Reddit reviews The Tao of Physics: An Exploration of the Parallels between Modern Physics and Eastern Mysticism (25th Anniversary Edition)

If you're interested in this connection, you should probably read The Tao of Physics: An Exploration of the Parallels between Modern Physics and Eastern Mysticism by Fritjof Capra.

The Tao of Physics Is a good one describing the parallels.

I appreciate your skepticism as I believe we all should be skeptics until we are proven otherwise.

You would like to read - The Tao Of Physics

The author is talking about a psychological process that occurs subconsciously that, once understood, explains how well our actions (thoughts and reasons for action) rest in accordance with the nature of reality. For instance; in Buddhism "grasping" for sense objects or mental objects is a false way of attaining true happiness. We act under the assumption that if we could just attain enough (fame, fortune, praise, pleasure) we would be happy and content; sad fact is that no matter how much you attain, you will eventually lose it forever.

You can see also that it takes a certain kind of arrogance to pretend to be free of control from natural laws, and act rationally as a free agent, yet secretly know (instinctively) to be doomed to grow old and die and to perish from this earthly existence.

This is our real predicament. Earthly death is the end of all sense experience regardless of your belief in an afterlife; if its in some ethereal world that's not physical, well then, your not receiving physical sense impressions and therefore my original statement would be true. So no matter what religion you abide by, the fact that you will perish from this earthly existence and be without a body is TRUE.

You can see easily how well certain religious beliefs actually accomplish facing this fact courageously and with poise and dignity, without cowardice and a multitude of palliatives that can block access to the mind about adjacent perspectives on existence.

*Buddhism never lays claim to absolute values from either lay people or wise yogis. Buddhism simply states a (as if coming from a scientist) truth in the sentence, "all is impermanent". Buddhist teachers then tells us that to follow this line of thought to it's natural logical end is to be convinced of the imperative to live as though the statement is alive every day, and all the time (of course it takes many years practicing meditation).

I believe the psychological "research" conducted in the form of Buddhist practice and philosophy should be treated as invaluable to the rethinking of old western philosophic problems. Invaluable because it shares with us a perspective of the world that, once acknowledged, it's truth "value" beautifully and logically compliment adjacent perspectives and truth systems. Yes truth is subjective, but accepting this leads to a conjecture about the interacting of two truth groups.

You are a gullible and uncritical thinker because your opinion that the Tao of Physics presents a good argument implies your lack of critical thinking skills and familiarity with physics. I care not one whit about your spiritual education or your path of personal liberation, which as far as I am concerned, are completely irrelevant to the discussion at hand. There is no interest in the topic because your response to any criticism is to go read the book, instead of specifically delineating the points which should, in theory, buttress your argument.

You also engage in ad hominem attacks the moment you get even mildly frustrated. It is incredibly insulting for you accuse Mitchellofire of being in high school, which also implies that high schoolers aren't critical thinkers, and mocking his most beautiful experience as his lost virginity behind the bleachers. You also accuse everyone here, myself included, of being "Bill Maher dick riders," mostly for disagreeing with you. You have made the mistake of assuming qualities about those who disagree with you that are simply untrue. That is why you are an ass.

For less metaphysics, and more physics, I highly recommend The Tao Of Physics

The western view of knowledge is not all there is. You are right about the big bang, but your mode of thinking isn't correct (you aren't wrong, but there is another way of looking at things, which I'm trying to get at). I was vague because that's all I can be. What is the biggest question there is? Why does the universe exist? As opposed to just not existing? Why, as opposed to why not?

I think this book is relevant to this:

http://www.amazon.com/Tao-Physics-Exploration-Parallels-Anniversary/dp/1570625190