Arya, Dravida, aneeshm, LordShiva, Vedic and classical Hinduism, and much more

[VetLegion]

One (unrelated?) observation. When I think of India I always associate it with wet and hot conditions. Images of India I have from popular culture are subtropical.

However, I have learned that the origins of indian civilization were in fact around the Indus river, which is surrounded by desert, somwehat like Egypt.

Why would Indus be more attractive than Ghanges for the formation of early civilization?

[LordShiva]

The area around the Ganga (Ganges) was mostly forest then. And the banks of the Indus weren't as desertified as they are now.

[aneeshm]

Originally posted by VetLegion
One (unrelated?) observation. When I think of India I always associate it with wet and hot conditions. Images of India I have from popular culture are subtropical.

However, I have learned that the origins of indian civilization were in fact around the Indus river, which is surrounded by desert, somwehat like Egypt.

Why would Indus be more attractive than Ghanges for the formation of early civilization?

It's a funny thing, but the Indus civilisation covered most of north India and Pakistan, so it wasn't really very restricted to just the Indus bank.

The theory I subscribe to is that the drying up of the river Saraswati forced the collapse of the Indus empire, and forced a southward migration. So there wasn't an invasion, there was an internal shifting about.

@ LordShiva

How, in your opinion, did the Indus civilisation collapse?

[LordShiva]

A whole host of reasons, as civilizational collapses usually are. Over a long period of time, climate change, internal decay, external conflict, etc.

[Sprayber]

Originally posted by aneeshm
How, in your opinion, did the Indus civilisation collapse?

Fast food obviously. It is the real reason why you can't find a tasty burger in India today.

[Solly]

Originally posted by Ecthy
Maybe this time they will resist and not be forced to live in reservations in subhuman conditions...

Please clarify Etcy.

[Geronimo]

Originally posted by Doddler


Please clarify Etcy.

he's joking about the application that was historically made of the word "indian" to native north americans, particularily those in the US.

For the record Ecthy, they did resist.

[_BuRjaCi_]

I for one welcome our new Indian overlords.

India

Screaming CHINAA!!!! non-lip sync can get annoying over time.

[LDiCesare]

When do you date the (first) writings of Ramayana and Mahabharata? I read the former was between 500 and 100BC and the latter between 800 and 600BC with additions up to around 100AD.
There's a lot of similarities between the Mahabharata, Homeric epics and Iranian or European myths by the way, thus hinting that common ancestors of Iranians and Europeans went to India and imposed some of their religious views there.

[Odin]

Originally posted by LordShiva
A whole host of reasons, as civilizational collapses usually are. Over a long period of time, climate change, internal decay, external conflict, etc.

One important reason for the collapse was because of the deforestation caused from fueling all the brick-drying kilns (the Harrapans were the first society to fire-dry bricks instead of sun-dring them).