilations were known as Tipitaka – literally, three baskets to hold different types of texts. They were first transmitted orally and then written and classified according to length as well as subject matter. The Vinaya Pitaka included rules and regulations for those who joined the sangha or monastic order; the Buddha’s teachings were included in the Sutta Pitaka ; and the Abhidhamma Pitaka dealt with philosophical matters. Each pitaka comprised a number of individual texts. Later, commentaries were written on these texts by Buddhist scholars. As Buddhism travelled to new regions such as Sri Lanka, other texts such as the Dipavamsa (literally, the chronicle of the island) and Mahavamsa (the great chronicle) were written, containing regional histories of Buddhism. Many of these works contained biographies of the Buddha. Some of the oldest texts are in Pali , while later compositions are in Sanskrit. When Buddhism spread to East Asia, pilgrims such as Fa Xian and Xuan Zang travelled all the way from China to India in search of texts. These they took back to their own country, where they were translated by scholars. Indian Buddhist teachers also travelled to faraway places, carrying texts to disseminate the teachings of the Buddha. Buddhist texts were preserved in manuscripts for several centuries in monasteries in different parts of Asia. Modern translations have been prepared from Pali , Sanskrit, Chinese and Tibetan texts.

7. BEYOND WORLDY PLEASURES THE MESSAGE OF MAHAVIRA - JAINISM THE FOUNDER – RISHABHA (INCARNATION OF NARAYANA). THERE WERE 23 TIRTHANKARAS OR TEACHERS. VARDHAMANA MAHAVIRA- HE WAS THE 24 TH TIRTHANKARA. HE WAS BORN IN 540 BCE IN A VILLAGE KUNDAGRAMA NEAR VAISHALI . HE ABANDONED THE WORLD AND THE AGE OF 30 AND ATTAINED KNOWLEDGE AT THE AGE OF 42. THREE GEMS- RIGHT FAITH , RIGHT KNOWLEDGE AND ROGHT CONDUCT SPREAD OF JAINISM- JAINS BUILT STUPAS WITH RAILINGS,PILLARS MATHURA BECAME A CENTRE OF JAIN ART DURING KUSHANA PERIOD. BULK OF LITERATURE WAS PUBLISHED ON PALI, SANSKRIT AND TAMIL. THEIR MANUSCRIPTS WERE PRESERVED IN LIBRARIES.

8. THE BUDDHA AND THE QUEST FOR ENLIGHTENEMENT – BUDDHISM FOUNDER - GAUTAM BUDHHA OR SIDDHARTHA BIRTH – 563 BCE IN KSHATRIYA CASTE PLACE - LUMBINI NEAR KAPILAVASTU WHICH IS LOCATED ON THE FOOTHILLS OF NEPAL. ABONDENED LIFE AT THE AGE OF 29 AND WONDERED FOR SEVEN YEARS WAS UPSET WHEN HE ENCOUNTRED THE DEAD BODY, SICK AND AN OLD MAN. RECEIVED KNOWLEDGE AND THE AGE OF 35 AT BODH GAYA UNDER A PIPAL TREE. FROM THIS TIME HE BEGAN TO BE CALLED BUDDHA OR THE ENLIGHTENED. SPREAD OF BUDDHISM BUDDHAS THOUGHTS SPREAD DURING AND AFTER HIS DEATH. IT SPREAD TO CENTRAL ASIA, JAPAN , KOREA, CHINA AND ACROSS THE SEAS TO MAYANMAR, THAILAND ETC. BUDDHAS TEACHING HAVE BEEN RECONSTUCTED BY EDITING AND TRANSLATING BUDDHIST TEXTS AND HAGIOGRAPHIES ( BIOGRAPHY OF SAINT OR RELIGIOUS LEADER).

9. TEACHINGS OF BUDDHISM AND JAINISM

10. BUDDHISM 1.TEACHINGS FROM SUTAPITAKA. 2. WORLD IS TRANSIENT – IT IS NOT PERMANENT 3. WORLD IS SOULESS ( anatta ). 4.SORROW IS INTRINSIC TO LIFE ( dukka ) 5.PENANCE AND SELF INDULGENCE NECESARRY TO FREE ONE SELF FROM WORLDY TROUBLES. 6. DOES NOT RECOGNIZE THE EXISTENCE OF GOD OR SOUL. 7.BUDDHA RECOMMENDDED EIGHT FOLD PATH. 8.DIVIDED INTO TWO SECT- HINAYANA AND MAHAYANA JAIJA I JAINISM 1.THE ENTIRE WORLD IS ANIMATED. NON LIVING THINGS TOO HAVE LIFE. 2.NON INJURY TO LIVING BEINGS. 3.CYCLE OF BIRTH AND REBIRTH IS SHAPED THROUGHT KARMA. 4.PENANCE AND ASCETISM CAN FREE ONESELF FROM COSMIC ORDER. 5.MONASTIC EXCISTENCE IS NECESARRY FOR SALVATION. 6.JAINISM TAUGHT FIVE VOWS: NO KILLING, NO STEALING , DO NOT SPEAK A LIE , DO NOT ACQUIRE PROPERTY AND CELIBACY. 7. DIVIDED INTO 2 SECTS: SVETAMBERS AND DIGAMBERS

11. FOLLOWERS OF BUDDHA - THOSE WHO FOLLOWED BUDHHA BECAME MONKS . - AN ORGANISATION OF THESE DISCIPLES WAS FORMED KNOWN AS SANGHA. - THEY ALSO BECAME TEACHERS ODF DHAMMA(THE DOCTRINE). - INITIALLY ONLY MEN BECAME MONKS BUT LATER WOMEN ALSO BECAME NUNS. - BUDDHAS MOTHER MAHAPAJAPATI GOTAMI BECAME THE FIRST NUN. - MONKS LIVED A SIMPLE LIFE ON VERY MINIMAL. - The Buddha’s followers came from many social groups. Once within the sangha , all were regarded as equal, having shed their earlier social identities on becoming bhikkhus and bhikkhunis .

12. CHAITYAS SOME SITES WERE CONSIDERED SACRED WHICH INCLUDED TREES, NATURAL BEAUTY AND ROCKS. THESE SITES WHICH ALSO INCLUDED SHRINES WERE KNOWN AS CHAITYAS. SEVERAL CHAITYAS ARE MENTIONED IN BUDDHIST TEXTS. THESE ARE ASSOCIATED WITH BUDDHA’S LIFE. LUMBINI – WHERE HE WAS BORN BODH GAYA - WHERE HE ATTAINED ENLIGHTENMENT SARNATH - WHERE HE GAVE HIS FIRST SERMON KUSINAGARA - WHERE HE ATTAINED NIBBANA

13. STUPAS WHY WERE STUPAS BUILT? 1. THE RELICS , BODILY REMAINS AND OBJECTS USED BY BUDDHA WERE BURIED IN MOUNDS WHICH CAME TO BE KNOWN AS STUPAS. 2. STUPAS HAS RELICS THUS IT IS VALUED AS AN EMBLEM OF BOTH BUDDHA AND BUDDHISM. 3. ASHOKA DISTRIBUTED RELICS AND ORDERED TO CONSTRUCT STUPAS AT PLACES SUCH AS SANCHI, SARNATH. HOW WERE STUPAS BUILT? 1. record OF donations made for building and decorating them. 2. Some donations were made by kings such as the Satavahanas . 3. Hundreds of donations were made by women and men. 4. Bhikkhus and bhikkhunis also contributed towards building these monuments .

14. STRUCTURE

15. THE FATE OF AMRAVATI AND SANCHI 1. HISTORY OF DISCOVERIES: FOUND BY LOCAL RAJA WHO THOUGHT THAT STEPS AT AMARVATI IS LIKE A HILL WHERE TREASURE WOULD HAVE BEEN BURIED. 2. COLIN MACKENZIE: HE FOUNDS SCULPTURES AND MADE DETAIL DRAWINGS. 3. WALTER ELLIOT (1854): HE TOOK THE SCULPTURE PANELS TO MADRAS WHICH CAME TO BE KNOWN AS ELLIOT MARBELS. HE ALSO DISCOVERED REMAINS OF WESTERN GATEWAYS. 4. STONE SLABS WERE TAKEN MADRAS AND LONDON. THEY WERE INSTALLED IN BRITISH GARDENS. H.H. COLE – HE HAD POINT OF VIEW IT IS SUICIDAL TO TAKE AWAY HERITAGE OF A COUNTRY.

16. SCULPTURES - STORIES ON STONE SCULPTURES WERE THE MOST VALUABLE AND BEAUTIFUL SOURCE OF HISTORY DURING THIS TIME. THESE STONE SCULPTURES SIGNIFIED AND SYMBOLIZED STORIES. VESSANTRA JATAKA IT SHOWS A RURAL SCENE. BUT HISTORIANS DEPICT IT AS A SCENE WHICH TELLS ABOUT A PRINCE WHO GAVE EVRYTHING TO A BHRAMANA AND WENT TO FOREST WITH HIS WIFE AND KIDS TO LIVE A LIFE OF

17. . The empty seat was meant to indicate the meditation of the Buddha the stupa was meant to represent the mahaparinibbana . frequently used symbol was the wheel .This stood for the first sermon of the Buddha, delivered at Sarnath SYMBOLS OF WORSHIP

18. POPULAR TRADITIONS SHALABHANJIKA- beautiful women swinging from the edge of the gateway According to popular belief, this was a woman whose touch caused trees to flower and bear fruit. It is likely that this was regarded as an auspicious symbol and integrated into the decoration of the stupa .

19. Many animals were depicted on the sculptures these include elephants, horses, monkeys and cattle. Elephants, for example, were depicted to signify strength and wisdom. Another motif is that of a woman surrounded by lotuses and elephants which seem to be sprinkling water on her as if performing an abhisheka or consecration. While some historians identify the figure as Maya, the mother of the Buddha, others identify her with a popular goddess, Gajalakshmi – literally, the goddess of good fortune – who is associated with elephants. GAJALAXMI OR MAYA

20. THE GROWTH OF PURANIC HINDUISM Vaishnavism (a form of Hinduism within which Vishnu was worshipped as the principal deity. Shaivism (a tradition within which Shiva was regarded as the chief god), in which there was growing emphasis on the worship of a chosen deity . cults developed around the various avatars or incarnations of the deity. Ten avatars were recognised within the tradition. These were forms that the deity was believed to have assumed in order to save the world whenever it was threatened by disorder and destruction because of the dominance of evil forces Shiva, was symbolised by the linga , although he was occasionally represented in human form too.

21. Building temples The early temple was a small square room, called the garbhagriha , with a single doorway for the worshipper to enter and offer worship to the image. A tall structure, known as the shikhara , was built over the central shrine. Temple walls were often decorated with sculpture. One of the unique features of early temples was that some of these were hollowed out of huge rocks, as artificial caves. Kailashnatha Temple, Ellora (Maharashtra). This entire structure is carved out of a single piece of rock.

22. Grappling with the unfamiliar when nineteenth century European scholars first saw some of the sculptures of gods and goddesses, they could not understand what these were about. Sometimes, they were horrified by what seemed to them gods with multiple arms and heads or with combinations of human and animal forms. These early scholars tried to make sense of what appeared to be strange images by comparing them with sculpture with which they were familiar, that from ancient Greece. If text and image do not match One of the most best examples of this is a famous sculpture along a huge rock surface in Mahabalipuram (Tamil Nadu) Some feel that this depicts the descent of the river Ganga from heaven. Others feel that it represents a story from the Mahabharata – Arjuna doing penance on the river bank in order to acquire arms

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