Throughout much of Buddhist history, and particularly in Theravada Buddhist contexts, mindfulness and its associated meditation methods have been the purview of mendicants (monks and nuns), who used mindfulness meditation to achieve trance states (jhana) leading to nirvana.
—
Charles Preston,
Encyclopedia Britannica,
30 Apr. 2026
But those states also have Republican governors, who would have raised holy hell if their constituents had been menaced by these roving mobs of mendicants.
Oddly enough, Iran and Afghanistan, both ruled by clerics, are the only countries in the world that still regularly stage public executions.
—
Dexter Filkins,
New Yorker,
14 Oct. 2026
Yes, those of us who are both excited and nervous about the promise of AI welcome the prospect of kings and clerics and populist politicians alike standing up to the tech lords — who, frankly, could use some perspectives other than their own.
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