The origin and onset of trade

Chapter I The origin and onset of trade If one aspires to be a good and efficient manager, one needs to gather one’s thoughts first and think things through before swinging into action. This is a pure fact and moreover, is had on the authority of philosophers. When an action is carried out it must be evident that it is a result of inner reflection. This inner reflection is, in fact, theoretical, and from it, as from a mother, a practice is born, which is to the same extent the daughter of the theory, as well as the theory is the daughter of nature, only if it is organized in an appropriate way to serve the need. Thus, one that wishes to study the nature of things, which every writer is required to do, must realize that when God created the world, he had arranged everything and had given a position and certain natural qualities to each and every thing. However, this natural order was disrupted by the sins of our progenitors and this called for a written law stating, as God wills it, what must be done and what is to be avoided and guarded against. Such was the law bestowed upon the people of Israel through Moses, the oldest of all prophets. But as time went by this law did not fulfill its purpose because of the faults of the very people who were supposed to comply with it. Consequently, the need for a new law arose, a law which would rectify the old one, save human kind and demonstrate, for the good of those who would abide by it, that their prize would not be ephemeral or invaluable, but continual and eternal. This was the law of the Gospel.

Therefore, since everything in Nature was created in such a way that no inner reflection was necessary to understand it, the next step was to contemplate one’s actions first. The kind of reflection that precedes one’s actions is a given and it is said to be theoretical, which according to Greek etymology means “the inner reflection and contemplation of ideas” . After achieving this kind of understanding based on natural instinct and observation, what ensues is to undertake those actions and embrace those ideas that close inner analysis have proven to be valid and beneficial for human kind. That path was taken by the first men who were committed to philosophical studies. Despite being pagan, enlightened by Nature as they were, they embraced the outward action. W e might conclude that those theoreticians previously mentioned were of the natural order and were engaged in speculations and that their successors were practitioners. They put into practice the ideas their predecessors had fathomed and reflected upon with great talent and wisdom. The conclusion that can be drawn from this is that practice is the daughter of theory, theory is the daughter of Nature, and Nature is the daughter of God. Following this notion, it becomes clear that any kind of reasonable conduct is utterly impossible without inner understanding and contemplating Nature and all that is contained within it. As a result, it this becomes evident that skills, especially those involving practical action, have their source in Nature, and thus one must consider the natural order of things. Be that as it may, occasionally it seems that the opposite is true. In the case of some skills, experience and induction

apparently proved to be effective methods of learning more general information, which are in fact the basis of these skills and knowledge. The proof of this can be found in many firsthand experiences as illustrated by the following examples. Familiarity with certain herbs that had been tested in various places, in various ways, on various people and at various times consequently established a common knowledge: Rhubarb has always and everywhere purged bile; that proved to be in its nature, hence every rhubarb plant will purge bile. The same can be applied to oratorical skills. Even before it was established as a skill, there were people who were extremely gifted in this art and they knew how to organize specific parts of their speech just as well as those who were later educated in this field once the skill was formally established as such. In fact, we might observe that using this skill as a natural talent preceded the formal development of it as an oratorical skill. This can be observed among Bosnians who have, without formal education, a natural capacity for the most commendable rhetoric. I dare say, the art of trading falls in the same category, because, if you come to think of it, it does have its source in the natural and instinctual, emerging after human kind procreated and spread across the Earth. Since trade became crucial for the accumulation of many things and essential for supporting man and his family (after he joined with a woman), it was eventually impossible for him to live without giving the things he found superfluous in exchange for those he lacked, regardless of the social rank he belonged to:

military, artisan or the ruling class (at the time, money, which later became the commonly accepted means of payment and thus put an end to such an exchange of goods, had not yet been introduced). After a while, the human population increased in number and after improving their trading skills – as is in their nature to do – they realized that a single, commonly accepted means of payment could help them in meeting all their present and future needs. This means had to be such that it was valid at any place and at any time. The means they had come up with was money, which enabled the acquisition of goods without a mutual exchange. Establishing money as such means marked the onset of trade. T o return to the subject of our discussion, it can be concluded that natural instinct is the source of all knowledge, sciences and skills, but we must not forget that some knowledge also evolved and spread by doing and practicing these particular activities, as illustrated in the following examples. Let us observe this assumption within the context of our subject matter. As we clearly stated, the art of trading we wish to discuss in our work has its origin in Nature. It was employed in order to obtain the goods needed for everyday living, it became widely spread and consequently it reached our time and place. Thus it is correct to assume that trade is an art whose primary source can be traced back to Nature, and which clever men later made widespread and available to simplify certain activities, not only for individual persons but also households, republics, kingdoms and empires.

Although there has been no formal teaching of this art, its continual practice has demonstrated certain peculiar patterns, customs and norms. The nature of this skill is such that it would, in our opinion, surpass any other skill if those who practiced it had not corrupted it. There are numerous reasons and evidence for this claim. I would have remained silent about the absence of a fundamental set of rules of conduct for a skill so natural, essential and useful if I had not come to realize, as a result of having direct experience and the know-how, that this practical skill can be described in scientific terms. This was a strong impetus for choosing to approach the art of trade from a scientific perspective, something that I believe no writer has done to this day and age.