World religions as Psychological States of Mind

Here are my thoughts based on a thorough understanding of psychology with study of world religions.

IMHO deities are aspects (psychological states) of the mind.

Thus dieties such as gods and goddesses of various Western and Eastern mythologies, the Buddhas and their consorts (as in the Tibetan Buddhist Vajrayana path), the Judeo-Christian angels, God, Jesus, the Devil, and Satan, etc. reflect psychological states of consciousness.

Gods and goddesses represent various human qualities of kindness, virtue etc.

While the Buddhist dieties represent Eastern concepts of the same qualities in a non-dual holism, the Judeo-Christian dieties represent a duality that shows syncretist influence from other religions such as Zoroasterianism and paganism.

Western philosophy and religion emphasize logic with a rigid "either-or" paradigm.

Eastern philosophy emphasizes a free-flowing non-dual holistic approach that embraces even Western concepts.

Overall though, I don't feel comfortable with the logical/rational Western aspect of religion with the either-or paradigm.

The non-dual holistic approach of the Eastern philosophies appeal to me, because it supports a broader worldview, especially the Hindu concept of infinite consciousness.


Suggested reading:

Tibetan Book of the Dead by Fremantle and Chogyam Trungpa