Buddha on ‘attachment’ and its discontents

My interest in Buddhism began when I was a teenager. Buddha’s philosophy of attachment and mindfulness (which I’ll recap below) always resonated with me, although applying it remains challenging in today’s busy, high-tech world. I’ve often asked myself: Were Buddha alive today, would he buy a smartphone? Would he use social media?

At first, I was tempted to answer such questions with a resounding no. The more I studied Buddhism, however, the more I realized the answer is probably nuanced. Part of my hang-up was overcoming stereotypes about ascetic monks who abstain from modern technologies. Those stereotypes, I learned, misunderstood what Buddhists mean by ‘attachment.’  So, let’s unpack that word.

Buddha on the meaning of ‘attachment’

A common misunderstanding about Buddhism is that it preaches a nihilistic worldview, a renunciation of everything in life, including modern technologies. In fact, most forms of Buddhism don’t renounce life or technological conveniences at all. They do, nevertheless, remind us that these conveniences are impermanent. Hence, we should be wary of ‘attaching’ ourselves to such things.

Buddhist texts (sutras) describe attachment as grasping or clinging (from the Sanskrit word Upādāna). Attachment, in this sense, causes frustration (duhkha), because everything is temporary. Nothing lasts forever. By attaching ourselves to things that are temporary, we inevitably suffer from anger or anxiety the moment we lose it. Therefore, goes the Buddhist logic, we shouldn’t let ourselves feel attached to them.

But what does that really mean, not to feel attached to anything? Shouldn’t I feel attached to my wife, family, and friends?  The problem I had with this idea was that I interpreted the word ‘attachment’ differently. In my culture (urban American), the word ‘attachment’ has positive connotations. It may mean emotionally engaged or committed (as in, “I’m attached to my spouse”). Psychologists use the phrase “Attachment Theory” to explain the those bonds.

In Buddhist parlance, ‘attachment’ conveys something different. Basically, it means clinging to something in a state of negativity, like anger or anxiety (as when an angry child screams, “That’s MINE”).

Positive vs. negative attachment

A major “ah-ha” moment came to me once I started reading the writings of the 14th Dalai Lama. He’s a master of translating concepts from East to West. For instance, in his book From Here to Enlightenment, he discusses a linguistic subtlety to distinguish negative and positive attachment (probably to help Western biased folks like me). Here’s what he says.

How do you understand the idea of grasping? If your engagement with others is tainted by strong attachment, craving, aversion, anger, and so forth, then that form of grasping is undesirable. But on the other hand, when you are interacting with other living beings and become aware of their needs or suffering or pain, then you need to fully engage with that and be compassionate. So there can be positive attachment in this sense of active engagement.

Buddhist masters have long used the term attachment to describe the quality of compassion for others (14th Dalai Lama, 2012, p 35).

So, the argument goes, it’s sensible to feel positively attached to things, in the sense of emotional engagement or commitment. But we should avoid feeling negatively attached to things, in the sense of clinging to them out of anger or adverse emotion. In other words, positive versus negative attachment is akin to positive versus negative emotion. You can definitely see positive attachment/emotion in the Dalai Lama’s expression.

Buddha on mindfulness and its benefits

This teaching on attachment is ancient (Buddha taught it over two millennia ago), but I believe it lends valuable insight for those of us seeking a modern philosophy of technology. Simply put, this philosophy goes as follows:

Avoid negative attachment to technology, and cultivate positive attachment.

Well then, how do we become less negatively attached, and more positively attached, to technology? The answer, according to Buddha, is mindfulness.

Mindful technology use

What does it mean to be mindful? In essence, mindfulness means focusing attention on the present moment. Being mindful is being conscious of how the body and mind react to things in the world, including technology.

While engaging with smartphones and social media, for example, mindfulness may mean paying attention to how our bodily emotions and mental reactions arise as we use these technologies. In other words, pause a moment before replying to texts or posting messages online. Then ask: What effects (or karma) will my actions generate? In this way, mindfulness creates cognitive space to contemplate intelligent action (or, at least less stupid action).

By contemplating action, mindfulness encourages ethical conduct too. Are our intentions good when we text about such-and-such or when we post about so-and-so; or are we just gossiping or virtue signaling? Am I checking my smartphone and social media for needed updates; or am I just looking at these technologies impulsively?

Would Buddha buy a smartphone or use social media?

So to return to the original question, perhaps Buddha would buy a smartphone and use social media, but he’d engage with them mindfully. True, that’s easier said than done, but using technology mindfully is an ideal goal to strive for.

If you’re thoughts on mindfulness and technology, feel free to leave a comment below, or explore more Technology and Culture articles on this site.

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References

14th Dalai Lama. (2012). From Here to Enlightenment. Boston: Snow Lion.