The principal tenet of Jainism is non-harming. Observant Jains will literally not harm a fly. Fundamentalist Jainism and fundamentalist Islam do not have the same consequences, neither logically nor behaviorally.
Sam HarrisThe point is that most of what we currently hold sacred is not sacred for any reason other than that it was thought sacred yesterday.
Sam HarrisWater is two parts hydrogen and one part oxygen. What if someone says, โWell, thatโs not how I choose to think about water.โ? All we can do is appeal to scientific values. And if he doesnโt share those values, the conversation is over. If someone doesnโt value evidence, what evidence are you going to provide to prove they should value it? If someone doesnโt value logic, what logical argument could you provide to show the importance of logic?
Sam HarrisMysticism is a rational enterprise. Religion is not. The mystic has recognized something about the nature of consciousness prior to thought, and this recognition is susceptible to rational discussion. The mystic has reasons for what he believes, and these reasons are empirical. The roiling mystery of the world can be analyzed with concepts (this is science), or it can be experienced free of concepts (this is myticism). Religion is nothing more than bad concepts held in place of good ones for all time. It is the denial-at once full of hope and full of fear-of the vastitude of human ignorance.
Sam Harris