Chapter 3 AP World History Vocabulary Flashcards
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Ashoka
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grandson of Chandragupta Maurya; extended conquests of the dynasty; converted to Buddhism and sponsored its spread throughout his empire
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Buddha
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creator of a major Indian and Asian religion; born in the 6th century BCE; taught that enlightenment could be achieved only by abandoning desires for earthly things
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Chandragupta Maurya
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founder of the Mauryan dynasty, the first empire in the Indian subcontinent; first centralized government since Harappan civilization
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Gupta dynasty
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built an empire in the 3rd century CE that included all but southern Indian regions; less centralized than Mauryan Empire
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Himalayan Mountains
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region marking the northern border of the Indian subcontinent
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Karma
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the sum of merits accumulated by an individual; determined the caste one would be born into in the next life
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Kautilya
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political adviser to Chandragupta Maurya; wrote political treatise
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Mahabharata, Ramayana
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Indian epics, deeply imbued with Hindu teachings
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Maurya dynasty
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established in Indian subcontinent in 4th century BCE following invasion of Alexander the Great
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Nirvana
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the Buddhist state of enlightenment; a state of tranquility
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Reincarnation
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the successive rebirth of the soul according to merits earned in previous lives
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Sanskrit
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the classical and sacred Indian language
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Shiva, Vishnu
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the most important Hindu deities
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Stupas
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stone shrines built to house relics of the Buddha; preserved Buddhist architectural forms
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Untouchables
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lowest caste in Indian society; performed tasks that were considered polluting (street sweeping, removal of human waste, tanning)
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Upanishads
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later books of the Vedas; combined sophisticated and sublime philosophical ideas
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Varnas
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the categories organizing Indian society into a functional hierarchy
