If your child dies, or you witness a terrible natural disaster, yes, you certainly want a scientific explanation as to what's happened. But science can't help you to find meaning, help you deal with that turbulence of your grief, rage, and dismay.

Compassion is the key in Islam and Buddhism and Judaism and Christianity. They are profoundly similar.

Religion is a practical discipline and in the 17th century in the West, we turned it onto a head trip. But it's like dancing, or swimming, or driving, which you can't learn by texts. You have to get into the car and learn how to manipulate the vehicle.

The great task of our time is to build a global society, where people can live together in peace

We are most creative and sense other possibilities that transcend our ordinary experience when we leave ourselves behind.

But human beings fall easily into despair, and from the very beginning we invented stories that enabled us to place our lives in a larger setting, that revealed an underlying pattern, and gave us a sense that, against all the depressing and chaotic evidence to the contrary, life had meaning and value.

It's a great event to get outside and enjoy nature. I find it very exciting no matter how many times I see bald eagles.