But if we begin thinking about the world being over 100 million

In the deep corridors of time, Thor Heyerdahl’s words remind us of the incredible fragility and wonder of existence. "But if we begin thinking about the world being over 100 million years old, then it’s absolutely by chance that you and I are sitting here alive today, while all the others are dead or have never been born." This statement stirs the very soul of humanity, urging us to contemplate not just the vastness of time, but the miracle that is our very presence in it. The chances that we, as individuals, would be born at all—and to live this moment, at this time—are so slim, so unlikely, that it borders on the miraculous.

The ancients, in their wisdom, understood the fragility of life and the immense span of time. In Greek mythology, the gods would often intervene in the lives of mortals, shaping their fates as if life itself were a game of chance. The Fates, those ancient weavers of destiny, would spin the threads of a person’s life with a single twist, determining who would live, who would die, and who would never be born. In this way, life was understood to be a delicate dance between fate and chance. The gods watched from the heavens, and the smallest actions—no matter how seemingly insignificant—could change the course of one’s existence forever. In this light, Heyerdahl’s words seem almost divine in their recognition of how fragile and precious each moment truly is.

Similarly, the Chinese philosophers, especially Lao Tzu, spoke of the impermanence of life. Lao Tzu taught that the world itself was in a constant state of flux, shaped by forces greater than any single individual. In his work, the Tao Te Ching, he observed that humans are but a part of the vast, eternal Tao, a flow that connects everything in existence. To Lao Tzu, each person’s life was like a fleeting breath in the wind—a momentary presence in the grand expanse of time. Heyerdahl’s reflection echoes this truth: that the mere fact of our existence, the simple act of being alive, is a gift, one that is shaped by forces beyond our comprehension and beyond our control.

Consider the life of Alexander the Great, a man whose name is etched in the annals of history. His empire, once vast and powerful, was shaped by countless events that were born of chance. Had his father, King Philip II of Macedon, been slain in battle, Alexander would never have ascended to the throne. Had the weather been different or the battlefield conditions changed, his victories would never have been realized. The chance of his life, and of history itself, turning on such small decisions and events is a powerful reminder of how fragile our journey truly is. We, too, are shaped by unseen forces, by the small choices we make and the circumstances beyond our control.

In the realm of science, Charles Darwin also pondered the odds of life’s existence, contemplating how evolution itself is driven by a series of chance occurrences over millennia. His theory of natural selection shows that life, as we know it, exists because of a multitude of random mutations and environmental changes that allowed certain species to thrive. In this way, life itself is a delicate balancing act, a fragile combination of factors that has come together over millions of years. Heyerdahl’s observation is akin to Darwin’s theory—life, and our very existence, is a product of chance, of survival against the odds.

Heyerdahl’s quote also calls upon us to reflect on our own existence, urging us to acknowledge that we are part of a long chain of life, one that stretches back through eons of time and into an uncertain future. We are the fortunate ones, the survivors of countless trials, who sit here today, fully aware of the preciousness of our existence. Yet, in recognizing this, we are also reminded that our lives are fragile, that the world is vast, and that our place in it is but a fleeting moment. The great empires, the mighty rulers, the philosophers, and the sages—each of them was shaped by chance and fate. Their legacies live on, but their lives were also marked by impermanence.

So, the lesson here is clear: life is a gift—one that is neither guaranteed nor predictable. The odds of any one of us existing, of being alive at this precise moment in time, are astonishingly slim. This realization should humble us, reminding us of the fragility of life and the power of chance. Let us take this lesson to heart: appreciate every breath, every connection, and every moment we have, for it is by chance that we are here, alive and present. Our existence, though fleeting, is a precious gift—one to be cherished and lived with intentionality and gratitude.