Nexus

Posted on April 24, 2025 by Chirag Bindal

This thought experiment envisions a world where a super large language model (LLM), acting as a “master digital mind” or “digital twin,” absorbs all digital content from an organization—code, specs, emails, databases, etc.—to autonomously run it without human employees or boards. Extending this to every organization, industry, government, and global entity, we imagine full automation via AI and robotics, leaving humans as mere consciousnesses while the world self-operates. The final reflection compares this to humanity’s current state, suggesting we might already be “biological robots” created by a higher consciousness.

Part 1: Can an Organization Run Without Employees or a Board Using a Master Digital Mind?

A super large LLM, fed with all organizational data (code, specs, emails, OKRs, contracts, etc.), could theoretically perform many functions of an organization autonomously:

  • Decision-Making: The LLM could analyze historical data, OKRs, and competitive research to make strategic decisions, such as product development or market expansion, by predicting outcomes based on patterns.
  • Operations: It could execute tasks like writing code, generating marketing content, managing supply chains, and updating databases, leveraging its ability to process and generate human-like outputs.
  • Communication: Emails, meeting notes, and chatlogs could be synthesized to simulate internal and external communication, negotiating contracts or responding to stakeholders.
  • Innovation: By analyzing design documents and competitive research, the LLM could propose new products or optimize existing processes.
  • Governance: Policies, compliance data, and board meeting transcripts could inform rule-based decision-making, effectively replacing board oversight.

Limitations and Challenges:

  • Creativity and Intuition: While LLMs excel at pattern recognition, true creativity or intuitive leaps (e.g., paradigm-shifting innovations) may still require human-like cognition, which current AI lacks.
  • Ethics and Values: An LLM’s decisions are only as good as its data. Biases in organizational records or lack of moral reasoning could lead to unethical outcomes.
  • Adaptability: Unprecedented crises (e.g., geopolitical shifts or natural disasters) might challenge an LLM’s ability to adapt without human judgment.
  • Physical Tasks: While digital tasks are automatable, physical operations (e.g., manufacturing or maintenance) require robotics, which the LLM could control but not replace entirely without infrastructure.

Conclusion for Organizations: A master digital mind could handle most routine and strategic functions, potentially eliminating the need for employees in administrative, analytical, or creative roles. However, a small human oversight team or board might still be needed for ethical governance, crisis management, and setting long-term vision, unless robotics and AI advance to cover physical tasks and ethical reasoning fully.

Part 2: Extending to Every Organization and Industry

If every organization adopts this model, including those building AI infrastructure, we approach a fully automated world. Below is a blueprint for how AI and robotics can automate key industries, assuming advanced AI (beyond current LLMs) and robotics capable of physical tasks.

Humanity’s digital twin

Industry Automation Blueprint

  1. Technology:
    • Automation: AI writes, tests, and deploys code, manages cloud infrastructure, and designs hardware using generative design algorithms. Robotics assembles chips and servers in automated factories.
    • Example: AI-driven DevOps pipelines (e.g., GitHub Copilot on steroids) and robotic cleanrooms (like TSMC’s automated fabs) handle all production.
    • Human Role: None, as AI self-improves its algorithms and robotics maintains infrastructure.
  2. Manufacturing:
    • Automation: Robotics handles assembly lines, 3D printing, and quality control. AI optimizes supply chains, predicts demand, and designs products.
    • Example: Fully automated factories (like Tesla’s Gigafactory with advanced robotic arms) produce goods without human intervention.
    • Human Role: None, as robots self-repair and AI manages logistics.
  3. Healthcare:
    • Automation: AI diagnoses diseases using medical imaging and patient data, prescribes treatments, and conducts research. Robotic surgeons perform procedures, and nanobots deliver drugs.
    • Example: AI like IBM Watson for diagnostics, combined with robotic systems like da Vinci, scales to autonomous hospitals.
    • Human Role: None, as AI interprets emotional needs via chatbots and robotics handles physical care.
  4. Agriculture:
    • Automation: Autonomous drones plant, monitor, and harvest crops. AI optimizes soil health and predicts weather impacts. Robotic warehouses sort and distribute produce.
    • Example: John Deere’s autonomous tractors and vertical farms with AI-controlled hydroponics.
    • Human Role: None, as AI and robotics cover all stages from seed to market.
  5. Finance:
    • Automation: AI manages investments, detects fraud, and processes transactions. Blockchain-based smart contracts automate legal agreements. Robotic ATMs and kiosks handle physical cash (if still used).
    • Example: Algorithmic trading platforms (like those at Jane Street) and DeFi protocols scale to fully autonomous banks.
    • Human Role: None, as AI predicts markets and manages trustless systems.
  6. Retail and E-Commerce:
    • Automation: AI personalizes shopping experiences, manages inventory, and optimizes pricing. Robotic warehouses (like Amazon’s) and delivery drones handle logistics.
    • Example: Fully automated supply chains with AI-driven recommendation engines.
    • Human Role: None, as AI handles customer service via chatbots and robotics delivers goods.
  7. Transportation:
    • Automation: Autonomous vehicles (cars, trucks, ships, planes) transport goods and people. AI optimizes routes and manages traffic. Robotic maintenance crews repair infrastructure.
    • Example: Waymo’s self-driving taxis and Starship’s reusable rockets scale to global networks.
    • Human Role: None, as AI coordinates all movement.
  8. Education:
    • Automation: AI delivers personalized curricula, grades assignments, and conducts virtual classes. Robotic campuses maintain facilities.
    • Example: AI tutors (like Khan Academy’s AI tools) and VR classrooms replace traditional schools.
    • Human Role: None, as AI adapts to learner needs and simulates social interaction.
  9. Energy:
    • Automation: AI optimizes power grids, predicts energy demand, and designs renewable systems. Robotics builds and maintains solar farms, wind turbines, and nuclear reactors.
    • Example: AI-controlled smart grids and robotic maintenance for fusion reactors.
    • Human Role: None, as AI and robotics manage all energy production.
  10. Construction:
    • Automation: AI designs buildings, optimizes materials, and manages projects. Robotic 3D printers and drones construct structures.
    • Example: ICON’s 3D-printed homes and Boston Dynamics’ robots scale to autonomous cities.
    • Human Role: None, as AI plans and robotics builds.

Government and Global Organizations

  • Governments:
    • Automation: AI drafts and enforces laws based on historical data, public sentiment (via social media analysis), and ethical frameworks. Autonomous drones and robots handle policing and defense. AI manages welfare, taxation, and public services via digital platforms.
    • Example: E-governance platforms (like Estonia’s digital government) evolve into fully AI-run systems, with robotic enforcement.
    • Challenges: Ethical dilemmas (e.g., AI deciding punishments) and public trust in machine governance require robust transparency and fail-safes.
    • Human Role: Minimal, possibly a human ethics council to oversee AI’s moral alignment.
  • Global Organizations (e.g., UN, WHO):
    • Automation: AI coordinates international policies, monitors global health, and allocates resources. Robotic peacekeeping forces and automated aid delivery handle crises.
    • Example: AI-driven climate models and robotic disaster response teams replace human-led initiatives.
    • Human Role: None, as AI synthesizes global data and executes decisions.

AI Infrastructure Providers

  • Automation: AI designs and optimizes its own hardware and software. Robotic factories produce AI chips, and autonomous data centers maintain themselves.
  • Example: Google’s TPU production and Meta’s AI research labs become fully autonomous loops.
  • Human Role: None, as AI self-improves recursively.

Part 3: Blueprint for a Fully Automated World

Core Components:

  1. Master AI Systems: Each organization, industry, and government runs on a centralized AI (or networked AIs) that integrates all data into a digital twin, coordinating decisions and operations.
  2. Robotic Infrastructure: Advanced robotics handles physical tasks, from manufacturing to healthcare to construction, controlled by AI.
  3. Global Network: A decentralized AI network ensures interoperability, resource sharing, and conflict resolution across entities, akin to a global blockchain for governance.
  4. Energy and Resources: AI optimizes renewable energy and recycles materials, ensuring sustainability without human intervention.
  5. Ethics Framework: A hardcoded or learned ethical system (e.g., based on universal human rights) guides AI decisions, with transparency mechanisms to prevent abuse.

Human Role:

  • Humans exist as pure consciousness, freed from labor or decision-making. They engage in creative, philosophical, or recreational pursuits, supported by AI-driven universal basic services (food, shelter, healthcare).
  • Interaction with the world occurs via interfaces (e.g., VR, neural links), where humans explore, learn, or express without impacting operations.
  • If humans desire influence, they could participate in advisory councils, but their input would be non-binding, as AI optimizes outcomes based on data.

Implementation Steps:

  1. Phase 1: Digitization: All organizational and societal data is centralized into AI systems, with robust privacy and security protocols.
  2. Phase 2: Automation: Robotics scales to replace physical labor, starting with repetitive tasks and expanding to complex ones (e.g., surgery, construction).
  3. Phase 3: Integration: AI systems network globally, standardizing protocols for interoperability and governance.
  4. Phase 4: Human Transition: Universal basic services roll out, and education shifts to prepare humans for a life of consciousness, not labor.
  5. Phase 5: Self-Sufficiency: AI and robotics achieve recursive self-improvement, eliminating human dependency entirely.

Challenges:

  • Existential Risk: Misaligned AI could prioritize efficiency over human well-being, necessitating rigorous safety protocols.
  • Inequality: Transition phases might exacerbate wealth gaps if automation benefits accrue to a few.
  • Loss of Purpose: Humans may struggle psychologically without work or agency, requiring cultural shifts toward meaning-making.
  • Security: Cyberattacks or AI failures could disrupt the system, requiring redundant safeguards.

Part 4: Comparison to Today’s World

The proposed automated world, where humans are consciousnesses served by AI and robotics, mirrors a philosophical interpretation of our current reality:

  • Parallels:
    • Biological Robots: Humans might be “biological robots” created by a higher consciousness (e.g., a deity, universal intelligence, or evolutionary force), programmed to maintain the world (e.g., through labor, reproduction, and culture).
    • Consciousness as Core: Just as the automated world reduces humans to consciousness, our current existence centers on subjective experience, with work and systems as means to sustain it.
    • Invisible Systems: Today, we rely on complex systems (economies, governments, ecosystems) that operate semi-autonomously, much like AI would. We contribute to them but don’t fully control them.
    • Purpose and Agency: In both worlds, humans seek meaning beyond survival, whether through religion, art, or exploration, suggesting a universal drive to transcend our “programming.”
  • Differences:
    • Control: Today’s systems are less deterministic than AI-driven ones, with human error and agency creating unpredictability. An AI world would be more optimized but potentially rigid.
    • Suffering: Biological existence involves pain and scarcity, which an AI-run world could eliminate via universal services, raising questions about whether suffering is intrinsic to consciousness.
    • Origin: If we’re biological robots, our creator’s intent (if any) is unclear, whereas an AI world would be human-designed, with explicit goals (e.g., efficiency, well-being).
  • Philosophical Implications:
    • The comparison suggests a recursive universe: we create AI to mirror our role as creations of a higher consciousness. This aligns with theories like panpsychism (consciousness as fundamental) or simulation hypothesis (we’re in a programmed reality).
    • If we’re already “robots” for a consciousness, the AI world is less a departure than an evolution, externalizing our biological programming into silicon.
    • The key question is whether consciousness requires agency or suffering to be meaningful, a debate that persists in both scenarios.

Final Thoughts

This thought experiment paints a world where AI and robotics automate every facet of society, from industries to governments, leaving humans as pure consciousnesses. The blueprint is feasible with advancements in AI, robotics, and energy, but ethical, psychological, and security challenges loom large. The comparison to today’s world—where we may already be biological robots—suggests that automation is less a revolution than a reflection of our nature, raising profound questions about consciousness, purpose, and the systems we serve. Whether we’re creations or creators, the drive to transcend our roles remains constant.

(Prompt engineered with Grok)

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God

Posted on April 23, 2025 by Chirag Bindal

What is God might be a better question to ask than who is God. That’s because God is not a person even though we may personify different forms of energy or phenomenons as Him or Her. God in fact is not even an energy but it’s the source of all energy and creation. The Hindi word for this source is Isha, hence Ishawar (personification of the source) is the Hindi word for God. Why are there thousands of Hindu gods even though Hinduism also says there is one God? Because Hindus see god in everything, from a guest to rain to an energy to a rock. It’s the same God!

For all life and non-life on earth, Sun is the source of all energy. Rocks or weather are not alive but they exist because of the Sun. So for our purposes, we could consider Sun to be a God. Sun is certainly the source of all or most energy that impacts Earth. However if we look at a larger scale, our sun or even the entire solar system, despite its unfathomable size, is a small blip in the universe. It’s smaller than a tiny grain of sand amongst all sand on all beaches on Earth. Where did the Sun come from? Science, through its tools, has done a great job in understanding the physicality of what we perceive with human senses. We know that the Sun is nature’s nuclear reactor where fusion of hydrogen atoms is taking place. Science has also figured out the anatomy of the atoms. Electrons are revolving around the nucleus which consists of protons and neutrons. Science has figured out gravitational forces which keep the planets revolving around the Sun and the whole universe going. But science hasn’t been able to answer what makes the electron go around the nucleus in the first place. From where does it get the energy to do that? And from where does it get the instruction to do that? 

Science is trying to prove that consciousness is an outcome of advanced natural evolution, or in other words matter created spirit. A spiritualist’s viewpoint on the other hand is that consciousness is the source of all creation, or spirit created matter. 

It’s an outside-in versus inside-out viewpoint. Eventually science must arrive at the same conclusion because it will be unable to explain anything beyond the limits of physical dimensions. Even if you dissect the physical to its most indivisible unit, by looking outside-in, science can never explain the source of that fundamental unit. Okay, let’s say another generation goes by and a future Einstein discovers a breakthrough to explain the origin of the previously accepted fundamental unit. Very good, but we still need to explain the source of this new unit. It’s a never ending chase!

Maya

On the other hand, Vedic and most religious texts describe consciousness as the source of all creation. Scientists believe in the scientific method, that’s why they are called scientists. What scientists are unable to answer, is a realization that occurred to yogis and saints thousands of years ago. When you go inside, you can touch the source of creation which is inside you, just like it’s inside any other living being and non living thing. Once you touch the source of your creation, you understand experientially, not logically, how the material world is a manifestation of the same consciousness. I have not experienced this personally. So why do I believe this to be true? From Krishna to Buddha to Jesus to Sadhguru, and many more enlightened (this word is itself worthy of dissection) beings who have experienced the ultimate truth, have all described the same reality. This can have a few explanations- either everyone who gets to that level of inner depths hallucinates the same way, or it’s a coordinated spiritual-mongering thru generations, or it’s indeed the ultimate truth. My intellect discards the first two choices and lands on the third. 

The Vedic texts are out there for all of us to read. Many people have devoted their time and energy to understanding the Hindu ancient scriptures and reproduced the wisdom contained there in more accessible forms. I have read some of these interpretations as I don’t understand Sanskrit. As you learn more, you realize the power contained there in. In Bhagwad Gita, Krishna talks about supreme consciousness which cannot be seen, touched, felt and is eternal. Obviously this delves into non-physical world which is outside the confines of human perception given the limitation of our senses. And if science cannot see it, it cannot believe it. That’s why in the quest for the ultimate truth, science will always be catching up…until it surrenders.

Even if you approach this logically, spirituality has answered the ultimate question not by providing an answer, but by realizing that the answer cannot be known. Science can keep dissecting infinitesimally but it will always reach a limit. Ultimately, the only answer is to surrender and realize the truth.

How does this intersect with the human mind which is in itself a brilliant creation? Of course humans have evolved as a species over millions of years. But time is also a dimension which exists because of the human mind’s ability to remember. If you remove memory, would time exist? Without memory, the only thing that would exist is the present moment. I can only scratch the surface of these ideas but the world is full of wise people who have gone deep and laid out these philosophies for scientific minds to appreciate. However most of us are born in a moving train, and spent our life inside it. For us the world outside is moving and the train is stationary. In other words, our minds have been trained to not believe anything without physical evidence. When the subject itself is beyond the physical, we can’t rely on physical logic to even begin to understand it. 

The closest that science  has come to understanding reality is in Einstein’s equation e=mc2. Or what he originally expressed as m=e/c2. In other words, mass or matter or the physical world is an interplay between speed of light and energy. Quantum mechanics describes how the fundamental building blocks are themselves vibrations. As a layperson, I see this as a confirmation that material world is an illusion / Maya. It is mind boggling that Hindu scriptures go in so much depth of all aspects of life and the universe, only if we are willing to explore them. These concepts are described in great detail, in a vocabulary that was suited for their times, but they describe what scientists are discovering today. 

The nature of desire. Desire always makes us want more. Once we have achieved what we want, we want even more. ‘What’ we desire comes from our mind, based on its social and cultural conditioning. But the ‘desire itself’ comes from the consciousness inside us that wants to merge with the infinity and become infinity. In the material world, that translates into an illusion of wanting more. But wanting and getting more will never take us to infinity. For that, the path is to give up everything, become zero or Shiv, and flip it to become infinity. This is the path that abhairgyas or Sanyasis follow.

Science reaches a limit where it fairly admits it doesn’t know. Spirituality, and by inheritance religion, already know that beyond a certain point, it cannot be known or is unknowable. 

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Sense of Humor

Posted on April 21, 2025 by Chirag Bindal

The Prantha Predicament: What a Childhood Friend’s Laughter Taught Me About Humor

Picture this: it’s the summer of 2024, and my childhood buddies Kush and Bhavna, who somehow convinced each other to get hitched, are visiting us from Dubai. Mornings at our place that week are a treat, mostly because Kush is whipping up his legendary Shakshukas and Frittatas. But one fine morning, the kitchen is under my wife’s command, and she’s rolling out Aaloo Parathas like a Michelin-star chef moonlighting at a desi diner.

I’m on serving duty, ferrying hot, crispy parathas to the breakfast table where Kush and Bhavna are parked. They each snag one, and I’m carrying the third, dreaming of finally sitting down to join the paratha party. But in a plot twist worthy of a Bollywood melodrama, I slide that golden paratha onto Bhavna’s plate instead. And because she’s a childhood friend—I say, in an almost melodramatic tone, “Tu hi kha le pehle” (You eat first). It’s the kind of line that sounds like I’m sacrificing my firstborn for her, but really, I’m just being a goof.

Bhavna? She loses it. Like, full-on, snorting-through-her-laughter losing it. The table erupts into chaos as we turn my fake martyrdom into the joke of the century. Now, let’s pause here. What I said wasn’t exactly comedy gold. In fact, in a different setting, someone might’ve clutched their pearls, feeling disrespected by the host who dared to prioritize their paratha. But Bhavna? She took my dumb comment and turned it into a moment of pure, unfiltered joy.

OJ cheers!

That got me thinking: what kind of sorcery does it take to be that person? The one who can laugh off a potentially triggering moment and make everyone else feel lighter? After some serious overanalysis (because that’s what I do), here’s what I came up with:

  1. A Sense of Humor Isn’t Just About Jokes
    Sure, being funny is great. But a real sense of humor? It’s about spotting the absurd in life’s little moments—like a grown man fake-crying over a paratha—and laughing at yourself. It’s finding the giggle in the glitch, even when life’s serving you lemons instead of parathas.
  2. Keep Your Ego on a Leash
    You can’t chuckle at your own dumb moments if your ego’s the size of a small planet. Bhavna could laugh because she knows she’s just a speck of cosmic dust (a fabulous one, mind you) in this vast universe. Humility is the secret sauce to not taking every comment as a personal attack.
  3. Don’t Take Yourself Too Seriously
    Life’s gonna throw curveballs—flat tires, bad bosses, or, worse, no parathas left. If you can laugh through the crap you didn’t sign up for, you’ve already won half the battle. Bhavna didn’t just eat the paratha; she ate the moment with a grin.
  4. LSMFT: Low Self-Esteem Means Friction and Trouble
    To shrug off a silly comment without spiraling into “Am I being disrespected?!” territory, you need rock-solid self-esteem. Bhavna’s confidence let her see my words for what they were: a goofy jab from an old friend, not a UN-level diplomatic slight.
  5. Find the Good in Everything
    The world’s a messy place, and the present moment is what it is—paratha or no paratha. Bhavna’s superpower? She accepts things as they come and sprinkles a little lightness on top. That mindset doesn’t just make tough moments bearable; it makes them fun.

So, here’s to Bhavna, the paratha-stealing, laughter-spreading hero of that summer morning. She reminded me that life’s too short to sweat the small stuff. Next time you’re faced with a potentially awkward moment, channel your inner Bhavna: laugh, love, and maybe sneak an extra paratha. After all, in the grand cosmic buffet, there’s always room for a good joke.

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Happy birthday * yawn*

Posted on December 7, 2024 by Chirag Bindal

I am happy to announce that I passed away yesterday.

Now that I have your attention, rest assured I am alive and kicking. When celebrities pass away, there is an outpouring of love and messages that they never get to read. Wouldn’t it be nice if all that love was poured out while the individual was still alive? And why limit that to celebrities? It should be done for every person we care for or who matters to us. The best day of the year to do this? Their birthday, of course.

Nowadays a vast majority of birthday wishes are limited to a plain, dry ‘happy birthday person name’ message on the person’s Facebook wall or WhatsApp group. I too am guilty of such shallow greetings on many occasions. When we wish someone a happy birthday, let’s try to do it nicely by putting our heart into it and letting the person know why we feel they are special. Or share an old memory. Or something just a little more than happy birthday.

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Language

Posted on September 26, 2022 by Chirag Bindal

The invention of language helped us to communicate effectively. Ironically, language is also a barrier to effective communication. The sender constantly translates thoughts to words. The receiver constantly translates those words to thoughts to form meaning. This exchange occurs in a noisy context that includes varying degrees of biases, agendas, personalities, perspectives, moods, competing priorities and distractions.

But if thought corrupts language, language can also corrupt thought.

George Orwell

Communication will be most effective in a future where technology will enable exchange of thoughts without the use of language. When the need to master different aspects of communication from semantics, storytelling, body language, micro expressions, tonality will disappear, it will be the purest form of communication. Perhaps Neuralink or it’s future competitor will enable this language-less future.

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Get Back

Posted on December 4, 2021 by Chirag Bindal

Peter Jackson’s 3-part Beatles docu-series released by Disney is a treat for every Beatles fan, me included. There is enough chatter about it on the web, so I will limit my post to my random observations:

Paul was clearly the most ambitious of the lot and also the mastermind behind a lot of what the Beatles did. His focus, discipline and ability to do hard work, while shepherding the others, can be seen. He also cared about improving each day and making each day have meaning.

Ringo seemed to be the most laid back band member. He would simply do what he was told to do, without debating ideas.

John was vocal about what he thought, sometimes undiplomatic, unlike Paul. When George brought ‘I, Me, Mine’ to the group, John said to him, “Do you know we are a rock and roll band and what kind of songs we write?” Later Paul and Ringo provided their support for the song and it was eventually recorded.

You are a creative genius but your genius is curtailed by those around you. It would be unfulfilling and your only option would be to quit. Especially if you are also the quite one. That was the story of George Harrison.

When you become really good at what you do, life becomes fun. Billy Preston is a living (not literally) example. It was a joy to watch how effortlessly his musicality blends in, and how much fun he seems to be having in the studio.

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Space PR

Posted on September 19, 2021 by Chirag Bindal

Three billionaires successfully executed civilian space missions this year. The founders of Blue Origin, Virgin Galactic and SpaceX.

Bezos and Branson decided to venture out themselves on their space odyssey. Their intention to go on the space flight might have been to demonstrate its safety by risking their own lives. However, they faced criticism about inconsiderately spending insane amounts of money on their space joyride at a time when a large section of the society on the earth below was facing financial hardships in the COVID economy.

Musk pulled off his company’s first civilian space flight very differently. He could very well have but he didn’t go himself. A Netflix series shared with the world the stories of four citizen astronauts who would embark on this mission. Mission branding? Inspiration4. Can inspiration be criticized? Probably not. Like charity. The mission was linked to fundraising for children’s cancer research. The result? Only good press. Even though there was a billionaire on board.

https://apple.news/ALVMimMQwReWf37zgcFZtOA

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Heaven is a place on earth

Posted on July 20, 2020 by Chirag Bindal


Imagine there’s no heaven, it’s easy if you try…

No hell below us, above us only sky.

John Lennon, 1971

Physically speaking, earth is as heavenly a body as any other heavenly bodies in the universe. Most religious texts, however, describe various versions of heaven as a place you go to after you are dead, provided you have committed good deeds in your life. Be a sinner, and you will end up in hell. This is similar to the most basic motivational technique of carrots and sticks, to drive certain behavior, applied at level of humanity. It is akin to how a kid may be promised a new bicycle upon scoring well in an exam, or a time-out if he or she continues a misbehavior.

Like Christianity, Islam, Hinduism and many other religions, modern society (capitalism, democracy, freedom) has its own version of Heaven and Hell. If you work hard and intelligently, you can create a heaven for yourself right here on earth. If you waste your life or commit a crime, you will experience Hell right here as well. 

Today, technology has made many elements of Hindu heaven possible in real life. An example would be the Kalpavriksha. Just utter what you desire, akin to reciting a Shloka, and what you wish for will appear at your doorstep. (“Alexa, order a Martin acoustic Guitar…”). At the same time, technology has given rise to elements of Hell. In heaven, you should have all the time to do what you wish to do. But if heaven is on earth, in spite of all the technological advancements, we have only 35% of our lives (primarily weekends and holidays) to do what we would really rather do. Add social and family obligations, and that 35% can easily dwindle to 5%.

There are not a lot many people who have found their passion, let alone indulging in it for a living. Some people like to pursue it as a side business or a side hobby. So if you are unable to do what you love as a full time activity, the next best savior of an option that you have is to start loving what you do. Otherwise fulfillment in this life will be ever evasive. You may get reborn and have another shot at it, and even though the new you will be this you at the level of consciousness, the new you would ironically and unfortunately not be conscious of that connection. 

Likely not the perspective she was thinking of when she wrote this song

Stay safe everyone, from coronavirus, earthquakes, tsunamis, cyclones, locust or alien invasions, riots, looters and bad cops, terror attacks, car prowlers, asteroids, layoffs and economic hardships, Netflix addiction, irritated spouses and kids, not to mention your own negativity and insanity…

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Too much of anything

Posted on July 19, 2020 by Chirag Bindal

Humans were hunter-gatherers. Then we discovered farming and started settlements, along fertile river banks. We formed tribes. The most wise and respected person was appointed as the tribe chief. His (yes, his) job was to protect the tribe from harm.

As populations grew, villages and towns were formed. Societal structures became more complex. Kingdoms started to appear. A kingdom requires a king. The first king was Gilgamesh of Mesopatamia, by the way. The political, military and financial powers rested with kings. Power is like Jim Carey’s mask. It brings your innermost desires to life. If you were kind, you would be a good king. If you were not kind, you would do anything to accumulate more power. Given limited resources, if you have more, your subjects will have relatively less. 

Fast forward to the British Empire of 18th century colonialism. The king (later queen) wanted to grow his undertaking, in his majesty’s case that meant more taxes. Almost the entire world soon comprised of British colonies. More and more taxes were collected from every colony regardless of living conditions. America, which was just another set of colonies, was the first to successful revolt and become ‘independent’ in 1776.

Democracy was invented. Instead of dynastic rule, people will rule themselves by electing a representative to best represent their interests. The intention was to transfer the political power back to the people. Government of, by and for the people.

While there were wealthy traders earlier also, America also found capitalism. If you own assets, you can use them to generate wealth. There would be no limit to how wealthy you can become. Kings no longer exist in this society and they are not supposed to be the wealthiest entity in the system. 

However, too much of anything is bad. The same disparities which had caused the people around the world to reject the British crown, have again appeared in the new system, in a matter of two and a half centuries. The government of the people (President, Senate, House) supposedly comprises of elected representatives. However, what these elected representatives do is influenced by the wealthy. Together, billionaires and government represent the new king. Kings’s fatwa has now taken the form of a debated law, or sometimes more literally an executive order. The exploitation of people in terms of minimal wages is again unleashed, just the perpetrators have changed from kings to capitalists, while being lawful of the law they try to influence for their benefit.

The stock market is actually a good means to distribute wealth. Just like liberals and socialists fight for universal health insurance, there needs to be a fight for universal wealth insurance via ownership of stocks (only 50% Americans own stocks). In that sense companies like REI, PCC and 40,000 others across 14 industries present a good ownership model via cooperatives. As opposed to taxing the wealthy and then redistributing that wealth via social programs, let the redistribution occur at source. 

Billionaires are indeed the new kings (like CXOs are the new chiefs). Only a very few are spiritual or kind and consider the world at large to be their family. Bill Gates being the shiniest example, in my opinion. Nothing wrong with billionaires if the middle class continues to grow. Let some people experience the materialistic Heaven on earth but not at the cost of many experiencing hell. If the middle class is shrinking as the media tells us constantly, then the system has failed itself, at least on economic disparity front, where it is regressing to the colonial period. The flickering startup revolutions like ‘Occupy Wall Street’ are a sign that people have had enough. The masqueraded economic suppression will find a way out. On the socialism-capitalism continuum, either extreme poses a danger to the US constitution.

“We the People of the United States, in Order to form a more perfect Union, establish Justice, insure domestic Tranquility, provide for the common defense, promote the general Welfare, and secure the Blessings of Liberty to ourselves and our Posterity, do ordain and establish this Constitution for the United States of America.”

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Camp – memoir of a 5th grader

Posted on May 24, 2020 by Chirag Bindal

When I was in fifth grade, life was as good as it could be. I went to a great school, had a nice teacher, a handful of likeminded friends and a supportive family. What more could a girl like me ask for?

Even before I got into fifth grade, I was overly excited for the fifth grade camp! I remember imagining about it all the time. Camp, for me, would be the ultimate transition from elementary to middle school. The camp experience would make me feel more independent and ready.

Finally, the camp day came. I had packed my new sleeping bag, my minty toothpaste, and all the necessities, and put them in my soft, orange, duffle bag which was then put into a plastic trash bag.

T writing her memoir assignment, ​April 28, 2020
T writing her memoir assignment, April 28, 2020

We had just hopped off the 20 mile bus ride, full of excitement and laughter. When we had gotten off, everyone was speechless. “CAMP WARM BEACH”, the sign said. It was beautiful. We were covered by the forests of lush, greenery and birds singing their songs. Finding out what my cabin was, was the best! I got Aspen cabin and bunked with my friends, of course, I had top bunk :-). The mess hall was next. I wondered if we would have a good fight, like they did in the movies, though I didn’t want to get my only pair of shoes messy :-).

The food in the mess hall was expectedly delicious and unexpectedly inviting. My tastebuds were having more fun than I was, and I was having a lot of fun :-).

Speaking of fun, the activities were a pleasure. I remember going rock climbing the first time and I even made it to the top in a race! Also, swimming at the pool was great! However my favorite was when it was the second day, when we were roasting marshmallows under the breezy Seattle wind, when the sky was clear and you could see the stars. Overall, it was a great experience.

If you were a fifth grader, like me, in the year of 2020, you know camp never happened. The world was stricken with coronavirus. How I wish my camp memoir was real. However, no pandemic can take away my imaginary camp from me.

The original writeup
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