This work contends that history as presented to us in the current age ignores a major segment of human civilization on this planet, and attempts to shed a different light on how mankind evolved here. Its main theory is that civilization has evolved over numerous millennia on a cyclic rather than a linear basis and that each cycle has ascending and descending phases. During the low parts of each cycle, humanity's awareness falls to such a low level of consciousness that it forgets its earlier history, nor is it able to understand the more subtle universal energies. It presents evidence for this by referring to the writings of various authors across the ages, through some of the physical evidence that still exists, and through the author's own intuitive research. A range of ancient civilizations - some of which to date are regarded as mythical - are mentioned, including how these cycles might have impacted on them. Solutions are suggested to some of the current conundrums presented by the puzzling physical evidence these civilizations left. It also proposes that mankind cannot hope to solve these puzzles until we acknowledge the cyclic nature of our evolution. Various misconceptions of a spiritual nature are raised and debunked. Darwin's theory of evolution is acknowledged but its perspective widened, proposing that the evolution of life not only concerns the physical but, more importantly, is an evolution of consciousness. Thus humanity's general awareness of the higher dimensions rises and falls over many millennia in line with the cyclic nature of our solar system and its gradually changing position within the wider universe. This book argues for a more logical version of the calendar to represent our particular place in that universe. Such a version would be more acceptable across all cultures, nations and faiths than the current hotchpotch of systems, none of which provides humanity with a discerning view of how it evolved from its earliest beginnings. This work tries to help raise humanity's general awareness about past and current life on this planet, including some practical guidance on how to improve and maintain our physical and mental well-being.
About the Author: Dudley Scoullar is a fourth generation Australian and this is his first non-fiction work. "The Cycles of Life" covers a broad set of genres in the field, including Mind, Body, Spirit and Ancient Civilizations, and he puts in it a far-from-traditional view about these subjects. His academic and technical background basically relates to economics and statistics, having worked for the Australian Government for over 30 years until 1998, before doing private consultancy work for over 9 years for two international economic organizations, one based in Singapore and the other in the USA. However, Dudley has also been a student of yoga for around 40 years since the early 1970s, as well as being involved in two international organizations that have a largely spiritual focus. A significant influence in developing this book has been the work and writings of the famous Indian yogi, Paramahansa Yogananda, who was one of the first from that sub-continent to stimulate Western interest in this ancient practice. But it is also an accumulated knowledge from various other sources as well as his own insights, reflecting his deep interest in both ancient history from an early age and in Eastern philosophies over that period.