Charles Eisenstein appears in episodes 144, 145 and 181 of the C-Realm Podcast.

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Product Description

The Ascent of Humanity is a radical exploration of the history and future of civilization from a unique perspective: the human sense of self. Eisenstein traces all of the converging crises of our age to a common source, which he calls Separation. It is the ideology of the discrete and separate self that has generated these crises; therefore, he argues, nothing less than a "revolution in human beingness" will be sufficient to transform our relationship to each other and the planet. And this revolution is underway already. In all realms of human endeavor, an Age of Reunion is emerging out of the birth-pangs of a planet in crisis. The range and depth of Eisenstein's thesis is breath-taking. Encompassing science, religion, spirituality, technology, economics, medicine, education, and more, he details a vast paradigm shift reflecting a more fundamental shift in the human sense of self. Even in this dark hour, he says, a more beautiful world is possible -- but not through the extension of millennia-old methods of management and control. The convergence of crises is revealing the final bankruptcy of those methods. Soon, he says, we will abandon the Babelian effort to build a tower to Heaven, as we realize that the sky is all around us already. Then, we will turn our efforts to creating a new kind of civilization, a conscious civilization designed for beauty rather than height.

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Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #103246 in Books
• Published on: 2007-03-15
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 604 pages

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Customer Reviews

Study this book and ASCEND
Eisenstein convincingly develops the thesis that humanity has succumbed to the dismal end game of the Technological and Scientific Programs. He describes the Scientific Program as the attempt to understand every phenomenon through the application of the Scientific Method -- extending reductionism, measurement, classification, and enumeration inappropriately to aspects of existence or relationships where they do not apply. The Technological Program seeks to control nature, and thereby often disrupts it through unintended consequences. The usual, and usually incorrect, response to these blunders consists of more technology; more control. He argues that cooperation between life forms may prove much more important to evolution than competition. He shows how the prevailing materialistic world view, one seeking to isolate Man from hostile nature, colours seemingly objective scientific theory.

By focusing on self organizing systems of increasing complexity, he spotlights how matter literally tends to "come alive". The Divine exists not as a remote, possibly disinterested deity, but rather in every bit of the extant World.

The time has come for Humanity's next big step. We need to recognize that only imaginary, arbitrary boundaries divide the individual from the rest of the Universe. The "out there" and the "in here" exist only as concepts, not as valid categories delimiting our physiological and mental domains. We live in a world of abundance, where cooperation, not a paranoid "me vs. the hostile other" perspective should inform our philosophy.

This book might just catalyze a paradigm shift affecting science, economics, psychology, and theology. You will find it much easier to read than this review, and a lot more fascinating.

a semblance of the whole
I'll be honest - I probably mentally reference this book on a daily basis. I am yet to find a work this complete (and this voluminous) that seems to agree with so many of my own thoughts. That's not to say that it didn't get me to think critically about them, or that Eisenstein didn't diverge from them at certain points, but it is good to know that there are others out there who share my ideas.

So what is it about? Well, everything really. He brings together science, art, religion, work, play, school, and everything in between. We start off in the familiar and end up somewhere unexpected every time. And that's probably the best description I can give.

The book isn't flawless, of course. His discussion of autism, for example, leave a bit to be desired. But we're not left with the impression that he writing from the perspective of "truth" - the book is a chronicle of opinion and insight, not objective science. It's more a narrative about how things can be than about how they are - or maybe it's about how things are what we make them to be.

So ultimately, I felt the only shortcoming of the work was that the ideas I read here weren't particularly new - that is to say, I didn't read many things that I hadn't already read or heard about elsewhere. But that's not really what this book is about. Eisenstein weaves together many different sources and with them creates a coherent, unified idea. And that, in my opinion, seems to be what is needed more than anything else right now.

(Also, to anyone who enjoyed this work, I'd highly recommend reading "Immediatism" by Hakim Bey - very similar ideas, with a little more poetic flare... And lots of room for imagination.)

An Important Work
Charles Eisenstein, a true Renaissance thinker, has written a monumental work that traces the journey of the human race from its beginnings through to present day. He has left no thought unexamined in his quest for an explanation of why and how we have come to this juncture, which is defined by a convergence of environmental, social and political crises.
Eisenstein argues that beginning with our first use of tools, we embarked on a journey of separation from nature and eventually from each other. Rather than viewing our current situation as a terrible mistake, Eisenstein believes it is an inevitable passage that will result in the birthing of a shift in perspective, an awakening of all humanity. As we emerge from the difficult times ahead, a better way of being in the world will result.
This book is incredibly broad and deep in its examination of how science, technology, religion, politics, economics, and sociology have each contributed to (and been a mirror of) our ever-greater alienation.
There were ideas presented here I have read nowhere else such as how our interest-dependent money system creates an unending need for economic consumption We literally can't stop consuming or our whole financial system collapses. No wonder environmental preservation will always be at odds with capitalism. Eisenstein not only examines what is not working, but gives plenty of concrete ideas about how to bring about real change. For example, a money system with negative interest called demurrage. Sound intriguing? Read this important book and decide for yourself.
The Ascent of Humanity will give you a clearer understanding of the current human situation as well as some real direction for how we can begin now to envision and create a better way to live that honors all life.
This is the book I had been waiting for. It deserves a wide audience. I am working on a Master's degree in Ecopsychology and have read widely. The Ascent of Humanity is in my top five. If you have a strong sense of a spiritual element in your life, but also value a well-reasoned, well-researched discourse, without a bit of fluff, you will not be disappointed in this book.