Origin and development of human society

(b) Hunting and gathering society

Hunting and gathering was the earliest stage of human society — early humans lived in small wandering groups and survived by hunting wild animals and collecting fruits, roots and leaves, before domestication and agriculture developed.

The shift from hunting-and-gathering to agriculture, often called the Neolithic Revolution (about 10,000 BCE), was the single biggest turning point in human social life. It changed society from small, moving bands into settled, organised communities. Its major effects were:

1. Settled life (sedentary living): People no longer had to move from place to place in search of wild animals and plants. They built permanent houses near fields and water sources. This gave rise to the first villages, such as those in the Fertile Crescent, the Indus Valley and the Nile Valley.

2. Food surplus and population growth: Farming produced more food than hunting and gathering could, and it could be stored for the lean season. A steady food supply reduced starvation, improved health and raised the birth rate, so population grew rapidly and villages expanded into larger settlements.

3. Division of labour and new occupations: With surplus food, not everyone had to work for food. Some people became potters, weavers, tool-makers, traders, priests and soldiers. This occupational division of labour made society more complex and productive.

4. Beginning of private property and social classes: Land, cattle, granaries and tools came to be owned by individuals or families. Those who owned more wealth gained more power, and society divided into rich and poor, rulers and ruled, owners and labourers. Thus social inequality and class structure appeared.

5. Origin of trade, government and culture: Surplus grain and craft goods were exchanged, which started trade and the use of money later on. Settled communities needed rules to manage land, water and disputes, so organised government, laws and leadership emerged. Religion, art, festivals and written records also developed in these permanent settlements.

In short, agriculture turned human beings from wandering food-seekers into settled food-producers, and this gave birth to village life, private property, social classes, trade, government and civilisation — the foundation of modern human society.

The medieval period (roughly the 5th to the 15th century) saw the rise of feudalism as the dominant social system in Europe and, in a comparable form, in many parts of Asia. Its five major features are described below.

1. Hierarchical class structure (pyramid of ranks) Feudal society was organised like a pyramid. At the top stood the king, who was the supreme owner of all land. Below him were the nobles, lords and barons; below them the knights and vassals; and at the base were the peasants and serfs, who formed the largest class. Each rank owed duties to the rank above it and exercised authority over the rank below it. This rigid, birth-based division made social mobility almost impossible.

2. Land as the basis of power and the lord–vassal relationship Land, called a fief, was the chief source of wealth, status and power. The king granted fiefs to lords in return for military service and loyalty. The lord who granted land became the suzerain and the receiver became the vassal. The vassal took an oath of fealty and was bound to serve his lord in war, pay him dues and attend his court. Thus personal loyalty and land ownership were tied together.

3. Dominance of the manor (landed estate) system The manor was the basic economic and social unit. Each manor consisted of the lord's castle, his private land, the village and the surrounding farmland. The manor was largely self-sufficient — food, cloth, tools and other necessities were produced within it. The lord controlled the land, the courts and the local administration, so the manor functioned almost as a small kingdom.

4. Serfdom and exploitation of the peasantry The majority of producers were serfs, who were bound to the land and could not leave it without the lord's permission. They had to work free on the lord's land (corvée), pay rent in kind and cash, and give various taxes and fees. They enjoyed limited rights and were treated almost as part of the lord's property. Thus the whole system rested on the forced labour and exploitation of the peasants.

5. Decentralised political authority and the role of the church Central government was weak, so political power was fragmented among local lords. Each lord maintained his own army, collected taxes, and dispensed justice within his territory. The Roman Catholic Church was another powerful pillar: it owned large tracts of land, collected tithes, and influenced the beliefs and daily life of the people. Together, the lords and the church controlled the social, economic and cultural life of the medieval period.

Conclusion Feudalism was thus marked by a rigid class hierarchy, land-centred power, the manor economy, serfdom and exploitation, and decentralised authority dominated by lords and the church. These features shaped the whole structure of medieval society.

Human society has passed through several distinct stages from the earliest hunting-and-gathering bands to the modern industrial age. Each stage is marked by a particular level of technology, a matching pattern of economic activity, and a corresponding form of social organization. The major stages are discussed below.

1. Hunting-and-Gathering Stage (Primitive Stage)

• Economic activity: People lived by hunting wild animals, fishing, and collecting fruits, roots, and wild grains. They produced nothing; they only gathered what nature provided. There was no surplus, so no trade and no private property.

• Social organization: They lived in small nomadic bands of a few families, moving from place to place in search of food. There was no permanent settlement. All members worked together, and whatever was obtained was shared equally. This is why it is called a primitive communist society. There was no class division, though leadership rested with the eldest or the most capable hunter. Family life was based on group marriage in its earliest form.
• Technological change: Tools were very crude—unpolished stone tools, sticks, and bones. The discovery of fire was the greatest achievement of this stage, as it gave protection from wild animals and made food edible. Later, the bow and arrow improved hunting.

2. Pastoral (Animal-Rearing) Stage

• Economic activity: People began to tame and rear animals such as sheep, goats, cattle, and horses. They lived on milk, meat, and other animal products. Herding required movement to fresh pastures, so this stage was still largely nomadic. Surplus animals could be exchanged, and barter trade began.

• Social organization: The band grew into larger groups based on kinship. The family became more stable because herding needed cooperation and care. The domestication of animals gave people more control over their food supply, and the idea of ownership over animals appeared. The status of men rose because they handled the herds, which gradually pushed society toward a patriarchal form.
• Technological change: Tools improved to suit herding—ropes, harnesses, and better stone and bone implements. People learned to build temporary shelters and to preserve animal products.

3. Agricultural Stage

• Economic activity: People learned to cultivate land and grow crops such as wheat, rice, maize, and vegetables. This was the greatest economic revolution in human history, often called the Neolithic Revolution. For the first time people produced more than they needed, creating a surplus. Surplus led to storage, trade, and the rise of private property. Agriculture tied people to one place, so a settled life began.

• Social organization: Permanent villages and later towns grew up. The family became a firm, patriarchal unit. Division of labour appeared—farmers, artisans, priests, and warriors. Surplus and private property created unequal wealth, and thus the division of society into classes (rich and poor, owners and labourers). The state and organized religion emerged to manage the surplus and settle disputes. The status of women declined as land and property came under male control.
• Technological change: The plough, irrigation canals, the wheel, the potter's wheel, and metal tools (copper, bronze, and later iron) were invented. Writing was developed to keep records of produce and trade. These changes mark the beginning of civilization.

4. Industrial Stage

• Economic activity: Production shifted from the farm to the factory. Machines driven by steam, and later by electricity and oil, replaced human and animal labour. Large-scale production of goods took place in factories, and trade expanded to a world market. Capitalism became the dominant economic system, with wage labour and profit as its base.

• Social organization: Society divided mainly into two classes—the capitalist owners of factories and the workers who sell their labour. Cities grew rapidly as people migrated from villages (urbanization). The joint family weakened and the nuclear family became common. New social problems appeared—poverty, unemployment, exploitation of labour, and pollution. At the same time, ideas of democracy, equality, and workers' rights spread.
• Technological change: The steam engine, spinning jenny, power loom, railways, telegraph, and later electricity and the internal combustion engine transformed transport, communication, and industry. This stage is also called the age of machines.

Conclusion: Thus human society moved from a food-gathering to a food-producing, then to a commercial and finally to an industrial economy. Each stage grew out of the previous one as new technology raised production and changed the way people lived and organized themselves. The hunting stage gave equality without surplus, the agricultural stage gave surplus with inequality, and the industrial stage gave rapid progress along with new social problems.

आधुनिक मानव (होमो सेपियन्स सेपियन्स) को पुर्खा होमो इरेक्टस (सोझो उभिएर हिँड्ने आदिमानव) लाई मानिन्छ, जसबाट क्रमिक विकास हुँदै बुद्धिमान मानव (होमो सेपियन्स) को उदय भयो ।

हुद्दुगे (शिकारी–सङ्कलक) युगको जीवन पद्धति

१. खाना: शिकार गरेर, माछा मारेर तथा जङ्गलबाट फलफूल, कन्दमूल र मह सङ्कलन गरेर जीविका चलाइन्थ्यो; खेतीपाती वा पशुपालन थिएन ।

२. घुमन्ते जीवन: खाना खोज्दै एक ठाउँबाट अर्को ठाउँ सर्ने हुँदा स्थायी बसोबास थिएन ।

३. बासस्थान: गुफा, ओढार, रुखमुनि वा पातपतिङ्गरले बनाएका अस्थायी छाप्रामा बस्थे ।

४. औजार र आगो: ढुङ्गा, हाडखोर र काठका सामान्य औजार प्रयोग गर्थे; पछि आगोको खोजी भएपछि पकाएर खान, न्यानो हुन र जङ्गली जनावरबाट जोगिन थाले ।

५. सामाजिक जीवन: सानो समूह वा झुण्डमा बस्थे, सम्पत्ति साझा हुन्थ्यो र काम सहकार्यमा गरिन्थ्यो । कला (गुफाचित्र) र सङ्केत भाषाको सुरुआत भयो ।

पशुपालन तथा कृषि युगको सुरुआतका कारण

हुद्दुगे युगमा शिकार र सङ्कलनमा निर्भर मानवले अन्तिम हिमयुग सकिएपछि (करिब १०,००० वर्ष अघि) हावापानी न्यानो र स्थिर भएको अवस्थामा बदलाव ल्याए । मुख्य कारणहरू:

१. जनसङ्ख्या वृद्धि: शिकार र फलफूलले मात्र बढ्दो जनसङ्ख्या पाल्न नपुगेपछि खाद्यान्न उत्पादन गर्नुपर्‍यो । २. शिकारको कमी: जङ्गली जनावर र सङ्कलनका स्रोत घट्दै गए । ३. हावापानी परिवर्तन: हिमयुग सकिएपछि उर्वर भूमि र घाँस बढ्यो, अन्न र पशु पाल्न सजिलो भयो । ४. अनुभव र ज्ञान: बीउ झरेर उम्रेको देखेर खेती र जनावरलाई पाल्न सकिने बुझे ।

यस युगका विशेषताहरू:

• स्थायी बसोबास: खेतीका लागि एकै ठाउँमा बस्न थाले; गाउँ र बस्तीको विकास भयो ।
• खेती र पशुपालन: गहुँ, जौ, धान जस्ता अन्न उमारे; गाई, भेडा, बाख्रा, कुकुर पाल्न थाले र हलो–गोरु प्रयोग गरे ।
• नयाँ औजार र प्रविधि: पालिस गरिएका ढुङ्गाका औजार (नवपाषाण), माटाका भाँडा, कपडा बुन्ने, पहिया र पछि धातुको प्रयोग भयो ।
• सम्पत्ति र वर्ग: निजी जमिन र अन्नको भण्डारण भएपछि निजी सम्पत्तिको अवधारणा आयो र धनी–गरिब वर्ग विभाजन सुरु भयो ।
• परिवार र श्रम विभाजन: परिवार संस्था बलियो भयो; कृषक, कारिगर, व्यापारी जस्ता पेसा बने ।
• सामाजिक–सांस्कृतिक विकास: धर्म, चाडपर्व, कला र नेतृत्वको विकास भयो; पछि नदी किनारमा सभ्यता उदाए ।

निष्कर्ष: पशुपालन तथा कृषि युग मानव सभ्यताको एक ठूलो मोड थियो किनभने यसले स्थायी र उत्पादनमूलक जीवन सुरु गर्‍यो ।