In Buddhism it would be consciousness (vijñāna) that connects the player with the virtual reality game in which the player is embodied in its avatar. In the Mahānidāna Sutta (DN 15) the Buddha is telling Ananda that it is consciousness that connects us to the simulation (nāmarūpa) that begins in the mother's womb.
Not only does consciousness survive death but it is integral to the VR game we call human existence. The most dangerous part of this VR game of human existence is that true reality is hidden by the game and the players. It is very much like Case V in the collection of Mumon's koans (無門関):
“It's like a man up the tree, hanging from a branch by his mouth; his hands cannot grasp a branch, his feet won't reach a bough. Suppose there is another man under the tree who asks him, 'What is the meaning of Bodhidharma's coming from the west?' If he does not respond, he goes against the wish of the questioner. If he answers, he will lose his life. At such a time, how should he respond?”
We know nothing about the person before it took up the game of human life and became a player who, subsequently, became entangled and enamored with the alluring richness of the game. Now the player is thrown into this crazy game from which there is seemingly no escape. Even death will not liberate the player who will take up another avatar only to continue with the game.
Without a doubt, each of us is immersed in our human VR game. But now we have VR games being created on a regular basis whereby we are playing VR games in an overarching human virtual reality game. It’s a game that seems so real yet when we look at it, honestly, without a biased mind, it is not unlike our VR games of today. But there is one problem, we cannot escape the overarching human VR game. Keep in mind that death is no escape. But the game is escapable if we follow the Buddhist teachings, but even this is difficult.
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