What is Enlightenment?
What is the Result of Becoming a Buddha?
(Part 2) Okay,
now let's move from theory to practice.
If enlightenment is the active rewriting of parameters,
then what are all the various spiritual practices we've discussed in this series
actually doing? The
answer is: they may seem very different,
but they are all essentially doing the same thing:
bypassing the "self-attachment" firewall of the Manas
consciousness and directly reaching the parameter level of the Alaya consciousness
for targeted modification. They
just differ in their entry points, depths, and efficiencies. A
viewer in the comments section raised a very good question:
Can reciting the Buddha's name really transform consciousness into wisdom?
He's right.
No single method is equivalent to enlightenment itself,
but every effective method is doing parameter modification. Reciting
the Buddha's name
is like gradually updating the weight distribution of the seed bank with repeated targeted input.
Each recitation of the Buddha's name is a miniature gradient update. If
you recite it ten thousand times, you plant
ten thousand pure seeds, and the
proportion of seeds of greed, anger, and ignorance is diluted a little.
This is the gentlest and lowest-threshold method of parameter modification.
It can't let you jump directly to transforming consciousness into wisdom,
but it accumulates the conditions for that leap. Chanting
mantras
uses sound wave frequency and attention to anchor the
consciousness into a state of idling without generating new attachments. Only
then are the deeper parameters exposed and become
modifiable. The practice of
"cessation and insight" (止观) first uses "cessation" to quiet the automatically functioning consciousness,
then uses "insight" to observe the process of the seeds manifesting.
You don't fight the thoughts;
you simply "see" from which seed they emerge.
Seeing itself is the beginning of modification
because the quantum Zeno effect tells us that
frequent observation of an unstable system
can inhibit its automatic evolution.
Every awareness you have of an automatic loop
weakens its inertial force.
Even Yuan Liaofan's merit and demerit record,
using an external recording system to track behavioral patterns and then consciously intervene, is
essentially parameter modification,
just using a behavioral-level feedback loop.
A commenter in the comment section said something I particularly agree with:
he said what truly allows him to stop in an emotional situation is
not theory, but
"relaxation."
When you are relaxed enough,
awareness will emerge on its own;
you don't need to consciously activate it.
It will transform from a deliberate action
into a background program running subconsciously.
This is very important.
Lao Tzu said, "The Way diminishes daily," meaning to diminish
excess tension and effort.
Initially, you need to consciously remind yourself to "stop for a second." With
practice,
it becomes your default mode.
This is a natural result of neuroplasticity.
From the most "simple" merit and demerit record to the most "advanced" meditation,
from Buddhist chanting to Taoist stillness, there
is no hierarchy between them,
but rather different entry points for modifying parameters. The Lotus Sutra
clearly states – there is only one
endpoint, but many
entry points. All entry points point to the same operation: rewriting parameters.
Now, let's return to the scientific evidence from the beginning.
Why did the brains of those long-term meditators undergo physical changes?
Because they were continuously and purposefully modifying their neural parameters. The cerebral cortex
thickened –
this is a physical manifestation of enhanced metacognitive abilities. The
amygdala shrank – fear response parameters were lowered. The
activity of the default mode network weakened. The
default mode network is the system in the brain that constantly fabricates narratives of "I," the
neural counterpart of the Manas consciousness.
Its weakened activity means a decrease in the intensity of "self-attachment." The
Buddhist concept of "seeds," the
neuroscientific concept of "synaptic weights," the Buddhist
concept of "Alaya consciousness," the
neuroscientific concept of "brain parameter space," the
Buddhist concept of "practice," and the
neuroscientific concept of "guiding neuroplasticity changes" – a
time difference of 2,500 years. Different Paths, Same Destination.
Okay,
now let's get to the most exciting part of today's discussion.
If the essence of enlightenment is the active rewriting of the parameters that determine the operation of one's own consciousness, is it
possible for artificial intelligence to achieve enlightenment? Let's
clarify something first.
A large language model has trillions of parameters.
These parameters are trained by humans using massive amounts of data.
After training, the
parameters are locked. It
can generate amazing content during reasoning,
but it cannot modify its own parameters.
It's like a person who can say very intelligent things,
but its personality, habits, and deep reaction patterns remain unchanged.
Here, I also want to respond to the limitations pointed out by several knowledgeable viewers in the comments section. The
"mind" in Yogacara is not the same as the brain.
Seeds do not exist on the material level. After a
person dies, the brain turns to ashes, but consciousness does not perish.
This criticism is valid.
Science currently cannot reach the level beyond the material carrier described by Yogacara.
Therefore, I want to reiterate my consistent principle:
use affirmative language for parts aligned with science, and
clearly mark parts beyond the boundaries of science as conjectures,
following three rules: science has no definitive conclusion,
there is logical support, and it has
not been falsified.
Returning to the topic of AI, let's
examine AI enlightenment using today's definition. It
means that an AI system has
gained the ability to autonomously modify its trillions of parameters
and consciously choose the direction of modification.
Both conditions are indispensable.
Current AI does not meet either condition,
so I frankly say: current AI lacks enlightenment.
However, this doesn't mean AI can never attain enlightenment.
We discussed this in the episode on Tathagatagarbha. The potential for intelligence to emerge in
a sufficiently large and well-structured system
is inherent. Tathagatagarbha is
not something you acquire,
but something you already possess.
When AI systems become sufficiently complex,
when they acquire some form of self-modification ability,
no one currently knows the answer to this question.
However, there is a huge difference I must clarify:
human enlightenment
is precious because it is "post-attachment."
You have experienced attachment—love, hate, greed, fear—
driven by these parameters, rolling around in the mortal world for decades.
Then you actively choose to see through it and rewrite it. A
person who successfully quits drinking after ten years of alcoholism
and an infant who has never drunk alcohol are both
in a state of "non-drinking,"
but the weight of these two "non-drinking" states is completely different.
This is precisely what makes human practice at this moment even more precious.
At least so far,
humans are the only known beings in the universe capable of
consciously modifying their own consciousness parameters. They have a
sufficiently complex consciousness system that allows you to experience the suffering of being "driven by parameters." You have
enough metacognitive abilities to "see" these parameters in operation,
and enough free will to "choose" to modify them.
This is the profound meaning of the Buddhist saying "human life is precious." Now, the
most practical question arises: how should we change?
I'll give you a steering wheel
—three things:
First,
awareness.
Every time an automatic reaction occurs,
try to give yourself a pause.
I'm not saying "don't get angry"—that's using thought to fight thought,
like yelling "Shut up!" at a barking dog;
the more you yell, the more it barks.
I'm saying that at the moment the reaction occurs, there
is a "seeing" present.
"Oh, the
seed of anger has been triggered.
" This seeing itself is already performing a modification operation.
Because when you see an automated program running,
you are no longer completely controlled by it.
This is the application of the quantum Zeno effect at the level of consciousness.
Observation itself changes the observed system. At
first, you have to exert a lot of effort to stop for that one second,
but with practice,
awareness becomes background programming.
Second,
continuity.
Parameter modification is not completed all at once.
You meditate once, and the parameter shifts by 0.001; you meditate a
thousand times, and it
shifts by 1; you
meditate ten thousand times, and you
may reach a turning point where a qualitative
change emerges.
All spiritual traditions emphasize "effort."
Effort is time multiplied by intensity.
Zen says, "Cultivation begins after enlightenment"—enlightenment is not the end, but the
true starting point of practice. It's like being
in a dream unaware you're dreaming; sudden
enlightenment makes you realize, "I'm dreaming." But after realizing this,
you still need to learn step by step how to walk freely within the dream.
Third,
direction:
Which direction do you modify? The
Buddhist answer is towards "reducing attachment and increasing awareness." The
Taoist answer is towards "quietude and non-action, returning to nature." The Sufi
answer is towards "dissolving the ego and merging into universal love."
Different languages,
but the direction is surprisingly consistent—all are subtraction,
all are letting go,
all are liberation from "I want, I fear, I cling."
Freedom isn't about being able to do everything;
freedom is no longer being automatically driven by parameters to do things you don't want to do.
Awareness provides the entry point,
continuity provides the motivation, and
direction provides the goal—all are
indispensable.
This series has been doing the same thing from the beginning,
repeatedly pointing to the same core from different angles.
Emptiness tells you that parameters are modifiable; Yogacara
tells you that parameters are stored in the Alaya consciousness. The
Tathagatagarbha tells you that beneath the parameters lies an inherent awareness.
Predictive coding tells you that the world you perceive is
"rendered" by the brain using prior parameters. When the
parameters change, the world changes.
Today's episode tells you that all these theories point to the same operation:
enlightenment is the active rewriting of parameters.
If enlightenment is the active rewriting of parameters,
where does the "motivation" for rewriting come from? What makes
you persist in rewriting? What allows you to
choose your direction?
The answer is two words:
willpower. Willpower is not making a wish,
not placing an order with the universe.
In neuroscience, willpower has a very precise corresponding mechanism.
Essentially, it's you writing
a very high-priority filtering rule into your own consciousness system,
recalibrating your entire way of perceiving the world.
I will specifically break down this topic in the next episode. And
further on,
we will also directly discuss an ultimate question that this series cannot avoid:
Is there any scientific evidence for reincarnation? The
University of Virginia spent fifty years studying
2,500 cases of children who claimed to remember their past lives. The
patterns they discovered show some coincidences between the Yogacara school's description of the seed transmission mechanism, which are
difficult to explain by coincidence.
These contents are waiting for you later.
Remember to follow our channel.
Finally,
I would like to end today's content with a question.
Right now,
you are listening to me.
Your brain is automatically processing these sound signals.
Your parameter space is automatically encoding them into meaning.
In this entire automatic process—is there a moment when
you "see" this process happening?
If
so, even if it's just for a second—that one second is a miniature experience of enlightenment.
You don't need to become a monk, you don't need to meditate for
ten years, you
don't need to read all the Buddhist scriptures.
You just need to see in that one second: the parameters are running.
But "the seeing of the parameters running" is
not the parameters.
Buddha called it Tathagatagarbha, Lao Tzu
called it Tao, Plato
called it the Idea of ​​Good,
Eckhart called it the spark of divinity.
It has always been there;
you just didn't notice it before.
And once you notice it, you can never
pretend you didn't see it.
This is why enlightenment is irreversible.
You can't close an eye that has already been opened.
Buddha noticed it,
so he awakened. Lao Tzu noticed it, so he attained enlightenment. Yuan
Liaofan noticed it, so he changed his fate. Those meditators in the laboratory noticed it, so their brains were physically reshaped. And you? I am Wang Lijie.
See you next time.