About book Beyond Religion: Ethics For A Whole World (2011)
A wonderfully refreshing book in which a religious person actually acknowledges that not everyone is or ever will be part of his religion. He's concerned about making things better, not about correcting your theology or how you're using your ladyparts. He just really does care and want to help people. Everyone take note: He does all this without downplaying or badmouthing his own religion! I also love that he wants to have a faith that's compatible with the world as it really is, and he's managing to find that.Anyway, on the topic of the book itself. He roots ethics in the practice of compassion, tempered with discernment. Much of the book is devoted to explaining what he means by compassion, why it's the most important, and how to cultivate it. In the back, there's some (entirely secular) advice about how to practice meditation, and how to cultivate compassion in particular using meditation. Honestly this is remarkable. It's a clear, easy-to-understand route toward self-improvement that can be combined with anything else you do for yourself. He chooses to provide this personal advice because it's individuals who are in need of solid ethics! The world is made of individuals, after all. But even if you don't try meditation, I think we can all be on board with his basic ethical system. The Dalai Lama has a gift for illuminating the common ground between people, but he seems to extend this to a common ground between ideologies, which I'm less convinced by. The notion that religion complements science is particularly problematic. (Buddhism is an ideal candidate, but other religions lack the positive attitude towards critical thinking espoused in the kalama sutta.) I also have doubts about his emphasis on people, rather than situations. (Research shows that situations influence our conduct far more than we realise.) Despite these points of disagreement, I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It's beautifully simple and it already reads like a classic. It's also worth noting that the points I'm uneasy about might actually be key to the book's success. The Dalai Lama's compassionate attitude towards religion is far more likely to broaden the thinking of religious people than the hostile approach taken by others who argue that religion is unnecessary for ethics (like Sam Harris). As for situations, they're largely created by people and a few good people can make all the difference.
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Amazing book by H.H. Much in it. Worth a re -read some day.
—hava
