The Axial Age presentation #1

1. The Axial Age presentation #1 500 BC – 100 AD

2. Thoughts, Thinkers, and Empires • Solve problems of human nature • Identify human nature • Social and political solutions • Iran’s Zoroaster • Approx. 600 BC give or take 100 years • Dualist religion Zoroastrianism (IDEA #7) • Ahura Mazda vs. Ahriman • Light vs. Dark • Dominates Iran for 1000 years • Spreads outward to influence all other thinkers of the Axial Age

3. Zoroaster (from Raphael’s School of Athens)

4. Upishands • India c. 600 BC • Basis of early Hinduism • Universe eternal and uncreated • Reality exists outside the senses • Reincarnation (IDEA #8)

5. India’s Sages • Mahavira • c. 600 BC • Jainism • Siddhartha Guatama • The Buddha • c. 550 BC • Escape from desire • Nirvana = extinction of the self (IDEA #9)

7. China’s Sages • Lao Tzu c. 450 BC • Warring States Period • Detach from the world to avoid suffering • Salvation in another world, not just survival in this • (IDEA #10) • Use power of mind and rituals • Confucius • c. 500 BC • Loyalty to family and state

9. Lao Tzu

10. Confucius and his disciples

11. Hebrew Philosophy/Religion • Jews of the Levant (Asia’s Med. coast) • Inhabit war zone between Egypt and Mes. • Pastoral people (herders) • Early tribal religion (like Mesopotamians) • Est. two warring kingdoms • Israel • Judah • Conquered in 580 BC by Babylonia • King Nebuchadnezzar • Deported Jews (Babylonian Captivity) • Diaspora • Attempt to maintain identity led to codifying religious law (IDEA #11)

16. Old/Hebrew Testament • Superior tribal god morphs into 1 true God • (IDEA #12) • Lack of power in political sphere led to belief that suffering = punishment for sin (IDEA #13) • Living according to God’s Law would lead to reward • Immortality • Relief from sinfulness • Elimination of evil • Empire over enemies

17. Jesus of Nazareth • Jesus last great teacher of the Axial Age • Died c. 33 AD • Independent Jewish rabbi with radical message • Purge priesthood of corruption • Cleanse temple of money lending practices • Salvation comes from grace (IDEA #14) • Personal connection w/ God rather than law • Kristus = Greek for “Messiah” or “Anointed One”

18. The Last Supperby Leonardo Da Vinci

19. Greek Teachers of 4th Century BC • Socrates • Plato • Aristotle

20. Socrates

21. Plato and Aristotlefrom Raphael's The School of Athens

22. Big Ideas of the Axial Age • Creation (IDEA #15) • Invention of the concept of “nothing” or “zero” • Earlier myths simply redistributed pre-existing matter • “Big Bang” Theory • Brahma spinning Universe like a spider • Creation by intellectual not physical act • Thought • Emotion • Logos • Word • Now the fundamental principle of world philosophy

23. Brahma, Shiva, and Vishnu

25. Monotheism (IDEA #12) • Previous religions diverse and polytheistic • Dualism (Persia) • Hierarchical (Greece) • Multiplicity = Unity (Hinduism) • Monotheism develops early in Judaism • Yahweh • Treasure too precious to share with Gentiles • Abrahamic tradition now most pop. in world • Judaism • Christianity • Islam

28. Divine Love (IDEA #14) • Begins with doctrines of unselfishness common to many religions • Mozi in China • Brahmanism (world is an illusion) • Greek (world is divine) • Confucianism (world is neutral) • Buddhism (world is transient) • Zoroastrianism (world is evil) • Christianity (world is good)

29. Divine Love cont. • Led to belief that humans are divinely special • Previous thinkers tended to see all living things as equal • Jainists • Southern Italian philosophers • New hierarchical structures • Greece (Aristotle) • China (Xunzi) • Christianity pop. because it did not restrict Divine Love to a single people or race

30. New Political Thought • Debate regarding basic view of human nature • Optimists (man is intrinsically good) • (IDEA #16) • Pessimists (man is intrinsically evil) • (IDEA #17)

31. Pessimists • Strengthen state to protect man from himself • Plato • Censorship • Repression • Militarism • Extreme communism • Selective breeding (eugenics) • Deception of people by the state • Rigid class structure • All power in the hands of philosopher-kings (Guardians) (IDEA #18) • Intellectual superiority • Heredity and education

32. Plato’s Classes

33. More Pessimists • Legalism in China (4th Century BC) • Law is right regardless of ethics (IDEA #19) • Obedience is all that matters • “goodness” is irrelevant, only “order” matters • No equating human law w/ divine law • Reaction to inability of Confucianism and Daoism to control Warring States • Severe punishments • Anticipation of modern fascism • Glorification of “order” and “war” • Praised agriculture • Anti-capitalism • Suppression of the individual in subordination to the state

34. Political Optimists • Confucianism • Function of state to liberate subjects to fullest • States not working in best interest of subjects should be rebelled against • State obligated to subjects, not subjects to state (IDEA #20) • Indian Sages • Rulers/kings elected by aristocrats (IDEA #21) • Usually hundreds or thousands of voters

35. Optimists cont. • Daoists • Ruler’s job is to enforce virtue • Must lead by example • Greek optimists • States as practical methods • Experiments • Republican • Aristocratic • Democratic • True democracy is dangerous • Best gov. = flexible aristocracy limited by laws (IDEA #22) • Aristotle’s combination government • Romans • United States?

37. Still more Optimists • Jesus as a political subversive • “Render unto Caesar” Political irony (IDEA #23) • Welcomed social outcasts from Jewish system • Leads to political execution

38. Challenging Illusions • Debate over Appearance vs. Reality • Plato’s Allegory of the Cave • Attempts to “know” true reality • Mathematics • Indian sages come up with concept of infinity (IDEA #24) • Greeks find incalculable ratios • Pi • Golden mean (approximately 1.618) • Underpin descriptions of the universe • Pythagoras c. 550 BC (IDEA #25) • Believed universe made of numbers • “5” and “2” exist even if there is nothing to count • Result is “Rationalism” (distrust of the senses) • Reason will find truth and solve problems

40. Reason • Parmenides c. 500 BC • Geometry = reality • “a perfect triangle, like god has never been seen” • all objects like this (IDEA #25) • Chinese Paradoxes • thought its pure because not filtered through senses • Zeno • 1/2 paradoxes • Aristotle’s exposition on reason taught western world how to think (IDEA #26) • syllogism • (Nyaya school in India similar)

42. Science • Also distrust of senses • No differentiation between natural and supernatural until Chinese 679 B.C. (IDEA #27) • attempts to explore “natural” to dig out superstition. • inanimate substances have no wills • Greek science rooted in magic • nature worship encouraged natural explanation • developed scientific method to know gods better.

43. Science cont. • led to Greek scientific achievements • Aristotle’s biological texts • Archimedes principles of mechanics C. 250 B.C. • C. 200 B.C. Eratosthenes calculated almost exactly the size of the planet • Chinese Science ( systematic investigation of nature) • from Daoist nature worship • avoided theory in favor of observation to avoid contamination of reason • Chinese science weak on theory and heavy on technology.

44. Eratosthenes Formula

45. Archimedes

46. Medicine • Hippocrates C. 500 B.C. • balance 4 humors • Phlegm, blood, yellow bile, and black bile • Phlegmatic, melancholic, sanguine, choleric • diet, vomiting, laxatives, bloodletting • scientifically based • Indian C. 550 B.C. • Susutra • charaka

49. Skepticism • world might be purposeless • China • Liezi “Mosquito” • Wang Chong • Greeks Epicurus • imaginary world of gods • nothing to hope/fear • atomic theory • Romans • Sextus Empiricus • man invented gods as a form of social control

50. Stoicism (Greeks) • Zeno C. 400 B.C. • Nature morally neutral • fatalism • indifference • Similar to Buddism