A PHILOSOPHICAL COMPARATIVE STUDY OF FIVE AGGREGATES WITH ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE

Abstract

This research article aims to study the doctrine of the five aggregates (pañcakkhandha) in Buddhism, examine the concept of artificial intelligence (AI), and provide a philosophical comparison between the doctrine of the five aggregates and AI in terms of metaphysics, epistemology, and ethics. This study employs a qualitative research methodology, primarily through documentary analysis related to the five aggregates and artificial intelligence. The research findings indicate that, from a Buddhist philosophical perspective, the life of a human or sentient being arises from the combination of the five aggregates: rūpa (form), vedanā (feeling), saññā (perception), saṅkhāra (mental formations), and viññāṇa (consciousness). Collectively, these aggregates are known as nāma-rūpa (name and form), where rūpa refers to the physical elements or body, and nāma refers to the cognitive and affective faculties or mind. The body and mind function interdependently: when the mind initiates intention or thought, the body responds with corresponding action. This interrelation implies that actions are governed by volition (cetanā), and the agent must bear moral responsibility for their behavior. In contrast, artificial intelligence, in its physical dimension, may be likened to the rūpakkhandha (form aggregate) as it operates through algorithms and massive data processing systems. While AI can simulate perception and response mechanisms, it lacks the capacity for real subjective experiences, such as pleasure, pain, or moral discernment, as human beings possess. Philosophical comparison across the three branches of philosophy reveals the following: 1) Metaphysics: In terms of being a living entity, AI lacks key aggregates such as vedanā (the capacity to feel pleasure or pain), saṅkhāra (volitional formations with moral quality), and viññāṇa (genuine consciousness or sentient awareness). AI cannot be regarded as possessing identity, personhood, or moral agency. 2) Epistemology: AI functions through algorithmic processes and the computational organization of data. Its "knowledge" is primarily empirical, generated through data collection and statistical modeling. However, it does not engage in rational analysis or deductive reasoning like human cognition rooted in rationalist epistemology. and 3) Ethics: AI operates mechanistically and lacks intrinsic volition. Consequently, it cannot bear moral responsibility for its actions. Ethical responsibility thus falls upon the creators and operators of AI systems, rather than the AI entities themselves.