UPSC CORE · NCERT HISTORY · SHARMA CH 11-12: JAINISM + BUDDHISM + IRON AGE MATERIAL LIFE
📚 NCERT TEXTBOOK ALIGNMENT
Class UPSC History — NCERT Class 11/12 + standard reference works (Bipan Chandra, R.S. Sharma, Romila Thapar) — Chapter: Sharma Ch 11-12: Jainism + Buddhism + Iron Age Material Life.
Why did Buddhism + Jainism emerge in the 6th c. BCE?
Sharma's 4 main reasons: (i) BRAHMIN dominance + complex/expensive Vedic rituals alienated common people; (ii) RIGID VARNA system + caste oppression of Shudras + women; (iii) NEW URBAN economy created MERCHANT (Vaishya) class who resented Brahmin-Kshatriya monopoly + wanted egalitarian religion; (iv) IRON-tool-driven AGRARIAN expansion + animal sacrifice in Vedic rituals (esp. cattle) was wasteful — new religions OPPOSED killing of animals.
Who were the SRAMANAS?
Wandering ascetics of the 6-5th c. BCE who REJECTED Vedic authority + Brahmin priesthood; renounced family + property + caste; lived by begging; sought MOKSHA / NIRVANA through self-discipline + meditation. Buddhism + Jainism + Ajivikas + Charvakas + many other "heterodox" schools were all sramana movements.
Other heterodox schools of the time?
(i) AJIVIKAS — founded by MAKKHALI GOSALA (a contemporary of Mahavira); believed in NIYATI (absolute determinism — fate decides everything); had royal patronage (Ashoka, Dasharatha — Barabar caves); died out by ~14th c. (ii) CHARVAKA / LOKAYATA — radical materialism; rejected soul + afterlife + gods; "Eat, drink, be merry — when the body burns, that's the end." (iii) PURANA KASSAPA — moral nihilism; (iv) PAKUDHA KACCAYANA — atomism; (v) AJITA KESAKAMBALI — annihilationism.
6 reasons for new religious movements (Sharma)?
(i) BRAHMINICAL RITUALISM had become expensive + exclusive; (ii) CASTE rigidity oppressed lower varnas + women; (iii) IRON AGE economy created new merchant + artisan classes seeking spiritual paths beyond varna; (iv) URBANISATION + monetisation led to anxieties about wealth + meaning; (v) PHILOSOPHICAL questioning grew (Upanishadic precedent); (vi) WANDERING ASCETICS (sramanas) provided model + audience.
Who were the SHRAMANAS?
SHRAMANAS = wandering ascetics who REJECTED Vedic ritualism + Brahmin authority. Six major shramana traditions in 6th c. BCE: (i) JAINISM (Mahavira); (ii) BUDDHISM (Buddha); (iii) AJIVIKAS (Makkhali Goshala — fatalism); (iv) Ajitakeshakambalin (materialism); (v) Pakudha Kachchayana (atomism); (vi) Sanjay Belatthaputta (skepticism). Buddha + Mahavira survived; others died out.
What was COMMON to all shramana movements?
(i) REJECTION of Vedic ritual + Brahmin authority; (ii) AHIMSA (non-violence) + ethical conduct; (iii) ASCETIC lifestyle (renunciation, meditation); (iv) PERSONAL liberation (moksha/nirvana) over divine grace; (v) USE of vernacular languages (Pali, Prakrit) instead of Sanskrit; (vi) OPENNESS to all castes + women + lower social orders.
Causes of new religious movements (6th c. BCE) include?
Rigid caste system, Vedic ritualism, varna inequality, agricultural revolution, urbanisation
Shramana tradition refers to?
Heterodox ascetic movements (Buddhism, Jainism, Ajivikas, Charvakas)
Sixty-three heterodox sects mentioned in Buddhist texts. True/False?
True (62 + Buddhism; e.g., Brahmajala Sutta)
Who were Rishabhanatha + Parshvanatha (the 1st + 23rd Tirthankaras)?
JAINISM has 24 TIRTHANKARAS (ford-makers / spiritual liberators). RISHABHANATHA (Adinatha) — 1st Tirthankara; legendary; considered prehistoric. PARSHVANATHA — 23rd Tirthankara; HISTORICAL figure (~872-772 BCE per Jain tradition); preached 4 vows (no killing, no lying, no stealing, no possession); his followers became MAHAVIRA's inheritors; Mahavira added the 5th vow (BRAHMACHARYA / celibacy).
Mahavira's 5 GREAT VOWS (Mahavratas)?
(i) AHIMSA (non-violence — extreme; even insects must not be harmed); (ii) SATYA (truth); (iii) ASTEYA (no stealing); (iv) APARIGRAHA (non-possession); (v) BRAHMACHARYA (celibacy — added by Mahavira). Made Jain monks the most ascetic of Indian renouncers — no agriculture (might kill insects), strict vegetarianism, sometimes even nudity.
3 JEWELS (Triratna) of Jainism?
(i) RIGHT FAITH (samyak darshana); (ii) RIGHT KNOWLEDGE (samyak jnana); (iii) RIGHT CONDUCT (samyak charitra). Together they lead to MOKSHA (liberation from rebirth).
This topic is part of the NCERT UPSC Core History syllabus, specifically the textbook NCERT Class 11/12 + standard reference works (Bipan Chandra, R.S. Sharma, Romila Thapar), drawn from the chapter Sharma Ch 11-12: Jainism + Buddhism + Iron Age Material Life. Content is cross-referenced against the latest NCERT textbook editions + standard reference works (Bipan Chandra, R.S. Sharma, Romila Thapar, Satish Chandra for history; G.C. Leong, Savindra Singh for geography; the UPSC Civil Services prelims + mains syllabus).
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