History 102 with WhatifAltHist's Rudyard Lynch and Austin Padgett

Axial Age: History's Turning Point

36 snips
Jun 28, 2024
Guest
Rudyard Lynch
Join Rudyard Lynch and Erik Torenberg as they explore the transformative Axial Age, discussing the birth of new philosophies and religions, the impact of the invention of coinage on social relationships, and the emergence of influential philosophers like Socrates and Plato in ancient Greece. Uncover the link between traditional religions' decline and the rise of new spiritual paths in 500 BC.
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INSIGHT

Axial Age Thinkers

  • The Axial Age, around 500 BC, saw the emergence of Buddha, Lao Tzu, Confucius, and Socrates.
  • This period reveals that distinct societies can undergo similar transformations concurrently, even without contact.
INSIGHT

Strange Parallels

  • Societies often experience parallel historical developments despite lacking direct contact.
  • The Axial Age exemplifies this, with religious revolutions occurring simultaneously in isolated civilizations.
INSIGHT

Coinage and the Axial Age

  • The Axial Age coincided with the rise of urban, literate societies and the introduction of coinage.
  • Coinage's impact is significant, as it shifted social dynamics by replacing interpersonal credit systems with hard currency.
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