Synopses & Reviews
andlt;Bandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Sandlt;/Bandgt;am Harrisand#8217;s first book, andlt;Iandgt;The End of Faith, andlt;/Iandgt;ignited a worldwide debate about the validity of religion. In the aftermath, Harris discovered that most peopleand#8212;from religious fundamentalists to nonbelieving scientistsand#8212;agree on one point: science has nothing to say on the subject of human values. Indeed, our failure to address questions of meaning and morality through science has now become the most common justification for religious faith. It is also the primary reason why so many secularists and religious moderates feel obligated to "respect" the hardened superstitions of their more devout neighbors.andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;In this explosive new book, Sam Harris tears down the wall between scientific facts and human values, arguing that most people are simply mistaken about the relationship between morality and the rest of human knowledge. Harris urges us to think about morality in terms of human and animal well-being, viewing the experiences of conscious creatures as peaks and valleys on a "moral landscape." Because there are definite facts to be known about where we fall on this landscape, Harris foresees a time when science will no longer limit itself to merely describing what people do in the name of "morality"; in principle, science should be able to tell us what we andlt;Iandgt;ought andlt;/Iandgt;to do to live the best lives possible. andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Bringing a fresh perspective to age-old questions of right and wrong and good and evil, Harris demonstrates that we already know enough about the human brain and its relationship to events in the world to say that there are right and wrong answers to the most pressing questions of human life. Because such answers exist, moral relativism is simply falseand#8212;and comes at increasing cost to humanity. And the intrusions of religion into the sphere of human values can be finally repelled: for just as there is no such thing as Christian physics or Muslim algebra, there can be no Christian or Muslim morality. andlt;BRandgt;andlt;BRandgt;Using his expertise in philosophy and neuroscience, along with his experience on the front lines of our "culture wars," Harris delivers a game-changing book about the future of science and about the real basis of human cooperation.
Review
“First we are told that we are lumbering robots with selfish genes at the helm. And now we are told that biology determines our values, not only what is good for us, but what ought to be good for us. Isn’t there anything sacred?! No, and thank goodness. A hallelujah to Sam Harris for boldly going where few have dared go.
The Moral Landscape is both a celebration of why clarity of reason is our most glorious weapon, and why even age old debates that have gone into hibernation ought to be awakened and challenged.”
--Marc Hauser, Harvard College Professor, author of Moral Minds
Review
and#8220;Reading Sam Harris is like drinking water from a cool stream on a hot day. He has the rare ability to frame arguments that are not only stimulating, they are downright nourishing, even if you donand#8217;t always agree with him! In this new book he argues from a philosophical and a neurobiological perspective that science can and should determine morality. His discussions will provoke secular liberals and religious conservatives alike, who jointly argue from different perspectives that there always will be an unbridgeable chasm between merely knowing what is and discerning what should be. As was the case with Harrisand#8217; previous books, readers are bound to come away with previously firm convictions about the world challenged, and a vital new awareness about the nature and value of science and reason in our lives.and#8221;andlt;BRandgt; andlt;iandgt;and#8212;andlt;/iandgt;Lawrence M. Krauss, Foundation Professor and Director of the ASU Origins Project at Arizona State Universityandlt;iandgt;, andlt;/iandgt;author ofandlt;iandgt; The Physics of Star Trek,andlt;/iandgt; andandlt;iandgt;, Quantum Man: Richard Feynmanand#8217;s Life in Science andlt;/iandgt;
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Beautifully written as they were
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and#8220;A lively, provocative, and timely new look at one of the deepest problems in the world of ideas. Harris makes a powerful case for a morality that is based on human flourishing and thoroughly enmeshed with science and rationality. It is a tremendously appealing vision, and one that no thinking person can afford to ignore.and#8221;andlt;BRandgt; --Steven Pinker, Harvard College Professor of Psychology, Harvard University, and author of How the Mind Works and The Blank Slate.
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Beautifully written as they were
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Beautifully written as they were
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Beautifully written as they were
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andlt;a name="_MailAutoSig"andgt; andlt;/aandgt;and#8220;Sam Harris breathes intellectual fire into an ancient debate. Reading this thrilling, audacious book, you feel the ground shifting beneath your feet. Reason has never had a more passionate advocate.and#8221;andlt;BRandgt; and#8212;Ian McEwan
Review
Beautifully written as they were (the elegance of his prose is a distilled blend of honesty and clarity) there was little in Sam Harris's previous books that couldn't have been written by any of his fellow 'horsemen' of the 'new atheism'. This book is different, though every bit as readable as the other two. I was one of those who had unthinkingly bought into the hectoring myth that science can say nothing about morals. To my surprise, andlt;iandgt;The Moral Landscapeandlt;/iandgt; has changed all that for me. It should change it for philosophers too. Philosophers of mind have already discovered that they can't duck the study of neuroscience, and the best of them have raised their game as a result. Sam Harris shows that the same should be true of moral philosophers, and it will turn their world exhilaratingly upside down. As for religion, and the preposterous idea that we need God to be good, nobody wields a sharper bayonet than Sam Harris.andlt;BRandgt; --Richard Dawkins
Synopsis
Bestselling author Sam Harris dismantles the most common justification for religious faith—that a moral system cannot be based on science.
Synopsis
Sam Harris’s first book, The End of Faith, ignited a worldwide debate about the validity of religion. In the aftermath, Harris discovered that most people—from religious fundamentalists to nonbelieving scientists—agree on one point: science has nothing to say on the subject of human values. Indeed, our failure to address questions of meaning and morality through science has now become the most common justification for religious faith. It is also the primary reason why so many secularists and religious moderates feel obligated to "respect" the hardened superstitions of their more devout neighbors.
In this explosive new book, Sam Harris tears down the wall between scientific facts and human values, arguing that most people are simply mistaken about the relationship between morality and the rest of human knowledge. Harris urges us to think about morality in terms of human and animal well-being, viewing the experiences of conscious creatures as peaks and valleys on a "moral landscape." Because there are definite facts to be known about where we fall on this landscape, Harris foresees a time when science will no longer limit itself to merely describing what people do in the name of "morality"; in principle, science should be able to tell us what we ought to do to live the best lives possible.
Bringing a fresh perspective to age-old questions of right and wrong and good and evil, Harris demonstrates that we already know enough about the human brain and its relationship to events in the world to say that there are right and wrong answers to the most pressing questions of human life. Because such answers exist, moral relativism is simply false—and comes at increasing cost to humanity. And the intrusions of religion into the sphere of human values can be finally repelled: for just as there is no such thing as Christian physics or Muslim algebra, there can be no Christian or Muslim morality.
Using his expertise in philosophy and neuroscience, along with his experience on the front lines of our "culture wars," Harris delivers a game-changing book about the future of science and about the real basis of human cooperation.
Synopsis
From one of the leading peacemakers of our time, a stirring call to move beyond religion for the guidance to improve human life on individual, community, and global levels
Synopsis
“A book that brings people together on the firm grounds of shared values, reminding us why the Dalai Lama is still one of the most important religious figures in the world.” —
Huffington Post, “Best Religious Books of 2011”
Ten years ago, in the best-selling Ethics for a New Millennium, His Holiness the Dalai Lama first proposed an approach to ethics based on universal rather than religious principles. With Beyond Relgion, he returns to the conversation at his most outspoken, elaborating and deepening his vision for the nonreligious way—a path to lead an ethical, happy, and spiritual life. Transcending the religion wars, he outlines a system of ethics for our shared world, one that makes a stirring appeal for a deep appreciation of our common humanity, offering us all a road map for improving human life on individual, community, and global levels.
“Cogent and fresh . . . This ethical vision is needed as we face the global challenges of technological progress, peace, environmental destruction, greed, science, and educating future generations.” —Spirtuality & Practice
About the Author
Sam Harrisand#8217;s diversified career has run the gamut from singer and songwriter to actor on Broadway, film, and television to writer, director, and producer. His now legendary performances on TVand#8217;s Star Search led to a multi-million selling recording career. Sam has nine studio CDs to his credit and has toured the world in concert, played The White House, Carnegie Hall, with the Boston Pops and with Cyndi Lauperand#8217;s True Colors tour. He is also a Tony nominated Broadway star, (The Life, Grease, The Producers) and starred in numerous off-Broadway productions including Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dream Coat, Hair, Pippin, Jesus Christ Superstar, Cabaret, The Jazz Singer and The First Wives Club. Sam was a series regular on the CBS series, The Class, and has appeared on numerous television shows as an actor and also a popular talk show guest on everything from Leno to Oprah to Fallon. Behind the scenes, he created and co-wrote the TBS television series, Down to Earth, the musical Hurry! Hurry! Hollywood!, and Lizaand#8217;s Back at the Palace, (which won the Tony Award), co-produced the television special Love Letter to New York, and wrote and directed the concert event New York's Finest. He now adds author to his long list of accomplishments with the release of his first book: Ham: Slices of a Life, a collection of essays and stories published by Simon and Schuster. Sam lives in Los Angeles with his husband, Danny, and their child, Cooper. For more information, please visit: SamHarris.com and Facebook.com/SamFans.
Table of Contents
CONTENTS
Acknowledgments v
Introduction ix
Part I:
A NEW SYSTEM OF SECULAR ETHICS
1. Rethinking Secularism 3
2. Our Common Humanity 21
3. The Quest for Happiness 31
4. Compassion, the Foundation of Well-Being 41
5. Compassion and the Question of Justice 57
6. The Role of Discernment 73
7. Ethics in Our Shared World 83
Part II:
EDUCATING THE HEART THROUGH
TRAINING THE MIND
8. Ethical Mindfulness in Everyday Life 103
9. Dealing with Destructive Emotions 113
10. Cultivating Key Inner Values 137
11. Meditation as Mental Cultivation 155
Afterword 185