William Jones

1746-94

an adminstrator-sholar who studied Sanskrit and established a common Indo-European heritage

The Vedas

Rig Veda

Purusha Sukhta

Hymn in the Rig Veda. 

Describes the sacrifice of the primordial man and his divison into the 4 Yarnas:

1. Brahmin (priests)

2. Kshatriya (warriors)

3. Vaishya (agrifulturalist/traders)

4. Shudra (labourers)

Literally 'colour'

Referring to largest 'castes' or classes as they emerge in early historic India

1. Brahmin (priests)

2. Kshatriya (warriors)

3. Vaishya (agriculturalists/taders)

4. Shudra (labourers)

The horse Sacrifice.

Vedic sacrifice through which a Vedic raja or Hindu king attempted to constitute a territorial imperium.

Its political and ritual significance shifted over time in Indian history.

Samsara

Enlightenment.

The state of having escaped samsara (rebirth)

Achieved through renunciation of desire

Renouncer

Member of one of the sects renouncing worldly life in pursuit of spiritual enlgihtenment.

These sects include:

-Buddhism

-Jainism

-Ajivikas

First text on goverment in early india

Attributed variously to the mauryan and early Grupta periods

Eulogistic portion contained in an inscription which praises the donor and gives his genealogy

(poetry about king in sanskrit)

16 lifecycle rites, 

including thread ceremony (symbolizing start of education)

Marriage, death. 

The samskaras vegetalis the sacrifice and requires only one priest

Dharma

Righteousness, ethical behaviou.

One of the four goals of man.

Pleasure.

Defined in its widest sense

Including aesthetics and entertainments. One of the four goals of man.

Liberation or release

The final and highest of the four goals of man

(corresponds with Buddhist notion of nirvana)

One of most famous of the Dharma Shastra texts, which recounts the obligations of the twice born varnas.

Complied 2nd century BCE- 1st Century CE.

One of the epics.

Tells the story of Rama and his wife Sita who is kidnapped by the demon Ravana and the journey of Rama to rescue Sita. Most fmaous version is by valmiki

One of the epics

Tells the story of major battle between two families of cousins, 

The pandavas and the Kauravas

Worshipper of Vishnu

Vaishava religons emerge between 300-700 CE

Section of the Mahabarata.

Where Krishna, a neighboring king, advises Arjuna on correct action. Krishna details 3 paths:

1. Karma (action)

2. Jnana (knowledge) 

3. Bhakti (devotion)

Bhakti is seen as best

Avatar

Manifestation of god in the world.

Usually associated with Vishnu whom has 10 avatars.

A vast hierarchy of kings organised into concentric set of circles, where the central king sought to develop alliances by circumventing his enemies.

He developed alliances with more distant kings, described in the Arthashastra.

Conquest of the four quarters.

A key action to be undertaken by a powerful king.

Place of Shiva's Mediation. 

Temples were often built in the image of Mount Kailasa, eg. the Kailasa Temple of Ellora.

non hereditary land grant.

Often issued by sultans in return for military service

Mosque complex in Delhi.

Built in the early 13th Century

by Qutb al-din

Aybek, expanded by Iltutmish and Ala al Din Khalji

Specialists in the religous sciences

(judges, preachers and prayer leaders)

A sufi practice

Meaning ritualised recitation of the names used to describe god.

Lineage/chain of Sufi masters

stetching back to the Prophet

Spiritual power

Possessed by Sufi Shaikhs and (after their death) bt their tombs.

An immemsely popular Chishti Sufi

(1238-1325)

Based in Delhi

Amir Khusrau

(1253-1325)

Court poet under 7 Delhi Sultans 

One of the gavourite disciples of Nizam al-Din Awliya

A new title used by the vijayanagara emperors.

To emphasise their over-lordship of other local claimants to power

A detailed description of the administrative departments of Akbar's reign.

Written c.1590 by his close friend and advisor, Abul Fazl

Leasding noble of Akbar's reign

From Rajput Kacchwaha house, which established many matrimonial alliances with Akbar

Universal tolerance.

A policy of tolerance towards all eligions, promoted by Akbar in 1580 and made famous by Abul Fazl in his accounts of Akbar's rule, The Akbarnamah and the Ain-i Akbari.

Single systematised hierarchial apparatus established by the Mughals.

All officers assigend specific numeric rank (mansab), whihc determined an officer's personal status, his personal salary, AND his military obligation and the required resources to equip them.

Temporary and non-hereditary landholdings introduced by the mughals. 

A Jagirdar (holder of a jagir) only had authority over the revenue of his jagir, not over other administrative or military matters.

Capital city built by Akbar in 1571.

Placed around the shrine of Shaikh Salim Chrishti, in order to celebrate the birth of his son Jahangir.

Bhakti saints.

Worship God with attributes.

These are often Vaishnavas. eg. Mirabai: a Rajput rincess whose poetry focuses on Krishna's amourous games with Radha and the gopis (cow herders)

Bhakti saints who worship God without name or form

eg. the weaver Kabir.

Their poetry often focused on challenging caste or divisions between religons.

Militaristic Sikh order.

Established by Guru Gobind Singh, the 10th Sikh guru, in 1699. The adherents of the Khalsa wear 5 symbols:

1. Dagger
2. Bracelet
3. Comb
4. Soldier's undershorts
5. Unshave hair on head and face

House of worship

Built by Akbar in 1575 to facilitate religous discussion among Muslims, Brahmins, Parsis/Zoroastrians, Jains and Jesuit priest

Daughter of Mughal emperor Babur

in 1587 wrote Humayun Nama, a biography of her early life under Babur and Humayun. In 1574 led a group of women from the mughal harem on hajj.

Tax

Which the sharia says is incumbet on nonmuslims in domains ruled by muslims. Sporadically imposed and rescinded in islamicate india, depending on polical exigencies. Rescinded by akbar in 1580, as part of his policy of sulh-i kul. Reimposed by Aurangzeb in 1679

Portuguese system of regulating trade in the Indian Ocean

Local shipts brought licenses from the Portuguese and paid customs duties in return for protection fro pirates and rival states.

East Indian Company

New warrior community.

Emerged in the 16-17th century Deccan and posed a significant challenge to Deccani sultans and the Mughals.

Most famous Maratha leader (1630-80)

Who charved out an independent realm based in Pune. Nowadays is clebrated as a popular Hindu Hero fighting against Muslim tyranny, but this contradicts much of the contemporary evidence.

Ruler of Mysore state (1750-99)

Became hated enemy of the british and was finally defeated in 1799

Siraj al-Daula 

Nawab of Bengal, defeated by the East India Company at the Battle of Plassey in 1757.

Diwani 

the right to collect revenues of Bengal, which was conceded to the East India Company by the Mughal emperor in 1765.