Aryans
European tribes who settled in India after 1500 B.C.E.; their union with indigenous Dravidians formed the basis of Hinduism.
Brahmins
Hindu caste of priests.
Dravidians
Peoples who produced the brilliant Harappan society in India, 3000-1500 B.C.E.
Harappan
Early brilliant Indian society centered around Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro.
Harappan
Early brilliant Indian society centered around Harappa and Mohenjo-Daro.
Indra
Early Indian god associated with the Aryans; Indra was the king of the gods and was associated with warfare and thunderbolts.
Jati
Indian word for a Hindu subcaste.
Karma
Hindu concept that the sum of good and bad in a person's life will determine his or her status in the next life.
Kshatriyas
Hindu caste of warriors and aristocrats.
Lawbook of Manu
A moral code prepared in the first century B.C.E. in India dictating the role of women in Indian society.
Moksha
Hindu concept of the salvation of the soul.
Neolithic
New Stone Age (10,000-4000 B.C.E.), which was marked by the discovery and mastery of agriculture.
Prakit
Daily-use language of the early Aryans.
Samsara
Hindu term for the concept of transmigration, that is, the soul passing into a new incarnation.
Sanskrit
Sacred language of the early Aryans
Sati
Also known as suttee, Indian practice of a widow throwing herself on the funeral pyre of her husband.
Shudras
Hindu caste of landless peasants and serfs.
Upanishads
Indian reflections and dialogues (800-400 B.C.E.) that reflected basic Hindu concepts.
Vaishyas
Hindu caste of cultivators, artisans, and merchants.
Varna
Hindu word for caste.
Varuna
Aryan god who watched over the behavior of mortals and preserved the cosmic order.
Vedas
Wisdom," early collections of prayers and hymns that provide information about the Indo-European Aryans who migrated into India around 1500 B.C.E.; Rig Veda is most important collection.