Legacies of India
By: Chandana Tatineni & Aleesha Johnson 9/28/12 Harris-4th
Opening Statement...
- Can you imagine how life would be like if you didn’t know about O? Can you image how different life would be without the 0. Well, you should know that one of the main legacies of India is the invention 0 and there are many other legacies that are in use today!
Background...
- Legacy: anything handed down from the past, as from an ancestor or predecessor.
- History of India begins with evidence of human activity of Homo sapiens as long as 75,000 years ago, or with earlier hominids including Homo erectus from about 500,000 years ago.
- Indus Valley Civilization, which spread and flourished in the northwestern part of the Indian Subcontinent from c. 3300 to 1300 BCE in present-day Pakistan and northwest India, was the first major civilization in South Asia.
- Inhabitants of the ancient Indus river valley developed new techniques in handicraft (carnelian products, seal carving) and metallurgy (copper, bronze, lead, and tin). The civilization is noted for its cities built of brick, roadside drainage system, and multi-storied houses.
- The empire built by the Maurya dynasty under Emperor Ashoka united most of South Asia in the 3rd centruy BC. From 180 BC, a series of invasions from Central Asia, including Indo-Greeks, Indo-Scythians, Indo-Parthians and Kushan.
- From 3rd century BC, the Gupta dynasty oversaw the "Golden Age" of Indian history. Among the notable South Indian empires were the Chalukyas, Rashtrakutas, Hoysalas, Pallavas, Pandyas, and Cholas.
Characteristics...
- Religious Legacy- Hinduism and Buddhism are practiced in countries besides India and have also influenced people of other faiths.
- Artistic Legacy- The artistic styles of ancient India influenced other cultures and continue to be used today.
- Mathematics Legacy- The decimal system, numerals, and the concept of the zero transformed the ability to do mathematical calculations.
List of Indian Legacies...
- Taj Mahal
- Red Fort
- Temples
- Chess
- Value of pi
- Precious jewels - diamonds/gold
- Spices
- Hinduism
- Buddhism
- Jainism
- Sikhism
- Algebra
- Trigonometry
- Calculus
- Uniform weights and measures
- Cremation
- Cotton
- Eye surgery
- Dentistry
- Ayurveda is the earliest literature of medicine known to man-kind.
- Hindu and Buddhist ideas have influenced many people. For example, the Indian leader Mohandas Gandhi used ahimsa, or nonviolence, to fight against British rule. (legacy of independence)
- Indian arts have influenced the world.
- Southeast Asians perform plays based on Sanskrit epic Mahabharata.
- Bhagavad Gita has been translated and read around world.
- Ancient artistsʼ visual symbols for Buddhaʼs holiness still used (An ancient Hindu temple in Cambodia shows Indian influences in the temple’s design.)
- The numerals 1 to 9 that we use today were developed in India more than 2,000 years ago.
- The number system the Indians developed is called the decimal system.
- The zero began to be used in India about 1,400 years ago.
Significance...
- Taj Mahal is one of the 7 wonders of the world.
- India’s literature and art shaped other religions.
- Without the 0, the way we do mathematical calculations would be impossible.
- Gandhi’s life inspired U.S. civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr., and in the 1950's and 1960's, there were non-violent protests for African-American Right.
- Hindu and Buddhist influences continue today.
- Yoga/meditation are popular with people of many different religions.
Final Statement...
- There are many legacies that came from India that are still in use today, and life can be unimaginable without the use of some of the legacies like math. Some of the legacies helped inspire other historical events that shape our current history and society, even though some of them may seem really old, life could be very different without them.