Waking Up: A Guide to Spirituality Without Religion

Waking Up: A Guide to Spirituality Without Religion

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Description

Spirituality.The search for happiness –Religion, East and West –Mindfulness –The truth of suffering –Enlightenment –The mystery of consciousness.The mind divided –Structure and function –Are our minds already split? –Conscious and unconscious processing in the brain –Consciousness is what matters –The riddle of the self.What are we calling “I”? –Consciousness without self –Lost in thought –The challenge of studying the self –Penetrating the illusion –Meditation.Gradual versus sudden realization –Dzogchen: taking the goal as the path –Having no head –The paradox of acceptance –Gurus, death, drugs, and other puzzles.Mind on the brink of death –The spiritual uses of pharmacology.

  • Author: Sam Harris
  • Publisher: Simon and Schuster
  • Published: 2015-06-16
  • Pages: 256
  • ISBN-13: 9781451636024

Additional information

Author

Sam Harris

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Summary

What the internet says

Aggregated insights from reviews and discussions across the web.

Overall reception: Mixed reception

Sam Harris's 'Waking Up: A Guide to Spirituality Without Religion' receives polarized reception online, with ratings averaging 4.06 on Goodreads and 4.3-4.6 on audiobook platforms. Supporters praise Harris for bridging the gap between rational skepticism and contemplative practice, offering a secular framework for meditation and consciousness exploration that appeals to the 'spiritual but not religious' demographic. NPR's review notes it as a 'seeker's memoir, an introduction to the brain, a manual of contemplative instruction,' while Kirkus Reviews describes it as 'demanding' and 'illusion-shattering.' Many readers appreciate Harris's clear narration in the audiobook format and his integration of neuroscience with Eastern meditation practices.

What readers loved

  • Combines meditation and spirituality with scientific rigor and rational skepticism, avoiding 'new age waffle'
  • Provides practical meditation instruction with guided exercises accessible through the author's website
  • Harris's calm, confident narration makes the audiobook particularly effective
  • Challenges the conventional sense of self with philosophical depth grounded in neuroscience
  • Includes honest autobiographical accounts of meditation retreats and psychedelic experiences
  • Offers warnings about unethical gurus and provides practical guidance for seekers
  • Appeals specifically to atheists and non-religious individuals seeking contemplative practices

Common critiques

  • Lacks sufficient practical instruction—described as more 'why' than 'how-to guide' despite the title
  • Comes across as pompous, dismissive, and dogmatic to some readers who find Harris's tone off-putting
  • Jumbled and rambling structure that feels disorganized, with an out-of-place chapter critiquing Eben Alexander
  • Overly simplistic prescription reduced to 'you don't exist' and 'empty your mind'
  • Includes awkward content about sexual malpractices of spiritual gurus that feels beneath Harris's scholarly reputation

Based on reviews from

  • Goodreads
  • Kirkus Reviews
  • NPR
  • Audiobook Treasury
Last updated May 18, 2026 Summary based on publicly available reviews. May not reflect every reader's experience.

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