On May 9, Victory Day reminds us not only of the end of a terrible war, but also of the price humanity has paid for survival, freedom, and peace. War has shaped the history of our civilization: it has destroyed cities, divided nations, accelerated technologies, changed borders, and forced societies to rethink the value of human life. From ancient conflicts to the world wars of the twentieth century, military struggle has often been a tragic part of civilizational development.

In the context of SETI, this reflection becomes even wider. If other intelligent civilizations exist in the Universe, they may also have passed through periods of conflict. According to the Kardashev scale, a civilization’s development can be measured by its ability to use energy: from a planetary Type I civilization to a stellar Type II civilization and, eventually, a galactic Type III civilization. But technological power alone does not guarantee wisdom. A civilization capable of controlling planetary energy must also learn to control its own aggression.

Perhaps war is, in some form, an almost inevitable stage in the evolution of intelligent species. Competition for resources, fear of the unknown, and the struggle for dominance may appear wherever consciousness and technology arise. However, the survival of a civilization may depend not on its ability to wage war, but on its ability to overcome it.

For humanity, the lesson is clear: progress must be connected with responsibility. The same intelligence that creates weapons can also build telescopes, send signals to the stars, and search for life beyond Earth. Victory Day is therefore not only a memory of war, but also a reminder of peace. If we hope to become a mature civilization, and one day communicate with others, we must preserve life, protect our planet, and choose cooperation over destruction.

To learn more about the possible evolution of civilizations, visit our Bibliography section to find something interesting just for you.