The secrets of the Golden Age

The 5th century BC, also known as the Golden Age of Pericles, was the era during which Athens experienced tremendous growth in the arts, culture, and flourished through discoveries across all fields of human arts, sciences, and philosophies.

And I am deeply intrigued by how this period managed to thrive at such a frantic pace—what it was that drove people to achieve so many accomplishments and bring so many new things to the table, which would decisively influence the years to come, not only for Western civilization but beyond, right up to our modern days, when such explosive cultural blooms are rare and difficult to discern.

I did a bit of research on the topic, and I believe that a major part of this phenomenon stems from war itself. Just before the Golden Age, there was a war of enormous scale between the Greek city-states and the Persian Empire—a war that came dangerously close to wiping out the small Greek world entirely. In fact, many of the great figures who forever etched their names in history, like Aeschylus, fought in those very wars and thus experienced firsthand the violence, bloodshed, and terror of battle. Based on this, I believe that the near-erasure of Greek civilization gave the people the push they needed to build a strong culture and forge a national identity. Athens emerged at the forefront, guided by a great leader—Pericles—who led the city at just the right moment, during a time when people were already disoriented from war and had forgotten their old ingrained habits, thus favoring the radical changes that were to come.

But I believe this is only one piece of the puzzle. Because think about it... Such a small group of people rose up and defeated this titan that rose above them, he who was advancing hungrily toward them—and they made him retreat in cowardice! Just think about it: what audacity, what tremendous and sacred audacity must these people have had after achieving such a victory! Isn’t it astonishing? Isn’t it obvious? Every great creation needs destruction! Isn’t it clear?

Athens, from the ashes left behind by the fires of the Persians, rose again from within, like that magnificent creature—the majestic Phoenix!

Keep this in mind, modern people, you, who tend to demonize anything that causes fear, pain, destruction, or discomfort: for a person to rise high, they must first fall low. From destruction, with the right guidance, the greatest things can be born.