For the millions who want to find peace, love, and purpose without religion, Cambridge-educated scientist, wisdom teacher, and leadership expert Nick Jankel sets out a radical new life philosophy that reunites cutting-edge science with timeless wisdom about human consciousness to help us make better life choices, understand our place in the universe, and transform our life, love, and leadership challenges so we thrive.
"Eye-opening... a nuanced way to expand the views of even a hardened atheist." Kirkus Reviews
"A taboo-smashing book." Bookbag
Spiritual Atheist is a ground-breaking 'philosophical memoir' that draws on the author's knowledge of cutting-edge neuroscience, physics, and psychology; his insights into wisdom traditions like Taoism, Kabbalah, Advaita Vedanta, Buddhism, Zen, and Sufism; and twenty years experience leading hundreds of major organizations, and tens of thousands of individuals, to transform themselves.
Unable to find lasting happiness with religion, reason, pills, therapy, partying, wealth, success, or entrepreneurship, the author discovered the life-changing and heart-expanding benefits of 'spiritual' enlightenment. But not satisfied with New Age ideology, he spent years meticulously joining the dots between science and spirituality to form a rigorous philosophy for the 25% of the population who call themselves 'spiritual but not religious' who want to flourish in their inner lives, relationships, and careers.
If you trust science, and relish reason, but also sense that your life has purpose, your consciousness is real and that love is a force for good - all phenomena that conventional atheism denies - then spiritual atheism will help you have it all without dogma or superstition of any kind. Not limited to revolutionizing your own happiness and wellbeing, spiritual atheism can ensure that, together, we recalibrate capitalism, reinvent politics, and make AI, business, and technology work for all.
This book is ideal for those looking for answers to the biggest questions in life; as well as and fans of books like The God Delusion by Richard Dawkins, Waking Up by Sam Harris, and The Science Delusion by Rupert Sheldrake. It includes a summary of the key principles of Spiritual Atheism and an accessible glossary of essential philosophical, scientific, and spiritual terms to support awakening. The book offers a condensed summary of what makes our modern world tick... and what is causing it to fall apart, exploring the history and philosophy behind:
- Religion and Atheism
- Psychology and Psychotherapy
- Travel and Anthropology
- Science and Materialism
- Music, Dance, and Ecstasy
- Philosophy and Postmodernism
- Capitalism and Consumerism
- Technology and Entrepreneurship
- Wisdom and Enlightenment
- Healing and Transformation
- Purpose & Leadership
The biology-based philosophy of spiritual atheism draw on the work of cutting-edge scientists like Rex Jung, Robin Carhart-Harris, Stuart Kauffman, Stuart Hameroff, Dan Siegel, David Bohm, Bessel van der Kolk, and Christoph Koch; the greats of modern psychology like William James, Carl Jung, Viktor Frankl and Frederick W. H. Myers; titans of philosophy like Plato, Feuerbach, Nietzsche, Whitehead, Spinoza, Descartes and Marx; and modern thought leaders like Pierre Hadot, Charles Taylor, Robert Bellah, Jordan Peterson, Thomas Kuhn, Bertrand Russell, Jean Baudrillard, Michel Foucault, Roger Penrose, Galen Strawson, Mircea Eliade, Thomas Picketty, and Stan Grof.
