Short story about Tibetan monks who want to know the name of God?

Question

I can't remember the title or the author of the following story:

Some Tibetan monks want to know the name of God. They buy a supercomputer in order to calculate the name. Then...

...they find the name, and in the end of the story, all stars stop shining.

I edited your title and removed the second question about an unrelated story. Please remember your questions on this site must: a- have a specific title, and b- ask one and only one thing. Feel free to ask about the other story in a separate question :) — Andres F., May 8 '13 at 11:54
Now I'm interested in the second story as well - was it reposted as a different question? — SqlRyan, May 8 '13 at 15:38
@SqlRyan if Martin doesn't, you're always free to repost 2nd the question yourself. — Dan Is Fiddling By Firelight, May 8 '13 at 17:30
@DanNeely I did post it, and I'm hopeful I'll get the name! scifi.stackexchange.com/questions/35419 — SqlRyan, May 13 '13 at 4:16

Andres F. · Accepted Answer · 2013-05-08 11:53:55Z

52

The story about the Tibetan monks who want to find the name of god is "The Nine Billion Names of God" by Arthur Clarke.

answered May 8 '13 at 11:53

Andres F.

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1

And there's an homage to this story in Futurama's "Godfellas" episode.
– Quinn Culver
May 8 '13 at 22:22
1

It was published, conveniently, in an anthology titled "The Nine Billion Names of God" :)
– Ben Brammer
May 9 '13 at 23:46

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