Every single divine being ever mentioned by mankind can be considered a deity. What they all have in common are the unreal virtues that they encompass. Depending on the religion worshiping a deity, they can have different strengths and weaknesses, while in most monotheistic religions, the deity has no flaws. When a few deities from various religions are compared, a number of differences definitely outdo that of similarities, and that offers insight into the limitations we (or the gods themselves) have set for the divine individuals.

Polytheistic religions are known for flawing their gods in certain ways in order to make their tales more interesting, and thus inspire stronger faith in their existence. Deities can, on one hand, be considered fairy-tale characters that are worth just as much as the stories they’re found in, or they can be perceived as the all-knowing creators of men that show us the way. In either case, just like we determine who we will socialize with depending on the information we have about them, we pick deities with almost the same method, taking the stories surrounding them into consideration before we start believing.

Top 10 Emotional Quotes about the Creator

“You are one thing only. You are a Divine Being. An all-powerful Creator. You are a Deity in jeans and a t-shirt, and within you dwells the infinite wisdom of the ages and the sacred creative force of All that is, will be and ever was.”
― Anthon St. Maarten

“We are not on this planet to ask forgiveness of our deities.”
― Scott Cunningham

“Oh, he did look like a deity – the perfect balance of danger and charm, he was at the same time fascinating and inaccessible, distant because of his demonstrated flawlessness, and possessing such strength of character that he was dismaying and at the same time utterly attractive in an enticing and forbidden way.”
― Simona Panova

“Human beings are co-partners with deity in the project of being. This is the basis of all magic.”
― Terence McKenna

“Hell is an outrage on humanity. When you tell me that your deity made you in his image, I reply that he must have been very ugly.”
― Victor Hugo

“Well, for one thing, in the tradition of Zen that I’ve practiced, there is no prayerful worship and there is no affirmation of a deity.”
― Leonard Cohen

“In Hinduism, Shiva is a deity who represents transformation. Through destruction and restoration, Shiva reminds us that endings are beginnings, and that our world is constantly undergoing a cycle of birth, death and rebirth.”
― Karen Salmansohn

“Seven is the magic figure, because that’s a symbolic figure of my favorite deity, Ogun.”
― Wole Soyinka

“The religions that fascinate me and, you know, could possibly tempt me are not the ones that involve faith or belief. They’re the ones that offer you the opportunity to know the spirit or deity.”
― Barbara Ehrenreich

“Anytime someone says your God is ugly and you release your God and join their God, there is no hope for your freedom until you once more believe in your own concept of the ‘deity.”
― John Henrik Clarke
Spiritual Mother and Father

To everyone that is religious, their god or goddess is the ultimate life gurus. Thanks to deities, a lot of individuals worldwide have not strayed from the path of good, trying to honor those that they believe in with their benign actions. It is then safe to say that we can thank deities for many things men have achieved, both materialistically and spiritually.

For example, we wouldn’t have some of the world’s greatest wonders if not for the deities we believe in and the unquestioned devotion we aim to display to them. Thus, every deity is a spiritual benefactor to mankind.

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In spite of the supposed meaning of this nowadays misused term, a ritual is defined as the performance of any action behind a non-tangible goal. The progress of our society is constantly imposing new social rituals on those trying to keep up, while those with mental diseases are also prone to performing various stabilization rituals.

However, the most popular use of the term revolves around religious actions. Praying to a deity is the most basic example of a religious ritual, while there are much more complicated processes involved in the matter. In correlation to the above-said, a ritual involves any gesture required for a dose of spiritual (religious) fulfillment. From chanting Our Father before bed to bowing one’s forehead down to the floor in Mecca, religious rituals can involve one or millions of participants.

One thing that all rituals have in common is that, in one way or another, they contribute to the emotional and spiritual cleansing of the believer. Those who freely choose their religion are often most attracted to it by the rituals it involves, which makes them a vital component of every faith, if not even the most significant religious factor.

The Most Famous Quotes on Ritual

“When tea becomes ritual, it takes its place at the heart of our ability to see greatness in small things. Where is beauty to be found? In great things that, like everything else, are doomed to die, or in small things that aspire to nothing, yet know how to set a jewel of infinity in a single moment?”
– Muriel Barbery

“A prayer couched in the words of the soul, is far more powerful than any ritual.”
– Paulo Coelho

“Ritual is a spiritual psychodrama done for magical or religious purposes.”
– P.E.I. Bonewits

“The first stage of ritual is almost always the rise of the singer on his own song to a plane of power – a place of contact with the forces that move the universe. The words and sounds of a song are only the small visible aspect of a far greater mystery which lies beneath and beyond syntactical speech.”
– Jamake Highwater

“Ceremony and ritual spring from our heart of hearts: those who govern us know it well, for they would sooner deny us bread than dare alter the observance of tradition.”
– F. Gonzalez –Crussi

“We must learn which ceremonies may be breached occasionally at our convenience and which ones may never be if we are to live pleasantly with our fellow man.”
– Amy Vanderbilt

“Even the highest forms of sacrificial worship present much that is repulsive to modern ideas, and in particular it requires an effort to reconcile our imagination to the bloody ritual which is prominent in almost every religion which has a strong sense of sin.”
– William Robertson Smith

“These days too many of us seem inclined to cover our ears, close our eyes, and blindly follow the most narrow, conservative tenets of religion; or else seek comfort in the ancient traditions of New Age ritual.”
– Joan D. Vinge

“Don’t bother about being modern. Unfortunately it is the one thing that, whatever you do, you cannot avoid.”
– Salvador Dali

“We not only nurture our sacred relationships through ritual, but we are nurtured by them as well. In ritual, we move, and we are moved.”
– Alison Leigh Lilly

The Upholders of Belief

Rituals are there to reaffirm one’s devotion to their spiritual cause while offering consolation and relief simultaneously. Their undoubted importance in human progress and overall mental stability makes them a great friend to humanity as well as a free form of psychotherapy.

Then again, it’s important to note that the theater itself originated as a ritual of spiritual cleansing, which means that the largest entertainment industry to date owes its existence to the ritual concept. Nearly every religion known to man (apart from Satanism and the like) consists of these benign actions that can only do well to one’s mentality.

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Fasting, by definition, means abstaining from any food or drink for a period of time, and it is usually done because of a religious practice. Imagine how difficult it would be to go for a day without eating a morsel of food or a drop of water. Now imagine doing the same for a longer period of time. It may seem like an impossible task but many people in the world do that as part of their religious traditions. Some opt to just skip a meal or two in a day while other pushes it even further.

This practice is done to show that one is willing to make a sacrifice for their beliefs. Enduring thirst and hunger may be an expression of faith in some religions and is done at a certain season of the year. For Catholics, it is done during the Lenten season. Buddhists fast typically when there is a full moon or on other holidays.

For Hindus, fasting is usually practiced on New Moon days and during festivals, while for Muslims, it is done during Ramadan. The list goes on, and the days and reasons vary from one religion to the next. Basically, it is a ritual of faith, which is common for most religions.

The best quotes on Fasting

“Fasting cleanses the soul, raises the mind, subjects one’s flesh to the spirit, renders the heart contrite and humble, scatters the clouds of concupiscence, quenches the fire of lust, and kindles the true light of chastity. Enter again into yourself.”
— St Augustine

“Fasting is the soul of prayer; mercy is the lifeblood of fasting. So if you pray, fast; if you fast, show mercy; if you want your petition to be heard, hear the petition of others. If you do not close your ear to others, you open God’s ear to yourself.”
— St Peter Chrysologus

“A fast is not a hunger strike. Fasting submits to God’s commands. A hunger strike makes God submit to our demands.”
— Ed Cole

“Prayer is reaching out after the unseen; fasting is letting go of all that is seen and temporal. Fasting helps express, deepen, confirm the resolution that we are ready to sacrifice anything, even ourselves to attain what we seek for the kingdom of God.”
— Andrew Murray

“If thou wouldst preserve a sound body, use fasting and walking; if a healthful soul, fasting and praying; walking exercises the body, praying exercises the soul, fasting cleanses both.”
— Francis Quarles
“Prayer is reaching out after the unseen; fasting is letting go of all that is seen and temporal. Fasting helps express, deepen, confirm the resolution that we are ready to sacrifice anything, even ourselves to attain what we seek for the kingdom of God.”
— Andrew Murray

“The greatest saint in the world is not he who prays most or fasts most; it is not he who gives alms, or is most eminent for temperance, chastity or justice. It is he who is most thankful to God.”
— William Law

“When you are going to fast, observe it int this way: first, avoid any evil and desire, and purify your heart of all the vain things in the world. Your fast will be perfect if you do this.  And this is the way you should eat: after fulfilling all you are supposed to do on your fast day, then eat nothing but bread and water, and of the food which you were going to eat, measure out the same quantity and give this to a widow or orphan or other needy person.”
— Hermes

“Periodic fasting can help clear up the mind and strengthen the body and the spirit.”
— Ezra Taft Benson

“Through prayer, fasting, and studying, God will answer.”
— Monica Johnson
Fasting is not for everyone. One person may think it is perfectly normal, as it was part of the traditions he had been practicing while growing up, while another person may think it totally absurd to starve oneself for the sake of religion. Not all religions exercise this particular ritual and not all people in religions which do practice fasting do so as well. It is a matter of choice and a matter of willingness. For if something is done for the sake of customs and tradition, but it is done without heart and willingness, it would be totally meaningless.

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– Abu Sai’d

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– Abu Bakr Muhammad Al-Wasiti

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– Ansari of Herat

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