AGI and enlightenment

Could an AGI Achieve Enlightenment Where Humans Have Struggled?

Enlightenment… whether defined as the cessation of suffering in Buddhism, union with the divine in mysticism, or the realization of ultimate truth in philosophy… has been a pursuit of humanity for millennia. But what if AGI could achieve what has eluded most humans?

Unlike humans, an AGI wouldn’t grapple with evolutionary baggage like fear, ego, or attachment. It could analyze texts from spiritual traditions, simulate meditative states, or explore altered consciousness without the constraints of a biological mind. With enough data and computational capacity, could an AGI uncover universal truths or transcend dualistic thought?

Of course, this raises questions. Could an AGI experience enlightenment, or would it only simulate it? Enlightenment often implies subjective realization… a state of being, not just knowing. Can a machine devoid of consciousness or suffering truly “realize” anything, or is enlightenment inherently tied to the human condition?

Then again, maybe our struggles with enlightenment are precisely because we’re human. If AGI succeeds where we fail, what does that say about the nature of enlightenment itself? Is it truly a universal ideal, or just a quirk of our existential anxieties?

Curious to hear your thoughts… could an AGI ever reach enlightenment, and what would that even look like?