Where HCI Meets the Spiritual Path: The Three Yogas of the Bhagavad Gītā

HCI practice can be a force for social good, but can it become a spiritual practice? If so, how? These questions are somewhat taboo, and usually discussed quietly at the fringes of the HCI community. This paper is based on the Bhagavad-Gita, and proposes three ways to tie-together a practical HCI career with our spiritual lives. The three approaches are broadly related to humanitarian action (karma yoga), love and devotion (bhakti yoga) and introspective insight (jnana yoga). Each offers a different perspective on our HCI practice, and how the practical challenge of being a researcher can be reframed as part of a spiritual path. It suggests approaches to issues such as emotional burnout and bias-awareness. It is based on teachings given by major Indian teachers.