If I were to state here that I have just read an amazing book that should be read by anyone who takes himself seriously in any discussion about religion, faith, ethics and the roles these entities play in our societies and lives, I’d run the risk of getting answers like: “Enough Already!!!” Nevertheless, it IS what I am going to do right now:
The book I am referring to is “The End of Faith” by Sam Harris and it is claimed by Mr. Richard Dawkins himself to be the one book that can cure you from any obsolete and undesirable mind-junk concerning religion or god. Dawkins even quotes Harris regularly in his book “The God Delusion”.
So that is really saying something. Richard Dawkins is not just some ordinary geezer from around the corner. He is a scientific big shot – in evolutionary biology, and a globally accepted opinion leader on the nature of man & many things more. Being quoted by RD is a ticket to fame and credibility.
However, it must be said: Sam Harris does not need such Dawkinsian acknowledgements to earn my respect. The End of Faith shows that Harris is a gifted writer and a thinker to be reckoned with. I ate his book like sweet cake. Harris knows how to write in a manner that grabs the attention, as well as satisfying the need for aesthetic prose. But most of all, in respect to the book’s content, Harris is a very courageous man, indeed.
This courage is shown in Harris’ analysis of the Muslim faith. In any discourse about religion in our cultures, especially the ones that have near global coverage if put together, one always ends up with the Big Three: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Comparing these three faiths is interesting, because they have a common base in a common god, they originate from the same desert in the Middle East, and they share a fair amount of prophets. They differ, however, in what they dictate to their followers. How their followers are to give content to their lives, and how they are to interpret the will of their god. Through the lens of these religions, one can compare the peoples who adhere to them, by the effect their scriptures have on their ways of life, or on their cultures, for instance.
It sounds like a truism, but it is an interesting experiment. Following his analysis, into which I shall not go to deeply here, Harris makes a very interesting statement: Islam is an intrinsically, explicitly violent and intolerant faith, which carries the clear goal of world domination in its scripture, the Koran. He shows us, that on nearly every page of that book, there is some description of the fate deserved by any “infidel” for even the slightest violation of the many, far reaching rules: that fate would be death. These rules encompass a lot of things: adultery, blasphemy, denouncement of the scripture, doubting ones faith, scratching the back of the head too many times or dressing in the wrong clothes to name just a few. But there are many, many more. The Koran, as it appears, creeps through Muslim daily life like ink through blotting paper. And it does not teach any benevolence.
In effect, there is no “moderate” form of Islam. The Koran doesn’t accommodate modesty in the slightest. There is no place to go in that scripture , where one can foster ones moderate Islamic feelings. In this respect, the Koran differs from the Torah and the Bible. These two versions of the ancient god fairytale are very violent and intolerant as well, but they are not as saturated with it as the Koran is. Both Bible and Torah offer ample space to be a moderate believer.
Be that as it may, Harris also points out, that if we are unable to get past our faiths, especially these Big Three, then we have a rather gloomy future to look forward to. If any.
There is another reason why I find Harris courageous. And this is a courage mainly pointed at people like myself. I am, admittedly, allergic to not only faiths or gods, but also to popular diseases like astrology, scientology or mindfloaters like spiritualism and meditation. Interestingly, Harris points out that the latter two are useful instruments to come to a – and here it comes… – scientific approach of ethics. According to Harris, spiritualism is a RATIONAL way to assess consciousness, and therewith find a pathway to a rational assessment of what is good or bad in this world. It defeats the need for any monolithic and ignorant faith.
So, there you have it. The moral of Harris’ book: ditch those faiths and gods and start meditating to achieve a better understanding of [your] consciousness. With that you will understand your place in this world, and you will come to a rational implementation of a (rationally acquired) moral structure, which is benign and suitable to guide you through your life. This understanding – and its subsequent proliferation perhaps – of “goodness” comes without cutting any one’s throat.*
I might be wrong with my interpretation of Harris’ red thread and his conclusions, but I would like to put that on my own sense of discomfort with even the slightest waft of spiritualism. I lack the most rudimentary experience in that field for obvious reasons. On the other hand: I am very charmed by a rational and scientific way to come to a sensible construction of morality. This inclines me to reread the last chapters of T.E.O.F., may I find the time.
To make a long story short, I should state that I really learned something from Sam Harris; something which I thought was going to be notoriously absent from my life forever. I am curious if spiritualism will ever gain a significant foothold in me, but the door is open, or unlocked, at least a little bit. Well done mister Harris. It is very much appreciated.
* An interesting fact, that I had almost forgotten and which was rekindled by Harris, is that we have a basic sense of “good” and “bad” already engraved in our hardware. We do not have to learn that from scratch through any faith or religion. Evolution has taken care of that. Apparently, our environment has favoured altruism to evolve; as well as freedom and choice. Interesting work on this is being done in the field of game-theory. Further reading: Daniel C. Dennett; “Freedom Evolves” and [a section of] “Critical Mass” by Philip Ball.
