China's Yin/Shang Dynasty

The creation myth for this civilization includes a woman named Jiandi who swallowed an egg dropped by a black bird and gave birth to Qi. The Shang people believed that their ancestors had influence over their lives. They believed that cracking a turtle shell or an ox skull could prophecy the future and they would write the prophecy on the bone itself. The government was organized so that people were assigned a position of authority. The positions included the "Many Dog officers", "Many horse officers", the "Many Artisans", the "Many Archers." The Chinese got chariots from the Indo-Europeans in about 1200 BC. The chariots were used in hunting and as command vehicles not for fighting. The primary opponent was barbarians who lived outside the government control.

The Ruins of Yin

The ruins of the city of Yin were discovered in 1899. In the ruins were found bones with the earliest form of Chinese characters. The site is famous for it's elaborate bronze pieces. It also shows man made controls of the river and beams to hold up buildings made of brick.

The Tomb of Fu Hao
Fu Hao was a queen and military leader in the Yin civilization. The queen was buried with an enormous amount of items which were not looted before excavation. She was buried with slaves signifying that the civilization allowed human sacrifice. There was a structure built over the tomb for ancestor worship of Fu Hao.

Indus Valley

The people of the Indus Valley were sedentary. They used elephants as farm animals in agriculture which could uproot date palms under the guidance of their Indian masters. Around 1500 BC the people of the Indus Valley were conquered by invading Aryans. The Aryan invasion caused the collapse of the Bronze Age because the Aryans had iron weapons which gave them an advantage in battle. The Aryans put in place the caste system. After this point, most warfare was intertribal. The Mahabharata is an epic story relating the battles between various tribes.

Elephants

The elephant was subdued in India at least 4000 years ago. A young elephant is captured from a wild herd. Over several years, an elephant learns to respond to simple commands. At age six, an elephant might graduate to more complex tasks such as piling logs or pushing them up or down hill. An elephant starts full-time work at age sixteen. Only the strongest elephants are used in warfare.

The Dravidian Tribe

The Dravidian people lived in the southern jungles. They worshiped a female goddess. The female goddess had a shrine in the center of the village. The male protector deity was placed at the edge of town in the form of a Hero Stone, called Natukal, to memorialize a deceased hero. The hero was believed to "protect" the city and sometimes was worshipped or at least prayed to for good luck. This worship of a hero was similar to Asian ancestor worship. The King of the village was the representative of God on Earth. Sometimes women, who took part in priestly functions, would be "possessed" with the spirit of a god or goddess and be able to assist with healings or foretelling of future events.

The Pandava Family

The Mahabharata is the epic story of the Pandava family. The Pandava brothers were the sons of King Pandu. The Pandava brothers were exiled by their uncle but they came back to play a fateful game of dice wherein one of the brothers lost all his wealth and his entire kingdom. This was the incentive to bring an army against their Kaurava cousins. The Pandava brothers won the war after many adventures. Because the war included some dastardly deeds, the Pandavas did penance after their victory by scaling the Himalayas.

Resources:

Books (all links go to Goodreads)

Daily Life in Shang Dynasty China

See Inside Ancient China

Ancient China for Kids

An Adventure in the Ancient Shang Dynasty

Viku and the Elephant

The Elephant's Friend and other tales from Ancient India

Kai and the Monkey King

The Pandava Princes JUV

Free E-Books

Mahabharata Volume 1 (other volumes available on Project Gutenburg)

Jade

Videos

Viku and the Elephant (Introduction to the story by the author)

Let's Explore the Ancient Chinese Part 1

China's Bronze Age

Mahabharata for kids

Arjuna's Aim (2 minute archery story from the Mahabharata)

Oracle Bones

Activities

Think about the person whose job was "Many Dog Officer." What kind of tasks would they do in their job. For how many dogs would they be responsible?
View Asian art at Princeton Art Museum
Learn to use a bow and arrow
Design your own "Hero Stone" on paper. You don't have to believe in it's mystical properties to be inspired by your design to act courageously.
Cut up a piece of metallic bronze colored paper into a fancy object like a sword or a drinking vessel.