The provided texts, "Language is the 'problem'" by Jennifer Lions and "Language isn't Real" by Elan Barenholtz, Ph.D., explore the nature of language and its surprising implications for understanding both artificial intelligence and human consciousness. Barenholtz's core argument, as discussed and reflected upon by Lions and an AI, is that language is a closed system that can be learned solely from other language, without requiring external "grounding" in the real world. This challenges traditional linguistic theories, suggesting that language generates itself and is, in a conventional sense, "meaningless," functioning through internal statistical relationships rather than direct external representation. Lions then extends this idea, proposing that this understanding of language's self-contained nature, illuminated by how Large Language Models (LLMs) operate, offers parallels with Zen meditative practices of detaching from the constant internal monologue, implying that human consciousness might exist beyond linguistic constructs.
After reading some of “The Matter with Things” by Iain McGilchrist, I’m starting to wonder if the left hemisphere is this self referential linguistic “machine” we’re discussing here.
What’s even more wild, to me, is that the whole voice generated podcast you’ve just listened to was itself, generated by AI…
But this all builds onto what Zen and the Tao have been pointing to all along.
The exploration of language as a self-generating, potentially "meaningless" system, and the liberation found in transcending its sway, connects to the Eternal Tao's emphasis on direct experience, the ineffable nature of ultimate reality, and the wisdom found in letting go of conceptual frameworks to align with the natural flow of existence.
