Developed at a cost of almost $1 million, it is meant to attract youngsters towards Buddhism

By | Published: 4:17 pm

A 400-year-old temple in Japan is attempting to hot-wire interest in Buddhism with a robotic priest it believes will change the face of the religion. The android Kannon, based on the Buddhist deity of mercy, preaches sermons at Kodaiji temple in Kyoto, and its human colleagues predict that with artificial intelligence it could one day acquire unlimited wisdom.

“This robot will never die, it will just keep updating itself and evolving. That’s the beauty of a robot. With AI, we hope it will grow in wisdom to help people overcome even the most difficult troubles. It’s changing Buddhism,” said priest Tensho Goto.

The adult-sized robot began service earlier this year and is able to move its torso, arms and head. Clasping its hands together in prayer and speaking in soothing tones, wiring and blinking lights fill the cranial cavity of its open-top head and snake around its gender-neutral, aluminium body.A tiny video camera installed in the left eye completes an eerie, cyborg-like frame seemingly lifted straight out of a dystopian Hollywood sci-fi thriller.

Developed at a cost of almost $1m in a joint project between the Zen temple and renowned robotics professor Hiroshi Ishiguro at Osaka University, the humanoid — called Mindar — teaches about compassion and of the dangers of desire, anger and ego.With religion’s influence on daily life flat-lining in Japan, Goto hopes Kodaiji’s robot priest will be able to reach younger generations in a way traditional monks can’t.