History of Indian Civilization - Indian Civilization [Lec 06]

Indian Civilization [Lec 06]: Lecture of 23 January 2012, Winter Term (UCLA). Lecture commences with brief discussion of the Upanishads, and the notion of individual moral responsibility. Buddha and the Buddhism; Mahavira; Jainism and its origins -- some key ideas, among them the sangha, ahimsa, aparigraha. Some brief remarks about Jains and the professions they follow. Jaina theory of syadvada; the parable about the six blind men and the elephant in the version of John Godfrey Saxe. Discussion of Indian learning in other realms: mathematics, astronomy, Panini's grammar of Sanskrit, and surgery--the idea of zero, the use of letters of the alphabet to designate unknown quantities, as in x, y ... Concluding comments on the polity in India, 600 BCE - c. 350 BCE; invasion of India by Alexander; the encounter between Alexander and the gymnosophists; interpretation of this last encounter; excerpts from Vikram Chandra's novel, "Red Earth and Pouring Rain". See the full playlist for “History of Indian Civilization”: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLy3KRgc0HE8B4neta_B8LPM0G9UWy-Cqe Subscribe for more lectures on Indian Civilization, World History, Bollywood, Gandhi, and much else... Blog: https://vinaylal.wordpress.com/ MANAS (a pedagogical website on Indian history, culture, religions, politics, and so on): http://southasia.ucla.edu/ UCLA Faculty Page: https://history.ucla.edu/faculty/vinay-lal Books: https://vinaylal.wordpress.com/books-by-vinay-lal/