--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: As manuals for contemplative…" description: "\"“As manuals for contemplative understanding, the Bible and the Koran are worse than useless. Whatever wisdom can be found in their pages is never best ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03f/sam-harris-457_bible_as-manuals-for-contemplative-understandi_23713.jpg" --- # As manuals for contemplative understanding, the Bible and… ![“As manuals for contemplative understanding, the Bible and the Koran are worse than useless. Whatever wisdom can be found in their pages is never best found there, and it is subverted, time and again, by ancient savagery and superstition.” quote by Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03f/sam-harris-457_bible_as-manuals-for-contemplative-understandi_23713.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03f/sam-harris-457_bible_as-manuals-for-contemplative-understandi_23713.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/03f/sam-harris-457_bible_as-manuals-for-contemplative-understandi_23713.jpg) > ““As manuals for contemplative understanding, the Bible and the Koran are worse than useless. Whatever wisdom can be found in their pages is never best found there, and it is subverted, time and again, by ancient savagery and superstition.”” [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The author argues that religious texts are ineffective as guides for deep reflection, as their insights are obscured by historical violence and superstition. **In simple terms:** Religious texts hinder true contemplation. Key Takeaway Spiritual insight lies beyond scripture. Themes religion knowledge history violence superstition Mood skeptical critical thoughtful Type opinion philosophical critical When to use this quote - personal meditation - academic study of religion - interfaith dialogue - seeking moral guidance Key Concepts interpretation wisdom human nature Practical Applications - critical analysis of sacred texts - developing secular ethical frameworks Questions to Reflect On - How can we extract timeless wisdom from flawed sources? - What alternative paths to contemplative understanding exist? A Different Perspective Some argue that religious narratives provide profound moral frameworks despite historical flaws. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Bible](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bible/) [Koran](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/koran/) [Learning](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/learning/) ## Related quotes > [“...the Bible and the Koran both contain mountains of life-destroying gibberish.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/the-bible-and-the-koran-both-contain-mountains-of-life-destroying/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [I will keep a Bible or Koran on me at all times - the Bible I can actually carry on my phone, and any…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rza/i-will-keep-a-bible-or-koran-on-me-at-all-times-the-bible-i-can/) [Rza](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rza/) > [Old age deprives the intelligent man only of qualities useless to wisdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-joubert/old-age-deprives-the-intelligent-man-only-of-qualities-useless-to/) [Joseph Joubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-joubert/) > [Old age takes from the man of intellect no qualities save those that are useless to wisdom.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-joubert/old-age-takes-from-the-man-of-intellect-no-qualities-save-those-that/) [Joseph Joubert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-joubert/) > [In our household, the Bible, the Koran and the Bhagavad Gita sat on the shelf alongside books of Greek and Norse and African mythology](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barack-obama/in-our-household-the-bible-the-koran-and-the-bhagavad-gita-sat-on-the/) [Barack Obama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barack-obama/) > [Nowhere in the Bible, Koran, or Torah does it say, "If you curse, then you're going to hell." But everywhere it says that if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/russell-simmons/nowhere-in-the-bible-koran-or-torah-does-it-say-if-you-curse-then-you/) [Russell Simmons](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/russell-simmons/) > [The Gita is not only my Bible and my Koran, it is more than that, it is my mother.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mahatma-gandhi/the-gita-is-not-only-my-bible-and-my-koran-it-is-more-than-that-it-is/) [Mahatma Gandhi](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mahatma-gandhi/) > [Gain some knowledge. If not from the Bible or Koran, get a book from college.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ll-cool-j/gain-some-knowledge-if-not-from-the-bible-or-koran-get-a-book-from/) [LL Cool J](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ll-cool-j/) > [“the United States government will not tolerate any disrespect for the holy Koran.” What form our government’s intolerance will take remains unspecified. I await…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/the-united-states-government-will-not-tolerate-any-disrespect-for-the/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“The answer to this question is obvious - if only because it has been patiently articulated ad nauseam by bin Laden himself. The answer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/the-answer-to-this-question-is-obvious-if-only-because-it-has-been/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [We are now in the 21st century: all books, including the Koran, should be fair game for flushing down the toilet without fear of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/we-are-now-in-the-21st-century-all-books-including-the-koran-should/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [Instead of a perpetual and perfect measure of the divine will, the fragments of the Koran were produced at the discretion of Mahomet; each…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edward-gibbon/instead-of-a-perpetual-and-perfect-measure-of-the-divine-will-the/) [Edward Gibbon](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edward-gibbon/) > [“Moderates in every faith are obliged to loosely interpret (or simply ignore) much of their canons in the interests of living in the modern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/moderates-in-every-faith-are-obliged-to-loosely-interpret-or-simply/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [One of those blocks (that prevent the 'Middle East from entering the mainstream of modernity') is the orthodox tenet that the Koran and the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/arnold-beichman/one-of-those-blocks-that-prevent-the-middle-east-from-entering-the/) [Arnold Beichman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/arnold-beichman/) > [I don't mind people want to think Muhammad is the greatest fighter around. Everybody wants to make him great because of his mouth, that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joe-frazier/i-don-t-mind-people-want-to-think-muhammad-is-the-greatest-fighter/) [Joe Frazier](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joe-frazier/) ## More by Sam Harris > [“Moderates in every faith are obliged to loosely interpret (or simply ignore) much of their canons in the interests of living in the modern…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/moderates-in-every-faith-are-obliged-to-loosely-interpret-or-simply/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [There is no question but that nominally religious scientists like Francis Collins and Kenneth R. Miller are doing lasting harm to our discourse by…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/there-is-no-question-but-that-nominally-religious-scientists-like/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [We have Christians against Muslims against Jews, and no matter how liberal your theology, merely identifying yourself as a Christian or a Jew lends…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/we-have-christians-against-muslims-against-jews-and-no-matter-how/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“Your principal concern appears to be that the Creator of the universe will take offense at something people do while naked. This prudery of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/your-principal-concern-appears-to-be-that-the-creator-of-the-universe/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [About 120 million of us place the big bang 2,500 years after the Babylonians and Sumerians learned to brew beer. If our polls are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/about-120-million-of-us-place-the-big-bang-2-500-years-after-the/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“If your golf instructor were to insist that you shave your head, sleep no more than four hours each night, renounce sex, and subsist…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/if-your-golf-instructor-were-to-insist-that-you-shave-your-head-sleep/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [The fact that one can lose one's sense of self in an ocean of tranquility does not mean that one's consciousness is immaterial or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/the-fact-that-one-can-lose-one-s-sense-of-self-in-an-ocean-of/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [The second commandment is "Thou shall not construct any graven images." Is this really the pinnacle of what we can achieve morally? The second…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/the-second-commandment-is-thou-shall-not-construct-any-graven-images/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“But the reality of consciousness appears irreducible. Only consciousness can know itself—and directly, through first-person experience.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/but-the-reality-of-consciousness-appears-irreducible-only/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“Whether or not one likes Huntington's formulation, one thing is clear: the evil that has finally reached our shores is not merely the evil…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/whether-or-not-one-likes-huntington-s-formulation-one-thing-is-clear/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [The problem is that religion tends to give people bad reasons to be good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/the-problem-is-that-religion-tends-to-give-people-bad-reasons-to-be/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [Muslim moderates, wherever they are, must be given every tool necessary to win a war of ideas with their co-religionists. Otherwise, we will have…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/muslim-moderates-wherever-they-are-must-be-given-every-tool-necessary/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [The idea that any one of our religions represents the infallible word of the One True God requires an encyclopedic ignorance of history, mythology,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/the-idea-that-any-one-of-our-religions-represents-the-infallible-word/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“What could possibly cause billions of human beings to reconsider their religious beliefs? And yet, it is obvious that an utter revolution in our…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/what-could-possibly-cause-billions-of-human-beings-to-reconsider/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) > [“Take a moment to think about the context in which your next decision will occur: You did not pick your parents or the time…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-harris/take-a-moment-to-think-about-the-context-in-which-your-next-decision/) [Sam Harris](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) [Explore all 543 Sam Harris quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-harris/) ## More Bible quotes > [I think a new world will arise out of the religious mists when we approach our Bible with the idea that it is not…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aiden-wilson-tozer/i-think-a-new-world-will-arise-out-of-the-religious-mists-when-we/) [Aiden Wilson Tozer](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aiden-wilson-tozer/) > [From Augustine down, theologians have tried to compel people to accept their special interpretation of the Scripture, and the tortures of the inquisition, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/matilda-joslyn-gage/from-augustine-down-theologians-have-tried-to-compel-people-to-accept/) [Matilda Joslyn Gage](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/matilda-joslyn-gage/) > [“God hates Hell. He hates the idea of people going there. He hates it so much that He was willing to take on human…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/evan-minton/god-hates-hell-he-hates-the-idea-of-people-going-there-he-hates-it-so/) [Evan Minton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/evan-minton/) > [“The Devil can cite Scripture for his purpose, Sergeant,’ Anthony Payne replied. ‘That is from The Merchant of Venice, but it holds great truth.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-arnold/the-devil-can-cite-scripture-for-his-purpose-sergeant-anthony-payne/) Michael Arnold > [When you put your hand on the Bible, you are saying something much stronger than just telling your peers that you're going to tell…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lee-greenwood/when-you-put-your-hand-on-the-bible-you-are-saying-something-much/) [Lee Greenwood](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lee-greenwood/) > [“Scripture also teaches that human beings are morally responsible creatures”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robert-a-peterson/scripture-also-teaches-that-human-beings-are-morally-responsible/) Robert A. Peterson > [“The wife of a junior officer cooped up in a horrible canvas partition in steerage for five months wrote: "I had enjoyed much peace…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stephen-taylor/the-wife-of-a-junior-officer-cooped-up-in-a-horrible-canvas-partition/) Stephen Taylor > [O Word of God incarnate . . . It is the golden casket Where gems of truth are stored; It is the heaven-drawn picture…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/walsham-how/o-word-of-god-incarnate-it-is-the-golden-casket-where-gems-of-truth/) Walsham How > [How can I trust that the Bible is reliable?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/michael-horton/how-can-i-trust-that-the-bible-is-reliable/) [Michael Horton](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/michael-horton/) > [Every plant which my heavenly father has not planted with be uprooted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesus-christ/every-plant-which-my-heavenly-father-has-not-planted-with-be-uprooted/) [Jesus Christ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesus-christ/) > [Where I come from you're not raised to think on your own. It's not that you're pushed to read the Bible. The Bible is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/abel-ferrara/where-i-come-from-you-re-not-raised-to-think-on-your-own-it-s-not/) [Abel Ferrara](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/abel-ferrara/) > [“I felt like praying or something, when I was in bed, but I couldn't do it. I can't always pray when I feel like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-d-salinger/i-felt-like-praying-or-something-when-i-was-in-bed-but-i-couldn-t-do/) [J.D. Salinger](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-d-salinger/) > [What comes to mind when you think of heaven? Heaven is referred to in fifty-four of the Bible's sixty-six books, and the final two…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-jeremiah/what-comes-to-mind-when-you-think-of-heaven-heaven-is-referred-to-in/) [David Jeremiah](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-jeremiah/) > [“While it is in one sense a result of God’s presence within us, the New Testament also describes a process involved in our “putting…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dallas-willard/while-it-is-in-one-sense-a-result-of-god-s-presence-within-us-the-new/) [Dallas Willard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dallas-willard/) > [The definition of a Church is crystal clear in the New Testament. We see the picture of it. They came together the first day…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-macarthur/the-definition-of-a-church-is-crystal-clear-in-the-new-testament-we/) [John MacArthur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-macarthur/) [Browse all 8,465 Bible quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bible/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“As manuals for contemplative understanding, the Bible and the Koran are worse than useless. 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