50 Things You're Not Supposed To Know: Religion [Paperback]

Daniele Bolelli (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 20, 2011 | Series: Things You're Not Supposed to Know

If you're waiting for the world's "Holy Men" to tell you the truth about their religions, do you suppose they'll mention that:

• The Tao Te Ching was only created because Lao Tzu was thrown in jail by a disciple who didn't want to let him leave town without writing down his teachings?
• "Passover" celebrates God killing all firstborn Egyptian kids while Jewish homes were "passed over" by the angel of death?
• Shinto, a nature-loving, mellow religion, was transformed by the Japanese government into a nationalistic ideology promoting "holy" war?

Adding to its popular 50 Things You're Not Supposed To Know series, Disinformation has teamed with Daniele Bolelli--writer, professor of comparative religion, and renowned martial arts practitioner and philosopher--to tackle an ever more serious and important topic: popular misconceptions about religion. Among other revelations:

• Carpocrates, an early Christian, argued that sex orgies were a key to heaven.
• Prostitution was a religious duty in Mesopotamian temples.
• The two major Chinese religions (Taoism and Confucianism) are completely at odds with each other and yet are often practiced together.
• Despite having persecuted Jews for 2,000 years, Christian fundamentalists are Israel's biggest supporters.

Capturing just the right balance of in-depth knowledge, respect, humor and irreverence, Bolelli takes an ecumenical approach to the task, revealing surprising, shocking, and little-known facts about the "big three" religions but also many more, including Zen Buddhism, Hinduism, Zoroastrianism, and, of course, the increasingly popular non-religion: atheism.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Daniele Bolelli is a writer, college professor and martial artist. Born in Milan, Italy, he is part of a family of writers. His father, Franco Bolelli, is one of the most influential modern Italian philosophers, while his mother, Gloria, is the author of four books and a freelance journalist.

His first book published in the United States was On the Warrior's Path: Philosophy, Fighting, and Martial Arts Mythology. It is one of the top modern bestsellers on the philosophy of martial arts and has been used as a textbook in several universities in the United States, Canada and Italy. A fourth-degree black belt, Bolelli has taught seminars about martial arts in schools around the world and has coached and fought professionally in mixed martial arts (MMA).

Bolelli is a lecturer at several major universities in Southern California. He is a professor in the History Department at Santa Monica College, teaching courses on the history of religions. He also teaches in the Asian American Studies and World Arts Cultures Departments at UCLA and the American Indian Studies Department at CSULB.

Bolelli is a regular contributor for several magazines both in Italy and in the United States. A graduate of UCLA with Bachelors and Masters degrees, he lives in Los Angeles.

Product Details

• Paperback: 192 pages
• Publisher: Disinformation Books (December 20, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1934708690
• ISBN-13: 978-1934708699
• Product Dimensions: 0.6 x 5.8 x 5.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (26 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #77,235 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Daniele Bolelli is a writer, martial artist, and university professor. He was born in Italy and currently lives in Los Angeles.

Writing: His first solo book, "La Tenera Arte del Guerriero," was published when Bolelli was 22 years old. This work, which is a philosophical exploration of the martial arts, went on to become a cult classic in Italy even outside the confines of martial arts circles. It was later published in the United States with three additional chapters under the title "On the Warrior's Path." Two more chapters were added for a second edition published in 2008. "On the Warrior's Path" has been published in Russia and will be published in Italy in a new updated edition at the end of 2012.

His second book entitled "iGod: Istruzioni per l'Uso di una Religione Fai da Te" was published in Italy in 2011. This wild ride through comparative religion will be released in the United States in early 2013. Bolelli's third book, "50 Things You're Not Supposed To Know: Religion," was published in the United States in December 2011. Some of the most influential thinkers to have affected his world view include Tom Robbins, Friedrich Nietzsche, Ikkyu Sojun, Thomas Paine, Henry David Thoreau, Lao Tzu, and Heraclitus.

Teaching career: After graduating from UCLA with a B.A. in Anthropology, and earning graduate degrees at UCLA (in American Indian Studies) and CSULB (History), Bolelli began teaching at several colleges in Southern California. Unlike most scholars who tend to specialize in one particular field of knowledge, Bolelli adopts a "renaissance" man-approach to teaching that has led him to lecture on a wide range of subjects including American Indian history and philosophy, history of the United States, world religions, history of ancient Rome, history and philosophy of martial arts, the ethnic experience in the United States, world history, plus several courses on the relationship between cinema and history. Perhaps even more peculiar than his unusually extensive repertoire is Bolelli's lecturing style. Much like his writing, in fact, his lecturing style combines discussions of complex, deep subjects with much humor and "street lingo." For this reason, he has been defined as "half stand up comedian and half Zen master." This odd mix has made him extremely popular among students.

Martial Arts: Bolelli has trained in several styles of martial arts including kung fu san soo, taijiquan, baguazhang, xingyiquan, submission wrestling, Brazilian jiujitsu, boxing, and judo. He holds a fifth degree black belt in kung fu san soo-a style that he has taught for several years at UCLA's John Wooden Center. Bolelli also coached and fought professionally in mixed martial arts (MMA).

Media: Bolelli was featured in "I Am Bruce Lee" which broke Spike TV's rating record for documentaries. He has appeared as a guest on popular podcasts such as Duncan Trussell's, Adam Carolla's and Joe Rogan's.

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

19 of 21 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars 50 Amazing Facts To Shock Your Religious Friends With December 5, 2011

By Hagbard Celine

Format:Paperback

This is a great bathroom book, each entry being short enough to read in a couple of minutes, and packed with a sting that will make for some controversial dinner table talk or cocktail party conversation starter. Or should that be conflagration starter? Some of the facts that author Daniele Bolelli includes are bound to provoke those who stick closely to their particular brand of religious dogma, but it's seemingly well researched and he is a professor of comparative religion who writes with irreverent authority. This is a great book to leave lying around your home for others to find and freak out about. Highly Recommended.

16 of 20 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply Awesome December 7, 2011

By Sean Webb

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I heard Daniele Bolelli on the podcast of one of my friends Spags (The Joe Rogan Experience), and I immediately picked up this book for Kindle. Simply put... the book is great. It's a boiled down version of the best stories that Bolelli picked out from his own (yet to be published?) 4 inch thick tome of washed over religious history.

Coming from having passed through the experience of enlightenment (being beyond religion to being fully entwined in spirituality) this book is a great reminder of how dogma often gets twisted into something other than what the spiritually inspired event would mean it to be. This is a definite must read for anyone who is interested in religious history, and who seeks the truth that lies just beyond it.

You should probably also check out Joe Rogan's podcast. It's pretty funny, and often discusses interesting topics such as this.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Great little book February 22, 2013

By Nate Johnson

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

I really enjoyed this book. It is a fun collection of lesser known stories that is well written and very enjoyable to read. I have read it multiple times and keep it on my coffee table to offer to guests that I think would enjoy it.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Religious Zombies, Orgies, and Lunies April 4, 2012

By E. R. Christensen

Format:Paperback

I don't normally write book reviews out here, but I loved this book so much I
wanted to add my 5 star input to this small little book that's about the size of
a CD case.

50 short pieces of religious trivia that to quote the author "if you
believe that without blind faith you would be prey to senselessness and desperaton,
if dealing with complexity sends you running for the reassuring arms of dogma -
then this book is not for you. It will confuse you, anger you and ruin your digestion.
But if you feel like taking a weird, dangerous journey through world religions and
running into some of the very odd characters populating them - if you have a taste
for paradox and think that questioning authority should be an Olympic sport - then hop
on board."

Even if you think you know a lot about religious history, there should be something
here to entertain you even if you're not being newly informed. But 99% of us will be
informed as well. Mr. Bolelli takes no prisoners and all religions are fair game.
From the trial and retrials of dead popes, to varieties of Christianity prior to Constantine,
to the aberrations of faith by people we call lunatics, it's all here in 165 pages with another
9 pages of referenced further reading.

I can't wait for 50 more things Mr. Bolelli thinks I shouldn't know.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Fun factoids... February 27, 2012

By M. Jordan

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

This book is a great read for anyone who was ever skeptical about the pitfalls of organized religon. The author does a masterful job of taking bite sized bits of information and delivering them in a funny yet concise manner. Read this short book with an OPEN MIND and you will be enlightend as well as entertained!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful

4.0 out of 5 stars Nice interesting read on the other side of religion February 3, 2012

By Raghu

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

I first came upon the book through a book club and a Joe Rogan Podcast episode and decided to buy it when I got my Kindle. The book is well written in a slightly amused "bet, you didn't think this happened" way which reminds you of that professor you had in college who would keep the class interesting. It goes through a lot of facts and asides from major events and aspects of religious lore and dates, etc. while explaining the events (gruesome and horrible truths from man's history) in a concise and interesting way.

Not by any stretch an authority book, but definitely well written, researched and fun way to learn a little more about our murky pasts full of killing, torture and general bad behavior in the name of religion.

Good buy and an excellent plane ride read.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars Awsome April 2, 2013

By Francesco

Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase

Bolelli manages to touch on such a vast amount of information and historical events that this will change the way that you see every major religion.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars You'll laugh and learn something January 6, 2013

By Jack Visoky

Format:Kindle Edition|Amazon Verified Purchase

Bolelli has a great comedic style of writing, which makes this book enjoyable and easy to read. If you're well read on religion then you'll probably recognise several of the facts in this book, but the new ideas and comedy of the books still make it enjoyable. One issue with the kindle version was that some of the pictures in the book didn't show up, but I didn't feel that took away much from the experience. I'm hoping Bolelli will come out with a sequel as I'm sure he could come up with 50 more things you're not supposed to know about religion.