“The first form of culture,” wrote historian Will Durant, “is agriculture.”

And he was right. When human beings discovered 10,000 years ago that the soil would provide more food than they could possibly eat, this changed everything.

For the first time ever, early humans could actually work WITH nature and reliably control their food production.

They were no longer dependent on unpredictable wildlife or the dangers of the hunt.

Nor were they resigned to devouring an entire beast in one sitting, only to end up right back where they started– in search of their next meal.

Agriculture gave them the opportunity to produce far more than they could consume. And to easily save the surplus for a later time.

To save like this is completely natural. And by that I mean saving is part of nature.

Dogs bury their bones. Squirrels hoard nuts. Even plants set aside some excess solar energy for a rainy day by producing and storing sugar.

For us humans, agriculture was our earliest form of savings. And it was the key ingredient to civilization.

With a vast pool of food savings at his disposal, early man could put down roots and build societies without having to worry about where the next meal would come from.

It was this sense of savings that formed the dividing line between primitive man and civilized man.

This reminds me of that old criticism about gold being a “barbarous relic”……continue reading HERE