How can understanding the past, help us to understand the world?

          In my opinion, this question is best answered on three levels, namely my personal level, at my community level and at a global scale. I would like to know where I came from and how I came to be what I am, today. The past, therefore, directly affected me in that my parents' background and condition has placed me into my present position. This arrangement can be followed further back into the past to see how my grandparents and forefathers had lived. Their successes, failures, discoveries and way of life has evolved into the way that I am living my life today.

         At the community level, being of the Malay race, I can trace my history to settlements in the Malay Peninsula from the Island of Sumatra. I understand from my father that these ancestors of ours were originally from Cambodia, perhaps people who migrated from the mighty Angkowat after embracing Islam.Tracing history further, these Khmer's were believed to be from South China, who moved south at about the time of Jesus Christ. It can therefore be seen that my heritage and custom is intertwined with others of similar background.

          On a global scale, I would like to know how mankind has progressed and evolved over the centuries. From makers of crude stone tools to the technological advances today. Most of the successors, if not all were built based on the previous achievements of others. One discovery has lead to another and opened up new thoughts. Past mistakes, wars, famines and plagues were gave invaluable in not what to do. For me this journey of mankind, also known as HISTORY is yet to be fully written and is probably just at its beginning...

Graphic source: http://www.funnytimes.com/playground/gallery.php?tag=history,http://www.google.com.my/imgres?imgurl=http://www.kidspast.com/images/stone-tools.jpg&imgrefurl=http://www.kidspast.com/world-history/0015-neanderthals-and-tools.php&usg=__rjeOz8P9O1tqvmCwc_aT7-9-kTM=&h=363&w=400&sz=83&hl=en&start=0&zoom=1&tbnid=yLZM5MT-TK0NAM:&tbnh=151&tbnw=168&prev=/images%3Fq%3Dprehistoric%2Bstone%2Btools%26um%3D1%26hl%3Den%26biw%3D1280%26bih%3D617%26tbs%3Disch:1&um=1&itbs=1&iact=hc&vpx=151&vpy=91&dur=630&hovh=184&hovw=202&tx=160&ty=117&ei=KE9-TOziBI-8cZXu_cYJ&oei=KE9-TOziBI-8cZXu_cYJ&esq=1&page=1&ndsp=20&ved=1t:429,r:0,s:0