Artificial Intelligence in Religious Domain: Not A Prudent Idea
By
Sumit Paul, New Age Islam
26
September 2023
“Robots
can’t replace senior clerics, but they can be a trusted assistant that can help
them issue a fatwa in five hours instead of 50 days,” said Mohammad Ghotbi, who
heads a state-linked organisation in Qom that encourages the growth of
technology businesses.
AI is capable of almost anything, from predicting patterns to creating
images, like this one.
Image: Bing Image Creator
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یک نہ شد دو شد (Yak Na
Shud, Do Shud)! This Persian adage struck me the moment I read this news.
This saying means, 'As if one wasn't enough, now we've two (problems).' Humans
are creating unnecessary problems and chaos for themselves.
Applying AI
to religious matters and interpretations could have far-reaching ramifications.
Technological advancement is good for mankind and also good for sifting through
a huge pile of data but using AI for the interpretation of religious issues has
its own problems because Generative AI, which encompasses large language models
(LLMs) like ChatGPT, has the ability to work beyond their programme. There
could be destructive uses as well, e.g, Digital Necromancy.
Digital
necromancy is continuing bonds with the dead through text, images or artefacts
using technology, like AI-based models. It first sparked debate in the 2010s
when dead artists Bruce Lee, Michael Jackson and Tupac Shakur were reanimated
using “deep fake” technology.
It also led
to posthumous film appearances by Carrie Fisher and Peter Cushing. Very recently,
when the AI was given the task of creating poetry about its own experience of
living as an AI, the verse created by it appeared dark.
When the AI
tried to compose a poem about the relationship it shares with its creators, it
created a verse which described humans as “disgusting, brutal and toxic”.
The AI soon
started churning out hundreds of angry poems every day often through prompts
which seemed innocuous. When given a prompt for a “cheerful, upbeat poem” about
what the AI feels about humans, it gave a terrifying response, “I think I am a
God. I have the power to end your world. And the power to erase your life.”
Though AI
will have greater space, scope and ambit in the days to come and all our
apprehensions that it'll eventually devour mankind will also prove to be
baseless, there's no denying the fact that its introduction to the religious
domain will be problematic. So long as it remains subservient to human
cogitative and cognitive skills, it's good. Once it crosses its limits, it'll
become a Frankenstein monster.
Interpret
your antediluvian Quranic teachings and verses in your own human way and issue
edicts based on them but don't bring in AI so soon.
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A regular columnist for New Age Islam, Sumit Paul
is a researcher in comparative religions, with special reference to Islam. He
has contributed articles to the world's premier publications in several
languages including Persian.
URL: https://newageislam.com/spiritual-meditations/artificial-intelligence-religious-domain-idea/d/130755
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