Book SummaryThe Wisdom of Insecurity, by Alan Watts

1-Page Summary1-Page Book Summary of The Wisdom of Insecurity

Published in 1951, The Wisdom of Insecurity is religious scholar and philosopher Alan Watts’s treatise on the origins of and solutions to modern anxieties. He argues that we feel anxious because the only constant in life is change—which means that seeking security is futile and we should embrace a more realistic approach to life by accepting insecurity and living in the moment instead of worrying about the future.

Watts’s philosophy of insecurity is based on his unique interpretations of both Christianity and Eastern philosophies—he’s best known for translating Eastern...

The Wisdom of Insecurity Summary The Origins of Anxiety

Before you can know how to deal with anxiety, you need to understand its cause: insecurity. In this section, we’ll explain what insecurity is, why it makes you anxious, and why trying to resist it can lead to further anxiety.

According to Watts, insecurity—the state of being impermanent and vulnerable to change—is a fundamental quality of existence. He explains that there’s no such thing as security because change is inevitable: One moment passes and is replaced by the next, which means nothing can be frozen in time. Every living thing changes each moment and ultimately transitions from life to death.

(Shortform note: In The Myth of Sisyphus, philosopher Albert Camus argues similarly that since death is inevitable and the meaning of life is indeterminable, insecurity is an essential facet of human life. He explains that there’s a mismatch between this reality and our psychological needs—to be well, we need to believe that we exist for a reason and that death isn’t the end of our existence, but we can’t know either of those things for sure. He refers to this paradox between our desire for security and...

The Wisdom of Insecurity Summary Religion, Science, and Insecurity

According to Watts, another way people cope with insecurity is by seeking comfort in religion or science. In this section, we’ll discuss why Watts believes Western perspectives (Christianity and science) on insecurity are inadequate, and we’ll explore the Eastern approach he says is more valuable.

Watts explains that the thinking self attempts to impose order and stability on life by naming and classifying your experiences. For example, labeling an animal you see with the word “dog” helps you predict how that animal will behave. Naming and classifying seems to make life more predictable. Watts says that for much of Western history, people seeking predictability have adopted Christianity, which promises eternal life, an unchanging God, and permanent values. Then, Westerners turned to science, which offered security in the form of immutable, universal laws and the potential of happiness on earth instead of in the afterlife (for example, by reducing suffering with the help of modern medicine).

(Shortform note: Some research suggests that Watts is right about the human desire for predictability—generally, we prefer to have as much information as possible about (and thus the...

The Wisdom of Insecurity Summary How to Go With the Flow

Watts argues that according to Eastern religions, you have to give up your thinking self’s attachment to security and embrace your animal self’s capacity for living in the moment. In this section, we’ll discuss his advice for doing so and explore the benefits of this approach.

Watts explains that the thinking self and the animal self each have their uses—for example, the thinking self enables you to communicate with others, while the animal self alerts you to internal cues like pleasure and pain. However, he says that presently, society is tilted heavily in favor of the thinking self—evidenced by our overreliance on human concepts like religion, for example, to guide our decision-making (as opposed to also listening to bodily cues like the sensations that accompany feelings of guilt or comfort). Since you aren’t living in tune with your animal self, you’re anxious—you need time to just experience life, rather than always thinking and talking about life.

(Shortform note: Psychologists agree that in modern society, many factors contribute to identification with the mind over the body—these include [a historical tendency to believe the mind is more important than the...

Shortform Exercise: Coping With Insecurity

Reflect on what you’ve learned about coping with insecurity.

Think about a time when you were dealing with insecurity. Do you think you coped in a healthy way? Why or why not?