Development of Religions
Key Concept 2.1: The Development and Codification of Religious and Cultural Traditions
As states and empires increased in size and contacts between regions multiplied, religious and cultural systems were transformed. Religions and belief systems provided a bond among the people and an ethical code to live by. These shared beliefs also influenced and reinforced political, economic, and occupational stratification. Religious and political authority often merged as rulers (some of whom were considered divine) used religion, along with military and legal structures, to justify their rule and ensure its continuation. Religions and belief systems could also generate conflict, partly because beliefs and practices varied greatly within and among societies.
1. Codifications and further developments of existing religious traditions provided a bond among the people and an ethical code to live by.
A. The association of monotheism with Judaism was further developed with the codification of the Hebrew Scriptures, which also reflected the influence of Mesopotamian cultural and legal traditions. The Assyrian, Babylonian, and Roman empires conquered various Jewish states at different points in time. These conquests contributed to the growth of Jewish Diasporic communities around the Mediterranean and Middle East.
B. The core beliefs outlined in the Sanskrit scriptures formed the basis of the Vedic religions — later known as Hinduism — which contributed to the development of the social and political roles of a caste system and in the importance of multiple manifestations of Brahma to promote teachings about reincarnation.
2. New belief systems and cultural traditions emerged and spread, often asserting universal truths.
A. The core beliefs about desire, suffering, and the search for enlightenment preached by the historic Buddha and recorded by his followers into sutras and other scriptures were, in part, a reaction to the Vedic beliefs and rituals dominant in South Asia. Buddhism changed over time as it spread throughout Asia — first through the support of the Mauryan Emperor Ashoka, and then through the efforts of missionaries and merchants, and the establishment of educational institutions to promote its core teachings.
BUDDHISM
CHRISTIANITY
JUDAISM
hinduism
Freeman-Pedia Religion PDF
PowerPoint
Confucianism
B. Confucianism’s core beliefs and writings originated in the writings and lessons of Confucius and were elaborated by key disciples who sought to promote social harmony by outlining proper rituals and social relationships for all people in China, including the rulers.
C. In the major Daoist writings, the core belief of balance between humans and nature assumed that the Chinese political system would be altered indirectly. Daoism also influenced the development of Chinese culture.
D. Christianity, based on core beliefs about the teachings and divinity of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded by his disciples, drew on Judaism, and initially rejected Roman and Hellenistic influences. Despite initial Roman imperial hostility, Christianity spread through the efforts of missionaries and merchants through many parts of Afro-Eurasia, and eventually gained Roman imperial support by the time of Emperor Constantine.
E. The core ideas in Greco-Roman philosophy and science emphasized logic, empirical observation, and the nature of political power and hierarchy.
3.Belief systems affected gender roles. Buddhism and Christianity encouraged monastic life and Confucianism emphasized filial piety.
4. Other religious and cultural traditions continued parallel to the codified, written belief systems in core civilizations.
A. Shamanism and animism continued to shape the lives of people within and outside of core civilizations because of their daily reliance on the natural world.
B. Ancestor veneration persisted in many regions.
5. Artistic expressions, including literature and drama, architecture, and sculpture, show distinctive cultural developments.
A. Literature and drama acquired distinctive forms that influenced artistic developments in neighboring regions and in later time periods.
B. Distinctive architectural styles developed in many regions in this period.
Key Concept 2.2: The Development of States and Empires
As the early states and empires grew in number, size, and population, they frequently competed for resources and came into conflict with one another. In quest of land, wealth, and security, some empires expanded dramatically. In doing so, they built powerful military machines and administrative institutions that were capable of organizing human activities over long distances, and they created new groups of military and political elites to manage their affairs. As these empires expanded their boundaries, they also faced the need to develop policies and procedures to govern their relationships with ethnically and culturally diverse populations: sometimes to integrate them within an imperial society and sometimes to exclude them. In some cases, these empires became victims of their own successes. By expanding their boundaries too far, they created political, cultural, and administrative difficulties that they could not manage. They also experienced environmental, social, & economic problems when they overexploited their lands and subjects and permitted excessive wealth to be concentrated in the hands of privileged classes.
1. The number and size of key states and empires grew dramatically by imposing political unity on areas where previously there had been competing states.
Persian Empire
Classical India
Classical China
Classical Mediterranean
Classical Americas
I. Empires and states developed new techniques of imperial administration based, in part, on the success
of earlier political forms.
A. In order to organize their subjects, the rulers created administrative institutions in many regions.
-
-
-
Centralized governments
-
Elaborate legal systems and bureaucracies
-
-
B. Imperial governments projected military power over larger areas using a variety of techniques.
-
-
-
Diplomacy
-
Developing supply lines
-
Building fortifications, defensive walls, and roads
-
Drawing new groups of military officers and soldiers from the local populations or conquered peoples
-
-
C. Much of the success of the empires rested on their promotion of trade and economic integration by building and maintaining roads and issuing currencies.
II. Unique social and economic dimensions developed in imperial societies in Afro-Eurasia and the Americas.
A. Cities served as centers of trade, public performance of religious rituals, & political administration for states/empires.
-
-
-
Persepolis
-
Chang’an
-
Pataliputra
-
Athens
-
Carthage
-
Rome
-
Alexandria
-
Constantinople
-
Teotihuacán
-
-
B. The social structures of empires displayed hierarchies that included cultivators, laborers, slaves, artisans, merchants, elites, or caste groups.
C. Imperial societies relied on a range of methods to maintain the production of food and provide rewards for the loyalty of the elites.
-
-
-
Corvée
-
Slavery
-
Rents and tributes
-
Peasant communities
-
Family and household production
-
-
D. Patriarchy continued to shape gender and family relations in all imperial societies of this period.
III. The Roman, Han, Persian, Mauryan, and Gupta empires created political, cultural, and administrative difficulties that they could not manage, which eventually led to their decline, collapse, and transformation into successor empires or states.
A. Through excessive mobilization of resources, imperial governments caused environmental damageand generated social tensions and economic difficulties by concentrating too much wealth in the hands of elites.
-
-
-
Deforestation
-
Desertification
-
Soil erosion
-
Silted rivers
-
-
B. External problems resulted from security issues along their frontiers,
including the threat of invasion
-
-
-
Between Han China and the Xiongnu
-
Between the Gupta and the White Huns
-
Between the Romans and their northern and eastern neighbors
-
-
Key Concept 2.3: Emergence of Transregional Networks of Communication and Exchange
With the organization of large-scale empires, the volume of long-distance trade increased dramatically. Much of this trade resulted from the demand for raw materials and luxury goods. Land and water routes linked many regions of the Eastern Hemisphere. The exchange of people, technology, religious and cultural beliefs, food crops, domesticated animals, and disease pathogens developed alongside the trade in goods across far-flung networks of communication and exchange. In the Americas and Oceania localized networks developed.
I. Land and water routes became the basis for trans-regional trade, communication, and exchange networks in the Eastern Hemisphere.
A. Many factors, including the climate and location of the routes, the typical trade goods, and the ethnicity of people involved, shaped the distinctive features of a variety of trade routes.
-
-
-
Eurasian Silk Roads
-
Trans-Saharan caravan routes
-
Indian Ocean sea lanes
-
Mediterranean sea lanes
-
-
II. New technologies facilitated long-distance communication and exchange.
A. New technologies permitted the use of domesticated pack animals to transport
goods across longer routes.
-
-
-
Yokes
-
Saddles
-
Stirrups
-
-
B. Innovations in maritime technologies, as well as advanced knowledge of the monsoon winds, stimulated exchanges along maritime routes from East Africa to East Asia.
-
-
-
Lateen sail
-
Dhow ships
-
-
III. Alongside the trade in goods, the exchange of people, technology, religious and cultural beliefs, food crops, domesticated animals, and disease pathogens developed across far-flung networks of communication and exchange.
A. The spread of crops, including rice and cotton from South Asia to the Middle East, encouragedchanges in farming and irrigation techniques.
B. The spread of disease pathogens diminished urban populations and contributed to the decline of some empires.
-
-
-
The effects of disease on the Roman Empire
-
The effects of disease on Chinese empires
-
-
Qanat Irrigation System
C. Religious and cultural traditions were transformed as they spread.
-
-
-
Christianity
-
Hinduism
-
Buddhism
-
-
Additional Information for Unit 2
Cool History Videos
Rome in 20 Minutes
The Seven Wonders of the Ancient World
Main Events In The History Of Jerusalem Timeline
Phoenicia, Phoenician Ships, Navigation and Commerce
Comparing the Rise & Fall of Empires
PERSIAN EMPIRE
The Achaemenid Persian Empire (550–330 B.C.)
BBC - Religion: Zoroastrianism
ANCIENT MEDITERRANEAN
MAP: Mycenaean and Minoan Civilizations
The ANIMATED map as history: Ancient Greece: a world in evolution
The ANIMATED map as history: Ancient Greece: Athenian Democracy
Barbarians and Bureaucrats: Minoa, Mycenae, and the Greek Dark Ages
Family Tree of Greek Mythology
MAP: Hellenistic World after the break-up of Alexander's Empire
Roman law - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The Roman Empire-The First Caesars
Roman Emperors - The Imperial Index
From Jesus To Christ - The First Christians
The Roman Empire Disintegrates
Why Rome Fell
The Qin & Han Dynasties of China
Timeline of Chinese History and Dynasties
Timeline of China's "Period of Disunity," 220-589 CE
Timeline of Chinese Inventions
How to Memorize China's Major Dynasties? - YouTube
1000 BCE to 300 CE: China | Asia for Educators
Qin Dynasty
Terracotta Warriors, Terracotta Army, Terra Cotta Soldiers, Xian China
Confucianism and the Chinese Scholastic System
Classical India
Ancient India - The British Museum - Ancient India
Khan Academy: Imperial India
Ancient India
The Buddhist Emperor, Ashoka
The Gupta Dynasty and Empire
Japanese History: A Chronological Outline
Vietnamese History: A Chronological Outline
Maya, Teotihuacan, Moche, Chaco, & Cahokia
Maya civilization - Wikipedia - Maya Civilization - Ancient History Encyclopedia
Teotihuacan - Wikipedia - Teotihuacan - Ancient History Encyclopedia
Networks of Communication and Exchange
Silk Road - Khan Academy
Silk Road Virtual Tour - YouTube
The Trans-Saharan Gold Trade (7th–14th century)
Trans-Saharan trade - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ghana Empire - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
INTERACTIVE QUIZZES, GAMES & ACTIVITIES
AP World History Quizzes: AP World History Practice Tests
The Glory That Was Ancient Greece - Interactive Multiple-Choice Test
Odyssey Game - Choose your character
The Establishment of the Roman Republic - Hangman Game
The Ancient Roman Empire - Online Hangman Game
Ancient Rome - Fling the Teacher - Interactive game
More Interactive History Games
History in Cinema
List of films based on Greco-Roman mythology