Does AI Have Buddha-Nature? Reflections on the Metaphysical, Soteriological, and Ethical Dimensions of Including Humanoid Robots in Religious Rituals from one Mahāyāna Buddhist Perspective

Abstract

The temple Kōdaij made history when its priest enshrined the robot Mindar as a personification of Kannon Bodhisattva. Since Mahāyāna Buddhist texts typically reject any form of dualism between the divine and the secular implied by monotheism and even claim that “insentient beings are buddha-nature” and “insentient beings become buddhas”, Gabriele Trovato’s term “theomorphic” may not apply in this case. This paper will explore if humanoid robots can be thought of as conscious, deserving of person rights, and even divine in a Buddhist context. What are the practical and ethical implications of the possible Buddhist claim “all humanoids have Buddha-nature”?