Society and

What will be the next major transformation of society and where will it come from? All great transformations throughout history and in our own personal lives lead to fundamental changes in the way we live and in how we operate.Take a look at human society through time. We initially transformed from a hunter/gatherer and a nomadic existence to a domesticated existence, where we began domesticating animals and plants giving us a dependable food supply. This led to major changes in the way we lived. For example food surpluses and trade emerged; larger societies were possible and social organisation/hierarchies developed and division of labour was possible so craft industries emerged. Next we had the Agricultural revolution where large-scale agricultural production led to agricultural lands being divided up; a further division of labour and industry was made possible and further development of “classes” in society emerged. It also led to inventions such as the plough and wheel.The next major transformation in society was the Industrial revolution where machines replaced tools, steam and energy replaced animal and human power and mass producing factories developed. Mechanisation had a profound social, economic and cultural effect on society and marked a major turning point in history. The most recent transformation in society was the Information revolution. This has totally changed the way society operates, communicates and lives. It has infiltrated and influenced every aspect of our lives, for example through computers, emailing, iPhones, Skype and iPad’s.At a more personal level what defines a transformation in our own lives? We all at times make conscious decisions to change or transform our lives.The sort of changes people make that transform their lives are finding a partner, buying a house, getting a new job, taking up a religion, starting an exercise program, moving country, quitting smoking, some may even say their life is transformed when they buy a new puppy or get cosmetic surgery! The expression has even become part of an athlete’s vernacular when they talk about transforming their game or their running action or a certain aspect of what they do. There are even websites that suggest you can transform your life in 7 “powerful” minutes or in “3 easy steps” or by following “13 easy steps to a new life”! But do these personal examples really transform one’s life and bring about a real change to whom you are as a person? Or are they more about needing to feel good about our lives and our self, about forgetting the past, about transcending aspects of our lives that are not able to be looked at, then making a change then moving onto the next one?Sure the change may make you feel better and cope better with your life, but is that the point – it’s more about helping us cope with what it is to be a human or our human condition and just reflects the fragility of human life rather than making any real change or transformation from the human condition? In investigating what really transforms a humans life the best explanation of a real transformation was by an organisation called the World Transformation Movement. You can read a review of this organisation but it talks about transforming one’s life from a life under the duress of the human condition and all expressions of this state to a life free of the human condition, bringing about a fundamental change in the way we live, not just to aspects of our lives that are a bit of a mess.Incredibly the organisation goes on to explain the human condition and why we are the way we are using first degree biology. It explains why humans are so selfish, egocentric, depressed, insecure, angry and capable of so many atrocities on one hand and then on the other capable of so much love, generosity and tenderness towards one another. It then suggests that by understanding our human condition and the reason why we are the way we are we can become transformed and free of the shackles of this human condition.So it brings about a real transformation in our self and in our society leading to fundamental change in the way we live and operate as a society and species.So maybe the next great transformation in society will not come from technological advances or the like but from actually understanding ourselves and our condition and transforming our lives from life under the duress of the human condition to a life free of this.A remarkable possibility and transformation ahead of us indeed!