The Universe in a Single Atom: The Convergence of Science and Spirituality - Softcover

Dalai Lama

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0767920813 ISBN 13: 9780767920810

Publisher: Harmony, 2006

Synopsis

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.

This breathtakingly personal examination is a tribute to the Dalai Lama's teachers--both of science and spirituality. 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.

About this title

Review

"The Dalai Lama lost spiritual leadership in his own country, but now exercises it around the world. Like all good teachers, he comes to learn. He found that what Buddhism lacked in his country was a fruitful interchange with reason and modern science. Here he fosters that exchange, at a time when some Christians have turned their backs on science and the Enlightenment. We are losing what he has gained."
--Garry Wills, author of Why I Am a Catholic

"With disarming honesty, humility, and respect, His Holiness the Dalai Lama has explored the relationship between religion and science and suggested the way in which they can affirm and qualify each other's insights. By juxtaposing traditional Buddhist teaching with the discoveries of modern physics and biology, he infuses the debate about such contentious issues as the origins of the universe, the nature of human consciousness, the evolution of species and genetic engineering with intimations of profound spirituality and shows how these questions can further our search for ultimate meaning. But above all, his gentle but insistent call for compassion is desperately needed in our torn and conflicted world."
--Karen Armstrong, author of A HIstory of God and The Spiral Staircase

Book Description

* The Dalai Lama's unique and learned vision of how religion and science can work together in harmony

About this edition

• Publisher: Harmony
• Publication date: 2006
• ISBN 10: 0767920813
• ISBN 13: 9780767920810
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 224