It´s poetry, it´s an artistic object to be used for meditation. So to discuss what a particular fragment of the book means is misguided. — DiegoT

I strongly disagree. The interpretation by the spectator is a vital aspect of every art form, regardless of whether the artist's intention was to deliver concrete instructions, more abstract food for thought or simple entertainment. Are we misguided in debating the interpretation of poems, or music, or cinema?

As regards the topic: wish I could chip in on Taoism, but my knowledge is sadly lacking in that department.

Religion is not for everyone. Philosophy is not for everyone. I was speaking of the Internet as a network of computers. Of course there are specific sites on the Internet that have valuable information. That wasn’t my point. A library full of books would do the same job. It takes a discerning mind with some humility to gain wisdom. I’m not calling myself wise, but I am trying. Science is not the end all and be all. It has its domain. — Noah Te Stroete

There is wisdom to be found in various religions. — Noah Te Stroete

But then it seems that you assign value to the content of the texts themselves, regardless of whether they have a religious origin. In other words, there is wisdom to be found everywhere. And I would agree with you; that a text has a religious origin should not merely on that basis exclude it from our base of analysis or learning.

I think the main problem with the religions I know (Christianity and Islam) is that their scripture and method do not extend us that same courtesy. Both the Bible and the Qur'an explicitly state that their contents, as fragments of divine revelation, cannot be disputed or compared to sources of other origin. The latter sources can, in a religious method, only contain wisdom in so far as their contents do not go against the claims of scripture. That seems like an undue limitation on inquiry or reasoning, that can only be justified by presupposing a state of affairs that we have no reason to assume is true (at least not over any other possible state of affairs).

Religion teaches by parables and mythology. It is another way to gain wisdom. — Noah Te Stroete

The Internet can’t give you a guide on how to live a good life by itself, nor can science for that matter, but a religious text can teach one wisdom. — Noah Te Stroete

After reading this, I am curious in what respect religious texts have more to offer, in terms of wisdom, than the internet or the literature of the social sciences? And would this be true for all religious texts, or only those texts that pertain to a specific religion?

I agree that the conclusion is invalid on the basis of these two premises alone. For it to be valid, you would need to add the premise that all numbers are either even or odd (which, of course, is not the case). Or you could adjust the conclusion to fit the demarcation that the premises imply: If the square of an integer is even, that integer must be even.

The author's thesis is stronger than that: he argues that atheism was a "thing" in the ancient world, not just a few individual exemplars. — SophistiCat

And I am quite interested to read the examples that the author supplies, from a historical perspective. It just does not appear, to me, as a claim that requires extensive argumentation (but perhaps I am biased, because I live in a predominantly atheist country). It certainly does not warrant the kind of enthusiasm that the journalist purports.

So, basically, this study provides us with the insight that (1) the Abrahamic religions were not the first theistic religions and (2) people have historically not agreed on the presence, properties or relevance of supposed deities meddling in their personal lives?

Somehow I feel I have been deprived of the epiphany I expected, reading the title.