Religion Defined
01Dec07
Religion is best defined as the attempt to control people through their spirituality
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Fae Yin 
If you limit your term to “organized” religion, I’ll agree with you.
Actually, religion itself is an exploration of the basic mysteries of life that involve us as humans and are beyond normal understanding.
Western organized religions historically were used to prop up weak governments, and when those failed, even replace them. They have a flavor of nationalism built in, and have strong concepts of heresy.
The eastern philosophies, especially Hinduism, Buddhism and Taoism, have not routinely substituted for governments and have never attempted to supercede and control governments as have both Christianity and Islam. Nor do they contain the concept that anyone who does not believe the doctrine they are spreading is a pagan, infidel, or heretic. There is no heresy, only disagreement about the best solution to the problems addressed by the philosophy.
Aphorisms are best when they are left a little open ended. They get people to think.
I pretty much meant that as intended, though. If people get together and explore spirituality and themselves together, they’d be better off calling themselves spiritualists. Religion is codified dogma that people insist on following and as such is not a spiritual pursuit but an attempt at conformity, whatever the reasons. When the eastern religions practice much of what they preach is “dogmified” as well. They are not immune. Just look at Pure Land Buddhism, for example. Also, remember that the eastern faiths aren’t called religions in theiur countries, as “religion” is an English wor. You would have to get familiar with their equivilant to religion to know if their words were a direct translation.
Hmm. Organized religion is a human institution and therefore flawed, as much as one would hope the guiding principles are based on the divine. That being said, for my part I’m not throwing the baby out with the bath water. There is a value in group worship of [Supreme Being] in addition to individual worship. Just my three cents.