Golden age
This article is about the mythological Golden Age(s). For other "golden ages" see Golden Age (metaphor).The term
Golden age stems from
Greek mythology and
Roman poets. It refers to a time in the beginnings of Humanity which was perceived as an ideal state, or
utopia, when mankind was pure and immortal. In literary works, the Golden Age usually ends with a devastating event, which brings about the
Fall of Man (see
Ages of Man). An analogous idea can be found in the religious and philosophical traditions of the
Far East. Similar beliefs, which are in most aspects comparable to that in the Golden Age existed also in the
Middle East.Some
Utopianist beliefs, both political and religious, hold that the Golden Age will return.
Both in
Europe as well as in the Middle East, the idea of a Golden Age is part of a mythical interpretation of history, which divides history into several consequent ages, or (predominantly in the Middle East) into empires or historical epochs. The Golden Age (in India the Satya Yuga) is perceived to have been the first and best age, followed by the Silver Age and so on. The last and worst age is the present one in which the decay of civilisation reaches its nadir. This perception of history is therefore the direct opposite of the progress ideal. The theory of historical ages is the mythical expression of a philosophy of history marked by
cultural pessimism, which perceives historical development primarily as the necessary and natural decay of culture and civilisation.
Greek and Roman antiquity
The myth of ages first appears in Europe in the writings of
Hesiod in the late 8th and early 7th century BC. In his work
Works and Days Hesiod describes the age of the
Golden Race of Mortals in which the god
Cronus (father of
Zeus) reigned. In this age, Hesiod writes, mankind lived in absolute peace, carefree like the gods because they never aged and death was a falling asleep. The main characteristic of this age according to Hesiod was that the earth produced food in abundance, so that agriculture was rendered superfluous. This characteristic also defines almost all later versions of the myth.
The
Orphic school, a religious movement from
Thrace which spread to Greece in the 6th century BC, held similar beliefs, including the denomination of the ages with metals. Some Orphics identified the Golden Age with the era of the god
Phanes, who was regent over the
Olympus before Cronus. In the 5th century BC, the philosopher
Empedocles emphasised the idea of original peacefulness, innocence and harmony in all of nature, including human society.
In
classical mythology, the Golden Age took place during the reign of
Cronus. Peace and harmony prevailed during this age. Humans did not grow old, but died peacefully. Spring was eternal and people were fed on acorns from a great oak as well as wild fruits and honey that dripped from the trees. The spirits of those men who died were known as
Aimones and were guides for the later
ancient Greeks (who considered themselves to live in the later
Iron Age.)
This race eventually died out when
Prometheus (a Titan) gave the secret of fire to men.
Zeus punished men, allowing
Pandora to open
her box which unleashed all evil in the mortal world.
Within sequences or cycles of eras, the golden age stands alongside the
silver age and the
iron age, and conditions can improve or decline according to one's conception of
mythic progression.
In
Christian tradition, the Golden Age is identified with
Eden. It is considered to return during the reign of
Christ which will never end. See also
millennialism.
*
Ages of Man*
Eden*
Utopia*
Merrie England*
Millenialism*
Satya Yuga
