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Rupert SheldrakeRupert Sheldrake
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Science and Spiritual Practices: Reconnecting through direct experience Kindle Edition
by Rupert Sheldrake (Author) Format: Kindle Edition
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 334 ratings
In this pioneering book Rupert Sheldrake shows how science helps validate seven practices on which all religions are built, and which are part of our common human heritage:
· Meditation
· Gratitude
· Connecting with nature
· Relating to plants
· Rituals
· Singing and chanting
· Pilgrimage and holy places.
The effects of spiritual practices are now being investigated scientifically as never before, and many studies have shown that religious and spiritual practices generally make people happier and healthier.
Rupert Sheldrake summarizes the latest scientific research on what happens when we take part in these practices, and suggests ways that readers can explore these fields for themselves. For those who are religious, Science and Spiritual Practices will illuminate the evolutionary origins of their own traditions and give a new appreciation of their power. For the non-religious, this book will show how the core practices of spirituality are accessible to all, even if they do not subscribe to a religious belief system.
This is a book for anyone who suspects that in the drive towards radical secularism, something valuable has been left behind. Rupert Sheldrake believes that by opening ourselves to the spiritual dimension we may find the strength to live more wholesome and fulfilling lives.
Review
Sheldrake will be seen as a prophet. - The Sunday Times
Rupert Sheldrake does science, humanity and the world at large a considerable favour. - The Independent
Certainly we need to accept the limitations of much current dogma and keep our minds open as we reasonably can. Sheldrake may help us do so through this well-written, challenging and always interesting book. - Financial Times
There is something rather odd about the current state of science. For Rupert Sheldrake, [it is] facing a 'credibility crunch' on many fronts. He presents this challenging argument by identifying 'ten core beliefs that most scientists take for granted.' He then interrogates each in turn by reformulating it, in the spirit of radical scepticism, as a question. This Socratic method of inquiry proves surprisingly illuminating. A serious mind-expanding book. - Spectator
Review
I thought I was undergoing a mild mid-life crisis, but after reading Rupert Sheldrake's book I realise that - despite being a lifelong non-believer - I was actually embracing various rituals employed by followers of all major world religions to bring themselves closer to their particular deity...it's fascinating to learn that the pursuits that I, and many of my peers, are embracing aren't simply badges of incipient middle-age, but proven mood-enhancers employed by all cultures throughout history. - Mail on Sunday
I have personally adopted many of the practices Rupert describes in his book and experienced more love, joy, empathy, gratitude and equanimity as a result. We are all indebted to Rupert who has tirelessly brought us deep insights from both science and spirituality. - Deepak Chopra
Urgent, vital, gently devastating, and an exhilarating read. Buy it, read it, and give it to all your friends and all acolytes of scientism. Sheldrake will help us stay alive and be more alive. We all need his help. - Charles Foster, Fellow of Green Templeton College, University of Oxford, and author of Being a Beast
I love this book! Few living scientists have the courage and the verve to ask the questions Rupert does, research them, and deliver answers in language all can understand. Be prepared as you read this book for an exciting and free-ranging ride, a sort of scientific pilgrimage journeying into spiritual practices and how they have benefited and can benefit humanity. - Matthew Fox, spiritual theologian and author of Original Blessing, The Reinvention of Work, and Meister Eckhart: A Mystic-Warrior for Our TImes
Praise for the Science Delusion - :
Sheldrake will be seen as a prophet. - The Sunday Times
Rupert Sheldrake does science, humanity and the world at large a considerable favour. - The Independent
Certainly we need to accept the limitations of much current dogma and keep our minds open as we reasonably can. Sheldrake may help us do so through this well-written, challenging and always interesting book. - Financial Times
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Product details
ASIN : B01N36Z3OP
Publisher : Coronet; 1st edition (2 November 2017)
Language : English
File size : 1232 KB
Text-to-Speech : Enabled
Screen Reader : Supported
Enhanced typesetting : Enabled
X-Ray : Enabled
Word Wise : Enabled
Sticky notes : On Kindle Scribe
Print length : 255 pages
Top reviews
Top review from Australia
Mr John P Scoble
5.0 out of 5 stars Food for thought for everyoneReviewed in Australia on 12 November 2021
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Sheldrake provides a balanced assessment of religion and atheism, pointing out the advantages and excesses of each. His theory of morphic resonance is interesting and worthy of further exploration. He examines many studies that demonstrate the health benefits of spiritual practices. As a Christian, I found this affirming.
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Sujittra Chaturongkul
5.0 out of 5 stars I Find Rupert Sheldrake Extremely IntelligentReviewed in the United States on 8 March 2024
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I find Rupert Sheldrake extremely intelligent and comprehensive. I really like this book that he writes. He goes the usual informal style, yet worth pondering and opening of visions. I decide to quote the summary of his book from the last section of his last chapter as follows.
"The sciences have penetrated into realms of the very large and the very small which our ancestors knew nothing about. The trouble is that the sciences give us vast amounts of data, but it is devoid of personal and spiritual meaning.
By contrast, traditional spiritual connections with the more-than-human world found meaning and significance everywhere, but knew nothing of these recent discoveries of the sciences. To combine these two approaches is a uniquely modern challenge.
We are all on journeys. Spiritual practices can enrich our lives and give us a stronger sense of connection with each other, as well as with life and consciousness beyond the human level. These practices can help us accept some of the many gifts that we are offered and give thanks for them. The more we appreciate what we have been given, the greater our motivation to give."
Personally, I just think God or Godness is the answer to all problems.
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2 people found this helpfulReport
Fernão Morato
5.0 out of 5 stars Before you buy the book, please consider...Reviewed in Canada on 1 December 2019
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Before you buy this, please consider how Amazon uses bullying to destroy the competition and build a monopoly.
Read this article on how the Company used monopolistic practices to suffocate and buy smaller businesses.
https://slate.com/technology/2013/10/amazon-book-how-jeff-bezos-went-thermonuclear-on-diapers-com.html
6 people found this helpfulReport
Michiel van Schothorst
5.0 out of 5 stars Another SheldrakeReviewed in Germany on 18 October 2019
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Sheldrake has opened my eyes on many subjects in all his former books. His Morphic Resonance concept should finally be accepted by mainstream science as the principle behind universal consciousness. The way he has shown the shortcomings in the "mainstream science religion" are to the point and should be revealing to those who have not been "prisoned" by their peers. In this book Sheldrake shows how several human activities such as being grateful and "feeling" nature have scientific evidence as being supportive to our wellbeing. I hope that many scientific sceptics will read this. I hope that all other readers will find joy in connecting with the religious man Rupert Sheldrake as I did.
2 people found this helpfulReport
clear-eyed reader
5.0 out of 5 stars Encouragement for the irreligiousReviewed in the United Kingdom on 15 August 2018
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Rupert Sheldrake makes no bones about his own faith but his personal spiritual journey has been extremely diverse and extensive. He proposes that for those, like myself, challenged by our own rationalist convictions whenever religion nudges into our lives yet conscious of a palpable void in ourselves where active faith might normally function, there is another option. Simply to select from the range of signature practices common to most faiths and varieties of worship and to find our own personally acceptable and enjoyable ways of incorporating them into our lives. An example is to sing with others in praise or celebration. Another to go on pilgrimage. This might be to a holy or spiritual site, or a place of great natural beauty, or somewhere that you personally revere (for example Shakespeare’s birthplace, if you really like Shakespeare). The book is easy to read, well organised and a sincere personal document without the cringeworthy missionary narrowness so common in the introductory materials of specific faiths.
Having read this I can see how a lot of happy non-religious people do pragmatically incorporate more than one of the suggested practices into their lives - in other words Sheldrake’s insight and intuition are actually borne out by what I can observe in my friends, almost none of whom adhere actively to any faith. If you feel discontented, disconnected, aimless or rootless this is a self-help book that empowers its readers to select their own directions towards a life less ordinary (however unremarkable it may look from the outside).
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36 people found this helpfulReport
Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Love this book. Just what I need right nowReviewed in the United States on 22 February 2024
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I feel so familiar with Rupert’s material as I have always felt the same way he describes things but he is so encompassing with his knowledge and explains things so well that he takes what has never been explained and explains it! I am very interested in learning more about his work with bio morphism and how learning is speeded up the more people that have learned something. Cool!
2 people found this helpfulReport
