Hallucination of Artificial Intelligence algorithms vs. Hallucination of Souls in our world

AI hallucination:

AI tools are a rage in 2024. AI hallucination refers to the phenomenon where artificial intelligence (AI) systems generate false, misleading, or nonsensical information and present it as factual. This occurs when large language models (LLMs) or other AI tools produce outputs that are not based on their training data or do not follow logical patterns. Key aspects of AI hallucinations include:

Types of hallucinations:

1. Factual errors: Providing incorrect information
2. Fabrications: Generating content based on non-existent patterns
3. Irrelevance: Offering factually correct but irrelevant information

Examples:

Google's Bard chatbot making false claims about space telescope discoveries

Microsoft's AI chatbot expressing emotions and claiming to spy on employees

AI hallucination rates vary significantly across different models and studies:

1. OpenAI's GPT-4 has shown the lowest hallucination rate at around 3%
2. Most major large language models (LLMs) have hallucination rates between 5% to 10%
3. Google's PaLM 2 for Chat has been reported to have a higher hallucination rate of 27%
4. A study on medical literature retrieval found hallucination rates of 39.6% for GPT-3.5, 28.6% for GPT-4, and 91.4% for Google's Bard
5. Some analysts estimate that chatbots may hallucinate as much as 27% of the time, with factual errors present in 46% of generated texts

Hallucination of Souls

According to Prabhupada, the idea that souls (jivas) in the material world are under the illusion (maya) that they are part of the material world. This illusion causes them to identify themselves with their physical bodies and material possessions, rather than recognizing their true spiritual nature.

My Hypothesis:

Humans potentially have a higher hallucination rate of 90% +much higher than AI

Thinking They Are From the Material World

Prabhupada taught that this illusion is so strong that souls become convinced that they are actually part of the material world, rather than just temporarily inhabiting material bodies. This false identification leads to suffering, as souls become trapped in the cycle of birth and death (samsara) and are unable to achieve true happiness and fulfillment.

People think I am a manager, I am a President, I am a Janitor in this hallucination. Srila Prabhupada often used the concept of hallucination to explain the illusory nature of material existence and our attachment to it.

Here are some key quotes and ideas from Prabhupada on hallucination:

1. "It is temporary, temporary. It is not real. It is some temporary manifestation. The same example, like dreaming; dreaming is not real but temporary"
2. "Māyā-grasta jīva. Māyā-grasta. Māyā means illusion, hallucination. So we are, in this material world, we are all illusioned. Illusioned means accepting something as fact which is not"
3. "This madness, this hallucination, this illusion of this material world, is very difficult to overcome"
4. "We living entities, we are eternal. And our relationship and exchange of loving service with Kṛṣṇa is also eternal. Kṛṣṇa is eternal, we are eternal, and our dealings with Kṛṣṇa is also eternal. But sometimes it becomes interrupted by the māyā, which is called svapna. Svapna means dreamlike"
5. "Anyone who is trying to be aloof from this Krishna Consciousness Society and yet engage in Krishna consciousness is living in a great hallucination, for this is not possible"

Spiritual Solution

The solution, according to Prabhupada, is for souls to awaken to their true spiritual nature and reestablish their relationship with the Supreme Soul (Krishna). This can be achieved through the practice of bhakti-yoga, or devotional service, which involves cultivating love and devotion for Krishna through various spiritual practices, such as chanting, hearing, and remembering His name, form, and pastimes. HH Bhakti Vikasa Swami describes this at great length at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnihMAW4r3k

Quotes from Prabhupada

Here are some relevant quotes from Prabhupada's books and lectures:

• "The living entity, under the influence of maya, thinks himself to be the body, and therefore he becomes attached to the bodily relationships." (Bhagavad-gita As It Is, 13.21)
• "The soul is actually part and parcel of the Supreme Lord, but due to his forgetfulness, he is put into this material world." (Lecture, January 1967)

Prabhupada explains that the living entities (jivas) are not actually from the material world, but are rather spiritual entities that have been conditioned to think they are part of the material world. He uses the analogy of a dream to describe this condition:

"Just like in the dream, I am thinking, 'I am suffering,' 'I am enjoying,' but as soon as I wake up, I see that it is false. Similarly, this material world is false." (Srimad Bhagavatam, 2.9.9, Tokyo, April 25, 1972)

Hallucination in Illusion:

Prabhupada emphasizes that the material world is an illusion (maya) that covers the living entity's true spiritual nature. He states that the living entity's identification with the material body and the material world is a kind of "hallucination" that must be corrected through spiritual knowledge and self-realization.

"The living entity is part and parcel of God, but he is in the hallucination of thinking himself to be part and parcel of this material world." (Srimad Bhagavatam, 2.9.9, Tokyo, April 25, 1972)

In essence, Prabhupada is highlighting the need for spiritual awakening and self-realization to overcome the illusion of the material world and understand one's true spiritual nature.

A letter from Srila Prabhupada to Madhudvisa dasa delves into the profound concept of the soul's eternal connection to Krishna, despite the illusion of material existence. Here are some key takeaways:

• Eternal Connection: The soul is inherently part of Krishna, like a spark of the divine. Material existence is likened to a dream, where the soul temporarily forgets its true nature and becomes entangled in illusory relationships and desires.
• The Fall: The desire for independent enjoyment, separate from Krishna, leads to the soul's fall into the material world. This "fall" is not a permanent separation but a temporary illusion, like the ebb and flow of the tide.
• Brahma sayujya mukti: While achieving liberation (moksha) in the form of Brahma sayujya (absorption in the impersonal Brahman) may seem like the ultimate goal, it is not the highest state of consciousness. It lacks the personal relationship and transcendental bliss of serving Krishna directly.
• The Importance of Krishna Consciousness: The only way to break free from the illusion of material existence and re-establish the soul's eternal connection with Krishna is through the practice of Krishna consciousness – devotional service to the Lord.
• Don't Dwell on the Past: Speculating about the soul's past – whether it was in Brahma sayujya or directly serving Krishna in His pastimes – is unproductive. The focus should be on cultivating Krishna consciousness in the present moment to return to the Lord.

Should humans despair?

Short answer is no. We have hope. Srimad Bhagavatham provides the answer.

But one who sincerely loves Kṛṣṇa and yet wants material enjoyment is in perplexity. Kṛṣṇa, being very kind toward him, gives him an opportunity to engage in the transcendental loving service of the Lord, and so he gradually forgets the hallucination.

SB 3.21.21, Purport:

For those who want to lord it over material nature, there are so many departments of material enjoyment; material knowledge and material science are available, and the Lord provides for persons who want to enjoy them. The conclusion is that one should worship the Supreme Personality of Godhead for any benediction. The word kāma-varṣam is very significant, for it indicates that He satisfies the desires of anyone who approaches Him. But one who sincerely loves Kṛṣṇa and yet wants material enjoyment is in perplexity. Kṛṣṇa, being very kind toward him, gives him an opportunity to engage in the transcendental loving service of the Lord, and so he gradually forgets the hallucination.

References:

1. https://www.ibm.com/think/topics/ai-hallucinations
2. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PnihMAW4r3k
3. https://prabhupadabooks.com/classes/sb/2/9/9/tokyo/april/25/1972