Ancient India
The History of India begins with the Indus Valley Civilization and the
coming of the Aryans. These two phases are generally described as the
pre-Vedic and Vedic periods. The earliest literary source that sheds
light on India's past is the Rig Veda. It is difficult to date this work
with any accuracy on the basis of tradition and ambiguous astronomical
information contained in the hymns.
The History of India begins with the Indus Valley
Civilization and the coming of the Aryans. These two phases are
generally described as the pre-Vedic and Vedic periods. The earliest
literary source that sheds light on India's past is the Rig Veda. It is
difficult to date this work with any accuracy on the basis of tradition
and ambiguous astronomical information contained in the hymns. It is
most likely that Rig Veda was composed between 1,500 B.C. and 1,000 B.C.
In the fifth century, large parts of India were united under Ashoka.
The 6th Century B.C. was a period of great tumult in India. The kingdom of Magadha, one of the 16 great Janapadas had become paramount over other kingdoms of the Ganges Valley. This period also saw the emergence of various heterodox sects in India. This was the time when Buddhism and Jainism emerged as popular protestant movements to pose a serious challenge to Brahmanic orthodoxy.
This period was followed by the Mauryas of whom the most famous was Ashoka the Great. The boundaries of his empire extended from Kashmir and Peshawar in the North and Northwest to Mysore in the South and Orissa in the East - but his fame rests not so much on military conquests as on his celebrated renunciation of war.
For the next four hundred years (after the great Mauryas), India remained politically disunited and weak. It was repeatedly raided and plundered by foreigners. Stability was restored by the Guptas. The Gupta age was the period of peace and prosperity and witnessed an unprecedented flowering of art, literature and the sciences. This period also saw the beginning of Hindu temple architecture.
After the Guptas there was only a brief afterglow, in the time of Harshavardhana of Kannauj. A Chinese traveler, Huen-tsang visited India from (629 - 645 A.D.) during the reign of Harshavardhana. His account gives us an opportunity to note the changes that had taken place in the lives of the Indian people since the days of the Guptas.
The 6th Century B.C. was a period of great tumult in India. The kingdom of Magadha, one of the 16 great Janapadas had become paramount over other kingdoms of the Ganges Valley. This period also saw the emergence of various heterodox sects in India. This was the time when Buddhism and Jainism emerged as popular protestant movements to pose a serious challenge to Brahmanic orthodoxy.
This period was followed by the Mauryas of whom the most famous was Ashoka the Great. The boundaries of his empire extended from Kashmir and Peshawar in the North and Northwest to Mysore in the South and Orissa in the East - but his fame rests not so much on military conquests as on his celebrated renunciation of war.
For the next four hundred years (after the great Mauryas), India remained politically disunited and weak. It was repeatedly raided and plundered by foreigners. Stability was restored by the Guptas. The Gupta age was the period of peace and prosperity and witnessed an unprecedented flowering of art, literature and the sciences. This period also saw the beginning of Hindu temple architecture.
After the Guptas there was only a brief afterglow, in the time of Harshavardhana of Kannauj. A Chinese traveler, Huen-tsang visited India from (629 - 645 A.D.) during the reign of Harshavardhana. His account gives us an opportunity to note the changes that had taken place in the lives of the Indian people since the days of the Guptas.
Ancient India Facts :
- According to Greek philosophers slavery did not exist in ancient India.
- Aryabhatta, the great astronomer and scientist, discovered zero. The number system was also invented in ancient India.
- The Indus valley civilization was one of the most advance civilizations in terms of town planning etc.
- During the ancient period there were many famous and important centers of learning in India- Taxila and Nalanda, where thousands of students from all over studied different subjects.
- The earliest school of medicine known to humans is Ayurveda. Ayurveda was developed mainly by Charaka, the great Indian physician, during ancient times. It is the only system which takes the holistic view of the person being treated.
- India was known as golden bird because of her wealth. The later invaders came to India in search of wealth.
- Bhaskaracharya, the great astronomer and mathematician of ancient India, was the first person to calculate the time taken by the earth to orbit the sun.
- It was during the 6th century that Budhayana first calculated the value of pie and explained the concept of Pythagoras theorem.
- It is interesting to note that ancient India was so advanced in science and mathematics that Algebra, trigonometry and calculus all came from India. In the 11th century Sridharacharya propounded the Quadratic equations.
- Ancient Indians had a well developed concept of water harvesting. The earliest reservoir and dam for irrigation was built in Saurashtra. This lake was called Sudarshana and built by the Shaka king, Rudradaman.
- Chess was a popular game in ancient India.
- The great physician of ancient India, Sushruta conducted complicated surgeries like cesareans, cataract, artificial limbs, fractures, stones, plastic surgery and brain surgery.
- Usage of anesthesia was well known in ancient India.
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