What About Your Machine

“Our dear Lord, You are appearing as the best of the Yadu dynasty, and we are offering our respectful humble obeisances unto Your lotus feet. Before this appearance, You also appeared as the fish incarnation, the horse incarnation, the tortoise incarnation, the swan incarnation, as King Ramachandra, as Parashurama, and as many other incarnations.” (Demigods praying to Krishna in the womb of Devaki, Krishna, The Supreme Personality of Godhead, Volume 1, Chapter 2)

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“Listen, I do not want to get into a debate about the ethics of AI, its use, and how it might be a clandestine way of stealing. The models require data. Most of the popular systems encourage the use of their models that already have data. From where did that data come? It is not like the closed-system versions, where you feed it your essay, voice recording, or artistic output. The AI models generate new things, and so there is the legitimate question of whether the process involves theft of other people’s work. You know, where you take stuff from the internet and make slight modifications, to later present as your own work.

“For the purposes of this discussion, let’s assume that the AI model we are using is ethical. It can produce content. That is the ‘generative’ part. Have you ever thought about the use-case of a religious scene? In the systematic implementation of sanatana-dharma specifically as bhakti-yoga, there are rules and regulations. There are processes to follow. These are recommendations, sort of like an expert in the field writing a book to reveal the way to replicate their success. This implementation is known as vaidhi-bhakti.

“We have the definition of bhakti-yoga from Prahlada Maharaja, wherein He lists nine distinct processes. For our discussion, let’s focus on vandanam. This is offering prayer. You will find that sacred texts of the Vedic tradition are filled with prayers. You might dare to presume that the majority of the content is someone offering prayers, and it is usually not with some purpose in mind. As from the Supreme Lord flows mercy which is causeless, the people worshiping are often just saying nice things. They are offering appreciation. They are sharing heartfelt sentiments of gratitude. As the Vanara leader Sugriva declares, the person who fails to repay favors is a disgrace among men, dushakah.

तव देव प्रसादाच्च भ्रातुश्च जयतां वर
कृतं न प्रतिकुर्याद्यः पुरुषाणां स दूषकः

tava deva prasādācca bhrātuśca jayatāṃ vara
kṛtaṃ na pratikuryādyaḥ puruṣāṇāṃ sa dūṣakaḥ

“O best among the glorious ones, all of this has been achieved by me through the divine grace of You and Your brother. One who does not repay the favors offered to him certainly is considered a disgrace among men.” (Sugriva speaking to Lord Rama, Valmiki Ramayana, Kishkindha Kand, 38.26)

“Can machines help with prayer? Instead of having to think of the words on your own, why not ask an AI model for assistance? This is the age of machines, after all. At the local temple, a machine plays a recording of a song in honor of Govinda, the one who gives pleasure to the cows and the senses. A machine can turn lights on during the brahma-muhurta in the morning and the sandhya period, which is dusk. It probably would not take much effort to rig a contraption that lights incense sticks and waves them around. Do you see what I am saying? We can rest easy knowing that the machines have everything covered. We will never lapse in our duty to worship.”

In Bhagavata Purana, which is also known as Shrimad Bhagavatam, Lord Vishnu announces His upcoming arrival in the manifest realm. He will appear as the eighth son of Devaki, who is the wife of Vasudeva. Vishnu can do as He wishes, but the external causes are distresses on the earth and a heartfelt plea from mother earth, who approaches Vaikuntha in the form of a cow.

In one section of that work, we find prayers offered by the devas to Devaki’s womb. The celestials are welcoming the arrival of Vishnu as Krishna. If we stop and consider for a moment, we realize that the devas are not obligated to offer such prayers. They are already in a high position. They are gods. They live in the heavenly region. They are already situated in the place which is the reward for pious behavior performed on earth. The devas are enjoying previously accumulated sukriti. They could entirely focus on enjoyment, if they so desired.

Why do they offer prayers, then? What are they looking to gain? They are in heavenly bodies. These bodies are like machines, as later confirmed by the same Krishna. The living beings are seated on a yantra, and they think they are in charge of everything. In truth, the same Vishnu expands as Supersoul to reside in each spirit-body combination. He is the one directing everything, through giving sanction for the results to action to manifest. That action is based on choice, which is where the living being mistakenly feels they are in control.

ईश्वरः सर्व-भूतानां
हृद्-देशे ऽर्जुन तिष्ठति
भ्रामयन् सर्व-भूतानि
यन्त्रारूढानि मायया

īśvaraḥ sarva-bhūtānāṁ
hṛd-deśe ‘rjuna tiṣṭhati
bhrāmayan sarva-bhūtāni
yantrārūḍhāni māyayā

“The Supreme Lord is situated in everyone’s heart, O Arjuna, and is directing the wanderings of all living entities, who are seated as on a machine, made of the material energy.” (Lord Krishna, Bhagavad-gita, 18.61)

If we are seated on a machine, just what exactly are we supposed to do? If another machine can offer prayers for us, what will we do in the meantime? If the sun rises and sets at appropriate intervals, if the rain nourishes the fields when needed, and if the fruits fall from the trees when ripe, what need is there for any human intervention? The steadiness of the sun is already sufficient honor for the creator of the sun. As the Vedas are voluminous in nature, there is no shortage of prayer to consult. Bhagavata Purana itself has many sections that can be referenced, committed to memory, and recited daily. Such practice will lead to liberation; there is no need for extra effort.

If so much is already going on, if there are innumerable devotees fixed in their dharma, with a vow like a pillar anchored deep within the earth, what is our purpose? What can we really offer? The explanation is that if we have a machine, we should use it. If we have abilities, they should be utilized as an offering to Krishna. If we are skilled in archery, for instance, we should rise to the occasion to defend the innocent. This was the recommendation to Arjuna. He would act as but an instrument of the Divine will.

We, too, can be an instrument. We have a machine and it should be put to work. This is the meaning of dharma. Otherwise, we look for retirement, leaving the machine to rust, to turn into a vehicle for pettiness, lethargy, envy, and overall misery. Our happiness lies in using the machine for honoring the one who is actually directing everything: Hare Krishna Hare Krishna, Krishna Krishna, Hare Hare, Hare Rama Hare Rama, Rama Rama, Hare Hare.

In Closing:

Rusty let not become the cage,
Vibrancy if advancement to gauge.

That the machine practically to use,
In devotional path to choose.

For prayer whether old or new,
For Vishnu and His servants too.

Happiness quickly from there to find,
With renewing appreciation in mind.