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What are the secular parts of Buddhism that align with evolutionary biology/psychology? In the somewhat provocatively titled 'Why Buddhism Is True', Robert Wright explains the insights that can be gained from mindfulness meditation and juxtaposes these with observations from hard science, natural selection and Darwinian thinking. The central themes revolve around Dukkha, Anatta and Sunyata, all of which weave together to create an explanation for why humans experience suffering and what we can do to resolve it.
Kyrin had these insights after reading the book. "Robert does a fantastic job of combining the subjective experiences that arise from mindfulness meditation with the solid base of scientific knowledge gained from evolutionary biology/psychology. There is no mention of the unverifiable claims of Buddhism (such as reincarnation) and the book contains some great insights and doesn't become too philosophical. I appreciated the engaging mini-stories from his own retreat but did get lost a couple of times when the terminology became difficult to understand. An interesting introduction for someone who wants to know more about the secular parts of Buddhist meditation."
As always, we hope you enjoy, Mere Mortals out!
Timeline:0:00 - Synopsis1:13 - Dukkha: suffering or unsatisfactoriness4:24 - Anatta: not-self and the self is an illusion7:08 - Sunyata/Sunnatta: formless or emptiness9:42 - Personal Observations: mini-stories and lost in terminology11:41 - Summary: insightful and unexaggerated13:23 - Pragmatic Takeaway: listen to a podcast with the author

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