Saturday
Once a truth, that defies common belief, attains the light of day, it is rare for its acceptance to be immediate…
“First they ignore you, then they laugh at you, then they fight you, then you win. Mahatma Gandhi
There is an assumption stemming from this Gandhi quote that eventually truths are accepted, no matter how torturous the path.
I would suggest that this is by no means always true; sometimes, maybe often, the forces of convention and tradition can triumph; the darkness of myth and superstition remorselessly grind on – and the newly revealed truth fade into oblivion.
Such is the case I believe with the work of W. J. Perry. He wrote about a controversial view of the origins of civilisations.
While both Perry and Sir Grafton Elliot Smith, the first to propose the theory, overlooked the significance of money, a major oversight, they yet provide thoroughly compelling evidence for their diffusionist theory on the origins of civilisation.
Much of what Perry states, and was vilified for, has been supported by subsequent discoveries, including carbon dating confirmations and the discovery of a major port off the west coast of India, now underwater, precisely where Perry postulated it.
Perry’s ‘The Growth of Civilization’ is a ‘must read’. Although published in 1924, it is still available on Internet book sites. The style of writing is not modern (which I appreciate), but the content is well worth any effort required. The initial text particularly needs to be ‘engaged with’, but it is useful background – plough on.
The money angle comes into focus with Perry’s belief that civilisation, once lost, could not return. That is in error. It is money (Gold) that allowed society to rise to its heights. Once discovered, it cannot be put back in a bottle and corked. It can only be forced out of circulation temporarily.
‘The Growth of Civilization’ is a great book. We live in a world impregnated with lies; the truth is not only priceless; its discovery and dissemination is the raison d’être of individual existence and the life-blood of society.
BTW, Stephen Jett is bringing out a book this year that will give new life to the diffusionist theory. Maybe, finally, it will see the light of acceptance.