This chapter addresses the significant developments in classical India between about 520 B.C.E. and 550 C.E. during which two influential empires emerged in northern India: the Maurya and the Gupta. Although these two states did not long endure, they contributed to the growth of long-distance trading networks, the consolidation of cultural traditions, and the promotion of several significant religions. As a result, Classical India witnessed the following important developments

• The growth of manufacturing and the emergence of long-distance trade with regions as far east as China and as far west as the Mediterranean basin.
• The consolidation of the social traditions of patriarchal families and caste distinctions, the latter becoming more elaborated with the appearance of subcastes called jati usually based on occupation.
• The emergence and spread of salvation-based religions: Jainism, Buddhism, and popular Hinduism.