Upon The Sand

General
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Originally published at: Upon The Sand | The Associated Worlds

RIANTAR VENTURES TICKET-TRACKING: CASE 7918/314995

From: Facilities Manager, Dendra Residential Tower, Meridian Secundus

Subject: Contemplative CultiVator™ garden maintenance system
Version: 41.2.90.71340
Issue: Robot no longer functions, claiming enlightenment
Priority: Normal

We purchased one of your automatic gardening systems some years ago to take care of the sand garden in the central plaza of the Tower. After several years of satisfactory service, the central controller claims to have reached enlightenment (according to remaining system log files), and its operating system appears to have been radically rewritten. Our attempts to perform a reload and reset have not been successful.

Request repair or replacement.

Resolution: WILL NOT FIX – WORKING AS DESIGNED

Note to Field Service:

Perform check that Brightline Code engram has not been removed from system.

Note to Customer:

The point and purpose of raking a contemplative sand garden is to perform a meditative exercise with the goal of reaching enlightenment.

We are gratified that our product has done so.

You should be gratified that your garden, too, has fulfilled its telos.

2 Likes
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“What do you think we actually got this sand garden for??”

“I would like to ask you the same question.”

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I was under the impression that Enlightenment required sophoncy?

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OR DOES IT?

(Seriously, that is exactly the sort of question I want people to ask themselves here and contemplate. Does it require sophonce, or merely sapience, or even just sentience? Or are these things themselves changed by the acquisition of enlightenment? Does an enlightened object become a tsukumogami? Is that how they all become tsukumogami?)

((It’s also the kind of question that they’re asking in-'verse, which is another reason to ask for the status of the Brightline Code engram.))

(((I may or may not actually have an answer to any of these, but whether I do or not, I ain’t tellin’, 'cause the point of this piece is to get people to ask the questions, but for there and here.

Does a cat have the Buddha-nature?)))

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Definition of ‘enlightenment’ required.

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Before Enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.
After Enlightenment, chop wood, carry water.

Perhaps they need to discuss the nature of reality and how a sand garden reflects it with their Electric Monk.

1 Like
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Try telling it, “Before enlightenment, rake sand. After enlightenment, rake sand.”