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Tales of Wonder: Adventures Chasing the Divine, an Autobiography

by Huston Smith

3.89 of 5 stars 3.89 · rating details · 239 ratings · 46 reviews

Huston Smith, the man who brought the world's religions to the West, was born almost a century ago to missionary parents in China during the perilous rise of the Communist Party. Smith's lifelong spiritual journey brought him face-to-face with many of the people who shaped the twentieth century. His extraordinary travels around the globe have taken him to the world's holie Huston Smith, the man who brought the world's religions to the West, was born almost a century ago to missionary parents in China during the perilous rise of the Communist Party. Smith's lifelong spiritual journey brought him face-to-face with many of the people who shaped the twentieth century. His extraordinary travels around the globe have taken him to the world's holiest places, where he has practiced religion with many of the great spiritual leaders of our time.

Smith's life is a story of uncanny synchronicity. He was there for pivotal moments in human history such as the founding of the United Nations and the student uprising at Tiananmen Square. As he traveled the world he encountered thinkers who shaped the twentieth century. He interviewed Eleanor Roosevelt on the radio; invited Martin Luther King Jr. to speak at an all-white university before the March on Washington; shared ideas with Thomas Merton on his last plane ride before Merton's death in Bangkok; and was rescued while lost in the Serengeti by Masai warriors who took him to the compound of world-renowned anthropologists Louis and Mary Leaky.

In search of intellectual and spiritual treasures, Smith traveled to India to meet with Mother Teresa and befriended the Dalai Lama; he studied Zen at the most challenging monastery in Japan; and he hitchhiked through the desert to meet Aldous Huxley, dropped acid with Timothy Leary, and took peyote with a Native American shaman. He climbed Mount Athos, traipsed through the Holy Land, and was the first to study multiphonic chanting by monks in Tibet, which he recorded with Mickey Hart of the Grateful Dead. Most important, he shared the world's religions with the West—writing two bestselling books and serving as the focus of a five-part PBS television series by Bill Moyers.

Huston Smith is a national treasure. His life is an extraordinary adventure, and in his amazing Tales of Wonder , he invites you to come along to explore your own vistas of heart, mind, and soul. ...more

Hardcover , 188 pages

Published May 12th 2009 by HarperOne (first published October 1st 2008)

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Dec 16, 2009 Ben rated it 2 of 5 stars

Shelves: nonfiction

Huston Smith has led a remarkable life. He has conversed with the Dalai Lama, lived as a monk in Japan, done LSD with Tim Leary and introduced America to Hinduism, Buddhism and other religions considered exotic in the fifties. But I had hoped that his autobiography would bring these stories to life, instead they were a laundry list of accomplishment. He writes his autobiography from his nursing home at the age of ninety, and as a result the book reads more the musings of a man at the end of his Huston Smith has led a remarkable life. He has conversed with the Dalai Lama, lived as a monk in Japan, done LSD with Tim Leary and introduced America to Hinduism, Buddhism and other religions considered exotic in the fifties. But I had hoped that his autobiography would bring these stories to life, instead they were a laundry list of accomplishment. He writes his autobiography from his nursing home at the age of ninety, and as a result the book reads more the musings of a man at the end of his life rather than the adventure that was his life.

I feel almost guilty for not liking it more, and reading this has made me want to read his other writings. There are several good moments in the book: When he describes the possibility of religious experiences through "Entheogens", psychedelic substances that produce religious experiences. He writes a balanced view of such drugs, stating that they have been a part of religious experiences for thousands of years, but that moments of divine experience do not make for a religous life, for that requires a life of devoting oneself to others.

The other moment is his description of living as a monk in Japan and his taciturn senior monk requiring him to meditate for ten days on only three hours sleep per night. Then,after he has done so, the senior monk shows him that he enjoys beer and sumo. The senior monk is knocks himself off the pedestal, to prove that both devotion and enjoyment in life are necessary.

Lastly, the appendix at the end of called a "Universal Grammar of Worldviews" is perhaps the best part of the book. Modeled after Chomsky's Universal Grammar, Smith explains fourteen points that all religions contain, and how they relate to each other. The points not only show the commonality of all religion, but also the intersection of science and spirituality. ...more

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Aug 06, 2009 Nikki rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: autobiography-memoir , faith-and-spirituality-resources

I seldom read biographies, and still less often, autobiographies, making exceptions only for those subjects who truly fascinate me or who I believe have much to teach. Huston Smith falls squarely into both categories.

Many years ago, my husband and I took a class on World Religions being given at the local high school by a professor from the nearest state university. The text was Smith's The Religions of Man , since revised, enlarged, and retitled The World's Religions . So I was familiar with Smit I seldom read biographies, and still less often, autobiographies, making exceptions only for those subjects who truly fascinate me or who I believe have much to teach. Huston Smith falls squarely into both categories.

Many years ago, my husband and I took a class on World Religions being given at the local high school by a professor from the nearest state university. The text was Smith's The Religions of Man , since revised, enlarged, and retitled The World's Religions . So I was familiar with Smith, and the title of this book attracted me. I pulled it from the library shelf and realized it was an autobiography, but sat down to read a few pages; immediately I knew I wanted to read the whole book.

Smith is 90 years old -- he and his friend Pete Seeger share a birthday -- and grew up in a remote village in China where his parents were Methodist missionaries. He still belongs to a Methodist church - I believe, from things he says in this book, that it's San Francisco's Glide Memorial -- but has not only studied, but practiced, other religions. His quest for learning took him first to Shanghai, then to a small college in Missouri, and then to Chicago for grad school. Subsequently, besides teaching in several universities, he travelled all over the world and even to the doors of perception. (He tells of taking mescaline with Timothy Leary.) The tale of his experiences is fascinating in itself, but what makes this book truly worth reading are the nuggets of wisdom, well expressed, that Smith has gained from his studies, his practices, and his life. As a bonus, the appendix to the book is a lecture, "A Universal Grammar of Worldviews," that Smith gave at Pacific School of Religion four years ago, and which contains both knowledge and wisdom. Highly recommended. ...more

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Dec 06, 2012 Duff rated it 4 of 5 stars

A very personal, end of life summing up of the events and principles that most influenced his work, marriage and community. A bit slow at times, but the end chapters were so powerful that it brought tears to my eyes. I provide a spoiler here, but four stars really are for those last chapters. I did enjoy the meandering of the autobiographical, learned a lot from precises of the important parts of his scholarship. Probably not for everyone, but a good read for Huston Smith fans or folks intereste ...more

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Mar 01, 2015 Chris rated it 3 of 5 stars

Huston Smith has always been a fascinating figure to me. On the one hand I have always admired his ability to see the good in every religion, and I appreciate the fact that he has actively practiced many of the religions he writes about. But I’ve also been frustrated by Smith’s tendency to turn a blind eye toward the troubling aspects of religion. I also find him to be extremely slippery when elucidating his own beliefs, as he is committed to maintaining that all religions are true in their own Huston Smith has always been a fascinating figure to me. On the one hand I have always admired his ability to see the good in every religion, and I appreciate the fact that he has actively practiced many of the religions he writes about. But I’ve also been frustrated by Smith’s tendency to turn a blind eye toward the troubling aspects of religion. I also find him to be extremely slippery when elucidating his own beliefs, as he is committed to maintaining that all religions are true in their own way, despite their myriad contradictions. I was interested to read his autobiography and hopefully gain some insight into the particulars of what he himself believes, and to hear about the “tales of wonder” promised by the book’s title.

I was at first disappointed by the first half of the book, which primarily recounts Smith’s professional career and family life. Smith came across not as a wise and timeless human being, as he is so often depicted, but instead as a somewhat prideful person who loved nothing more than attention. He too often mentioned the awards that he won, the books that wrote, and the TV series he has starred in. I began to wonder whether he was more interested in the publicity than the actual subject matter he studied.

But the second half of the book helped to dispel that suspicion, as he talks about all the ways in which religion has affected the way he lives. I found his section on Christianity particularly interesting; he subscribes to a pretty liberal branch of Christianity, and says that to him, it doesn’t matter whether or not Christ actually rose from the dead. He also explicitly stated what he conjectures will happen after death. In this second half it was easier to see why so many consider Smith to be such a wise man, though the first half makes it clear that he is no saint. Ultimately, I appreciated the candor with which Smith wrote this book, and how he often explicitly stated his own beliefs (in contrast to some of his other work). His take on the problem of suffering was particularly poignant, since he addressed it within the context of his response to the murder of his granddaughter. He said that suffering and evil make God more necessary, not less. But this seems to me just another way of saying, “If God did not exist, it would be necessary to invent him.” This may be true for some people, but not all. Huston is far from unique among scholars of religion and philosophers in constructing extraordinarily elaborate frameworks to support the beliefs they find attractive. Smith makes such a beautiful case for the perennial philosophy that I admit to being attracted to it, too, though in the end I think we need to consider both the good and the bad aspects of religion, and commit to straining out the bad without letting the good slip through with it. ...more

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Nov 03, 2014 Jane rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: re-read , biography , methodist , religious-studies-comparative , hindu-vedic-faith , islam-arabs , judaism , buddhism , writers-as-subjects , china-and-japan-and-asia

This book was Terribly Wonderful!I say terribly wonderful because my
heart breaks as he related his wife's upbringing and the deaths of one
daughter and a grand-daughter. Yet it's also terrible because it is forcing me to re-examine what Christianity really means for the 1 Millioneth time in my life.Thst is both terrible and wonderful.
The reason unlike many of Smith's books that I would not give it 5 stars is that I wanted more discussion of the people that he met.
I also would have liked to hea ...more

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Jun 10, 2012 David rated it 4 of 5 stars

I adored Huston Smith before I finished the first chapter of "The World's Religions," which I read for my Comparative Religion class. Smith is a sort of hierophant, revealing the invisible beauties embraced by each of the world's religions. His focus is on the positive, essentially showing why the adherents of a religion adhere to it, the experiences provided by it. I knew I wanted to know more about Smith's life just from "The World's Religions." He grew up as a missionary's child in China, spe ...more

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Apr 01, 2013 Bradelliott rated it 4 of 5 stars

"In the Scarlet Letter Hawthorne cautions us to show the world, if not our worst, at least that by which our worst can be inferred."

"In Buddhism monks daily recite the Five remembrances, which are: I will lose my youth, my health, my dear ones and everything I hold dear, and finally lose life itself, by the very nature of my being human. These are bitter reminders that the only thing that continues is the consequences of our action. The fact that all the things we hold dear and love are transien ...more

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Oct 03, 2009 Harley rated it 4 of 5 stars

Recommends it for: People who have been inspired by Huston Smith's books on religion.

Shelves: memoir , non-fiction , spiritual , read-2009

Many years ago when visiting a nursing home, I met man who at the age of 101 was writing his first book. I met him again two years later and he was working on his second book.
Like this nursing home patient, Huston Smith wrote this book shortly before turning ninety while living in an assisted living facility. He wrote this autobiograpy after a lifetime of studying, participating in and writing about the religions of the world. This is his fifteen book. If you are looking for a memoir of his spi ...more

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Aug 02, 2009 Eric rated it 4 of 5 stars

Huston Smith wrote The World's Religions which sold 2 1/2 million copies & was the subject of a 5 part special on PBS wherein Bill Moyers interviewed him about the world's religions. He is now 90 and this is his new autobiography. For someone whose spent his life pondering the depths of Islam, Hinduism, and other religions, this book is surprisingly conversational in tone. It feels very much like you're just sitting down listening to someone tell stories about their life.

I had never heard o ...more

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Feb 09, 2013 Barbara Newhall rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: religion-spirituality

Huston Smith doesn’t know it, but he’s been my mentor for the past decade and a half – ever since I took a job as religion reporter at a local newspaper. The religion beat has a steep learning curve, I quickly discovered, and Smith’s authoritative book "The World’s Religions" became my bible. It has remained so all these years.

Studying it, I often find myself trying to read between the lines – who is this man who speaks so fluently of Islam and Judaism, Hinduism and Taoism? What did he personall ...more

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Jan 08, 2012 Magnus Itland rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I was about to give this book five stars, but then realized that I am probably not going to read it again, and I think the "amazing" should be reserved for those. But the life of which it tells is absolutely amazing, at least for those of us who appreciate a rich inner life at least as much as an eventful outward life. In the case of Huston Smith, both are true. He was present at pivotal moments, met and got to know influential people, and had the ability to make use of all this. Regardless of w ...more

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May 06, 2015 Carole rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: biography , religion

My generation's "guru" of comparative religions reassuringly positive journey as he explored the world's cultures and their belief systems. Enjoyable anecdotes throughout dot this unassuming autobiography which began in a very small town in China.

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Jan 14, 2015 Tom Anderson rated it 4 of 5 stars

Interesting portrait of an interesting man. I'd hoped for more depth, as it is brief. But since he's still alive, maybe I can visit him.

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Apr 09, 2015 Naomi Smith rated it 5 of 5 stars

A wonderful telling of a well-lived life. It allows us to see this grand old man in the closing period of his life.

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Mar 16, 2011 Catherine rated it 3 of 5 stars

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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May 06, 2015 Lynne rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: autobiography

A very enjoyable autobiography...simple, straightforward, interesting...

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Apr 04, 2015 Mark Connolly rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: religion , biography

Very personable, likeable account with some great anecdotes and points raised, including the symbolism of the cross and the final chapter on the religious 'grammar' and its comparability to that of quantum physics as an example. Some really great characters introduced surpassing any novel, Watts, Buddhist monks, Huxley and the like. We may have a few theological and other divergences but great respect is due to a man who immersed himself so fully in the traditions of 'the other' without losing h ...more

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Jun 12, 2009 Turi rated it 3 of 5 stars

Even after reading his autobiography, I'm surprised I hadn't heard of Huston Smith. It sounds like his whole life would've fit right into the things I was reading about in college and after. Basically, he's a religious scholar who has explored the world's religions very open-mindedly while retaining his ties to Christianity. Very interesting take on everything - I wish there would have been a little more about his travels, but perhaps that's in one of his other books...

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Feb 06, 2015 Kaye rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: memoir , read_in_2015 , religion

Inspiring, humble and personal, Smith grants us a glimpse of his life and how he managed to make a lifetime out of loving God in a very unconventional way.

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Jul 09, 2012 Megan Salyer rated it 5 of 5 stars

Easily the best book he wrote and considering I've read every book he's written I highly suggest you read this if you want a clip of all of his book and more of his background. This man is one of my idols thanks to dr ruff history professor introducing him to me when I started working on my psych and Spanish degree. My interest in religion and cultures of the world keeps my soul alive and so do these books that tell me there's so much more to learn

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Feb 01, 2011 Karl W. rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: biography , memoir , religion

This is an excellent book, educational and inspiring. It is also a compelling story of a fascinating individual. The only reason I am not giving it five stars is that I found myself at times wanting more detail, more analysis, more reflection from Mr. Smith. Still, though, I would recommend this book heartily to those with an interest in religion -- not just theology or doctrine, but religion as a vital part of life and culture.

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Feb 03, 2010 Amy rated it 5 of 5 stars

As always, Huston Smith was awesome in the true sense of awe inspiring. Reading this brought me back to the mid 90s when I met him during one of his speaking engagements in Syracuse, NY. I loved listening to him then and I loved reading of his journey in Tales of Wonder.
For anyone who loves to learn of the World's religions and wishes to learn more of how one man experienced them, this is an excellent read!

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Feb 01, 2010 Catherine rated it 5 of 5 stars

Though I give this five stars without hesitation, much of the reason I loved it so much is because I have already appreciated the author for quite some time, so reading his autobiography was significant for me. I'm not sure how good it would be if you didn't know his work. And some of you reading this would NOT like this book.

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Dec 11, 2009 Roberta rated it 4 of 5 stars

Have been fascinated by Huston Smith's work in the field of comparative religion for years. This book includes some great stories of his early life in China, his travels to many parts of the world, and his student experiences at Central Missouri State! He surprised me by stating, "I never met a religion I didn't like."

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Feb 04, 2012 Marion rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: memoir , spirituality

I read Huston Smith's The Illustrated World's Religions in college and, so, when he published his memoir, I was intrigued to learn more about his history with the world's religions. I really enjoyed learning about his life path and his interest in religion - and in promoting an understanding of religions.

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Jun 18, 2011 Lucky rated it 5 of 5 stars

I loved this book. What an interesting man! I expected this book to be rather dull/dry and was pleasantly surprised by the delightful tales Smith shares with his readers. Recommended it to several friends. You don't even have to know who he is in order to love the book and find his life fascinating.

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Jul 24, 2013 Suzanne Auckerman rated it 3 of 5 stars

Amazing that I had not heard of Hutton Smith and would like to read more. This is his memoir written at 90 about his pursuit of spirituality, growing up in a missionary family in China and coming to the US, becoming a professor and his time spent as learning to understand other religions.

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Feb 09, 2014 Mary Leahy rated it 3 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Shelves: autobiography

This is an interesting autobiography by a famous teacher and expert on world religions.

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May 20, 2013 Kendra rated it 4 of 5 stars

Unexpected delight. It was a gift and I wasn't sure... His wife's name is Kendra which was a nice perk for me. Although she does not figure heavily in the book. an unassuming non pompous comparative religions Christian. A rarity indeed. Well worlth reading.

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Aug 09, 2015 Matthew Moes rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: biography-memoir , philosophy-religion-spirituality

This was a beautiful life story of one of our most important teachers. I took many notes and listed some in my quotes section. Most importantly perhaps, I am inspired to really be and continue to become a lifelong seeker, thinker, and teacher.

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About Huston Smith

Smith was born in Soochow, China to Methodist missionaries and spent his first 17 years there. He taught at the Universities of Colorado and Denver from 1944–1947, moving to Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri for the next ten years, and then Professor of Philosophy at MIT from 1958–1973. While at MIT he participated in some of the experiments with entheogens that professor Timothy Leary Smith was born in Soochow, China to Methodist missionaries and spent his first 17 years there. He taught at the Universities of Colorado and Denver from 1944–1947, moving to Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri for the next ten years, and then Professor of Philosophy at MIT from 1958–1973. While at MIT he participated in some of the experiments with entheogens that professor Timothy Leary conducted at Harvard University. He then moved to Syracuse University where he was Thomas J. Watson Professor of Religion and Distinguished Adjunct Professor of Philosophy until his retirement in 1983 and current emeritus status. He now lives in the Berkeley, CA area where he is Visiting Professor of Religious Studies at the University of California, Berkeley.

During his career, Smith not only studied, but practiced Vedanta Hinduism, Zen Buddhism (studying under Goto Zuigan), and Sufism for over ten years each. He is a notable autodidact.

As a young man, Smith, of his own volition, after suddenly turning to mysticism, set out to meet with then-famous author Gerald Heard. Heard responded to Smith's letter, invited him to his Trabuco College (later donated as the Ramakrishna Monastery) in Southern California, and then sent him off to meet the legendary Aldous Huxley. So began Smith's experimentation with meditation, and association with the Vedanta Society in Saint Louis under the auspices of Swami Satprakashananda of the Ramakrishna order.

Via the connection with Heard and Huxley, Smith eventually experimented with Timothy Leary and others at the Center for Personality Research, of which Leary was Research Professor. The experience and history of the era are captured somewhat in Smith's book Cleansing the Doors of Perception. In this period, Smith joined in on the Harvard Project as well, an attempt to raise spiritual awareness through entheogenic plants.

He has been a friend of the XIVth Dalai Lama for more than forty years, and met and talked to some of the great figures of the century, from Eleanor Roosevelt to Thomas Merton.

He developed an interest in the Traditionalist School formulated by Rene Guenon and Ananda Coomaraswamy. This interest has become a continuing thread in all his writings.

In 1996, Bill Moyers devoted a 5-part PBS special to Smith's life and work, "The Wisdom of Faith with Huston Smith." Smith has produced three series for public television: "The Religions of Man," "The Search for America," and (with Arthur Compton) "Science and Human Responsibility." His films on Hinduism, Tibetan Buddhism, and Sufism have all won awards at international film festivals.

His latest DVD release is The Roots of Fundamentalism - A Conversation with Huston Smith and Phil Cousineau. ...more

More about Huston Smith...

Books by Huston Smith

The World's Religions: Our Great Wisdom Traditions

Why Religion Matters: The Fate of the Human Spirit in an Age of Disbelief

Cleansing the Doors of Perception: The Religious Significance of Entheogenic Plants and Chemicals

More…

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