In these four sentences Professor Dawkins has described both the scientific view of the 'human condition', and the main motivations for following the Buddhist path.

Defying the tyranny of the genes All animals, including ourselves, have genetically programmed drives to eat, reproduce, fight for territory and mates, kill prey, help our kin and so on. These drives appear to our mind as attachment and aversion.

Manifestations of attachment include sexual desire, hunger and the need for security. Manifestations of aversion include fighting, fleeing and avoiding painful and dangerous situations. All these mental reactions have evolved because they gave our ancestors a selective advantage. They are, or were, essential for preservation of the individual and procreation of its genes.

Defying the tyranny of the memes

A meme is a delusional mind-virus which spreads by thought-contagion among people in the same manner that a computer virus spreads among PCs. Many cults have a memetic component.

The term 'meme' was coined by Richard Dawkins in the 1970's, but the idea goes back at least to the 1890's when Winston Churchill compared a certain religion (no prizes for guessing which!) to the rabies virus - 'as dangerous in a man as hydrophobia in a dog'.

If a religion or cult shows most of the following features then it is a pernicious meme:

On the other hand, if a religion is based on wisdom, tolerance, free enquiry, rationality and universal compassion, then it is a beneficial spiritual path.

Memes are 'intellectually formed delusions', as distinct from the genetically-programmed innate delusions. However, memes often interact with and derive their power from innate delusions. For example, the meme that infects socially-inadequate, sex-starved young men and causes virulent hatred against the infidel, together with a desire to become a martyr in order to have an eternity of sex with 72 virgins, derives its power from testosterone-fueled innate delusions of aggression and lust.

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Accepting our Evolutionary History does not Mean Rejecting ...

SANTA ROSA, CA (PRWEB) December 17, 2014

"The Holy Universe" a new story of creation for the heart, soul, and spirit is the winner of a 2014 Silver Nautilus Book Award and a USA Best Books Award. Judges at Writers Digest magazine also gave the book their highest marks of outstanding for writing style as well as structure, organization, and pacing.

Written by Northern California author David Christopher, The Holy Universe earned its Silver Nautilus Award in the category of Religion/Spirituality Other, a fitting tribute for a book offering a new narrative that transforms cold, scientific facts about the origin of life into a soulful story of creation that moves beyond religious dogma. Previous Nautilus award winners include Deepak Chopra, Barbara Kingsolver, Thich Nhat Hanh, and Marianne Williamson. The 2014 USA Best Book Awards also honored The Holy Universe as the winner in its Spirituality: General category.

These awards and positive reviews are a wonderful affirmation of this work not only because its an honor receive them, but also because they recognize that readers have a deep hunger for a new story about our relationship to the web of life, Christopher said.

I wrote The Holy Universe for people who consider themselves spiritual but not religious, Christopher added. This book is for those of us who are unsatisfied with religious interpretations about how life began, but also find that the Big Dumb Rock story put out there by the modern mechanistic worldview leaves us lost in a meaningless universe and longing for a creation story that speaks to our spirits as well as our intellects.

The Holy Universe unfolds in poetic stanzas as a dialogue between a Seeker and his Sage, who discuss everything from social justice and spiritual poverty to reverent technology and climate change. Because these issues particularly resonate with the concerns of new thought churches, the book has found a receptive audience among participants in Unitarian Universalist, Centers for Spiritual Living, and Unity Center groups as well as United Church of Christ and liberal Catholic congregations.

Evaluating the book for the 22nd Annual Writers Digest Self-Published Book Awards, judges gave The Holy Universe the highest rank of 5 out of 5 for several writing rubrics. As one judge observed, Throughout this grand work, Christopher succeeds in showing many truths rather than telling them. And, another concluded: The author has done our planet a favor and contributed to its well being by writing this story.

In addition to receiving book awards, The Holy Universe has also been praised by a number of New York Times bestselling authors including Vicki Robin and John Perkins, as well as John Robbins (Diet for a New America), who said: For those of us who have respect for the scientific method but who also seek a spirituality unburdened by the chains of dogma, who seek a deep connection with Creation that is based in awe and reverence for nature and the cosmos David Christopher has done a marvelous job in helping us reclaim the word Holy.

For further information or to subscribe to The Holy Universe newsletter, please go to: http://theholyuniverse.com/

Download sample chapters and other material: http://theholyuniverse.com/downloads-available/

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Transcending Creationism vs Evolution: The Holy Universe Wins Nautilus & USA Best Book Awards and Praise from Writers ...

52 minutes ago by Jonathan Garlick, The Conversation Everyone needs to understand the basics of science to participate fully in the democratic process. Credit: http://www.shutterstock.com.

Science isn't important only to scientists or those who profess an interest in it. Whether you find fascinating every new discovery reported or you stopped taking science in school as soon as you could, a base level understanding is crucial for modern citizens to ground their engagement in the national conversation about science-related issues.

We need to look no further than the Ebola crisis to appreciate the importance of science literacy. A recently elected senator has linked sealing the US-Mexican border with keeping Ebola out of the US, even though the disease is nonexistent in Mexico. Four out of 10 Americans believe there will be a large scale Ebola epidemic here, even though there have been just four cases in the US and only one fatality. Flu, on the other hand, which killed over 100 children here last winter, barely registers in the public consciousness.

Increasingly we must grapple with highly-charged and politicized science-based issues ranging from infectious diseases and human cloning to reproductive choices and climate change. Yet many perhaps even the majority of Americans aren't sufficiently scientifically literate to make sense of these complicated issues. For instance, on one recent survey of public attitudes and understanding of science and technology, Americans barely got a passing grade, answering only 5.8 out of 9 factual knowledge questions correctly.

Without a solid understanding of the underlying science and its implications for our daily lives, we can neither respond intelligently on a personal level nor hold our public officials accountable for sound policy decisions. Moreover, we risk falling prey to the tremendous power of fear and partisan political rhetoric. By grounding our understanding of issues in knowledge, we can gain the confidence to participate in the science conversation in a thoughtful way. Science literacy is a path to that knowledge.

What's needed to be scientifically literate?

Science literacy is a foundational knowledge and understanding of scientific concepts and processes. For example, scientifically literate people should know that science is reproducible, evidence-based information that is fact and not opinion. They should have a working knowledge of the basic terminology needed to interpret the processes and outcomes of science. With this vocabulary in hand, they can engage in the critical thinking needed to apply healthy skepticism and to discern the grey areas and uncertainties inherent in science-based information.

As a stem cell scientist, I have spent my life tackling elusive questions such as "what is personhood" or "when does life begin." Recently, my interest has shifted to helping the public engage in open-minded discussions about these types of questions.

The goal isn't to move public opinion towards one side or another of the stem cell or any other debate, but rather to create a forum in which all sides are armed with basic scientific knowledge and have a legitimate voice in the conversation.

How to get literate

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To seek common ground on life's big questions, we need science literacy