Cloud Scripts

Kian-Peng Ong

In Two Texts on Technology, Kiyoshi Miki argues that modern machines have severed the intimate relationship tools once shared with humanity. He contrasts Western technology, prioritizing efficiency and speed, with Eastern traditions cultivating humanity and spirit. Miki calls for reclaiming these traditions to resist the alienating effects of modern machines, which often oppose nature and threaten both humanity and the environment. This raises a question: What alternative forms can machines take? Machines need not be fast or utilitarian but could instead mediate between humans and the spiritual world. Drawing on Daoist traditions, where words hold spiritual significance and act as bridges to the divine, I see potential in reimagining machines as tools for spiritual dialogue. In Daoist esoteric practices, texts are sacred instructions, a concept that resonates with the logic of software and code. This inspired CLOUD SCRIPTS, a generative art installation exploring Daoist Cloud Seals (Yúnzhuàn 雲篆) as a form of communication with the spiritual world. Rooted in pre-Han shamanistic traditions, Cloud Seals are inspired by cloud formations believed to embody the movements of spirits. Using machine learning, I trained a model on a corpus of Cloud Seals from Daoist scriptures to generate talismans. These talismans, intentionally devoid of specific meaning, symbolize my attempt to engage with the spiritual realm. The results function as a letter to the spiritual world, articulated through the medium of machines. CLOUD SCRIPTS challenges the capitalist ideals driving modern technology, offering an alternative vision where machines reconnect humanity with the spiritual and natural worlds.