ARTICLES
At the outset, I believe we must differentiate between what we call “success” and what we would consider a true “triumph”.
Success comes through the happy outcome of a matter in which we have been involved, or the actions we have taken to achieve a certain end. But to do something successfully does not mean to be triumphant. [...]
Are we living at a turning point in history? Probably many people have said this to themselves (while looking at the first bicycle, binoculars or the first field canon). Many of us who have explored world history, are certain that our era is not like the previous centuries, when people have changed attributes, characteristics, emphasis in the system of values…. Today we see a change not only in the essence of our viewpoint and values, but also in the main principles through which we grasp and interpret the world. What are the turning changes?
A few years ago, I watched the documentary Babies by Thomas Balmes. It follows the first year of the lives of four babies from Mongolia, Japan, California and Namibia. The film does not contain any narration, it just lets the images speak for themselves, presenting the huge contrast that exists between these four cultures. It is amazing to see how, in just one year, these four babies had utterly different experiences of life on this planet, which would, no doubt, greatly influence the way they were going to understand the world and live in it.
The European Renaissance was a period in history in which important philosophical ideas and teachings derived from antiquity witnessed a rebirth. In this period of eclecticism and creativity in which many ancient ideas were re-formulated the human being took central stage. Thus a sentiment of ‘rebirth of the human spirit’ took form within various disciplines: the arts, science, politics, philosophy, religion and also esotericism1.