• There were many kings ruling different parts of ancient India, China and Southeast Asia at any one time. One king ruled only in his capital and divided the rest of the kingdom into smaller areas, which were ruled his officials.


• The kings and emperors saw themselves as being a devine. In ancient China, the emperor believed that he was the son of heaven. In ancient India, the kings saw themselves as the representatives of the gods in earth.
  
• In ancient Southeast Asia, the kings adopted certain symbols or performed certain ceremonies that showed their divine position.

Differences between government of the 3 civilisations

• The systems of government among the 3 civilisations are different. In ancient India, there were the capital, Inner provinces, Outer provinces, and border zones. In ancient China, there were the capital and provinces. In ancient Southeast Asia, there were the capital, provinces, and vassal states.

Below are the pictures of the government of the 3 civilisations.

Source from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chandragupta_Maurya

Source from: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ancient_China#Ancient_era

Source from: http://sg.images.search.yahoo.com/images/view?back=http%3A%2F%2Fsg.images.search.yahoo.com%2Fsearch%2Fimages%3Fp%3Dparameswara%26ei%3Dutf-8%26fr%3Dyfp-t-101%26fr2%3Dsg-gac&w=363&h=500&imgurl=users.ox.ac.uk%2F%7Ehert2376%2FParameswaraPortrait.jpg&rurl=http%3A%2F%2Fusers.ox.ac.uk%2F%7Ehert2376%2Fintroduction.htm&size=56k&name=ParameswaraPortr...&p=parameswara&oid=3e219eb02e591206&fr2=sg-gac&no=1&tt=214&sigr=11gothjq3&sigi=11gosq29f&sigb=12u2dmvrq

Similarities between society of the 3 civilisations

• As a society grows and more occupations were created, the number of social classes increases and the social system becomes more complex.
• The social system brought order to societies and gave their members a sense of identity. Each person knew the role he had to play and the job he had to do.
• The ruling class of the social system will be at the top of the pyramid.

Differences between society of the 3 civilisations

• The caste system in ancient India did not allow for social mobility unlike the class systems in ancient China. The ancient Indians could not change their castes. In ancient China, however, the system of meritocracy allowed the people of ancient China to achieve social mobility. The people could be civil servants if they passed the Imperial Civil Service Examinations. In ancient Southeast Asia, most people could move to other classes.

Comparisions between the systems of the 3 civilisations with Singapore

• Different. Singapore does not have class systems whereas the 3 civilisations have.