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From TV Buddha to Robotic Monk：A Transcultural Question Concerning Techno-Buddhism

Yang, Qian LU (2018) KOVM12 20181
Division of Art History and Visual Studies
Abstract
From the beginning of the 21st century, there has been a tendency to hybridize Buddhism with modern technology, which embodies rich ambiguities. At the conference AI World 2016, a robotic monk Xian’er with artificial intelligence(AI) premiered in China and was claimed as the icon of the harmony of techno-Buddhism. This paper will explore the ambiguity of Xian’er – why and how the harmony comes into being and what is behind the harmony. In the transcultural and interdisciplinary contexts, I conduct a comparative study between the robotic monk and the artist Nam June Paik, who was well-known for his TV Buddha series. I examine the connotations and historical intersection of Xian’er and Paik through methods of genealogy and interactive tests.... (More)
From the beginning of the 21st century, there has been a tendency to hybridize Buddhism with modern technology, which embodies rich ambiguities. At the conference AI World 2016, a robotic monk Xian’er with artificial intelligence(AI) premiered in China and was claimed as the icon of the harmony of techno-Buddhism. This paper will explore the ambiguity of Xian’er – why and how the harmony comes into being and what is behind the harmony. In the transcultural and interdisciplinary contexts, I conduct a comparative study between the robotic monk and the artist Nam June Paik, who was well-known for his TV Buddha series. I examine the connotations and historical intersection of Xian’er and Paik through methods of genealogy and interactive tests. Referencing Martin Heidegger’s thoughts on technology and Donna Haraway’s metaphor of cyborg and Homi Bhabha’s theories of hybridity, I apply discourse analysis to critique the hegemonic logic within techno-Buddhism’s hybrid format.
Through this analysis, I reveal that behind the harmony of techno-Buddhism there hides inharmonious control: cybernetic technologies are converting all the organic domains into military and economic purposes, taking computational discourse as the only spokesman of truth. I term the control-goal oriented logic as ‘the meditative logic of late capitalism.’ Buddhism, which authentically promotes decentralization and wholeness, has been appropriated as a handy tool to rationalize the logic. (Less)
Please use this url to cite or link to this publication:
author
Yang, Qian LU
supervisor
organization
course
KOVM12 20181
year
type
H2 - Master's Degree (Two Years)
subject
keywords
visual culture, Nam June Paik, cybernetic art, artificial intelligence, global Buddhism, cultural hybridity
language
English
id
8954659
date added to LUP
2018-10-01 13:41:00
date last changed
2018-10-01 13:41:00
@misc{8954659,
  abstract     = {{From the beginning of the 21st century, there has been a tendency to hybridize Buddhism with modern technology, which embodies rich ambiguities. At the conference AI World 2016, a robotic monk Xian’er with artificial intelligence(AI) premiered in China and was claimed as the icon of the harmony of techno-Buddhism. This paper will explore the ambiguity of Xian’er – why and how the harmony comes into being and what is behind the harmony. In the transcultural and interdisciplinary contexts, I conduct a comparative study between the robotic monk and the artist Nam June Paik, who was well-known for his TV Buddha series. I examine the connotations and historical intersection of Xian’er and Paik through methods of genealogy and interactive tests. Referencing Martin Heidegger’s thoughts on technology and Donna Haraway’s metaphor of cyborg and Homi Bhabha’s theories of hybridity, I apply discourse analysis to critique the hegemonic logic within techno-Buddhism’s hybrid format.
Through this analysis, I reveal that behind the harmony of techno-Buddhism there hides inharmonious control: cybernetic technologies are converting all the organic domains into military and economic purposes, taking computational discourse as the only spokesman of truth. I term the control-goal oriented logic as ‘the meditative logic of late capitalism.’ Buddhism, which authentically promotes decentralization and wholeness, has been appropriated as a handy tool to rationalize the logic.}},
  author       = {{Yang, Qian}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  note         = {{Student Paper}},
  title        = {{From TV Buddha to Robotic Monk：A Transcultural Question Concerning Techno-Buddhism}},
  year         = {{2018}},
}