Rebecca McKenney
History and Film
Doctor Desai
24 January 2018
The Story of India: Beginnings and The Power of Ideas
Summary
Michael Wood presents a series of documentaries about India in The Story of India. The series begins with the episode titled Beginnings. This introductory episode briefly explores how people first arrived in India, some of the languages used in Indian history, and the (what?) Wood begins the first part of his series by stating that it is believed that “the first humans came from a golden egg laid by the king of the gods” (Story). Some of the traditions of the ancient people are still practiced today.
For example, Brahmans are taught what to say and how to act during religious rituals which have been handed down orally for thousands of years. It is noted that the ancient chants that have been handed down have “rules and patterns” that is understood to the modern person, but it could be possible that these chants came from “bird song” (Story). Some Indians still also practice inter-marriage which allows a family to pass down genetics.
When it comes to Indian religion, it is commented that it is ever changing. It is changing in the sense that there are thousands of divinities within Indian religion, though one of
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In this episode, the Buddhist religion is briefly discussed, along with the story of two of India’s influential leaders, Chandragupta Maurya and Ashoka. It is believed that the Buddha, the founder of Buddhism, was once a prince who renounced his status and traveled to “find the truth” (Story). While sitting under a Bodhi tree, the Buddha had an enlightenment on what the Four Truths were and that “you can become a liberated being” by freeing yourself from desire (Story). Chandragupta Maurya was an Indian king who successfully drove out Alexander the Great’s successors and gained control of modern India. But he renounced his kingdom to seek