mountaingoat
Explorer
Reged: Jun 22 2007
Posts: 92
Loc: Blue Mountains NSW Australia
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I would like to know if there are any cultures in the world that do not have some kind of God or Gods they worship. The fact most cultures have a need for a God peeks my curiosity and helps my faith.
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satguru
Multiloquent
Reged: Feb 17 2000
Posts: 4068
Loc: Kingsbury London UK
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Buddhism barely refers to god, if at all. Buddha was a human who lost the illusion of separation and taught his followers to do the same thing and achieve what he did. The enlightened consciousness of Nirvana is available to all if they reach it and then they are the equivalent of what other religions call god.
I'm also not aware of any prayers or the like, the closest worship is of some smaller sects to their dead founders which is not quite the same. The only true reference to the supernatural is in reincarnation, but again that is about how long it takes to reach nirvana through correcting all our karma, but no mention of god in that either.
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"The panic over global warming is totally unjustified. There is no serious threat to the climate"
Vice Chair of the IPCC, Yuri Izrael, 2007
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MadMags
Star Poster
Reged: May 03 2008
Posts: 14382
Loc: Orosi Costa Rica
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You're right satguru, Buddhism has no divine entities, no god(s). Buddhists aspire to a life of correct living, many concepts are the same as most Western religions; do unto others as yourself, love thy brother, etc. Buddhists have a respect for all forms of life no matter where each stands on the evolution path. They have no 'higher' god, but aspire to become higher within themselves through many reincarnations, until they attain nirvana or an enlightened state. At least, that's how I understand it.
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A smile is a curved line that sets things straight. ~ Anon.
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fjohn
Multiloquent
Reged: Dec 06 1999
Posts: 2712
Loc: Wyoming USA Way Out West
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You might take a look at religioustolerance.org that lists all (?) the world's religions including religions that don't worship one god, such as shintoism, scientology, confucianism, paganism, etc.
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Some days it just doesn't seem worth trying to chew through the restraints.
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tnrees
Forum Adept
Reged: Mar 09 2005
Posts: 136
Loc: Taunton Somerset UK
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It seems to me that many buddhists treat Buddha as if he was a god.
Also many buddhists seem to also belong to a religion with a god.
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