IDAPPACCAYATĀ: THE NATURAL LAW THAT EVEN AI CANNOT ALTER

Abstract

This academic article aims to examine and analyze the principle of Idappaccayatā as a universal natural law governing all phenomena and its relationship with Artificial Intelligence (AI) in the modern era. Idappaccayatā or the law of conditionality is an immutable natural law that exists independently of the Buddha’s birth or technological advancements. AI, being a human-made technology, is classified as Sankhata-dhamma (conditioned phenomena), shaped by factors such as data, algorithms, and energy. Consequently, AI is bound by the laws of cause and effect. Despite its advanced processing capabilities, AI cannot alter the fundamental causal systems that control world existence and life processes. Understanding Idappaccayatā empowers humans to realize that they are not victims of technology or fate but possess the free will to initiate new causal factors through Viriya (effort) and Panna (wisdom), thereby mindfully steering their lives and society in the digital age.