Great Time to be Alive

Best of Times
In our historical/mythological past, there have been great eras to be alive at. Let me take stock at 2 that calls out the most.

1. Satya Yuga - this could be categorized as a mythological past. I'm a yogi and I subscribe to the yogic texts, no matter how outlandish given the prevailing skeptical Zeitgeist.
   
   According to yogic world cycles, there are 4 cycles called Yugas. We are currently at the Kali Yuga - the worst and most horrific time to be alive given the global turmoil, division and unrest. Kali Yuga just started 5,124 years ago and it will last for another 426,876 years. Things are going to get worse before it gets better. Satya Yuga follows the Kali Yuga but no one now will be around to experience that. Satya Yuga is known as the age of truth, when humanity is governed by gods, and every manifestation is close to the purest ideal. Intrinsic goodness rules supreme. This is referred to as The Golden Age. I guess this is as close to being in heaven where crime, violence, hunger and dissatisfaction were unheard of. Satya Yuga lasts 1,728,000 years and that is followed by the Treta Yuga - a level lesser in spirituality but a lot higher than Kali Yuga. After Treta is Dvapara Yuga - less than Treta but still higher than Kali. After Dvapara is Kali Yuga and the cycle repeats itself.
   
   Yes, I would like to experience life in the Satva Yuga era and experience ecstatic bliss, harmony, and peace.



426,876 years from now: Satya Yuga will be man's most elevated spiritual evolution


2. The Renaissance and Reformation Era - this era saw the rise of broad cultural and religious movements in Europe from the 14th to the 17th centuries. The dominant Catholic Church lost traction leading to the establishment of various Protestant denominations and political changes across Europe. Humanistic values, individualism, and critical thinking, led to the decline of religious authority. Art, creativity and iconoclastic thinking eclipsed the centuries-old social norms. This was a time when geniuses walked the pavement - Leonardo da Vinci, Michelangelo, Raphael, Niccolò Machiavelli, William Shakespeare, Galileo Galilei, Nicolaus Copernicus, Johannes Kepler, etc.



14th to the 17th century: the Renaissance was an era of high-culture, high art, and critical thinking

What About Now?
I've had a few realizations when I just thought to myself that this life is a good time to be alive and kicking. These are the moments:

1. Mountain Biking - before mountain bikes were conceived, there were road bikes and easy-rider play bikes. I wanted to ride the rough mountain trails but there was no such bike for that. I remember assembling a prototype mountain bike part by part. I was perhaps the only guy in the country to have such a bike then.
   
   
   

   1977: an assembled prototype mountain bike with front suspension, drum brakes, mega-rear cogs and knobby tires
   
   Finally, when mountain bikes were conceived and technology kept dishing out better models every year, I was thankful I was alive during this time. My obsession became a reality. I would be a familiar face in the local mountain bike scene.




2002: mass-produced full-suspension high-performance race-ready mountain bikes are now a reality


2. Computer/Internet - unlike some people now who grew up in the age of the internet, I grew up in the analog era - typewriters, vinyl records and rotary-dialed landlines. I've seen the technological leaps and bounds that happened during my lifetime. The biggest jump was the invention of the computer and the development of the World Wide Web. That was career-changing and life-changing for me. I felt empowered. I became an early adapter of web design and was hailed as a neo-alchemist of the emergent digital world. I continue to make websites and keep pace with technological changes.
3. Bitcoin - I never liked banks and have always distrusted them. They were the usurious money-changers who would nickel-and-dime you to death. When Bitcoin came into being as a libertarian protest against the fractional banking system, I was overjoyed. I thought it would replace money and be an existential death-knell to the banking system. It didn't turn out that way, but cryptos became a formidable force in the monetary system. With Bitcoin, I was my own bank. I would trade my skills and services with Bitcoin as a currency.



Bitcoin: a full transactional cycle


4. Artificial Intelligence - even though computers became a fact of life with search engines and Youtube offering up-to-date information at your fingertips, the emergence of the language AIs took learning to a much higher level. Like a child trying to understand the world by asking relentless questions, I would be just as curious and inquisitive with the AIs. They would be my encyclopedia, my analysts, my conversation chatmate and my guru. The world's knowledge across time, space and culture became accessible with customizable output. My learning became exponential with these AIs at my fingertips.

Language AIs: ChatGPT4, Google Bard, Microsoft Bing and Opera Aria

Ending Thoughts
Since the wheel was invented, it probably took a thousand years until the next invention came about. But now, given the blazing technological pace, cutting-edge science could be rendered obsolete in 6 months! I guess it is my generation that saw the most radical changes in one lifetime - from manually typing a document in the late 60s to today's voice-activated / grammar-enhanced / spell-checked app that would automatically display your 'document' on a computer screen. It's a great time to be alive today and be an active participant in this future-shocking technological maelstrom.

--- Gigit (TheLoneRider)
YOGA by Gigit | Learn English | Travel like a Nomad | Donation Bank

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