Hist 1110

along its basins. This allowed ancient civilization to grow crops on the basin of the Ganges in order for them to survive. In the Hindu religion the Ganges is looked upon as a sacred river. Hindu’s often have pilgrimages to the sacred river in order to wash in its water to purify their souls. Hindus also throw the ashes of their deceased family and friends into the river due to belief that the river will bring their spirits closer to moksha. The Ganges is so sacred to Hindus that it has been personified and is said that the river is the Goddess Ganga who descended to Earth to help purify the souls of the unfortunate. The Indus River also played an important role in the development of civilizations in the Indian subcontinent. The Indus River Valley in the northwest of the Indian subcontinent developed highly urbanized cities which prospered through both trade and agriculture. The Indus River had fertile soil along its basin which supported agriculture. However in order to water their crops, the ancient civilizations of the Indus River created extravagant irrigation systems as well as the first sanitation systems. They also traded many luxurious items native to the region such as diamonds which allowed the civilization to thrive. Due to lack of stone, the homes of the Indus Valley where made of mud brick. Although despite mud brick housing, the civilizations where highly urbanized due to the creation of irrigation and sanitation systems that were only possible due to their location on the Indus River. However extreme monsoons plagued the region, this caused the river to change its flow which left lakes that eventually dried up and caused the cities to move. Also, the Khyber Pass left the Indus Valley open to invasion which wo...

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... with the modern technology of today we are still at the mercy of the physical geography of the area we live in. The people of the ancient world knew this and allowed geography to influence the development of the civilizations. In some cases geography impacted their lives so much that it was worshipped whereas some saw geography as a divine curse. Where some survived through the land others thrived though trade. Some civilizations were so impressed by geography that they attempted to mimic it through intricate temples and monumental buildings. Although, however you look at geography it will always seems to influence the development of civilization through religion, architecture, politics, and even economically; this was definitely true in the development of the ancient civilizations of Egypt, Mesopotamia, India, China, Africa, and the Americas.