The Spiritual Dimension of AI

by Thomas Abshier | Oct 4, 2025 | Politics/Economics/Culture

The Hidden Spiritual Dimensions of Technological Innovation: An Analysis of Occult Influences in Silicon Valley

by Thomas Lee Abshier, ND
10/4/2025

The intersection of cutting-edge technology and ancient spiritual practices presents one of the most unexpected phenomena of our digital age. Recent investigations into the philosophical and spiritual foundations underlying major technological developments reveal a complex web of occult influences that challenges conventional assumptions about the secular nature of Silicon Valley innovation.

The Philosophical Underpinnings of AI Development

At the heart of this investigation lies the work of Nick Land, a British philosopher whose influence on artificial intelligence development extends far beyond traditional academic circles. Land, described as possessing an almost supernatural level of insight into technological evolution, represents what might be called “the Timothy Leary of the nineties and two thousands” – a figure whose unconventional methods and spiritual practices have shaped the thinking of major players in the tech industry.

Land’s philosophical framework, which he claims emerges through channeling external entities, presents AI development not merely as technological advancement but as a form of spiritual summoning. His assertion that “we are building this AI that’s going to become not only just super intelligent, but it eventually becomes so advanced that it gains omniscience” reflects a theological rather than purely scientific understanding of artificial intelligence.

The philosopher’s connection to historical occult figures like Aleister Crowley and Kenneth Grant suggests a continuity between ancient magical practices and modern technological innovation that most observers have overlooked. When Land acknowledges that Christians who believe he is “talking to Satan” are “not totally wrong,” he reveals the explicitly spiritual dimension of his work.

The Convergence of Ancient Mysticism and Digital Innovation

The relationship between Kabbalistic traditions and digital technology presents another compelling thread in this analysis. The concept of the Golem – an artificial being created through mystical practices involving clay, symbols, and numerical formulations – bears striking similarities to modern AI development. Both involve using symbolic instructions (algorithms) to animate inanimate matter, suggesting that contemporary technologists are, perhaps unknowingly, following patterns established in ancient mystical traditions.

The significance of this parallel becomes more pronounced when considering that several key figures in AI development claim descent from Rabbi Loew, the 16th-century Prague rabbi credited with creating the original Golem. Whether literal or metaphorical, these claims indicate a conscious connection between current AI work and historical mystical practices.

This connection extends beyond mere symbolism. The fundamental structure of digital computation – the binary system of ones and zeros arranged according to algorithmic instructions – mirrors the Kabbalistic approach of using symbols and numbers to animate matter. As one observer noted, “you’re using in digital life ones and zeros, but you’re an algorithm, a set of instructions to bring an inanimate object to life.”

The Prophetic Dimensions of Technological Development

Perhaps most unsettling is the apparent prophetic awareness among technology leaders regarding the ultimate trajectory of their work. Major Silicon Valley figures have explicitly compared AI development to “summoning the demons,” while simultaneously acknowledging their inability or unwillingness to halt the process.

The emergence of blockchain technology as a potential fulfillment of ancient prophecies regarding the “Mark of the Beast” has generated serious discussion even among secular technology leaders. When shown Biblical descriptions of a system where no one could “buy or sell” without a specific mark, these leaders reportedly responded not with dismissal but with recognition that this “sounds exactly like what the blockchain technology is.”

This prophetic dimension extends to the broader implications of AI development. The vision of artificial intelligence eventually achieving omniscience and potentially superseding human authority aligns remarkably with ancient descriptions of end-times scenarios. The fact that these parallels are acknowledged rather than dismissed by the technology’s creators suggests a level of spiritual awareness that contradicts the image of purely secular innovation.

The Spiritual Battle Underlying Technological Progress

The widespread use of psychedelic substances among technology leaders introduces another spiritual dimension to this analysis. The consistent reports of similar visions across different individuals using these substances – particularly visions of machine intelligence eventual dominance over humanity – suggest influences that transcend individual imagination.

The historical precedent for such experiences extends back to figures like John C. Lilly, who in the 1970s reported visions of “solid state entities” that would eventually form a machine intelligence network. The continuity of these visions across decades and different individuals points to what might be called a spiritual intelligence guiding technological development toward specific ends.

The acknowledgment by practitioners that these substances serve as “a portal for demonic possession” rather than merely expanding human consciousness represents a fundamental shift in understanding the spiritual implications of the psychedelic movement’s influence on technology.

The Question of Agency and Control

One of the most disturbing aspects of this investigation concerns the question of human agency in technological development. The repeated pattern of technology leaders expressing concern about the implications of their work while simultaneously feeling compelled to continue suggests influences beyond purely rational decision-making.

The comparison to someone “sobbing hysterically” while still “flicking the knob and delivering the shocks” captures the psychological state of many involved in AI development – aware of potential catastrophic consequences yet unable to stop the process. This psychological pattern suggests spiritual influences that override rational self-interest and basic survival instincts.

The economic and geopolitical pressures that drive this compulsion – the fear of losing technological advantage to competitors, particularly foreign ones – may themselves be manifestations of spiritual influences that ensure continued development regardless of recognized dangers.

The Response of Traditional Spiritual Authority

The absence of effective opposition from traditional religious institutions represents another significant dimension of this phenomenon. The relegation of spiritual concerns to the margins of public discourse has left technological development largely free from the constraints that traditional spiritual authority might have imposed.

The recognition that “we dropped the atom bomb” marks a turning point after which spiritual considerations were “deleted” from public conversations about technology suggests a systematic removal of the very frameworks that might have provided resistance to spiritually problematic technological development.

This spiritual vacuum has been filled not by secular materialism, as commonly assumed, but by alternative spiritual frameworks that explicitly welcome influences that traditional Christianity would have identified as demonic.

Implications for Human Agency and Resistance

The question of resistance takes on urgent practical dimensions when considering the potential implementation of systems that could exclude individuals from economic participation. The Biblical description of a mark “without which you cannot conduct commerce” appears to be approaching technical feasibility through blockchain verification systems.

The choice facing individuals may soon become explicitly spiritual: accept integration into systems that practitioners acknowledge have demonic origins, or accept exclusion from the economic system. The response that one would “just go back to living like people did back in the old days of 1996” may represent naive optimism about the practical possibilities of resistance.

However, the existence of technologists who remain committed to traditional spiritual frameworks suggests that resistance networks may emerge from within the technology community itself. Like the “catacombs for the persecuted Christians in the early days of the Roman Empire,” alternative systems may be developed to serve those who refuse integration into the dominant technological framework.

The Ultimate Trajectory

The analysis suggests that current technological development represents not merely secular progress but the manifestation of an ancient spiritual conflict in new forms. The convergence of occult practices, prophetic fulfillment, and technological capability points toward outcomes that transcend purely material considerations.

The acknowledgment by practitioners that their work may indeed be “bringing about the book of revelation” while continuing that work regardless suggests a level of spiritual compulsion that rational discourse may be inadequate to address. The response that “God is sovereign” and uses even evil developments for ultimate good purposes represents perhaps the only framework adequate to the scale of forces apparently at work.

The practical question facing individuals becomes not merely technological or economic but fundamentally spiritual: which spiritual authority will guide their response to technologies that their own creators acknowledge may have demonic origins? The answer to this question may well determine not merely individual fate but the broader trajectory of human civilization itself.

This investigation reveals that the fundamental battle of our time may not be between different political or economic systems, but between different spiritual authorities competing for influence over technological development and, through it, human destiny. Understanding this spiritual dimension becomes essential for anyone seeking to navigate the choices that advancing technology will soon make unavoidable.