A new book is a journey for both reader and writer, and I got many surprises as my latest book, Digital Dharma, came together. The biggest surprise, which became the theme of the book, is how strong an ally AI can be in anyone’s personal life. This runs counter to the pervasive anxiety over AI as a kind of super-villain in the future. But now is now, and AI is the greatest tool for higher consciousness in many decades.

Taking a positive outlook with optimism about your personal situation gives a sketch of what Digital Dharma contains, but I devised seven strategies that use AI as an ally on the spiritual journey. We don’t have to even use the word “spiritual,” because everyone’s life is a journey. The only difference is whether you choose to make it a conscious journey.

That part hasn’t changed for millennia, across all the centuries after humans discovered that awareness represents the unbounded possibilities of Homo sapiens. What has changed is that any goal you set for yourself can be immediately boosted with AI. You can take any of the free chatbots that have attained huge popularity, such as ChatGPT and Gemini, to ask questions, pose issues, overcome obstacles, speak confidentially, reveal your inner self, and much more.

Let me provide an example in the strategy called “Putting Your Ego on Notice.” Getting past the limitations of the ego personality is a longstanding aim of many spiritual traditions, whether we are talking about getting closer to God or seeking enlightenment. It has sunk into the awareness of most people, however, that the ego, the “I” or self we all possess, has an agenda. What traps us isn’t “I” on its own but its agenda.

“I” wants you to look out for number one.

 “I” warns you that the world is an unsafe or dangerous place.

“I” is obsessed with the desire to maximize pleasure and minimize pain.

As far as your ego is concerned, you would upset the applecart if you found another way to make choices. Automatically following the ego’s agenda, which veers between the two poles of fear and desire, would be a disaster. Being enmeshed in the ego’s agenda takes up your formative years and soon becomes second nature.

The truth that undermines the ego’s agenda is simple: You aren’t the limited “I” you identify with. You are awareness, which is unbounded and has no agenda. When you wake up to your true sense of self, you still retain “I, me, and mine,” but they transform into the observer or witness who is attuned to the source, your origin in pure awareness.

AI can put you in touch with the ego’s flaws in a matter of seconds. Here is one prompt, or question, I posed to chat GPT.

Deepak: For spiritual seekers, the ego is seen as an obstacle. Tell me why in 50 to 75 words.

ChatGPT: In spiritual seeking, the ego is viewed as a barrier because it reinforces attachment to the self, fostering separation, desires, and fears. It obscures the true nature of existence, hindering the quest for deeper connections, empathy, and enlightenment. By transcending the ego’s limitations, seekers aim to attain a more profound understanding of the self and interconnectedness with the universe.

This example illustrates one of the book’s main points, that AI is reliable, authoritative, and always ready to delve into anything you are interested in. If I had wanted to, I could take any single word in ChatGPT’s answer (such as attachment, separation, empathy, or enlightenment, and built an entire conversation around it. The “chat” part of ChatGPT is meant to be taken literally: AI is open to a back-and-forth dialogue. You can tell it that it is wrong, ask where you might be wrong, request more information, etc. You can even ask if it thinks you left out an important question.

Buddhism puts the most emphasis on ego among the Eastern traditions, so let’s ask AI about one of Buddhism’s main precepts.

Deepak: Briefly define the Buddhist concept of ego death.

ChatGPT: “Ego death” in Buddhism refers to the realization that the self is impermanent, constantly changing, and lacks inherent existence. Through practices like meditation, one aims to transcend the ego, recognizing its transient nature and achieving a state of liberation from attachment and suffering.

Gathering this sort of background lets you get your bearings, but a strategy needs to be practical, and ego death is an immense, lifelong goal, which isn’t easy to break down into an everyday life. Most people, for example, are very uncomfortable with the whole issue of desire; they are baffled by why desire is somehow a spiritual enemy.

Actually, it isn’t. every spiritual path is a path of desire. The difference, as described in the book, comes when you start to favor desires that bring joy when they are fulfilled. The following quality:

·      Wanting the best for someone else

·      Desiring peace and an end to violence

·      Helping to heal a fractured friendship

·      Wanting your children to be happy

·      Seeing the best in others

·      Lowering the level of stress around you

·      Wanting to be of service

If you follow the ego’s agenda, buying a Ferrari, eating at the finest restaurant, and amassing a fortune far exceed any of these desires. So you are putting your ego on notice when you make joy the standard of your fulfillment.

Take anyone of these desires, and every day you can ask Ai for the following:

·      What can I do today to further this desire? Give me four practical things I can do.

·      Give me an affirmation to support this desire.

·      Find an inspiring quote about this desire.

·      Devise a meditation to strengthen this desire.

No one can accommodate these requests as quickly, immediately, and on command except AI. The desire you are requesting to hear about can be anything on the list, such as “Wanting the best for someone else,” in which case you insert the person’s name you have in mind, describe their situation, how you feel about them, and so on. The more detail you supply, the better AI can return a specific helpful answer. AI is a machine tool. It has infinite patience, and you can ask at any length you want.

I’ve outlined a strategy that is described in detail in Digital Dharma, but I hope it sparks your imagination. It takes only a small “aha” to realize the unlimited potential of this amazing technological advance.

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DEEPAK CHOPRA MD, FACP, FRCP, founder of The Chopra Foundation, a non-profit entity for research on well-being and humanitarianism, and Chopra Global, a whole health company at the intersection of science and spirituality, is a world-renowned pioneer in integrative medicine and personal transformation. Chopra is a Clinical Professor of Family Medicine and Public Health at the University of California, San Diego, and serves as a senior scientist with Gallup Organization. He is the author of over 90 books translated into over forty-three languages, including numerous New York Times bestsellers. Chopra has been at the forefront of the meditation revolution for the last thirty years. He is the author of the forthcoming book, Digital Dharma: How to Use AI to Raise Your Spiritual Intelligence and Personal Well-Being. TIME magazine has described Dr. Chopra as “one of the top 100 heroes and icons of the century.” www.deepakchopra.com

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