The Origin and Goal of History

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The central thesis of this book is the universal historical concept of an Axial Age (approximately 800-200 BCE) in world history, during which structurally similar cultural revolutions and awakenings occurred independently in China, India, and the West. The significance of these awakenings for contemporary cultural life is currently being reexamined in disciplines such as religious and cultural sociology, comparative cultural theory, and modernity studies. In addition to the Axial Age thesis, the book discusses the role of science and technology in modernity, explores the possibility of global unity in the context of world peace, and critiques contemporary political trends (such as totalitarian and planning ideologies) that stand in contrast to Jaspers' liberal ethos of freedom and humanity.