Our ancestors used to have a well-regulated, a disciplined life. They were not slaves of their senses as the modern people are. They used to do japa, pranayama, sandhya vandana and swadhyaya, study of books like the Gita, the Bhagavata and the Ramayana. They used to do charity and selfless service, and observe vratas, vows like Ekadashi, Sri Rama Navami, Sri Krishna Ashtami and Dattatreya Jayanti. They used to conduct spiritual conferences and pray for world peace and not for their own individual selves.
They used to take plenty of physical exercise in the form of walking ten to twenty miles a day at a stretch. They used to observe yama and niyama very rigidly. They used to live mostly in villages and not in congested areas. They were self-reliant and not dependent on others even for trivial matters. They used to have Kaya Siddhi as well as Vak Siddhi.
When the present-day generation realizes the value of the way of ancient living, surely it will achieve all that it desires with the prasannata, the grace, of the devas.