Akhandadhi Das - 04/09/2026

Available for over a year

London offered a new experience yesterday; the chance to book a ride in an Uber robotaxi. I don’t much like driving in such busy traffic, so it seems astounding that we have engineered a machine to navigate London’s unpredictable streets– albeit that, for now, there will be a human safety driver on hand, if needed. Long before the infernal combustion engine, Sri Krishna, whose appearance some 5000 years ago is being celebrated today, explained how the soul is being carried within and activates the machine of the body. The soul, in Vedic terms, is not something we have – it is what we are; that aspect of our self that is conscious, aware we are alive. But the soul, or atma, as it termed, is described as the passenger, not the actual driver – so the concept of a passenger in a robotaxi is even more apropos. Many of us may feel a certain disquiet about autonomous vehicles. No doubt, they will develop to be as safe, or safer, than human drivers. But what if, there is a collision, an injury? Who is accountable when humans are taken out of the loop. After all, we believe we are agents of free will who should be responsible for our actions and mistakes. But how much of our free will do we use? Are our thoughts, choices and behaviour more influenced and conditioned than we realise? The Katha Upanishad explores these questions by describing a chariot representing our physical body being drawn by five tempestuous horses. These horses epitomise our impetus and desires for security, safety and enjoyment in this world. Left to themselves, these wild horses will charge in all directions; with ourselves as an unfortunate passenger being tossed around at the back. The demands of the mind are like the horses who must be controlled by reins held by the chariot-driver. This driver represents the discriminative faculty of discernment and prudence. But, warns the Upanishad, it is up to the atma passenger how much leeway it gives to their chariot-driver. The Vedic conclusion is that we probably exercise far less free will than we think we do – because we delegate too many unsupervised decisions to autonomous mental processes, allowing them to determine the journey of our lives. However, paradoxically we also have far more free will than we think we have. That’s because we could be much more pro-active analysing our thoughts and motivations when deciding what is actually wise, good, beneficial. Such mindful reflection, says the Upanishad, is the formula for getting our robotaxi life to its intended destination.