The Golem, the Djinni, and ChatGPT: Artificial Intelligence and the Islamicate Occult Sciences
What do golems, talismans, and Artificial Intelligence (AI) share? How would Ibn Sīnā have classified ChatGPT? Must AI be de-mythologized, or can mythos help us navigate a strange new world? Why does AI seem occult, and is ChatGPT a pricey talisman? These questions offer insight into theological con...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | |
| Interlibrary Loan: | Interlibrary Loan for the Fachinformationsdienste (Specialized Information Services in Germany) |
| Published: |
2025
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| In: |
Theology and science
Year: 2025, Volume: 23, Issue: 1, Pages: 147-166 |
| RelBib Classification: | AA Study of religion AG Religious life; material religion BJ Islam YA Natural sciences ZG Media studies; Digital media; Communication studies |
| Further subjects: | B
Religion and science
B Islamicate occult sciences B ChatGPT B Artificial Intelligence B Magic B re-enchantment of modernity B Occultism |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (kostenfrei) |
| Summary: | What do golems, talismans, and Artificial Intelligence (AI) share? How would Ibn Sīnā have classified ChatGPT? Must AI be de-mythologized, or can mythos help us navigate a strange new world? Why does AI seem occult, and is ChatGPT a pricey talisman? These questions offer insight into theological concerns about AI, including (1) human exceptionalism, (2) creating new beings, (3) objects knowing, and (4) metaphors other than a demon or demigod. This article examines AI through a classical Islamicate occult paradigm to better grasp what it is, metaphysically speaking, and how developments in AI might outmode some post-Enlightenment worldviews. |
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| ISSN: | 1474-6719 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Theology and science
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1080/14746700.2024.2436785 |