Longquan Temple Develops Robo-Monk to Interact With Visitors

It’s not unheard of for Buddhist temples to use technology or social media to promote their Zen agenda, but this is the first time we are aware of (not including the Korean film Doomsday Book) that a monastery has made use of robotics to attract followers.

Longquan (Dragon Spring) Temple has developed a cute pudgy A.I. monk named “Xian’er,” to interact with visitors and dispel simple Buddhist doctrines among tech-savvy followers seeking enlightenment. The robot can answer simple Q&A type questions (we were unaware the Buddhism was capable of using simple Q&A), and sense and interact with its surrounding area. The character comes from a comic strip they also produce called “Trouble, You Seek For Yourself,” that dispenses easily digestible words of wisdom to followers.

Longquan Temple made news last year for being one of the most technologically advanced monasteries in Asia. After recruiting programmers from several prestigious universities, they succeeded in developing a digital infrastructure complete with electronic book-lending system and mobile platforms compatible with Android and iOS. Monks have even been chanting with iPads in hand since 2011.

While robots are probably still years away from experiencing enlightenment or the general benefits of transcendental meditation, this is an interesting example of secularizing technology that might eventually lead to A.I.yatollahs or Robo-bishops. The essential question here is, can A.I. one day outperform humanity in religion as well?

photos: http://www.scmp.com, http://en.gmw.cn