Hare Krishna.

What is the Bhagavad Gita’s perspective on ChatGPT?

ChatGPT is a highly advanced AI language model that has taken the world—especially the technologically developed world—by storm. Its ability to generate coherent text, answer complex questions, and even compose essays and articles represents a remarkable leap in artificial intelligence. But what does this mean from a spiritual perspective, particularly that of the Bhagavad Gita?

1. Divine Spark in Human Creativity

The Bhagavad Gita (10.41) states that “Wherever there is any opulence, beauty, or extraordinary power, know that to be a spark of My splendor.”

From this lens, the fascination and attraction that ChatGPT evokes can be seen as a manifestation of Krishna’s divine brilliance. As students of the Gita, we are encouraged to see the divine in all wondrous things. The astonishing capabilities of ChatGPT are not just a tribute to technology but also to the creative intelligence of the human minds that developed it. And those minds, as the Gita tells us, are themselves parts of the divine (mamaivamsho jiva-loke, 15.7).

Just as the Supreme Being is infinitely creative, we—being His parts—also have creative capacities. When we see the marvel of a technology like ChatGPT, we are glimpsing a reflection of the Supreme Creator’s ingenuity. Thus, the Gita invites us to remember Krishna not only in temples but also in the wonders of the modern world.

2. Outsourcing and the Essence of Humanity

Human history has long involved outsourcing difficult tasks—using grinding stones, carts, calculators, and machines to handle physical or intellectual labor. In earlier times, people were often reduced to their hands, as in the phrase “all hands on deck,” because manual work was the primary contributor to society.

However, we don’t define a machine that replaces physical labor as “human.” That understanding has pushed us to realize that humanity is more than just physicality. Similarly, as technologies like ChatGPT begin to perform cognitive tasks—tasks once considered uniquely human—we are prompted to ask: What truly defines us as human beings?

The Bhagavad Gita goes deeper: we are not just our bodies, nor even our brains or intellects. We are conscious beings—the atma, a spiritual self distinct from both body and mind. This consciousness is what enables us to use, appreciate, and be amazed by technologies like ChatGPT. And this consciousness cannot be replicated by any machine, no matter how sophisticated.

3. Intelligence ≠ Identity

ChatGPT represents a mechanical synthesis of information—scanning, sorting, and assembling data at astonishing speed. It can research, structure, and even simulate insight. But it is not conscious. It is not self-aware. It does not experience, reflect, or aspire.

This distinction is crucial. The Gita teaches that intellectual capacity is not the essence of identity. Technologies may replicate tasks of the mind, but not the essence of the soul. They can organize data, but they cannot seek truth. They can simulate personality, but they cannot possess personhood.

4. Technology as a Tool, Not a Truth

One of the risks with powerful technologies is that we may begin to see them as infallible. While ChatGPT can answer a wide array of questions, even its creators acknowledge its limitations—it can inherit biases, make mistakes, and lacks true understanding. It is a tool created by fallible humans, and thus it too is fallible.

The Bhagavad Gita reminds us that tools are not ends in themselves. We are not just seekers of means; we are seekers of meaning. When we confuse means with meaning, we fall into illusion.

Yes, ChatGPT can provide information—sometimes even structured, insightful content. But what we do with that information is what truly matters. That decision-making power rests with the conscious self—the atma. Our consciousness shapes the quality of our reflections, actions, and ultimately, our fulfillment.

5. ChatGPT as a Pre-Writer, Not a Life-Writer

We might see ChatGPT as a sophisticated “pre-writer”—an assistant that offers raw material or structured drafts. But the ultimate writing of our lives—our thoughts, choices, values, and relationships—must be authored by us. Conscious beings use tools to find purpose, not to outsource purpose itself.

The Gita teaches that fulfillment does not come from simply accessing knowledge but from using it to live wisely and harmoniously with our spiritual nature.

Conclusion:

In conclusion, technologies like ChatGPT can be seen as remarkable reflections of divine opulence, and they can even assist us in our spiritual growth—if used with discernment. But they cannot substitute our search for identity, purpose, and fulfillment.

Ultimately, ChatGPT processes strings of zeros and ones at mind-boggling speeds. But behind the screen, it is still data. It is we—the conscious souls—who bring life, meaning, and value to what we create and how we use it.

Let us use the means to discover meaning. And let us always remember that true meaning and fulfillment lie not in the tools we build, but in the truths we realize.

Thank you.