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Importance of climate change in shaping the history of India

Historians view civilization as a phenomenon that comes and goes. Environment and climate
shape the history of human beings in the long term. Most of the earliest civilizations came up
along the banks of big rivers like Indus, Brahmaputra, Nile, etc. Indian civilization was also
shaped by its formative period. During this formative period, called the Vedic and Epic ages,
the Aryan conquerors gradually came to terms with agriculture, but impressed their own
stamp on the culture and social structure of their new home.
In 1500B.C we got the first evidence of Indian language and Indian Literature. The most
widely spoken language spoken during that period was Sanskrit, which lies at the roots of
most of the languages that is spoken today in India. For traditional Hindus these are the most
ancient scriptures in the world older than the father and the bible. The Rig Veda is the oldest
Veda and started first. Rig Veda also had Aryans who had flown to north India and speak
same language. The climate change moved the population. In the dessert of Tagmanistan the
Aryans came in before 2000 BC. They were cattle herders. They had horses and wheeled
wagons. Around 1700 to 1800 BC they moved onto the Indian sub-continent because of the
climate change and shifting of rivers. When they entered India, they fought for supremacy all this was recorded in the mythical literature Mahabharata.

Importance of Greek Sailor Hippalus Journey to India, Interlinkage of

Monsoon and the Spice Trade Route
Around 45 A.D, monsoons were discovered by Hippalus (Greek captain) and the discovery
that, monsoons could sail ships from Alexandria to Western India in just a 40-days period,
tremendously increased the Roman sea-trade, due to shortening of trade-route. The Romans
were great connoisseurs of spices. They indulged in spices in every imaginable combination
for their food, beverages, and pleasure. They bathed in water mixed with aromatics, scented
their homes with the fragrance of cardamom, slept on pillows filled with saffron, and
peppered their food with Oriental spices. Of all the spices, the hot and pungent taste of pepper
became very popular. For the rulers of the sprawling Roman Empire, possession of spices
added to their prestige. The utility of monsoon winds for sailing ships considerably reduced
the importance of Arabia's overland spice routes and brought Roman contenders on the scene.
Having learnt the fundamental secrets of the monsoons, the Romans built ships and
eventually broke the Arab monopoly of the Indian trade. The Romans had secured control
over trade with India, and the main ports of call Cochin, Pondicherry, and Kolkata.

Silk Route and the Invasion of the Kushans

The Kushans were mighty conquerors and the Kushana Empire stretched to a vast extent
including the entire parts of Northern and northwestern India. Kushana Empire not only
extended within the limits of India, but also to the countries of Central Asia. Economic
developments were at its heights during the Kushana rule. Kushan kings were the one who
introduced the first gold coins of India. Under their rule, northwest India participated both in
seagoing trade and in commerce along the Silk Road between China and the Mediterranean.
By positioning themselves at the center of the Silk Road, midway between China and India in
the east and the Mediterranean world in the west, the Kushans became a world power second
only to China and Rome and the first unified force in Afghanistan to dispense rather than
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receive authority. Their trade with China, central Asia, Egypt and Rome made their economy
very strong and kingdom wealthy and prosperous

The invasion of India by Mahmud of Ghazni and role of Sufis

Mahmud ascended the throne of Ghazni in 997 after the death of Sabuktigin. From the
conquest of Khorasan in the year 1000 to the invasion of Indias Somnath Temple he was
always considered a formidable power to be reckoned with. It is a known fact that Mahmud
never once tried to establish rule in India. His sole intention was to ransack Hindu temples,
which he did repeatedly with great success in Somnath, Ujjain and Dwarka. His motive was
to destroy the glories of Hindus and expose Islam and spread the same. In order to
accomplish this he captured the forts and towns of Khyber, looted the kingdoms and killed
people mercilessly. He invaded several other places during his reign.
He invaded Mathura in 1018 after breaking all the idols and breaking the temples. He
destroyed the existence of Hindus from all the places he could. His invasion of Somnath
temple in 1025 clearly epitomized his intentions. This invasion made him the hero of Islam.
The effect of Mahmuds invasion included Punjab under the empire of Ghazni. The major one
was that all the above invasions paved way for the muslims of India. This was one of the
biggest setbacks to India as the existence of temples, idols was wiped away under his reign.
His expeditions opened India to conquest from the north-west. The significance of Mahmuds
invasion also paved the way for the Muslim saints called the Sufis providing the driving
power to greater Hindu-Muslim interaction. The Sufi Saint Mir Mohammad Hamadani waged
a crusade against the Hindus to realize their conversion to Islam. Due to his actions, large
numbers of Hindus converted, fled, or were killed for refusal to convert. But on the other
hand Sufism did bring tolerance and also tried to spread ideas like equality, love and
submission to god.

The Mughal governance and lessons learnt by Britain

The Mughal Emperors attained great power in India in the 16 th and 17th centuries. They
controlled a major chunk of what is now called as India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and
Afghanistan. The Empire survived in a diluted form, for another hundred years, until 1858
when there was a British presence and the Mughal Empire was absorbed into the Raj. They
brought in with them many changes which include centralized government that brought
together many small kingdoms, the Persian art and culture, system of education that took into
account pupils needs and culture. The first Mughal emperor Babur founded the empire which
was sophisticated civilization based on religious toleration. He gave approval to build Hindu
temples. This brought in the Hindu culture. The importance of slavery under his reign
diminished and peace was made with the Hindu kingdoms of Southern India. Baburs
grandson Akbar believed that all religions should be tolerated, and that a ruler's duty was to
treat all believers equally, whatever their belief. He brought the culture that a non-Muslim
will not be forced to practice Islamic laws. He also ended taxes that were imposed on nonMuslims. Jahangir readopted Islam as the state religion and continued the policy of religious
toleration. His court included large numbers of Indian Hindus, Persian Shias and Sufis.
Aurangzeb ruled for nearly 50 years. Aurangzeb was a very observant and religious Muslim
who ended the policy of religious tolerance followed by earlier emperors. The last Mughal
Emperor was deposed by the British in 1858.

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When the East India Company came to India in the early 1600s, India was ruled by the
Mughals. The Mughal emperor had shown no concerns providing trading port to the
company. Both Jahangir and Shah Jahan were busy enjoying the glories of Taj Mahal. After
the death of Aurangzeb in in 1707, the empire became fragile and there were prospects for
Martha based in Western India to come in. This was the period when European companies French and English for the most part - were starting to flex their arms. The biggest power in
India was thus defeated due to over-expansion and the company had control over Bengal.
Aurangzebs death saw the downfall of the great Mughal Empire that had held control over
most of India. This period saw the many Nawabs of the different provinces scrambling to
acquire power. Following their 'Divide and Rule' policy, the British made the individual
Nawabs of India vie against each other even more.