Gupta Empire Legacy

In the Tang and Gupta dynasties there was similarities and differences when it come to the

When looking at Gupta Empire and the Han Dynasty, it is apparent that they share many similarities including social, political, environmental, cultural and economic. The social similarity that they both share is the dominance of the men in the house and out in the fields and in the war. In the Gupta Empire most of the Indian families were patriarchal and they also had men out in the fields for agriculture, the Han Dynasty also believed in the men dominance in the war. In the Gupta Empire the men of the house went to work and they also paid taxes. The Han Dynasty had only employed the men and the military officers will also have to be men. These facts shows that the social similarities because the Gupta Dynasty and the Han Dynasty both believed in the men dominance in and out of the house. The

In ancient civilization, two important aspects that caused the civilizations to flourish or diminish were their political systems and their cultures. Many empires along with India and China were thriving during the time period of their existence. This allowed for ideas to be spread and trade to prosper. The connection between China in East Asia and India in South Asia allowed for the spread of religion, technology, and goods. Therefore, there were many similarities between the two empires, but they also contrasted in many ways. During the classical period the Han Dynasty in China and the Mauryan and Gupta Dynasties were similar culturally because women had few rights in both empires and they both made universities that were devoted to education. In addition, China and India both had strong emperors who were at the top of the social hierarchy. Despite the similarities, they differ culturally with the different advances in technology, and with the China focusing on a philosophy rather than a religion in India. They differed politically due to the different ways of trading and that China had a centralized government and India had a decentralized government.

2. Thesis: Although both Han China and Gupta India’s political control directly correlated to religion, they differed in the centralization of their government, and what members of society became rulers.

During the Classical period, Han China and Mauryan/Gupta India developed many methods of political control. Although these empires were located in different geographic regions, they both used social hierarchy, language, bureaucracy, and religion as a means of political control. Many of Classical India’s religious beliefs and bureaucratic practices contrasted each other in relation to the ways that they supported the methods of political control.

What if you could live in a golden empire? That was exactly what the Gupta Empire was for India, their “Golden Age.” That was because of their daily life, Chandra Gupta II, and achievements in academics.

The word Hindu has evolved from being the word the Persians used for the Indus River in 500 BC to the accepted name for the primary religion of India this name was originally given by foreign rulers and ultimately used by Europeans in the 1500's as the official name of the religion. History plays an important part of Hinduism because new developments reinterpret an update past practices rather than end them. The Hindu religion is broke down into three periods the Vedic period, the Upanishadic period, the classical period, and the devotional period.

The Mauryan Empire became one of the most recognized Classical Civilizations under the rule of Asoka. Asoka assumed control over the Mauryan Empire in 268 BCE after the previous ruler, Chandragupta, Asoka’s grandfather. Although Asoka is remembered to be a ruler of one of the most successful empires, the debate between whether he should be remembered as a ruthless conqueror or an enlightened ruler still remains. Asoka should be remembered primarily as an enlightened ruler because of his successful spread of Buddhism, end of his violent behavior, and produced a better governance and proper aid for the citizens of his empire.

During the early modern period, two great Islamic states were created. One, covered most of the Middle East, while the Balkans covered the remaining majority of India. The two major Islamic Empires, the Ottomans and the Mughals, both brought major new influences to these regions as well. The Ottoman and Mughal Empires’ influences included great political and military strength, amongst other things. During the early modern period, these two empires established very large territories and new boundaries, resembling Russia’s rule. Also similarly to Russia, both of these empires included a diverse population made up of different linguistic, ethnic, and religious groups. Both the Ottoman and Mughal Empires, while similar, followed their own, separate paths during most of the early modern period. In doing so, they avoided Western civilization and the rest of the world, for the most part. However, contact with the West did increase with time as by the late 17th to early 18th century, “a more substantial Western presence began to affect internal developments”.

1~ Even if the indias change in looks, in the hearts they are still savages

The Han Dynasty lasted from 206 BCE – 220 BCE, and was in China. The Mauryan and Gupta Dynasty lasted from 322 BCE – 500 CE, and were in India. The Mauryan Dynasty ended by 185 BCE. The Gupta Dynasty started in 320 CE. In my essay I am going to be comparing and contrasting the 3 dynasty’s (2 of them as 1), and their control through religion, trade, male dominance, and how they fell.

The history of the nation of India is a long and interesting one but most westernizes lack any true understanding of it. Like any long standing culture there have been good and bad periods in their history but one period has been identified as the "Golden Age of India (Dehejia, 1993)." This period, which lasted over a hundred years (322 BCE 185 BCE), began when an exiled general by the name of Chandragupta Maurya overthrew the reigning king Dhana Nanda. Once Chandragupta Maurya had established his new government in the Eastern area of India he began expanding his power westward across Central and Western India and, in the process, the religions of Hinduism and Buddhism also began to spread throughout India (Avari, 2007).

The Vedic age in India started around 1500 BC with the arrival of Aryans, an Indo-European tribe from central Asia near the Caspian Sea. Aryans settled along the banks of the Indus and its tributaries in the northern part of the subcontinent. Initially, it was a tribal society centered in northwest India and by 1000 BC, it spread along the Gangetic plain with the development of modern agriculture. Aryans dominated the local indigenous population and often ruled over them. Over time, the interbreeding with the local residents led to the emergence of mixed culture. The Vedic age lasted from 1500 BC to 500 BC. Agriculture and cattle rearing were the main occupations of the people. The Vedas and Upanishads were written during this period. The

     India was an ancient civilization that had many rulers and empires. The first rulers were the Harappans. They ruled from 3500 BC through 1500 BC. The Aryans took over the Harappan empire around 1500 BC. Then, Alexander the Great came and took over control of India. After ruling for only a couple of years, he died. A few years later the Mauryan Empire took over. Next was the Ashoka. Finally, the Guptas ruled from 320 BC through 535 AD.     

Before the Partition of India, in 1947, India was considered a country with a reasonably peaceful history. However, during and after the Partition, sexual violence, both towards men and women, escalated, resulting in the rape and abduction of over 80,000 women. Cracking India, by Bapsi Sidhwa, tells a story that highlights these violent acts by both Muslims and Hindus, through the eyes of a disabled young Parsi girl named Lenny, who witnesses first hand the violence of Partition when she mistakenly participates in the abduction of her ayah, Shanta. Throughout Cracking India, Lenny observes as the religions involved in Partition become increasingly violent towards both men and women, within their own religions and against others.