5th+hour+2011-2012+Indus+Valley

The two major cities in the Indus Valley were Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro. Mohenjo-Daro means mound of the dead, and it was probably the more important of the two. The city was laid out in perfect patterns on grids; the precision is quite remarkable for its time. Mohenjo-Daro was first rediscovered in the 1920’s. Each of the cities had a massive hilltop structure which was probably a fortress or temple. They had huge warehouses used for storing grain for other villages. The city is widely recognized as one of the most important cities in early Southern Asia.
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= = =Social Classes= Among the Aryans in the Indus Valley, there were four distinct social classes. The lowest group of people were the non-Aryans; this group was called the Sudras. The other classes were the Brahmins which were the priests, the Kshatriyas, or warriors, and the Vaisyas which were the herders, farmers, artisans, and merchants. Originally the warriors were the highest prestige, they enjoyed the good life. Then, because priests said they were the only ones who could win the favor of the gods, they eventually gained the most respect.



=Public Works=

In the Twin capitols of Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro There were many public works. These works include huge warehouses to store grain, well planned housing and modern plumbing. The whole city along with the houses was planned in a grid pattern. All the houses were made out of uniform clay bricks and the same pattern. Even over centuries the houses were still built to the same patterns. In the houses they had baths and drains that led to the sewer system.

 =Religion=

There were two main religions, Buddhism and Hinduism. Hinduism was formed out of overlapping beliefs of the Aryans and the people of the Indus Valley. Hinduism has one god, Brahman who is worshiped through three main gods Brahma, Vishnu and Shiva. They can take on the form of any being. The goal of Hindu life is to achieve Moksha, a union with Brahman. Karma refers to everything someone does in their life time. Good actions get you closer to Brahman. Dharma is the religious and moral duties of a person. Hinduism has many sacred books such as the Vegas and the Upanishads.

 Buddhism was founded by Gutama after he first saw suffering. He found out how to eliminate suffering and became the Buddha. The way to eliminate suffering is to follow the four noble truths. The four noble truths state that life is suffering, the cause of suffering is desire, to overcome suffering you must overcome desire and to overcome desire you must follow the eightfold path. The eight fold path is right views, right aspirations, right speech, right conduct, right livelihood, right effort, right mindfulness and right contemplation. If all this was followed you would reach Nirvana. Buddhists also believe in Karma and Dharma. Buddhism’s sacred text is the Tripitaka. Buddhism has two major groups Theravada and Mahayana. Theravad Buddhists believe that only monks and nuns could reach nirvana, where as Mahayana is less strict.



=Job Specialization=

Most people in the Indus Valley region were farmers. They had a wide variety of crops such as wheat, barley, melons, and dates. The farmers were also the first people to cultivate cotton and weave its fibers into cloth. Some people though in the Indus valley were merchants and traders. Their ships carried cargos of cotton cloth, grain, copper, pearls, and ivory combs to distant lands. By hugging the Arabian Sea coast and sailing up to the Persian Gulf, Indian vessels reached the cities of Sumer. Contact with Sumer may have stimulated Indus valley people to develop their own system of writing

 This is what a agriculture field looks like in the Indus valley. Many people used this technique to farm. =Government=

The Indus valley region had a strong government. There government consisted of powerful leaders such as Kings or priests. The leaders of large cities planned them well by creating big warehouses to store large supplies of grain for thousands of the citizens, and cities were setup in a grid format. Two examples of cities that were created in these ways were Harappa and Monenjo-Daro. Also the Indus valley city leaders were smart enough to discover skills in math.



This is a govermental seal used that showed the signifigance of animals such as the bull. Written languages: the people of this times used pictographs to display ideas. Sanskrit was the language most spoken. The Indus valley people had a written language but very little evidence of it has been found.

(Old written language of the Indus valley people.) http://brhectorshistoryworld.blogspot.com/2009/06/indus-valley.html

Art/ Architecture: the statues provided clues to religious beliefs. Many statues are made of gold, the statues of girls in dancing poses representing how girls used to dance. Pottery was something that was made very often in these times. Pottery is what replaced fine work. http://mariekesjournal..com/2010_04_01_archive.html =Works Cited=


 * "Mohenjo Daro Photo, Download, Photos -- National Geographic." //National Geographic - Inspiring People to Care About the Planet Since 1888//. 2010. Web. 21 Sept. 2011. [].
 * "One of The Trinity Gods Brahma The Creator." Web. 21 Sept. 2011.
 * "Sri Buddha Avatara." //Bhaktivedanta Memorial Library//. Web. 21 Sept. 2011. [].
 * Ellis and Esler, 1997, Prentice Hall: World History--Connections To Today
 * http://period60910.wikispaces.com/Art+and+Architecture+-+The+Indus+Valley
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 * Ellis and Esler, 1997, Prentice Hall: World History--Connections To Today
 * "Mohenjo-Daro - A 5,OOO-year-old Bequest." //SindhiTech//. Web. 21 Sept. 2011. .
 * "Mohenjo-daro: An Ancient Indus Valley Civilization Metropolis." Mohenjo-daro the Ancient Indus Valley City in Photographs. Web. 21 Sept. 2011. .
 * "Foundations of Indian Religion." //Index.html//. Web. 22 Sept. 2011. <http://bhoffert.faculty.noctrl.edu/REL255/001.ReligiousFoundations.html>.