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 (25 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #62,947 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

18 of 20 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.