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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 most brilliant writers, a New York Times bestselling journey through psychology, philosophy, and lots of meditation to show how Buddhism holds the key to moral clarity and enduring happiness.

At the heart of Buddhism is a simple claim: The reason we suffer—and the reason we make other people suffer—is that we don’t see the world clearly. At the heart of Buddhist meditative practice is a radical promise: We can learn to see the world, including ourselves, more clearly and so gain a deep and morally valid happiness.

In this “sublime” (The New Yorker), pathbreaking book, Robert Wright shows how taking this promise seriously can change your life—how it can loosen the grip of anxiety, regret, and hatred, and how it can deepen your appreciation of beauty and of other people. He also shows why this transformation works, drawing on the latest in neuroscience and psychology, and armed with an acute understanding of human evolution.

This book is the culmination of a personal journey that began with Wright’s landmark book on evolutionary psychology, The Moral Animal, and deepened as he immersed himself in meditative practice and conversed with some of the world’s most skilled meditators. The result is a story that is “provocative, informative and...deeply rewarding” (The New York Times Book Review), and as entertaining as it is illuminating. Written with the wit, clarity, and grace for which Wright is famous, Why Buddhism Is True lays the foundation for a spiritual life in a secular age and shows how, in a time of technological distraction and social division, we can save ourselves from ourselves, both as individuals and as a species. Buddhism Eastern Personal Development Personal Success Philosophy Psychology Psychology & Mental Health Meditation Happiness Morality Mindfulness Eastern Philosophy

Critic Reviews

“A sublime achievement.”
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker
“Provocative, informative and... deeply rewarding.... I found myself not just agreeing [with] but applauding the author.”
—The New York Times Book Review
“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, bestselling author of Quiet
“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 bestselling author of Authentic Happiness
“A fantastically rational introduction to meditation…. It constantly made me smile a little, and occasionally chuckle…. A wry, self-deprecating, and brutally empirical guide to the avoidance of suffering.”
—Andrew Sullivan, New York Magazine
“[A] superb, level-headed new book.”
—Oliver Burkeman, The Guardian
“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 bestselling author of Real Happiness
“What happens when someone steeped in evolutionary psychology takes a cool look at Buddhism? If that person is, like Robert Wright, a gifted writer, the answer is this surprising, enjoyable, challenging, and potentially life-changing book.”
—Peter Singer, professor of philosophy at Princeton University and author of Ethics in the Real World
“Delightfully personal, yet broadly important.”
—NPR
“[Why Buddhism is True] will become the go-to explication of Buddhism for modern western seekers, just as The Moral Animal remains the go-to explication of evolutionary psychology.”
—Scientific American
All stars
Most relevant
With the petal-by-petal beauty of an unfolding lotus blossom, Robert Wright reveals the essence of Buddhist logic with singular clarity.
Using his own mindfulness meditation practice and life’s experience as occasional anecdote, Wright’s insistent precision comes alive with accessibility.

Exemplary clarity

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This book is a great source of knowledge to someone who has a scientific background. It starts with modern scientific reasoning and gradually moves into what Buddhism offered thousands of years ago. Unlike science that's focus is to explain the world around us, the Buddhist philosophy explains what makes us suffer and how to be mindful about it, in order to detach ourselves from it.

I found the first couple of chapters and the last couple chapters to be the most valuable. The chapters in the middle are sometimes can get bit lengthy without much essence - perhaps that's me being a bit too critical.

Overall a book worth listening to.

A very scientific approach to Budhist philosophy

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I first bought this book several years ago when I was first getting interested in Buddhism. On my first listening I thought that the book was interesting and the points it makes made sense. I have now been studying Theravada Buddhism and Vipassana for a few years and have been seriously meditating daily for a while which has had some subtle but profound effects on me.

I had forgotten most of the contents of the book but recently decided to listen to it again. I discovered that what the author was talking about was very similar to the experiences that I have had from meditating and studying Buddhist philosophy. Just listening to the book was almost a meditative experience, and has enhanced my understanding and meditation practice.

This book is basically non mystical Buddhism in a nutshell.

Why Buddhism is True is True

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an excellent book but is more about how the brains work and the importance of mindful meditation. it is good to see that mindful meditation is now proved by science

needs a better title

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I really loved this book, it really got me engaging with the concepts. more importantly it's really informed my perspective on how I interact with those around me.

it can be a bit heavier at times and I had to hit rewind a bit to go over some of the concepts again.

A deeper dip into Buddhism

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