The City of Mahatmas

What would happen if you shout 'Hey Siri!' in an Apple Store.

I haven't done this personally. But I can assume Siri answering, responding to me. All of them, through all those devices.

I had this thought when I was in a meeting room. I asked a question — not knowing the answer to it — nothing crucial, just wanting to understand a process.

And as I looked up — towards all those present, instead of looking at me or pondering about the question or thinking about the process — all of them were busy typing. Into their devices. They seemed to be in a race to type faster to get the AI curated response — in a jiffy.

To my amazement all of them had the response — the same one. The same conclusion. And they in fact completed each other's sentences. Truly magical.

That's when I realized I happened to be in a room full of Mahatmas - nay, a city of Mahatmas. I call them Mahatmas, not because they stumbled upon the coveted enlightenment written obscurely in scriptures. But simply because they happened to possess the most important and powerful device known to man - a WiFi connected, AI enabled smartphone.

We can all discuss, debate, ponder and fight upon the fallacy of relying on AI to guide us, but in the quest of becoming a true stoic Karmayogi, I have fully accepted this new reality and I have devised my own rules for interacting with the hordes of Mahatmas you and I will meet. Below are those rules:

Rule# : Never speak to Mahatmas in a group. Always seek one-on-one time with one Mahatma — and request them to keep their laptop, smartphone, earphones, etc. aside. Though they might be distracted by smart watches, smart rings, smart glasses — these are small sacrifices that you will have to make in order to experience the greatness of these Mahatmas.

Rule#2: Real life hallucinations are real. You can only empathize with the great Mahatmas, as they alone know how to endure the onslaught of content and knowledge, something which is constantly updating across all social media. So if a Mahatma doesn't stand by their word, it's not their fault. It's pure divine AI intervention speaking through them. The below rule has the remedy to this.

Rule#3: If not physically present in a room with a Mahatma — ensure to drop them an email — without fail.

Meeting cancelled — email.

Meeting concluded — email.

Phone call done — email.

Phone call unresolved — email.

No email? Send email.

Rule #4: Stand out, but not entirely. The Mahatmas, with their immense knowledge, greatness and reach, have an unmistakable habit. They tend to like all the same things. Eat the same prescribed food. Drink the same drinks. Dance to the same songs with the same steps. Follow the same prescribed protocols and prescribed outlooks. The Mahatmas tend to do this of their own free will — with only the prescriptions of social media to guide them. So empathise with all generosity. Give them your 'likes'. Practice smiling in the mirror and execute the perfect smile when amongst them.

And if by any chance you do not find yourself complying with the path of these Mahatmas, do not under any circumstance criticize or challenge their great teachings. Instead, do the bare minimum just to fit in.

You must have noticed that this blog has an image — designed and derived by what is now called the ultimate truth. This small act is my bare minimum compliance. I am now one of them 😉.

Rule #5: Never ever offend the Mahatmas. Meaning never say AI is bad. Never assume that they don't know. Note the 'isms' that Mahatmas support — these 'isms' are in trend — and you need to keep updated with their ever-rotating moral compass.

This is the new evolution.

And you do not need to be a digital kaafir. Be a simpleton instead.

The only way to find like-minded others is to put out all hope of finding one. Only by giving up this hope will you be closer to your goal.

Do this frantically — like you are putting out an actual fire.

Then — and only then — if you are extremely lucky — you will find the real enlightened ones — like sighting a snow leopard.

And if you ever find yourself in such a situation, you would have a sudden urge to pinch yourself. I wouldn't stop you — even if I could. This is extremely rare nowadays — almost mythical.

If you want to know the signs exhibited by these rebels and outcasts, do not alarm them. Simply observe them and you will find them doing peculiar things — weird as they might seem. You might also feel like these  oddballs don't belong anywhere. That might be still be true.

But to the curious mind, the few things to notice would be in these rebels would be:

Silence and Patience.