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Why Buddhism Is True

The Science and Philosophy of Meditation and Enlightenment

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Why Buddhism Is True

By: Robert Wright
Narrated by: Fred Sanders
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About this listen

From one of America's greatest minds, a journey through psychology, philosophy, and lots of meditation to show how Buddhism holds the key to moral clarity and enduring happiness.

Robert Wright famously explained in The Moral Animal how evolution shaped the human brain. The mind is designed to often delude us, he argued, about ourselves and about the world. And it is designed to make happiness hard to sustain.

But if we know our minds are rigged for anxiety, depression, anger, and greed, what do we do? Wright locates the answer in Buddhism, which figured out thousands of years ago what scientists are discovering only now. Buddhism holds that human suffering is a result of not seeing the world clearly - and proposes that seeing the world more clearly, through meditation, will make us better, happier people.

In Why Buddhism Is True, Wright leads listeners on a journey through psychology, philosophy, and a great many silent retreats to show how and why meditation can serve as the foundation for a spiritual life in a secular age. At once excitingly ambitious and wittily accessible, this is the first book to combine evolutionary psychology with cutting-edge neuroscience to defend the radical claims at the heart of Buddhist philosophy. With bracing honesty and fierce wisdom, it will persuade you not just that Buddhism is true - which is to say, a way out of our delusion - but that it can ultimately save us from ourselves, as individuals and as a species.

©2017 Robert Wright. All rights reserved. (P)2017 Simon & Schuster, Inc. All rights reserved.
Buddhism Eastern Personal Success Psychology Happiness Inspiring Feel Better Eastern Philosophy
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Critic reviews

"I have been waiting all my life for a readable, lucid explanation of Buddhism by a tough-minded, skeptical intellect. Here it is. This is a scientific and spiritual voyage unlike any I have taken before." (Martin Seligman, professor of psychology at the University of Pennsylvania and best-selling author of Authentic Happiness)
"This is exactly the book that so many of us are looking for. Writing with his characteristic wit, brilliance, and tenderhearted skepticism, Robert Wright tells us everything we need to know about the science, practice, and power of Buddhism." (Susan Cain, best-selling author of Quiet)
"Robert Wright brings his sharp wit and love of analysis to good purpose, making a compelling case for the nuts and bolts of how meditation actually works. This book will be useful for all of us, from experienced meditators to hardened skeptics who are wondering what all the fuss is about." (Sharon Salzberg, cofounder of the Insight Meditation Society and best-selling author of Real Happiness)

What listeners say about Why Buddhism Is True

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interesting question posed

enjoyed the content. however, the performance wasn't to my liking, a little monatone now and again which caused minor relistening at points. The material definately gave me much to think about before, during and after the purchase.

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Interesting book

Listened to it after hearing about it on the Secular buddhism podcast. Worth listening to, but didn't offer anything of revelation

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the quality of the narration is often bad.

They didn't bother to re-edit poorly read sections and randomly swapped the narrating voice. It seemed a bit slapped together.

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very enjoyable book

it is an enlightening and informative listen. The narration is done well. The concepts are laid out in a coherent way with many examples. I believe it is a useful book for someone who is considering starting mediation or is currently started meditating (like myself). I particularly enjoyed the explanation about how natural selection has dictated the way we respond to a variety of stimuli and that we can control or evaluate these reactions through mindfulness and through the principles of Buddhism.

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Long but worth it!

Definitely a long listen, something I came back to every now and then over a few months. The arguments are long so you have to be invested. Really enjoyed it though.

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much better than title suggested

I nearly gave this a miss, expecting dry examples of lab studies that show benefits gained from meditation. luckily a friend recommended the book to me, and I am so pleased that he did. The author does a fantastic job of positioning natural selection as the boogyman who controls our lives, bringing to light research in psychology and evolutionary science. He then shows how Buddhism was ahead of the curve, identifying the same issues way before western science caught up... but also working on the solution - meditation.

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great reading

some really powerful concepts, something I need to listen a few times to digest but nevertheless it's a jewel something I plan to read several times in coming years.

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Thought-provoking

Initially thought the narrator's tone of voice was really boring and played it on 1.2 times speed, but then got hooked on the content, really clearly explained and with humorous little anecdotes. A bit of repetition, but that was useful in driving home the message. Overall, impressive, got me to start my journey towards "taking the red pill" ;) Only thing I'd say is on the title: the author advocates for secular Buddhism, not the religious kind.

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Excellent

I did not need to know the how or why of meditation. I knew it to be a valuable tool for survival in the frantic, stressful world we live in. It was however, refreshing to have them explained in such a detailed, logical, understandable way. I am not a Darwinist .. even so I found Robert Wright's thinking to be persuasive. The icing on the cake was the voice of Fred Sanders. Listening to him was almost addictive and I looked forward to each session to hear his delivery. The narrator can be the difference between total enjoyment and deleting the book. Well done for matching these two. A must listen if you have any interest in meditation.

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Brilliant

As a psychology and a Buddhist this book was a great read providing new insight into areas I hadn't even considered. HIGHLY recommend.

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