Question

what was the socio-political life of the people during the vedic period?

Answer 1

After the decline of the Indus Valley Civilization, another glorious civilization flourished in India. The people who were responsible for the evolution of this civilization called themselves Aryas or Aryarns.

Arya’ literally means the man of ‘noble character’, and the “free-born”. They belonged to the group of people known as Indo-Europeans. They entered into India from the north-west

Although the Rig Veda deals with devotional work of religious nature, yet it gives a vivid picture of the early Vedic civilization. The Vedic Civilization is best understood from the social life, political organisation, economic life and religious beliefs.

They spoke the Indo-European languages from which modern languages like Sanskrit, Persian, Latin, Greek, Celtie, Gothic have developed. Originally, the Aryans seem to have lived somewhere in the area east of the Alps, known as Eurasia.

European Origin:

The early Aryans were familiar with certain animals such as goats, dogs, pigs, cows, horses etc. and also with the trees like pine, maple, oak, willow, birch etc. which are found in Europe. This led to Prof. Giles to suggest the European origin of the Aryans. It is generally believed that they migrated to India and other parts of Asia from Europe.

It is difficult to locate the exact part of Europe where the Aryans originally lived before they migrated elsewhere. According to Giles, Balkan countries were the original home of the Aryans. The flora and fauna and the animals with which the early Aryans were familiar could be found in the Balkan countries at that time.

Prof. Hist believes that the Aryans migrated from Lithuania Europe into Caucasus and from there they entered into Iran. Again from Iran they entered into Punjab. This view is proved by the discovery of Boghaz Koi inscription and the Tel-El- Amarna Letters in Western Asia.

Migration from Southern Russia:

Some historians held the view that the Aryans entered into India from the region of South Russia. Brandenstain has suggested that the Aryans migrated to India from Kirghitz stepps in Russia. The great Philologist, Schrader accepts South Russia as the original home of Russians from where they migrated to different areas