中英對照讀新聞》400-year-old Japan temple puts faith in robot priest 400年歷史的日本寺廟，對機器人宣教士寄予厚望

◎劉宜庭

A 400-year-old temple in Japan is attempting to hot-wire interest in Buddhism with a robotic priest.

日本一座擁有400年歷史的寺廟，正試圖透過一具機器人宣教士，引燃大眾對佛法的興趣。

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The android Kannon, based on the Buddhist deity of mercy, preaches sermons at Kodaiji temple in Kyoto, and its human colleagues predict that with artificial intelligence it could one day acquire unlimited wisdom.

這具以佛教大慈大悲之神「觀音」為原型的類人形機器人，在京都高台寺布道，它的人類同仁預期，機器人有朝一日將可利用人工智慧習得無盡的智慧。

"This robot will never die, it will just keep updating itself and evolving," priest Tensho Goto told AFP. "That’s the beauty of a robot. It can store knowledge forever and limitlessly."

「這具機器人不會死亡，它將持續地提升及進化自己」，住持後藤典生告訴法新社。「這是機器人的美妙之處。它能永恆且無極限地儲藏知識。」

Developed at a cost of almost $1m in a joint project between the Zen temple and renowned robotics professor Hiroshi Ishiguro at Osaka University, the humanoid — called Mindar — teaches about compassion and of the dangers of desire, anger and ego. （AFP）

耗資近100萬美元，由（高台壽聖）禪寺與大阪大學知名機器人教授石黑浩共同開發，這具名為「Mindar」的人形機器人，宣講悲憫與貪婪、嗔怒、我慢的危險。（法新社）

新聞辭典

robot：名詞，機器人。例句：He hopes Kodaiji’s robot priest will be able to reach younger generations in a way traditional monks can’t.（他希望高台寺的機器人宣教士，能以傳統和尚無法做到的方式，觸及年輕世代。）

temple：名詞，寺廟、聖殿。例句：Kodaiji temple has faced criticism from foreigners.（高台寺已招致外國民眾的批評。）

Buddhism：名詞，佛教。例句：We want people to see the robot and think about the essence of Buddhism.（我們希望人們能藉由機器人反思佛教的精神。）