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1.  Before aryans invaded northwest India in about 1500 BCE there was a civilization in the Indus Valley area. In the 19th century archeologists found collections of cities which had a large public bath in the middle of the city as well as in many homes. Which suggest value of ritual purity. Many seals appear to be a man sitting in a meditative position while other seals depict a figure that could be a precursor of the Hindu god Shiva- one of the most important gods in the Hindu pantheon and is considered a member of the holy Trinity and also a protector of the Vedas.

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2. Nomadic Aryan society began to enter the Indus Valley region from Central Asia around that time and brought with it its own culture. We know little of the Aryan settlers to the Indus Valley expect for their collection of writings called Vedas (ancient scriptures that are foundation of Hinduism. They were composed in Sanskrit. The most important part of the Vedas is the Rig Veda which consists of 1,028 hymns praising the gods of the Aryan tribes who invaded India from northwest around 2000 BCE. Later Indo- Aryans brought with them an oral tradition transmitted only by their priests.

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3. Not until after the arrival of the Muslims that the Vedas were compiled and written down. Even though Vedas were in written form it was still in the hands of the priests for centuries before they became sacred scriptures for Hindus. The Vedas wasn’t translated into European languages until arrival of the British in India in the 18th century.

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1. Indo-Aryans intermarried with the indigenous population  and migrated south the Ganges River area. The ritual sacrifices of Brahmins- Hindu priests. The term is also used to describe the highest social class in the Hindu caste system. We’re so expensive only the rich could afford them.

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2. Various schools of Brahmins began to specialize in certain types of sacrifices. Home ritual sacrifices also emerged. As the rituals became more complex Brahmins found it important to compose commentaries on the school rituals, which became known as Brahmanas. Other reflections and the Vedas were included in the shruti- canon of Hindu scripture it is from a word that means what is heard.

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3. From about 550 BCE to 300 BCE the mediating role of the Brahmin decreased as gurus emerged  - from the Sanskrit for teacher Hindu teachers and guides in philosophical and spiritual matters. Training disciples in Bhakti- devotional way of achieving liberation from the cycle of death and rebirth emphasizing the loving faith of a devotee for the gods. Two Hindu gods Shiva and Vishnu- known as the preserver, Vishnu is one of three supreme Hindu deities, along with Brahma and Shiva. Vishnu's role is to protect humans and to restore order to the world. His presence is found in every object and force in creation, and some Hindus recognize him as the divine being from which all things come. gained great prominence during this time.

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1. There’s was an establishment of Hindu temples and the continual growth of home based rituals. Sanskrit- an ancient language of India that is the language of Hinduism and the Vedas it is derived from a word that means perfected. Which contained the Vedas, became the authoritative scripture believed to be written by the divine another body of literature that the populace found more appealing emerged. Known as smriti, Vyasa is important because the two great epics the Mahabharata and the Ramayana are attributed to this poet.

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2. Most dramatic during the classical period was the shift from emphasis on the transcendent to emphasis on the immanent. Rituals dealing with the cosmos became less important and personal transformation became more important. Hindu concepts of Karma and reincarnation emerged during this time. Karma - based on the belief in reincarnation the Hindu and Buddhist belief that the form the soul will take in the next life is determined by its behavior in this life.

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3. Hindus established three non exclusive ways to deal with samsara. The ways of action, wisdom, and devotion. Aryan division of labor was transformed into complex caste system - social class system that is prevalent in Hindu India. of Hinduism.

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1. By 1021 Muslims had conquered the northwest section of India. The newly arrived Muslim leaders did not try to convert Hindus to Islam but they did implement a tax similar to the way they taxed the Jews and Christians they ruled in other places. Throughout the 12th and 13th centuries Muslim sultans-  Sultan, Arabic Sulṭān, originally, according to the Qurʾān, moral or spiritual authority; the term later came to denote political or governmental power and from the 11th century was used as a title by Muslim sovereigns. had moved into northern and central sections of India administrating the region from Delhi.

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2. 16th century Mughals also Muslims over ran the Muslim rulers of Delhi and expanded Islam even farther into India. Some rulers were tolerant of Hinduism while others took to destroying Hindu temples and statues. The ruler Akbar- attempted to secretive the religions of India even holding high level discussions on the topic but was unsuccessful.

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3. Hindus established practices that clearly distinguished them from Muslims. The Hindus poet Kabir was influenced by Islamic mysticism while his disciple Nanak began the new religious tradition, Sikhism a synthesis of Hinduism and Islam.

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1. Though Christians we’re on Indian soil from the late first century CE on it was not until the 16th century that a steady flow of Christian missionaries came to India. The influence of Christianity on Hinduism can be seen in the rise of Hindu reformers of the 19th century. Sir Ramakrishna began the the Ramakrishna movement with the belief that all religions are paths to God.  Mohandas Gandhi- more popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi advocated the equality of all religions to the British rule. Gandhi was a key figure in helping India become independent of Britain.

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2. In the 1960s the British rock group the Beatles brought Maharishi Mahesh Yogi and his advocacy of Transcendental Meditation to the worlds attention. Transcendental Meditation- a technique derived from Hinduism that promotes deep relaxation through recitation of a mantra.

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3. Transcendental Meditation a person is given a Mantra on which to meditate daily. Mantra- A sacred verbal formula that is repeated in prayer or meditation. Also during 1960s Bhaktivedanta Prabhupada founded the international society of Krishna consciousness. More popularly known as the Hare Krishnas because of their continual Hare Krishna chant devotees could be commonly seen wearing saffron colored robes in airports.