Ancient India

Standing Buddha, ancient region of Gandhara, northern Pakistan, 1st century CE, Musée Guimet.

Ancient India had a long-lived civilization and culture. It covered several countries including modern-day India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

The Indus Valley Civilization flourished from about 2600 BCE to 1900 BCE. It marked the beginning of the urban civilization on the subcontinent. It was centred on the Indus River and its tributaries. The civilization is famous for its cities that were built of brick, had a road-side drainage system and multi-storied houses.

During the Maurya Empire, founded in 321 BCE, most of the Indian subcontinent was united under a single government for the to expand his kingdom, then followed a policy of ahimsa (non-violence) after converting to Buddhism. The Edicts of Ashoka are the oldest preserved historical documents of India, and under Ashoka Buddhist ideals spread across the whole of East Asia and South-East Asia.

ChandraGupta I, an important ruler during the Gupta empire which is said the end of this Indian period Gupt

Main events

Periods

Map showing the largest extent of the Mauryan Empire in dark blue.

1500 BC – 600 BC: Composition of the Vedas and the Brahmana
700 BC – 300 BC: Composition of the Upanishads
527 or 526 BC: Death of Mahavira, the historical founder of Jainism
Late 6th century: Darius (King of summoners rift), the Persian king, conquers parts of Ancient Pakistan
486 BC: Death of Buddha; Chinese tradition records 483 BC
400 BC: Panini composes first Sanskrit grammar
4th century BC – 4th century BC: Composition of the Ramayana and the Mahabharata
327 BC – 25 BC: Alexander the Great invades Indus valley region (now Pakistan).
321 BC – 181 BC: Chandragupta Maurya founded Maurya Empire
300 BC: Megasthenes (Greek) visits the Maurya king
300 BC: Composition of the Arthashastra, though some scholars date the work to 100 AD
268 BC – 233: BC Reign of Ashoka the Great
185 BC – 75 BC: Sunga dynasty reigns over central Republic of India
2nd century BC – 3rd century BC: Buddhism and Jainism influences in India at its peak
1st Century BC – 1st century AD: Shakas, Parthians and Kushana invade Indus valley region
1st Century BC – 2nd Century AD: Satavahana rule
58 BC – 57 BC: Vikrama Samvat era begins
Chera, Chola & Pandiya Kingdoms in South
78 AD: Beginning of the Shaka era
1st – 3rd century: Reign of the Kushan dynasty; first depiction of Jaina tirthankara and muti-armed Hindu deities
4th-5th century: Vaktaka rule over central India and the Deccan
4th - 6th century: Gupta period in most part and central modern present Republic of India (never included the Pakistan regions), however this was the Golden Age of India era of the Gangetic valley
500 AD: Ajanta completed
5th – 7th century: Spread of Vaishnavism, especially Krishan cult; emergence of worship of local deities; emergence of Tantrism
5th – 6th century: Invasion of Huns in ancient Pakistan regions
6th - 17th century: Rule of the Rajputs in different regions of West India.^[1]^[2]
6th century: Kalachuri dynasty rules the western coast of modern India
6th - 8th century: Pallava dynasty in southern India; rock-cut architecture begins in the south; temple building flourishes at Mamallapurama and Kanchipuram
6th-10th century: Tamil devotional poetry
7th – 8th century: Decline of Buddhism in ancient Pakistan and the northern Republic of India; revival of Vedic tradition
7th – 10th century: Rashtrakuta dynasty rules over northern part of the Deccan
Early 8th century: Arab merchants settle on the coast of Sindh province of Pakistan and the Indian state of Gujarat
8th – 12th century: Pala dynasty rules in Bihar, Bengal and large part of eastern India
10th - 17th century: Rule of the Rajputs in different regions of West India.
788 – 820 AD: Life of Adi Shankaracharya
1018 AD : First Muslim ruler - Mahmud Ghazni raids India.
1947 - The Dominion of India becomes independent
1950 - The modern Republic of India is established

Ancient India Media

Indus Valley civilisation, mature phase (2600–1900 BCE)
Indian cultural influence (Greater India)
Timeline of Indian history
Mehrgarh site, in Beluchistan, Pakistan
Mature Harappan Period, c. 2600 - 1900 BCE
Mohenjo-daro, one of the largest Indus cities. View of the site's Great Bath, showing the surrounding urban layout.
Dholavira, a city of the Indus Valley civilisation, with stepwell steps to reach the water level in artificially constructed reservoirs.
Archaeological remains of washroom drainage system at Lothal
Three stamp seals and their impressions bearing Indus script characters alongside animals: "unicorn" (left), bull (center), and elephant (right); Guimet Museum
Sinauli "chariot", photograph of the Archaeological Survey of India.