Geologic time, cultural differences and religion

[afleitch]

We have evidence of patterns of ritual, suggesting ‘spirituality’ long before Homo Sapiens (possibly as far back as Heidelbergensis some 1.3 mya) Which is tricky really, for religious beliefs founded on the idea of humans being ‘first’ or ‘important.’ It’s deceitful to retain this belief even though it is an  unintentional consequence of human ignorance. As has been mentioned in another topic recently, the latest line of thinking on Neanderthals is that they displayed their intelligence so aptly they were perceived as potential mates and effectively diluted their own line. Their brains were bigger than ours with larger parts devoted to vision and simple function in turn producing different thought processes and perceptions of the world. As a result they could have a different or deeper ‘spirituality’ than we are capable of conceiving.

I would agree to a point on being hung up on naming things, but would extend it much further. I think we are hung up on inferring agents when none are there. That is what has led to the idea of a ‘god’ being propagated in the first place never mind the countless iterations that followed.