Do animals worship a deity?

[Nisou Kitsune]

How do you know that animals do not worship something we consider Gods?

That's a good question. How would we know if they did? What signs would we be looking for? Perhaps the most obvious species to consider would be chimps.

It was suggested that I start a new thread about this topic. So, do you think animals worship a deity?

Firstly, I think we need to realize that just because we dont see something exactly like what we do in our society, it doesnt mean that it doesnt exist at all. We cant say that because foxes, for example, dont go to the same place every day at the same time and bow down to something it means that they have no deities, and just because dogs lick themselves doesnt mean that they are stupid and dont see things that we cant even comprehend.

 

[linwood]

I don`t think so.

I know of no animal other than humans with the neural faculties capable of creating such an abstract concept.

 

[The Sum of Awe]

Well, because they cannot have news or sociality with all of their species (like News), then it probably would not be organized if there was any belief.

If we are very powerful, then it seems that dogs possibly could look up to us as Gods.

When they beg for food, going outside, etc. that's just like how we pray to our deities for what we need. When they beg for a treat, that's just like how many of us pray to our deities for things we want.



Also, I want to just tell you; A species of animals we do know for sure have spiritual beliefs - Humans.

Just putting that in there in case you have forgotten that humans are animals too But I know what you mean

 

[outhouse]

I think we have the same feelings

we just have the intellect to try and describe it in vain

 

[Nisou Kitsune]

Personally, I believe that animals are aware of the force that we call "God" but that they have no need to worship like we do. Its like they have a relationship with the deity that doesnt require them to bow down and praise the divine.

Also, why does it have to be organized to be a belief? You are making the assumption that just because they dont gather together that means that they dont communicate. Like I said in the first post, you cant disregard anything because it isnt "human-like". Even in our own societies we dont do the same things. Take paganism for example. Pagans arent an organized religion, yet it is still a system of beliefs that can rightly be called a religion.

and also, I believe that animals can communicate exactly how they feel and are very good at it because they dont have to worry about whether it will upset anyone. My dog tells me when she wants food, when she wants outside or inside, when she doesnt like someone or feels threatened, when she is happy or upset or in pain. She tells me what she needs.

and the concept of "God" is not abstract. I think animals grasp the divine better than we do.

 

[Straw Dog]

Personally, I believe that animals are aware of the force that we call "God" but that they have no need to worship like we do. Its like they have a relationship with the deity that doesnt require them to bow down and praise the divine.

Also, why does it have to be organized to be a belief? You are making the assumption that just because they dont gather together that means that they dont communicate. Like I said in the first post, you cant disregard anything because it isnt "human-like". Even in our own societies we dont do the same things. Take paganism for example. Pagans arent an organized religion, yet it is still a system of beliefs that can rightly be called a religion.

and also, I believe that animals can communicate exactly how they feel and are very good at it because they dont have to worry about whether it will upset anyone. My dog tells me when she wants food, when she wants outside or inside, when she doesnt like someone or feels threatened, when she is happy or upset or in pain. She tells me what she needs.

and the concept of "God" is not abstract. I think animals grasp the divine better than we do.

I think they do experience a much deeper connection to Nature than we do. They just don't personify into deities like we prefer to do. By God I assume you meant an intelligent force? If you actually just mean Nature itself then they do feel connected to the ecosystem more than we do because they haven't alienated themselves from it with civilization like we have. What do you mean by worship exactly, though?

 

[outhouse]

, I believe that animals are aware of the force that we call "God"

except "your" so called force is not universal to everyone.

I see absolutely no force at all.

My dog tells me when she wants food, when she wants outside or inside, when she doesnt like someone or feels threatened, when she is happy or upset or in pain. She tells me what she needs.

they just have less intellect thats all, this doesnt make them stupid drones with no feelings.

and the concept of "God" is not abstract. I think animals grasp the divine better than we do.

you might have to explain this clearly because this is just a opinion, divine so far has not been proved beyond imagination.

I dont know anything more abstract then a deity,,, people kill and die for and wars have been waged because no two groups define the deity the same way.

a deity is as vast and abstract as ones imagination

 

[The Sum of Awe]

Personally, I believe that animals are aware of the force that we call "God" but that they have no need to worship like we do. Its like they have a relationship with the deity that doesnt require them to bow down and praise the divine.

Also, why does it have to be organized to be a belief? You are making the assumption that just because they dont gather together that means that they dont communicate. Like I said in the first post, you cant disregard anything because it isnt "human-like". Even in our own societies we dont do the same things. Take paganism for example. Pagans arent an organized religion, yet it is still a system of beliefs that can rightly be called a religion.

and also, I believe that animals can communicate exactly how they feel and are very good at it because they dont have to worry about whether it will upset anyone. My dog tells me when she wants food, when she wants outside or inside, when she doesnt like someone or feels threatened, when she is happy or upset or in pain. She tells me what she needs.

and the concept of "God" is not abstract. I think animals grasp the divine better than we do.

Not trying to fight against you beliefs or anything, I'm all for "each to their own", but I'm just wondering:

Why do non-human animals have this awareness and do not have to worship it, unlike humans?

 

[The Sum of Awe]

except "your" so called force is not universal to everyone.

I see absolutely no force at all.




they just have less intellect thats all, this doesnt make them stupid drones with no feelings.




you might have to explain this clearly because this is just a opinion, divine so far has not been proved beyond imagination.

I dont know anything more abstract then a deity,,, people kill and die for and wars have been waged because no two groups define the deity the same way.

a deity is as vast and abstract as ones imagination

I think that's why she said 'I think'

 

[Penumbra]

It requires a fairly high level of abstract thinking.

I see no evidence or indication that animals worship anything or have any knowledge or beliefs of deities.

 

[Valjean]

What about the chimps at the waterfall? The ABC's of Chimpanzee Behavior

 

[Nisou Kitsune]

Animals are way more intelligent that humans give them credit for. Dogs that use our trains to move around, dolphins who teach their young manners and how to do things, crows that teach each other how to use tools, prey and predator living in the same constructed nest without much harassment, whales that make up and practice songs and sing them later to other whales like human bands do, octopus that can dismantle human traps and seriously mess up an entire aquarium, and even animal serial killers who target humans and avoid being caught or shot long enough to take out several people, if not whole villages.

Seriously, we down play the animals around us and dont realize just how smart they actually are. Just because they dont speak English or any other human language doesnt mean they are stupid, it just means they do things differently. I hold that to be true with what we consider the "Divine".

People think that humans were the ones that first invented big, air conditioned housing units when in actuality animals like termites have been using air conditioning for thousands of years, before we even got the bright idea to build tents or adobes. Termites even know how to produce hydrogen energy, and we STILL dont have reliable ways to create it. We think that we invented transportation first, or submarines or skyscrapers or complex cities or even bombs. In reality, we are just beginning to get the same, or better, technologies that the other animals already had for hundreds of thousands of years.

So how silly is it to make the small step and say they also have awareness?

 

[outhouse]

Animals are way more intelligent that humans give them credit for. Dogs that use our trains to move around, dolphins who teach their young manners and how to do things, crows that teach each other how to use tools, prey and predator living in the same constructed nest without much harassment, whales that make up and practice songs and sing them later to other whales like human bands do, octopus that can dismantle human traps and seriously mess up an entire aquarium, and even animal serial killers who target humans and avoid being caught or shot long enough to take out several people, if not whole villages.

Seriously, we down play the animals around us and dont realize just how smart they actually are. Just because they dont speak English or any other human language doesnt mean they are stupid, it just means they do things differently. I hold that to be true with what we consider the "Divine".

People think that humans were the ones that first invented big, air conditioned housing units when in actuality animals like termites have been using air conditioning for thousands of years, before we even got the bright idea to build tents or adobes. Termites even know how to produce hydrogen energy, and we STILL dont have reliable ways to create it. We think that we invented transportation first, or submarines or skyscrapers or complex cities or even bombs. In reality, we are just beginning to get the same, or better, technologies that the other animals already had for hundreds of thousands of years.

So how silly is it to make the small step and say they also have awareness?

and not one sentence really relates to your OP

no one disagrees that animals are not stupid.

but to tie divinity into a animal is a step to far

 

[Ilisrum]

My cat worships me. Isn't that meaning that I'm a god?

 

[Quagmire]

If God is life itself, then anything that lives worships God just by living, and since animals don't have ego and abstract thought in the way (at least not to the degree that we do), you could say that they live more fully than we do, and thus worship God more sincerely than we do.

 

[outhouse]

If God is life itself

ever think this is the way the abrahamic god was created but later misinterpreted????

god a feeling inside everyone, that joyous happy feeling with strength????

I would believe that over the magic man in the sky.

 

[Quagmire]

ever think this is the way the abrahamic god was created but later misinterpreted????

god a feeling inside everyone, that joyous happy feeling with strength????

Is that what life is?

I would believe that over the magic man in the sky.

I would call that progress.

 

[outhouse]

Is that what life is?

sometimes it is.

 

[Kilgore Trout]

Animals aren't silly enough to believe in the existence of god(s).

 

[Quagmire]

Animals aren't silly enough to believe in the existence of god(s).

Or to deny it.