Overview

60th Anniversary Special Hardcover Edition! The Five Ages of Humanity (a revised and retitled edition of The Five Ages of Man) is the 1964 masterwork by influential author, historian, and philosopher Gerald Heard (1889-1971). Heard explores many parallels between the historical development of human consciousness and the life of an individual. He maintains there are five stages through which human consciousness evolves. With a new foreword by noted educator Thomas Armstrong, PhD, and two notable new endorsements, The Five Ages of Humanity promises to reach a new generation of readers with its endless wealth of ideas. In his foreword, Dr. Armstrong praises Heard's book as ""This incredible synthesis, this rich feast, this sumptuous festival of ideas. ... Heard argues that historical consciousness progresses along a course that mirrors a similar pattern in individual development. Taken as a guide to the human life cycle, The Five Ages of Humanity includes a staggering range of progressive ideas and practices for the optimal development of each stage of life from birth to old age."" In Heard's words, ""By extending and applying the already accepted principles of phylogeny and ontogeny [to] the social and personal history of man, a real psychological interpretation of history can be made. History can now be seen as the reflection cast by the evolving consciousness of [humanity]."" Heard contends that humankind's consciousness has evolved in five distinct stages, each of which recapitulates a historical epoch. Each of these stages has a dysfunctional characteristic that handicaps the individual and the human species. Heard proposes ways by which each dysfunctional characteristic might be remedied through various practices. This newly updated, authorized edition of The Five Ages of Humanity includes new tables; an expanded glossary; a new editor's preface and afterword; corrections to various spelling, formatting, and factual errors; and additional minor edits. In addition, this 60th Anniversary Special Hardcover Edition of The Five Ages of Humanity includes a first-ever comprehensive index; four rare black-and-white photos of Gerald Heard with various high-profile individuals; images of two pages from the original typewritten Five Ages manuscript; a facsimile of Gerald Heard's handwriting and signature; and a new 60th Anniversary editor's preface.

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Reviews

"""Wonderfully rich, full of brilliant insights, and a great pleasure to read."" -Professor Joseph Campbell, commenting on The Five Ages of [Humanity], from a letter he wrote to Gerald Heard on Dec. 29, 1963 ""I hope this new reissue of Gerald Heard's The Five Ages of Humanity will find many readers. Offering a deeply informed and wide-ranging psychological interpretation of world history, it invites readers to dialogue and at times to respond with challenges and doubts. But there can be no doubt at all about the continued urgency of what Heard saw as the most vital question confronting humanity: whether it can transform its own nature after having so catastrophically increased its power over technology. Yes, such transformation is possible, he argues, stressing how emotion, habits, and choices have influenced the evolution of human consciousness in five stages. What would be needed at our present precarious stage would be psychological changes to foster human potentialities by a therapeutic education that could, in Heard's words 'fully develop both an entire person and a complete society.' "" (2022 endorsement) -Sissela Bok, PhD, moral philosopher; former professor of philosophy at Brandeis University; retired Senior Visiting Fellow at the Harvard Center for Population and Development Studies. Dr. Bok's latest book is Exploring Happiness: From Aristotle to Brain Science ""Gerald [Heard]'s The Five Ages of [Humanity] [is] where he can be seen as the savant, the repository of the most encompassing cosmology of his generation."" -Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, pioneering founder of the Jewish Renewal movement, author of numerous books, and a tireless champion of interfaith dialogue, from 2009 ""The most important work to date of this challenging and brilliant philosopher, a volume which in scope and daring might be the 'Novum Organum' of the 20th century. ... Heard is admirably suited for this kind of universal, cosmological approach. His learning can be described as immense; his thinking about as untrammeled as is possible to imagine; his eloquence, for the most part, startling."" -Robert R. Kirsch, Los Angeles Times book review, Jan. 5, 1964 ""I applaud this newly reissued edition of The Five Ages of Humanity, Gerald Heard's magnum opus, which offers a sweeping and optimistic view of humanity's future."" (2022 endorsement) -William H. Forthman, PhD, Professor of Philosophy Emeritus, California State University, Northridge ""A work of scientific art ... The Five Ages of [Humanity] is, in fact, a systematic literary exposition of one of the chief natural scientific principles of biopsychology, recapitulation. ... It is through the rich, lavish, well-woven and meaningful tapestry of material from biology, history, anthropology, psychology and psychiatry that this remarkable study achieves its effect. The author is as modern as yesterday. ... a beautiful book ..."" -F. L. Kunz, Main Currents in Modern Thought book review, Jan.-Feb. 1964 issue ""A sweeping vision that is often illuminating, sometimes exciting. His basic concept of a psychological evolution makes sense."" -Herbert J. Muller, New York Times book review, January 5, 1964"

Author Information

Gerald Heard (1889-1971) was a well-known author, philosopher, and lecturer. Trained as a historian at Cambridge, he served as the BBC's first science commentator. Later in California, he founded and directed Trabuco College, which advanced comparative religious studies. His broad philosophical themes and scintillating oratorical style influenced many people. Heard wrote thirty-eight books, including his pioneering academic works, several popular devotional books, and a number of mysteries. Thomas Armstrong, PhD, is the executive director of the California-based American Institute for Learning and Human Development, and an award-winning author and speaker. He has been an educator for nearly 50 years. He is the author of 20 books, and more than 1.4 million copies of his books are in print in English on issues related to learning and human development. John Roger Barrie has served since 2001 as literary executor of influential author, historian, and philosopher Gerald Heard (1889-1971). He has overseen reissues of 18 classic Gerald Heard titles.

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