The Mauryan Empire

Chapter 6.3

Origin of an Empire

• Divided into small kingdoms• Conquered by the Persians• Greeks under Alexander the Great

defeated Persians

India’s First Empire

• Chandra Gupta Maurya– Built a strong army– First ruler of the Mauryan dynasty– Skilled administrator– Well run government– Postal system

What Did Ashoka Accomplish?

• Began with fierce wars• Began to follow Buddhism• Became a man of peace• Created hospitals for people and animals• Built roads• Promoted Buddhism• Sent missionaries to spread Buddhism• Developed a trade network

Ashoka Accomplishments

• Built stupas-Buddhist shrines shaped like a dome or burial mound

The end of the Mauryan Empire

• After Ashoka died, Mauryan Empire declined

• New rulers made merchants pay heavy taxes

• Indian people rebelled• The last Mauryan king was murdered by

his generals

The Gupta Empire

• Gupta dynasty came to power in Ganges• Gupta rulers practiced Hinduism• Traded salt, cloth, and iron

The Literature of India• Vedas were first written works• Hindu epics teach moral lesson• The Mahabharata-epic contains

90,000 verses. Describes the struggle for control of a kingdom. Contains stories about heros – Bhagavad Gita- part of

Mahabharata- the deity Krishna goes with a prince into battle. The prince does not want to fight because members of his family are on the other side.

The Ramayana

• About 25,000 verses before it was written down

• Tells the story of prince Rama and his wife Sita

• Sita is kidnapped by an evil king

Mathematics

• Aryabhata-scientist that used Algebra

• Explained the idea of infinity• Invented the symbol “0”• Developed symbols for numbers

1-9 that we use today• Numbers were known as Indian-

Arabic or Hindu Arabic

Advances in Science

• Advances in astronomy – Proposed the theory the Earth was round and

Earth revolved around the sun• Advanced metalworking• Constructed the pillar of iron of Delhi

Advances in Medicine

• Treated dental problems• Gupta Doctors could set broken bones,• Sew wounds, perform surgeries• Make scalpels and needles• Repaired damaged noses• Used herbs to cure illness