The Spiritual Brain: A Neuroscientist's Case for the Existence of the Soul

Beauregard’s thesis is that mystical/spiritual experiences have effects on the brain that are too complex to be generalized down to a “God Gene,” a “God Switch,” or a section of the brain dedicated to religiosity. His evidence for this thesis is pretty strong—specifically, he summarizes his own neuroscience research with Carmelite nuns. This thesis does not take an entire book to prove, however, so he spends the rest of the book discussing other aspects of spirituality and neuroscience. Problem is, he’s not an exciting writer, so I really can’t remember any of his other points. I don’t recall any objectionable arguments he made…it’s just that the book is rather forgettable. Maybe worth a read if you have a specific show more interest in the area—but there are better books out there for casual popular reading. show less

Interesting. I appreciate all the debunking of materialist views of RSMEs and the research the author did.

My friend gave me this book as a gift. I was expecting more from it, and I couldn't get through it due to the bad science and factual errors. And I still don't understand what a soul is supposed to be. Don't bother, it's not worth it.