Throughout India’s history numerous foreign forces controlled it. These outsiders included the Aryans, the Guptas, and the British. All three of these invaders influenced India in a unique way. This foreign presence in India‘s history caused a plethora of influences in their religion, education, government, and society, Many of these impacts are still seen today in Indian. The Indo-European group, better known as the Aryans (derived from what they called themselves) began their reign of power in India in 1500 BCE (The History of lndia)l The Aryans who were said to be nomads were speedy warriors who used bow and arrow to conquer lands (The History of India). Once they gained power their culture greatly influenced that of India’s, The first example of this is India’s Caste System, which is still in use today (The History of India). The system is organized.
With the highest caste being the Brahmans, then the Kshatriyas. then the Vaishyas, and finally the Shudras (The Caste System). This organization of society is strikingly similar to the three classes Aryan society, which included the priest, the warriors, and than those who took care of the cattle (The History of India). Aryan culture further influenced that of the Indian‘s With its enormous contribution to the main religion of India, Hinduism (The History of India). The Aryan collections of writing, known as the Veda, were written in the Indo-European language of Sanskrit (The History of India). It included content addressed to various deities, as well as myths, spells, and some philosophical conjecture (The Founder of Hinduism) The content of the Veda had been orally passed down from well before 1000 BCE for hundreds of years, because the ancient Sanskrit language did not acquire script until roughly 500 BCE.
The influence of these writings is that they are regarded as the most authoritative and sacred Hindu scripture (The Founder of Hinduism). The effect is so great that Hinduism is sometimes referred to as Vedic Dharma, the religion of the Veda (The Founder of Hinduism). Overall. the cultural influence in which the Aryan‘s had on India was so vast that they are still in use today. The Gupta dynasty, invaders of southern India, controlled India from 320 to 540 (Elisabeth Ellis), During this time era India experienced a golden age (Elisabeth Ellis). The Guptas, who organized a strong central government and promoted peace and prosperity, were destined to make achievements that influenced both India and the entire world (Elisabeth Ellis) Due to the flourishing trade and farming that occurred in this empire, wealth was abundant.
The Guptas prosperity added to a blooming in the arts and learning (Elisabeth Ellis). During this era students who were educated in religious schools were not only taught religion and philosophy, but mathematics, medicine, physics, languages, literature, and other miscellaneous subjects as well (Elisabeth Ellis). These additions to learning allowed the Guptas to expand the knowledge of mankind allowing them to discover concepts and practices still used today Arybhata accomplished the first of these (Sandra Petersen). This was the concept of zero, which is the basis for anything involvrng math (Sandra Petersen). Brahmagupta created a second mathematical achievement (Sandra Petersen). He was credited for devtsmg the system of “Arabic” numerals, which were carried from India by Arabs to the Middle East (Sandra Petersen).
Afinal mathematical achievement made by the Guptas was the development of the decimal system, numbers based on ten digits (Elisabeth Ellis). The Guptas did not only influence math, but medical practices as well, Indian physicians used herbs and other antidotes In order to treaI sickness (Elisabeth Ellis). Surgeons also practiced the medical process of adroitly setting bones (Elisabeth Ellis), Athird medical discovery founded by the Guptas was Ihe exercise of vaccinations, which were not used in Europe for another 1,000 years (Elisabeth Ellis). The classic phase enjoyed during the time of the Gupta Dynasty influenced India and many other pans of the world in the advancements of both mathematics and medicine. The last group to rule India before they declared independence in 1947 was the British.
Britain ruled India from the 1600’s to 1947. Throughout those years they had made a deep impact on Indian society. They built an extensive railroad system which enabled Indians to travel easily and faster, as well as established a postal service and telegraph network which allowed the people of India to communicate quicker (British Influence). The British also constructed canals, therefore, allowing for better irrigation, consequently better crops (British Influence), Another impact in which Britain had on Indian society was that they established many schools, thus spreading education, as well as introduced modern health care (British Influence), The British influenced India’s government as well.
For example everyone was equal before the law regardless of caste (British Influence). This is because of its democratic system of government, which also allowed for free press. and the independence of its law courts (British Influence). Due to Britain‘s long control of India, they left many influences throughout Indian society and government. In final analysis, India’s religion, education, government and society were all greatly influenced by the Aryans, the Guptas, and the British. Each group had left a lasting impact on India as a country. Without foreign control many of these achievements and changes would not have taken place.