The Aryan Civilization
The Aryan invasion
civilization is a controversial topic. According to the theories of some Western
scholars, the Aryans entered the Indus Valley Civilization (currently known as
Sindh, one of the four states of Pakistan) about 1500 B.C. and dominated the
region for about 2,500 years. These scholars characterized the Aryans as an
aggressive, fierce, and a war-loving people who forced the Dravidians out
of their lands. Those left were made slaves and spent the rest of their lives as
untouchables (the lowest social class or caste). The Aryans lived in mountains,
lands, seashores, forests, and desert. They did not build any cities. They had
no form of writing. They were extremely proud of their powers and called
themselves the "noble" or "superior" ones. They were a group of nomadic people
who had no interest in agriculture. They divided the society into four castes
namely Brahmans, Kshatriya, Vaishya, and Shudra.
i) Brahmans were the priests, the highest of the four major castes systems who were responsible for presiding at religious cremation as well as studying and teaching of Vedas.
ii) Kshatriyas were the second most honored caste. They were the protectors and the warriors of battles.
iii) Vaishyas were the merchants, artisans, craftsman, and the cultivators. They were the people who were specialized or had some professional knowledge.
iv) Shudra were the bulk of the society. Their allocated and expected role in the society was that of laborers.
G.M. Syed writes in his book, The Sindhudesh that "most of their (the Aryans) beliefs were made on the basis of Vedas." First they called themselves Brahmans, then Vedic and Hindu Dharam. Syed also claims that religions like Buddhism, Jainism, Zoroastrianism, Greek and Persian were inaugurated by Aryans.
In the beginning, the Aryans ate meat, but later on they stopped killing and eating animals for living. Instead, they continued to eat vegetables and grains. They increased their social and military strength by taming elephants and horses for traveling and warfare. They began building cities and created new laws and conditions for living in the cities. During the time of Mahatma Mahavir and Mahatma Buddha Aryans began to become more non-violent and peace-loving.
Though this page has been carefully researched, the author does not claim expertise on Aryan Civilization.
Please send questions, comments, and corrections to emuseum@mnsu.edu and include the URL of this page.
References:
Syed, G.M
The Sindhudesh. Electronic document,
http://www.sindhudesh.com/gmsyed/sindhudesh/saeen-book3-chap5.html, accessed December 18, 2008.
B.V. Giri, Saumi
The Aryan Invasion. Electronic document.
http://www.gosai.com/chaitanya/saranagati/html/vedic-upanisads/aryan-invasion.html, accessed December 18,2008.
Frawley, Davis
The Myth of the Aryan Invasion of India. Electronic document, http://www.hindunet.org/hindu_history/ancient/aryan/aryan_frawley.html, accessed December 18, 2008.
Frawley, Davis
The Aryan-Dravidian Controversy. Electronic document, http://www.hindunet.org/hindu_history/ancient/aryan/aryan_frawley_1.html, accessed December 18, 2008
Written By Salman Hakim, 2009