How can we design technology in the way that is of most benefit to humanity in the long-term? Especially in terms of human agency? What to make of Artificial Intelligence? What is the nature of the human mind and can machines think in the same way? What criteria might be appropriate to evaluate AI? Where should we look for wise guidance?

Buddhism and Computing: How to Flourish in the Age of Algorithms, published by Mud Pie Books (2021), marks the culmination of investigations spanning more than a decade, focused on these kinds of questions. It encapsulates many of the ideas explored on this site. The enquiries have been primarily from the perspective of Buddhist ethics, but are substantially interdisciplinary, brought together in a way that I hope will foster much-needed dialogue involving everyone.

I very much welcome feedback – comments, reviews, emails, etc. Please spread the word!

Table of Contents

Chapters

Prologue

1. Numbers and Computation
2. Buddhist Ethics
3. Computers and Intelligence
4. Modelling Mind and Processes
5. Designing Sustainable Social Networks
6. Ensuring Online Safety
7. Are We Here Yet?

Epilogue
Notes
Acknowledgements
About the Author

Introductory Articles

I’m pleased to have shared a taste of the book in an introductory piece in the Daily Alternative, in which I try to bring attention to essential needs and from that basis assess technology. I’m also grateful for the publication of an article, Designing Software for the Present Moment, inspired by the late Ninian Smart, which seeks to broaden engagement. This appeared in Inter-religious Insight, the journal of the World Congress of Faiths, vol. 19, no. 1, pp. 65–67, 2021

All mental phenomena have mind as their forerunner; mind is their chief, and they are mind-made. If one speaks or acts with a defiled mind, then suffering follows one even as the wheel follows the hoof of the draught ox.

All mental phenomena have mind as their forerunner; mind is their chief, and they are mind-made. If one speaks or acts with a pure mind, then happiness follows even as one’s shadow never leaves.

Dhammapada verses 1 and 2

These short verses encapsulate how it is our own behaviour that determines whether or not we are happy. Accordingly, I’m using it to base my endeavours in research and development.

Introduction

Two verses is probably too minimalist by way of introduction, so, allow me to provide a little more orientation, for which I shall quote from Buddhism and Computing: How to Flourish in the Age of Algorithms.

The Buddha originally gave his teachings in person, tailored to his audience, which was comprised of people from all castes of Indian society. Even though he was well-versed in Sanskrit, he preferred to use local dialects. A formal language, let alone one with precise linguistic rules, was not considered important to the practice or to the nature of the Buddha’s realisation. After the Buddha’s passing, the transmission of his teachings continued orally, but as disagreements over interpretation grew, it was then that a written canon was introduced some hundreds of years later.

Referred to as the Tipiṭaka, a Pali term meaning ‘three baskets’, it comprises vinaya (rules of monastic discipline), suttas (sermons), and abhidhamma (higher teachings). As a kind of condensation, like any record, it loses something of the actual immediacy of the event, but it is a generally reliable reference that still inspires and guides practice. The Pali canon remains the primary source in Sri Lanka and South-East Asia today.

My work is mainly drawing on the suttas, with occasional reference to the vinaya and abhidhamma for further elucidation.

Buddhist practice is typically expressed as threefold, comprising in order: sīla (moral virtue), samādhi (concentration of mind), pañña (wisdom). So, to reach wisdom we first need to learn about and develop sīla; the subject to be learnt is Buddhist ethics, somewhat akin to, though not the same as, Greek virtue ethics as taught by Aristotle.

Moral Virtue for Daily Life

For day-to-day living, the practice is encapsulated in the Five Precepts. They’re not commandments, just rules of training that we voluntary undertake. These are usually formulated as vāritta (avoidances):

1. Refraining from taking life.
2. Refraining from taking that which is not given.
3. Refraining from sexual immorality.
4. Refraining from false speech.
5. Refraining from intoxicants that lead to heedlessness.

It might at first seem counterintuitive to restrict how one behaves as a means to fulfilment, but diligently observing these rules is enabling. It becomes more obvious when considering the cāritta (positive performance) counterpart, which is to cultivate compassion, generosity, contentment, honesty and heedfulness – qualities widely regarded as the characteristics of a model member of society.

The Fifth Precept

All the precepts are vitally important, but the Fifth Precept deserves special attention, because breaking this precept makes one vulnerable to breaking any of the others. Intoxicants are generally assumed to be mind-altering drugs and alcohol, but there is a deeper sense of any substance or activity that induces heedlessness with respect to the path of virtue and has an addictive quality. On that basis, technology can certainly qualify as an intoxicant, which is why we need to know how it arises and how to uproot it. As the application of Buddhist ethics provides effective solutions, it underpins my approach to tackling problems with online social networking.

For my Master’s in the Study of Religions, I undertook some research into the canonical meaning and also contemporary practice, implementing an online survey. This resulted in a technical report and a dissertation:

• Report, University of Oxford, 2009 Observations from an Online Survey concerning the Practice of the 5th Buddhist Precept: Report of Preliminary Findings
• Master’s thesis, University of Oxford, 2009 Avoiding pamāda: An analysis of the Fifth Precept as Social Protection in Contemporary Contexts with reference to the early Buddhist teachings.

The Problem

Why is there so much discontent with existing the social media provided by the ‘big tech’ companies? One trite answer is simply because social media fosters discontent!

How does it foster discontent? By promoting craving and addiction, which is why paradoxically people continue using these services despite their reservations about them. As confessed by Sean Parker, former President of Facebook:

“The thought process that went into building these applications, … was all about: ‘How do we consume as much of your time and conscious attention as possible?'” “And that means that we need to sort of give you a little dopamine hit every once in a while, because someone liked or commented on a photo or a post or whatever. And that’s going to get you to contribute more content, and that’s going to get you … more likes and comments.” “It’s a social-validation feedback loop … exactly the kind of thing that a hacker like myself would come up with, because you’re exploiting a vulnerability in human psychology.

Mike Allen, ‘Sean Parker Unloads on Facebook: “God Only Knows What it’s Doing to Our Children’s Brains”’, Axios, 9
November 2017

A Solution

To redesign social media from the ground up rooted in the principles of Buddhist ethics and the cultivation of wholesome relationships. This should improve the quality of awareness, enhance human agency, encourage independence of thought, and not foster addiction. This is what the Sigala project is all about.

Why ‘Sigala’?

The name is derived from the name of a follower to whom the Buddha gave the most definitive teachings on how lay people should conduct themselves for human flourishing. Actually the layman’s name was Sigāla (long ‘a’), but the diacritics can easily get omitted. Also, with a short ‘a’, it can be pronounced in the same lively way as ‘Figaro’!

Current status

Research has been ongoing since 2007 and explored various themes. From 2018 onwards, in response to Parker’s admission, special attention has been given to mind and cognition. For descriptions of these investigations, please consult the dedicated Sigala research site: https://research.siga.la/.

The next step is to code a proof of concept, for which I have established Symfony PHP framework as a suitable candidate.