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4 COM PARATIVE CIVILIZATIONS REVIEW

A FRAMEWORK FORCOMPARATIVE STUDY OF CIVILIZATIONS*S H U N T A R O I T O

In th is essay , I would l ike to present my own v iew and methodof the co m pa ra t iv e s tudy of c iv i l iz a t ion s . So far , I th ink , therehave been two antagonis t ic poin ts of v iew in the s tudy of c iv i -l i z a t i o n a l d e v e lo p m e n t .

One i s the v iew o f Eurocen t r ic un i l inea r s tages o f deve lop-m e n t w h ic h w a s a d v o c a t e d b H e g e l , Ra n k e a n d Ma rx , i n c lu d in gthe recen t theory of m od ern iz a t ion . Th e bas ic f ra m ew or k in th i sl ine is as fo l lows:

A n c ie n t O r i e n t C iv i l i z a t i o n -> G re e k C iv i l i z a t i o n -* M e d i t e r r a n e a n (R o m a n ) C iv i l i z a t i o n - W e s te rn (E u ro p e a n )Civ i l i za t ion -> G loba l E xp ans ion o f W es te rn Civ i l i za t ion .

Here , o the r c iv i l i za t ions (Ch inese , Ind ian , I s lamic , e tc . ) a ree x c lu d e d f ro m th e m a in s t r e a m o f c iv i l i z a t i o n a l d e v e lo p m e n t , o ra re secondary to th i s Eurocen t r ic un i l inea r deve lopment o f c iv i -l i za t ion and emphas ized tha t Wes te rn Civ i l i za t ion i s on ly one typeof c iv i l i za t ion among o the r c iv i l i za t ions which have ex is ted inva r io us a reas in d i f f e ren t t im es on the g lob e . Th ey obs e rv e thep a ra l le l d e v e lo p m e n t s o f m a n y c iv i l iz a t i o n s . Sp e n g le r a c k n o w l -edged , in h i s work Der U ntergang des Abendlandes, e ig h t u n iq u ec iv i l i za t ions , i . e . , Egyp t ian , Baby lon ian , Ind ian , Ch inese , Graeco-R o m a n , A ra b ic , M e x ic a n a n d th e W e s t . H e m a in t a in e d th a t t h e s ec iv i l i z a t i o n s h a v e th e i r o w n u n iq u e fo rm a n d v a lu e a n d d e v e lo pjus t a s doe s an o rga n ism , nam ely they had the i r ow n b i r th g ro w th ,de c l in e and dea th . Th ese fo ur o rga n ic pha ses in c iv i l i za t iona ld e v e l o p m e n t h a v e c o r r e s p o n d e n c e s (Gleichzeitigkeit) with theva r ious o the r c iv i l i za t ions and a re ca l led me taphor ica l ly the , fou rs e a s o n s , p e r i o d s o f s p r i n g , s u m m e r , a u t u m n , a n d w i n t e r .*The presidential address delivered at the 25th annual meeting ofISC SC , Cal i fornia Polytech Univ . , Pom ona, CA, June 1996 .

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Toynbee , on the o the r hand , in h i s work A Study of History, i d e n -t i f ied 23 c iv i l ized soc ie t ies ( la te r in h is Reconsiderations, 14inde pen den t c iv i l i za t ions and 17 sa te l l it e c iv i l i za t ions ) and m a in -ta ined these c iv i l ized soc ie t ies had four s teps of development , i .e . ,b i r th , g rowth , b reakdown and d i s in teg ra t ion ; a l so , he c la imedthe re a re the ph i losoph ica l cha rac te r i s t i c s (con temporane i ty o rs y n c h ro n ic i ty ) t o c iv i li z a t io n a l d e v e lo p m e n t s . Th e c o n te m p o -rane i ty o f Toynbee as we l l a s Gleichzeitigkeit of Speng le r a reessen t ia l ly based on the im m ane n t rhy thm of each c iv i l i za t ion . Inth is sense , the development of a c iv i l iza t ion is separa te , ber ing nore la t ion to deve lopments o f o the r c iv i l i za t ions .

I t seems to me , however , th i s so -ca l led "ph i losoph ica l con-tem po ran e i ty " i s a shee r m yth . M any c iv i l i za t ions dev e lop ed inways tha t in f luenced each o the r . The i r own rhy thms , i f any , werecon s ide r ab ly cha ng ed , hav ing been in f lue nce d by o the r c iv i l i za -t i o n s . Fo r e x a m p le , J a p a n e s e c iv il i za t i o n c h a n g e d c o n s id e r a b lyunder the in f luences o f the "Axia l Revo lu t ion" o f Eas t As ia andthe "Sc ien t i f i c R evo lu t ion " o f the W es t . T he re fo re , the la te ra la x i s c o m p a r in g c iv il i z a ti o n s is n o t a n a s s u m e d c o n te m p o ra r a n e -i ty , bu t common t rans fo rmat ions on the g loba l sca le , a s I wi l lmen t ion la te r .

I a l so p ropo se 23 m a j o r c iv i l i za t ions a s sho w n on m y d ia -g r a m . Th e s e ar e : Ba b y lo n ia n , Eg y p t i a n , A e g e a n , Ch in e s e , I n d i a n ,G r e e k , R o m a n S y r ia n , P e r s i a n , M e s o - A m e r i c a n , A n d e a n ,A f r i c a n , B y z a n t i n e , A r a b i c , E u r o p e a n , K o r e a n , T i b e t a n ,So u th e a s t A s i a n , J a p a n e s e , Tu rk i s h , Ru s s i a n , A m e r i c a n , a n d L a t inA m er ic an . O n th is poin t I w ou ld l ike to be on the s ide of the m ul -t i c iv i l i za t ion is t s l ike Dan i levsky , Speng le r , and Toynbee who c r i t -i c ized Eurocen t r ic , un i l inea r deve lopment o f c iv i l i za t ions .

However , I wi l l no t a r range ver t ica l ly c iv i l iza t ions in iso la-t ion , bu t t ake in to accoun t l a te ra l r e la t ions among them whichind ica te t r ans fo rmat ions which took p lace in human h is to ry on ag loba l sca le . I c la im tha t ne i the r the v iew o f Eu roce n t r ic dev e l -opment no r the v iew o f s imple mul t ic iv i l i za t ions i s su f f ic ien t a spa r ad i gm of com par a t iv e c iv i l i za t ions . T he fo rm er , bec aus e it i sa na r row and pa roch ia l b ia s o f Eurocen t r i sm, the la t t e r , because i tloosens the g loba l un i ty o f c iv i l i za t iona l deve lopments by sepa -

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r a t ing these f rom each o ther .Civ i l i za t ions d id no t deve lop in i so la t ion , bu t underwent incom m on seve r a l g r ea t t r an s f o r m a t i ons , wh i ch a r e no t pa r och i a l

bu t g lo ba l . Th ere for e , I th ink , it is nece ssa ry tha t w e r e co gn izethe pec u l i a r i t i e s o f m any c iv i l i za t ions . At the sam e t ime , w e n eeda f r a m e w o r k o f c o m p a r a t i v e c i v i l i z a t i o n s t o u n d e r s t a n d c o m m o nt r ans f o r m a t i on s o f c i v i li l z a ti ona l dev e l op m en t s . S uch a f r a m e-work i s , as a mat ter of fac t , my thesis of the "f ive s tages of g lob-a l t r an s f o r m a t i ons . "

I be l i eve the mankind has come to the p resen t hav ing exper i -en ced in co m m on the f iv e g rea t c iv i l i za t iona l r evo lu t ions . Th es ea r e : " t he An t h r op i c Rev o l u t i o n , " " t he Ag r i cu l tu r a l R evo l u t i on , "" t h e U r b a n R e v o l u t i o n , " " th e A x i a l R e v o l u t i o n " a n d " t h eS c i en t i f ic R evo l u t i on . " A l l cu l t u r a l a r ea s w e r e t o und e r go t he serevolut ions sooner or la ter , pr imar i ly or secondar i ly ( i .e . , or ig i -na l ly o r by in f luence f rom o ther a reas ) .

I t shou ld be no ted tha t the f ive g rea t r evo lu t ions d id no t occureven ly over the whole g lobe , bu t the re were some pr imary cu l tu r -a l sphe r e s whe r e t he se r evo l u t i ons we r e i ndependen t l y ( w i t hou ti n f l u en ce f r o m o t he r s ) c a r r ied ou t . T h e p r i m ar y acc om pl i sh m en t sof the se rev olu t ion s w ere a t ta ine d in sev eral areas of the g lo be . Ica l l these a reas " the p ioneer a reas" o f these c iv i l i za t iona l t r ans-f o r m a t i on s . T h e " r evo l u t ions" wh i ch occu r r ed in t he "p i onee ra reas" began to sp read the i r in f luence to many o ther a reas o f theg l obe and w er e i nvo l ved in c i v i l iz a t i ona l t r an s f o r m a t i ons . T h ep ioneer a reas which ca r r i ed the load o f the r evo lu t ions sh i f t ed todi f ferent areas as a resul t of each of the f ive h is tor ical turningpoin t s . Th us , the fo re run ne r s o f c iv i l i za t iona l de ve lop m en t inhu m an h i s to r y cha nge d f r o m on e a r ea t o ano t he r. T h e t r ans f o r -m a t i ons o f hum an c i v i l i z a t i ons we r e no t accom pl i shed by t hepeople of any one area , but were a l ternate ly shared by a var ie ty ofpe op le in d i f f e re n t a reas o f the wo r ld .

Now, I would l ike to se t fo r th what these r evo lu t ions a re ,where the i r p ioneer a reas a re , and when they took p lace : namely ,the "w hat , " "w hen ," and "w here" o f the f iv e g rea t r evo lu t io ns inhum an h i s t o r y .

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W ha t is t he A n t h r o p i c R evo l u t i on ? It r e f e r s t o t he ev o l u t i on -a r y p r ocess i n wh i ch apes we r e t r ans f o r m ed t o hum ans . T h i s wast he t u r n i ng po i n t in wh i ch hu m an s r ea ll y be ca m e hu m ans . S o ,there can be no de ny ing tha t th i s was the f i r s t r evo lu t ion in hu m anhis tory .

T he b i r t h o f hum ans was once cons i de r ed t o da t e back t oabou t 500 , 000 yea r s ago based on t he P ek i ng m an and t he Javam an , bu t a f t e r 1927 m any hum an bones , australopithecus, w e r ed i sc ov ere d in Eas t A f r i c a . In 1961 , L . S . B . Le ak ey d i sc ov eredthe so-ca l l ed homo habilis a t O l duva i , be t ween Kenya andTanzan ia ; these r emains da te back two mi l l ion year s . In 1974 , D.C . Johanson f ound a t Hada r i n E t h i op i a australopithecus afaren-sis, w hich da te s bac k 3 .5 m i l l ion yea r s . M ore r ecen t ly (1 99 2) ,T i m W h i t e a n d H a j i m e S u w a d i s c o v e r e d ardipithecus ramidus atAramis in Nor th E th iop ia , which da te back 4 .5 mi l l ion year s .Cur ren t r esearch thus da tes the o r ig in o f mankind to abou t 5 mi l -l ion year s before the p resen t day , which co inc ides wi th r ecen tr e sea r ch based on t he ana l y s i s o f DNA i n m o l ecu l a r an t h r opo l o -gy-

N ex t , t he A gr i cu l t u r a l Rev o l u t i on f o r m s t he second ep och o fhu m an h i s to ry . S in ce hu m an f ir s t app eared on the ea r th , the i reconomies in 99 .8% of h i s to ry have been tha t o f ga ther ing , f i sh -ing , and hun t ing . M or e r ecen t ly , m en d i sc ov ered agr icu l tu re andbegan to fo rm seden ta ry g roups , cu l t iva t ing wi ld p lan t s andac t ive ly p rod uc ing foo d . In m os t case s , they beg an to do m es t i -ca te wi ld an imals in o rder to expand and secure food sources .T h es e e f f o r t s s i gn i f y a g r ea t r evo l u t i on , in wh i ch hu m an s m a de adepa r t u r e f r om t he s t a t e o f pa s s i ve l y accep t i ng na t u r a l cond i t i onst o ac t i ve l y secu r i ng subs i s t ence by m eans o f p r oduc t i on .

In f ac t , th i s agr icu l tu ra l r e vo lu t ion m ad e i t po ss ib le fo rhumans to have a se t t l ed l iv ing in v i l l ages and conduc t a l a rger ,m or e s t ab l e com m un i t y l i f e . T he bas i c m a t e r i a l cu l t u r a l neces s i -t i e sdwel l i ngs , c l o t h i ng , and ea r t henwar ewer e m ade f o r t hef i r s t t im e du r ing th i s s t age . Th i s r evo lu t ion in cu l tu ra l h i s to ry ,which S . L i l ly ca l l ed " the f i r s t indus t r i a l r evo lu t ion , " i s ex t r eme-ly im po r tan t fo r hu m an cu l tu ra l h i s to ry .

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abo u t 1 ,500 B .C. In the N ew W or ld , the re a rose tw o U rba nRe v o lu t io n s , in M e s o -A m e r i c a a n d in t h e A n d e s . Th e " U rb a nRe v o lu t io n " d e f in e s c iv i l i z a t i o n par excellence, b e c a u s e c iv i l i z a -t ion means to become c iv i l , to have an u rban way o f l i f e .Urban iza t ion sp read to o the r p laces f rom these co re a reas .

The four th revo lu t ion o f human c iv i l i za t ion took p lace in thepe r iod K . Jasp e rs ca l led "A xenz e i t . " I w ou ld na m e it the "Ax ia lR ev o lu t ion " o r the "Sp i r i tua l R evo lu t ion ." Th is revo lu t ion sawthe b i r th o f ph i los oph y and wo r ld re l ig ions . T he A nth rop icRe v o lu t io n w a s b a s e d o n th e p h y s i c a l t r a n s fo rm a t io n to u p - r ig h tw a lk in g f ro m w h ic h to o l -m a k in g a n d l a n g u a g e d e v e lo p e d , w h i l eth e A g r i c u l tu r a l Re v o lu t io n r e s t e d u p o n a n e c o n o m ic r e v o lu t io nbase d on the ac t ive p rod uc t ion o f foo d . T he "Urban R evo lu t io n"w as e ssen t ia l ly a revo lu t ion of soc ia l sys te m s . In com par i so nwi th such phys ica l , economic , and soc ia l r evo lu t ions , the bas icrevo lu t ion took p lace th i s t im e in the hu m an sp i r i t. I t happ ene dalmost in para l le l in four a reas of the g lobe f rom the 8 th centuryB.C. to the 4 th cen tu ry B .C.

The p ionee r a reas o f th i s Ax ia l Revo lu t ion were I s rae l ,G reec e , C h i na and Ind ia . If w e add Zo roa s t r ian i sm in Pe rs ia ,the re wer e f iv e p ion ee r a reas o f the Ax ia l R evo lu t ion . In I s rae l,the g rea t p rophe ts o f the Old Testament, A m o n , H o s e a , I s a i a h ,Je remiah , Ezek ie l and the second I sa iah appea red and p reached tope op l e to be l iev e in the i r un iqu e god . Th is l egacy w as la te r t r ans -fo rm e d in t h e New Testament in to the new re l ig ion of JesusCh r i s t . I n G re e c e , b e g in n in g w i th Th a le s a n d o th e r p h i lo s o p h e r so f the Mi le t ian Schoo l , a se r ie s o f g rea t th inke rs Py thagoras ,P a r m e n i d e s , A n a x a g o r a s , S o c r a t e s , P l a t o a n d A r i s t o t l e a p p e a re d . I n In d ia , p h i lo s o p h ic a l t h o u g h t b e g a n w i th t h eU p a n i s h a d s ; l a t e r c a m e th e s o - c a l l e d S ix Ma s te r s , A j i t a , Pa k u d h a ,Pu ra n a , G o s a l a , Sa n ja y a , a n d M a h a v i r a , p a r a l l e le d b y S a k y a -m u n i of Bu d d h i s m . In Ch in a , g r e a t t h in k e r s l i k e C o n fu c iu s , La o -t z u , M o - t z u , M e n c i u s a n d C h u a n g - t z u c a m e t o p r o m i n e n c e a n dwro te on the human way o f l i f e (tao). Th e s e fo u r p io n e e r a r e a s o fthe A xia l Re vo lu t ion adv anc ed in pa ra l le l . Ind epe nde n t ly theyca r r ied d i f fe r en t types o f the sp ir i tua l r evo lu t ion and be ca m e the

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or ig ins o f the sp i r i tua l iza t ion o f the wor ld by p ropaga t ing the i rthought to o ther a reas of the g lobe .T h e fifth and f ina l revo lu t ion of hu m an c iv i l iza t ion al h is toryw as the "Sc ien t i f i c R evo lu t ion ." I t occu r red in the Sev en te en thC en tu ry and fea tu red the c rea t ion of m od ern sc ience . I t r e s tedu p o n th e m o s t o f F r a n c i s Ba c o n , Re n e D e s c a r t e s , G a l i l e o G a l i l e iand I saac N ew ton , and so on . In com par i son w i th the ea r l i e rA gr icu l tu ra l , Urba n and Ax ia l R evo lu t io ns , each of w h ich tookplace in d iverse reg ions of the wor ld a lmost in para l le l , i t i s ano tab le fac t tha t the c rea t ion o f modern sc ience took p lace exc lu -s ive ly in the reg io n of W estern E uro pe . St i l l , the h is tor ic a l s ig-n i f i c a n c e o f t h i s e v e n t w a s w o r ld -w id e . T h e r e s u l ts a n d m e th o d sof th i s r evo lu t ion were t r ansmi t ted to o the r a reas and b rough ta b o u t p ro fo u n d t r a n s fo rm a t io n a l e f f e c t s o n o th e r c iv i l i z a t io n s ,pa v in g the wa y d i rec t ly fo r the space , nuc lea r and co m pu te r ag eof today . T his revolu t ion crea ted , in th is sen se , the f ifth ep oc h ofhuman g loba l h i s to ry .

T h e S c i e n t i f i c R e v o l u t i o n w h i c h t o o k p l a c e i n t h eSe v e n te e n th C e n tu ry in W e s te rn Eu ro p e c a n b e c h a ra c t e r i z e d a sfo l lo w s : Th e Sc i e n t i f i c Re v o lu t io n d e s t ro y e d th e A r i s to t e l ia n c o n -cep t o f the wor ld which had domina ted European though t fo r ove r2 ,000 yea rs and rep laced i t wi th Desca r te s ' mechan iza t ion o f thew o r ld . U n l ik e t h e G re e k theoria (m e re c o n te m p la t io n ) , s c i e n c eand technology were to be l inked on the bas is of prac t ica l ande f f e c t iv e k n o w le d g e . A s F ra n c i s Ba c o n sa id , scientia potentia(k n o w le d g e i s p o w e r ) . T h e Ba c o n ia n id e a m a d e it p o s s ib l e t ocarry on the Industr ia l Revolu t ion in the la t te r ha l f of the nextcen tu ry , wh ich led to the e s tab l i shmen t o f modern indus t r ia l soc i -e ty. C ou p le d wi th the ex pa ns ive s t reng th o f cap i ta l i sm , theI n d u s t r i a l R e v o l u t i o n b e c a m e t h e m o t i v a t i n g p o w e r o f t h eEu rop ea n dom ina t io n of o the r cou n t r ie s o f the g lob e . O the r a reasa l s o h a d to a c c e p t t h o s e r e v o lu t io n s an d m o d e rn i z e t h e m s e lv e s .O the rw ise , they w ou ld pe r i sh o r be co lo n ize d . T he on ly p io nee r -ing a reas o f the Sc ien t i f i c - Indus t r ia l Revo lu t ion were Europe andAmer ica , the la t t e r hav ing inhe r i ted European c iv i l i za t ion andm a d e fu r th e r d e v e lo p m e n t s . A m e r i c a a n d J a p a n a re n o w in it ia t -

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ing the In fo rmat iona l Revo lu t ion , wh ich i s the th i rd s tage o f theSc ie n t i f i c Re v o lu t io n fo l lo w in g th e In d u s t r i a l Re v o lu t io n .However , today , I th ink we a re fac ing the s ix th g rea t tu rn ingp o in t o f h u m a n h i s to ry fo l lo w in g th e Sc i e n t i f i c Re v o lu t io n . T h eSc ien t i f i c , Indus t r ia l and In fo rmat ion Revo lu t ions a re a l l con t in -u o u s .

W hi l e the m ode rn sc ien t i f i c and techn o log ica l c iv i l i za t ions ,w hich o r ig ina ted in Eu rop e , b ro ugh t m any f ru i t s fo r hu m an w e l -fa re , i t a l so b rou gh t m any se r ious p ro b le m s such as en v i ro nm en -ta l po l lu t ion , eco log ica l des t ruc t ion , the exhaus t ion o f na tu ra lre sources , the s tockp i le o f nuc lea r a rms , and inc reas ing numberso f men ta l ly i l l peop le , among o the r nega t ive e f fec t s . We canno tnow a l low the l inea r ex tens ion o f the cu r ren t c iv i l i za t ion .Humans a re exposed to the danger o f ann ih i la t ion , shou ld theseneg a t ive e f fe c t s con t inue . W e hav e no w a re spons ib i l i ty to c rea tea n e w c iv i l i z a t i o n w h e re w e o v e rc o m e th i s e n v i ro n m e n ta l c r i s i s .I wou ld ca l l th i s s ix th revo lu t ion the Env i ronmenta l Revo lu t ion .

I w o u ld c a l l t h i s s ix th r e v o lu t io n th e " En v i ro n m e n ta lR evo lu t io n ." H ow eve r , th i s i s no t a top ic o f m y lec tu re today .

A l lo w m e to g o b a c k to m y f r a m e w o rk o f c o m p a ra t iv ec iv i l i za t ion s . As show n in the d ia g ra m (Tab le O ne , nex t pag e ) , Ip ro po se 23 ma jo r c iv i l i za t ions : the m a j o r c iv i l i za t ions a re de f in edh e re a s f o l lo w s :

( i ) They have the ir own indiv idual i ty , s ty le and sys tem.( ii ) Th e i r d e v e lo p m e n t i s e s s e n t ia l l y a u to n o m o u s e v e n

th o u g h in f lu e n c e d b y o th e r s .( i i i ) The spans o f the i r deve lopment a re o f cons ide rab le

dura t ion (ove r one thousand yea rs ) .Wha t shou ld be no ted in th i s d iag ram i s tha t these ma jo r

c iv i l i za t io ns a re c iv i l i za t ions a f te r the Urban R evo lu t ion s , fo r Ide f in e "c iv i li za t ions" pa r exc e l len ce a s thos e a f te r the U rba nR evo lu t ion . Pre v iou s to these c iv i l i za t ions , the re ex is ted thes t a g e s o f t h e A g r i c u l t u r a l R e v o l u t i o n . F o r e x a m p l e , t h eMe s o p o ta m ia n c iv i l i z a t i o n w a s p r e c e d e d b y th e U b a id a g r i c u l tu r -a l pe r iod wh ich p rep a red the U rban Rev o lu t io n in Sum er . B ef o r ethe Egyp t ian c iv i l i za t ion the re was the Gerzeh ag r icu l tu ra l pe r iod

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Table OneA F r a m e w o r k o f C o m p a r a t i v e C i v i l iz a t io n s

I ~1 Ur ba n Civ i l i za t io ns A Or ig ins o f U rb an Rev olu t ionsI 1 Axia l C iv i l i za t io ns O Or ig in s of Axia l Rev olu t ionsI i Sc ien t i f i c C iv i l i za t ion O Or ig in of Sc ien t i f i c Revo lu t ion

M a i n I n f l u e n c e s of C i v i l i z a t i o n s

w h ic h m a d e p o s s ib l e t h e U rb a n Re v o lu t io n o n L o w e r N i l e . T h e s es tages o f the Ag r icu l tu ra l R evo lu t ion as we l l a s the A nth rop icRevo lu t ions do no t appea r in the d iag ram, no t because I neg lec tthe m , bu t be cau se I t r ea t "c iv i l i za t ions" pa r exc e l len ce fo l low ingm y de f in i t ion . Of course , the re ex is t m an y pe r iphe ra l c iv i l i za -t ions a roun d the m a jo r c iv i l i za t ions sho w n in the d iag ram .

There fo re , the upper l imi t s o f these ma jo r c iv i l i za t ionsco inc ide wi th the po in t where the Urban Revo lu t ions took p lace .The p ionee r a reas o f the Urban Revo lu t ions a re shown by them a rk A ( t r i a n g le ) : Eg y p t i a n , Me s o p o ta m ia n (Su m a r ) , I n d i a n

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13

( In d u s ) , C h in e s e (L ia n g z h u ) , M e s o -A m e r i c a n (Te o t ih u a c a n ) ,A n d e a n (T ia h u a n a c o ) . Th e s e w e re t h e o r ig in s o f t h e U rb a nRe v o lu t io n f ro m w h e re u rb a n iz a t io n d i f fu s e d to v a r io u s p l a c e s ,by d i rec t o r ind i rec t ( s t imulus ) d i f fus ion . The p ionee r a reas o f theAxia l Revo lu t ion (Sp i r i tua l Revo lu t ion ) a re deno ted by the markO (c irc le ) : G ree k , Sy r ian , Pe rs ian (Zo roas te r ) , Ind ian , andC hin ese . Th ey w ere the o r ig ins o f the Sp i r i tua l R evo lu t ion ,namely , the b i r th p lace o f ph i losophy and h igher re l ig ions , f romw h ic h th e r e s u l t s o f t h e A x ia l Re v o lu t io n s d i f fu s e d w o r ld -w id e .The o r ig in o f the Sc ien t i f i c Revo lu t ion i s ind ica ted by the mark (doub le c i rc le ) wh ich took p lace in the Seven teen th Cen tu ryEurope on ly , a s I men t ioned ea r l i e r .

S t a r t i n g f ro m s o m e p io n e e r a r e a s , t h r e e r e v o lu t io n s(U rb a n , A x ia l a n d Sc i e n t i f i c ) t r a n s fo rm e d th e c iv i l iz a t i o n s w o r ld -w id e , h a v in g t r e m e n d o u s im p a c t s o n o th e r a r e a s . Tw e n ty - th r e em aj o r c iv i l i za t ions , so to speak , "o rd ina te" (on m a th em at ic a lt e rm ) o f m y f r a m e w o rk of c o m p a ra t iv e c iv i l iz a t i o n s a n d th e f i v es tages o f r evo lu t ions (he re appea r on ly th ree revo lu t ions ) i t s"abss i sa . "

Wa rp s a n d w o o f s c o m p le t e a f e x i l e o f m y f r a m e w o rk o fc o m p a ra t iv e c iv i l i z at i o n s . In a m a n n e r o f s p e a k in g , H e g e l , R a n k ea n d Ma rx to o k in to c o n s id e r a t io n o n ly w o o f s a n d n e g le c t e dw a rp s , w h i l e Sp e n g le r a n d To y n b e e to o k n o te o f w a rp s b u tneg lec ted w oo fs . I th ink bo th a re necessa ry , and in teg ra ted the ye luc ida te the rea l a spec ts o f c iv i l i za t iona l deve lopments on theglob al sca le . T he secon d poin t w hich sho uld be no ted in th is d ia -g ram i s the fac t tha t ma jo r c iv i l i za t ions keep the i r p roper iden t i tyeven a f te r be in g in f lu enc ed by o the r c iv i l i za t ions . Fo r ex am ple ,Jap an ese c iv i l i za t ion w as a f fe c ted by C h in ese c iv i l i za t ion in theSp ir i tua l R ev olu t ion bu t s t il l has i t s ow n c iv i l iza t io nal ident i ty .European c iv i l i za t ion , in f luenced by Greek and Arab ic c iv i l i za -t ion , has deve loped i t s p roper fo rm o f c iv i l i za t ion . The same phe-n o m e n a c a n b e s a i d c o n c e r n i n g o t h e r m a j o r c i v i l i z a t i o n s ." In f luence" o r " ind igenous" i s too s imple b i fu rca t ion to accoun tfo r c iv i l i za t iona l de ve lop m ent s . W ha t rea l ly has t aken p lac e i sthe re ten t ion o f iden t i ty desp i te in f lu enc e f r om o the rs . T h is is a

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rea l a spec t o f c iv i l i za t iona l i n t e rcourse wh ich compara t ive c iv i -l i za t ions shou ld make c l ea r .

T h u s , my f r a me wo rk o f c o mp a ra t i v e c i v i l i z a t i o n s i si n t e n d e d t o o v e rc o me t h e s h o r t c o mi n g s o f b o t h t h e E u ro c e n t r i c ,un i l inea r theo ry o f Hege l and o the rs and the theo ry o f the mul t i -c i v i li z a t io n a l i s t T o y n b e e a n d o th e r s . B y o f f e r i n g a n e w p a ra d i g m ,we may approach the rea l a spec t s o f c iv i l i za t iona l deve lopmen t inp ro p e r p e r s p e c t i v e .

Reitaku University

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Marx, Karl. Selected W ritings in Sociology and Social Philosophy,edited by T. B. Bottomore and M. Rubel , Hammondsworth: PenginBooks , 1963 .

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