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Description: Galileo, Copernicus, Newton, Niels Bohr, Einstein. Their insights shook our perception of who we are and where we stand in the world, and in their wake have left an uneasy coexistence: science vs. religion, faith vs. empirical inquiry. Which is the keeper of truth? Which is the true path to understanding reality?
After forty years of study with some of the greatest scientific minds, as well as a lifetime of meditative, spiritual, and philosophic study, the Dalai Lama presents a brilliant analysis of why all avenues of inquiry—scientific as well as spiritual—must be pursued in order to arrive at a complete picture of the truth. Through an examination of Darwinism and karma, quantum mechanics and philosophical insight into the nature of reality, neurobiology and the study of consciousness, the Dalai Lama draws significant parallels between contemplative and scientific examinations of reality. -- from inside jacket
Table of Contents: Reflection --
Encounter with science --
Emptiness, relativity, and quantum physics --
The big bang and the Buddhist beginningless universe --
Evolution, karma, and the world of sentience --
The question of consciousness --
Toward a science of consciousness --
The spectrum of consciousness --
Ethics and the new genetics --
Science, spirituality, and humanity.
Location: COLLECTION: Philosophy & Science -- AREA: Mind Science-- SECTION: Interdisciplinary / Filing name: Dalai #14
Topics: In TinyCat -- See "Tags" above for our libraries topic areas. See "Subjects" below for LCSH (Library of Congress Subject Headings) (note you can tour our library via Tags or LCSH, but LCHS are not available for all items in our holdings).
FY2007 /
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Science vs. religion, faith vs. empirical enquiry--which is the true path to understanding reality? After forty years of study with some of the greatest scientific minds as well as a lifetime of meditative, spiritual and philosophical study, the Dalai Lama presents an analysis of why both disciplines must be pursued in order to arrive at a complete picture of the truth. Science shows us ways of interpreting the physical world, while spirituality helps us cope with reality. But the extreme of either is impoverishing. The belief that all is reducible to matter and energy leaves out a huge range of human experience: emotions, yearnings, compassion, culture. At the same time, holding unexamined spiritual beliefs--beliefs that are contradicted by evidence, logic, and experience--can lock us into fundamentalist cages. The legacy of this book is a vision of the world in which our different approaches to understanding ourselves, our universe and one another can be brought together in the service of humanity.--From publisher description.… (more)
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It reads much like a lecture the Dalai Lama might have given. This book is easily accessible, flows easily, and stole my day.
He is very interested in science and how it could work with Buddhism to improve our future.
Because he is not a scientist, he has a very clear way of explaining science in an understandable way.
I
Like most books from the Mind and Life series, this book shows what we all have to gain by bridging two seemingly different but quite complementary worldviews. For the inexperienced it provides an excellent description of the foundation of both sides, but much of the information may be redundant for those who already have some training. However, the true value lies in the mindset of the participants and the realization of what is to be gained by integrating East and West.
HHDL takes some of the concepts of science and compares
In the concepts I did grasp and make notes on, HHDL makes excellent parallels between the scientific world and the spiritual world, something that the majority of religions maintain cannot happen. HHDL is all to happy to point out the similarities and encourage scientific progress, but with warnings of keeping the human compassion and ethics along for the ride.
HHDL has often said that every human on this earth is the same, and should all be treated with compassion. He was essentially proven right when the human genome was finally sequenced.
In his own way, he implores (nicely and gently) for society to get better educated about science so that we don't fear it and so that we do not cross a line. "We must be willing to be revolted when science - or for that matter any human activity - crosses the line of human decency, and we must fight to retain the sensitivity that is otherwise so easily eroded."
I highly recommend this book to everyone regardless of your race, creed or believes…….
But I got to p. 37 when I met this line: Reality, including our own existence, is so much more complex than objective scientific materialism allows." ?áOk, so it is the same old dogma that I know from Christians, the same old claim that we should 'give up and let god.' ?áI disagree. ?áThe scientific method is the only valid way to get to know the world. ?áIt's the only thing that leads to real advances in medicine, psychology, technology, sociology. ?á If only more politicians and economists applied the scientific method, the world would be a better place. ?á(Studies of history, respect for the traditions of historical precedence, can get us only so far, too, imo. ?áWe must strive to overcome the baser aspects of human nature. ?áWe must, for example, admire the works of Shakespeare for their revelation of the follies that humans have in the past exhibited, and be proud that we no longer [for example] think it's funny to 'Tame the Shrew.')
?áReligion is about faith. ?áIt's just as much of a myth or fairy-tale or hallucinogenic high experience as any of those things more accurately labeled. ?áNo amount of prayer or ritual or service to a god or pope or?ámeditation is going to increase our knowledge of how the world works. ?áThe only real ways that spirituality could 'serve our world' is by serving as a palliative to the fearful and an admonition to the wicked. ?áAnd, since the wicked twist the words of the holy texts to suit their ambitions anyway, and since the fearful would actually be better off if they worked to become?ásmarter and stronger, I can't even allow for that. ?áI'm sure the man means well, but imo it's time for the human race to grow up, to free ourselves from the shackles of tradition."
I am envious of the wonderful conversations the Dalai Lama has been able to have to the greatest thinkers of the 20th century.... and also, of the conversations those men and women have been able to have with him. If you are already a believer in a
Also a small history on Buddhism and the beliefs of a number of different sects of Buddhist philosophy.