Unfinished Out of Class Notes: History

• Devotional Changes in Gupta India, McKay pp. 77-80, 345-346, 351-354
• Important Terms
• Mahayana
• The "Great Vehicle", a tradition of Buddhism that aspires to be more inclusive
• Bodhisattvas
• Buddhas-to-be who stayed in the world after enlightenment to help others on the path to salvation.
• Dharma
• The Sanskrit word for moral law, central to both Buddhist and Hindu Teachings.
• Bhagavad Gita
• Central Ethical Text of Hinduism
• Mahbharta
• The World's Longest Epic
• Important Dates
• Second or First Century B.C.E
• Buddha's Teachings Were Written Down (Before they were transmitted orally)
• 100 C.E.
• The Time of Nagarjuna, the monk-philosopher associated with Mahayana.
• 1200 C.E.
• Buddhism declined in India, losing out to both Hinduism and Islam
• 400 B.C.E to 200 C.E.
• The Brahmanic Religion Evolves Into Hinduism, in response to Buddhism and Jainism
• 322 B.C.E
• The Greeks Supplanted the Persians in Northwest India
• 513 B.C.E.
• Persian Emperor Darius Conquered the Indus Valley and Kashmir
• Late Sixth Century B.C.E
• The Creation of the Persian Empire
• Important Figures
• Nagarjuna
• The monk-philosopher associated with Mahayana
• Arjuna
• The human hero of the epic: Mahabharata