Old Civilizations

Today we take many things for granted. We use telecommunications to speak to others around the globe, we use technology to instantly access the knowledge of the entire planet, and we can travel great distances in short time spans, all of which creates a true global community. And, of course, this is just in the area of technological improvement. Think of all the other genres in which advanced things are happening all the time. It is indeed amazing to think that, as I have said before, all of these events relate directly back to that first person who gave up chasing wild animals and started a farm, creating the first village, and eventually, the first civilization. These simple things developed, over time, into the many advances which hold such an important part of our lives. Their religions, governments, as well as social ideas and achievements are still used today, of course not in the same form, but definitely in the same idea. Where are such examples more present now, when trying to examine them, than in the societies which first adopted these new systems and which eventually became the founding fathers of modern ideas? So, to look at all of these advances and their effects over time, it is important to look at some of the major civilizations which played a part in society's development. These, including Mesopotamia, Egypt, India and China are truly ancient achievements as a whole. However, China has truly influenced our thinking in a way that no other civilization can compare with. Their ideas have proven without a doubt, the true knowledge and skill as a whole these ancient societies had.

Religion has undergone one of the largest changes since it appeared in early civilizations such as Mesopotamia and Egypt. However, its roots are planted deeply in the ancient world. Mesopotamia had one of the first organized religions, one of its trademarks to being a civilized society. They worshiped nature gods and believed that the world's natural life was sacred. This polytheistic, peaceful belief served them well for their lifestyle, as Mesopotamia relied heavily on agriculture and farming. They came to rely on a higher force for determining the fate of their risky crops in a desert area where harvests were never guaranteed. In Egypt the society developed a polytheistic worship once again based on nature and the natural world. However, their desert setting, in my opinion, led to their belief in one chief god, and more specifically, Amon Re, god of the sun. Now, travelling across the Middle East into Asia Minor and the Indus Valley civilizations, we can see the distinct differences caused in religion by the lack of communication between the two societies. India had an entirely different outlook on religious practices, not focusing on a s many ceremonies and working more towards the idea of purifying the soul. Indians believed that their bodies were reborn after death as many times as it was necessary to clense their souls from any impurities. As they did this, they moved higher in a class system based on "personal purity," commonly known as the caste system. China, lastly, which developed completely independent of the other great ancient systems of religion, used a much more vague approach. This, however, was indeed an advantage, as religion began to focus more on personal improvement rather than others' worship. The term "gods" is used without direct definition, and people were influenced much more by philosophy than by religion. Society attempted to achieve a higher state of understanding about the world around them, act morally correct at all times, and understand the important values held in high regard by all. This, above all, led the Chinese to their larger, more "thought-out" ideas about life as a whole.

Religion, which tied the members of theses societies together, did not, however, provide great amounts of direction to the parties involved. For projects of importance to the society or a group inside the civilization, governments were formed as a method of controlling and influencing everyday operation and execution in such undertakings. Mesopotamia, one of the first civilizations, formed a weak, oftentimes useless government, which, unfortunately was controlled absolutely by religious leaders. These theocracies, or governments ruled by a religious head, were abundant in ancient times, yet were, as mentioned, most likely not as successful as their later counterparts which were controlled by independent governing bodies. In Egypt, the society was ruled by a theocracy in its purest form, the people believed their ruler to be a god himself. This had both negative and positive impacts, for some rulers took it to their own advantage to rule harshly and never be punished, while other believed it to be their duty to rule in a fair and helpful way to the society. India was overthrown by the Aryans, who were a warrior race and the society as such developed around their oftentimes cruel beliefs. However, after religion developed in India and class systems slowly emerged, power began to shift back to its ancient, theocratic default and priests once again dominated the everyday operation of society. This brought many problems back to "center-stage"