Daily (Ziauddin Sardar–style) Digital Life Litany for Protection, Direction and Stewardship

Caveat emptier: This post was drafted with help from an AI assistant (Perplexity)— but ideated and edited extensively by the human, Bill Acton

Wikipedia

Lord of all times and all futures,
   we live in a world where every click
       quietly writes tomorrow’s history.

Teach me to see my digital life
   not as a private toy,
   but as part of a larger story:
      civilizations shaped by algorithms,
      identities filtered through code,
      communities formed and fractured on screens.

Protect me from becoming
    a passive consumer of futuresdesigned by others.
Help me question:
   Who built this platform?
   Whose values are embedded here?
   Who is made visible,
       and who is erased?

Guard my data from empires of surveillance,
   my imagination from being colonized
      by one narrow story of what it means
          to be modern, successful, human.

Teach me to draw on many traditions—
   faith, culture, wisdom old and new—
      to navigate this “postnormal” moment of uncertainty, 

          complexity, 

          and rapid change.

And grant that I may steward my digital choices
with critical hope:
   challenging injustice,
   amplifying marginalized voices,
and helping shape futures
   that are more just, 

   plural, 

and humane than the past.

AI‑assisted creative work: This litany is an imaginative parody pastiche using generative AI. It imitates the public persona of [Ziauddin Sardar] for commentary and devotional reflection. It is not created by or affiliated with [Ziauddin Sardar], and should not be taken as his real views or words.”


wracton@gmail.com
williamacton.legalshieldassociate.com (Legalshield and IDshield subscription information and applying for associate positions)