Thinking is the most predominant. Here is where intellectual knowledge is used to describe how things work in the physical realm.
For example:
There is creation, maintenance and destruction as an ongoing cycle of everything which exists in the physical realm.
A human being is born (creation) then that human being will die (destruction) and in between, there is “living” (sustenance or maintenance.)

If that ever-going cycle is not understood by the masses or if there is a need to hide greater significance behind it, then “folk stories,” “myths” were built around it: For instance, you have Brahma, Vishnu and Shankar or Shiva to signify the same aspects of creation, maintenance and destruction. We can give every personality an image, a role to be distinct from the rest, when they could be viewed as 3 different aspects of the same eternal reality. Those names will differ according to cultural background.

In Christianity, that could be understood at the Father creating, the Son, maintaining and the Father, God; destroying “His creation.” The Holy Spirit’s role has been along with the Son (Jesus) as some passages from the Bible may explain. The “holy Trinity,” the Trimurti, could be viewed as a depiction of those 3 states of the physical realm.

What is forgotten is that we are eternal; therefore, that cycle is eternal as well. Repetitive. Is our eternity a belief?
Yes. As long as we have not experienced it. In that experience of our own eternity there is no need for dividing thoughts or beliefs ever again. We are free as long as there is the experience.

Some religions have emphasized destruction over everything in that cycle, for the purpose of reforming someone with greater speed, to inflict fear to motivate certain actions or simply to exercise further control over people. There is “Armageddon,” the “last judgment,” “the second coming,” “the end of the world.” etc.

Note, that avyakt7 is not going into “how true” those statements are. That is a matter of belief. Avyakt7 is just mentioning that some religions are just emphasizing one aspect of the continuous physical reality.
Creation and maintenance or sustenance as part of that cycle, are not mentioned with the same emphasis or intensity as destruction due to other reasons.

In the “thinking” realm of consciousness, “proof” is important.
However, the “thinking” realm of consciousness is unable to “know” spirituality by experience which is extremely important. Thinking is just theory, a description, a concept. Experience on the other hand, is it.

That is why we can have many people writing about “spiritual topics.” Some with Ph.D’s and other degrees. Their writings or talks will be plain descriptions with empty messages unless those individuals have “walked the path.”

Thought brings separation. Therefore, a belief system is made implying separate things. One of the main topics in most religious dogmas is the idea of being an “individual” versus omnipresence. Some religions believe in an individual God whereas others believe in God being omnipresent.

Who is right? 🙂 Great topic for a lengthy and boring debate.

There will be God and there will be “me.” Two distinct entities. Moreover, “Me” is separated from the world. Things happen around “me,” in the “movie of life.”
If someone like the Pope is in the “movie of life,” then the Pope is separated from “me.”
Is truly the Pope part of the movie of life? Or isn’t he another individual, another “me” from his perspective?
Please see the depth on that question.

Let me put that in another way: Is the Pope an individual or is he part of the movie in relationship with “me,” the indisputable “individual”?

The Pope is both. He is an individual but at the same time, he is part of the movie (and thus omnipresent; for the movie of life is everything) it just depends on the perspective, the point of reference. (Me, the movie or him.) “Normal” people cannot understand that there are 2 answers which are equally valid. “Normal” people plainly take side on one answer and make a dogma out of that. They call that the “truth.”

If you are following me up to this point, dear reader; please now do the following… It takes great courage…
Now change the word “Pope” for the word “God.” 🙂

With greater consciousness, we can see that everything, even “me” is part of the “movie of life,” and the consciousness of “me” will only exist if “I” am coming from that consciousness of individuality… which is where 99% of humanity resides.

Let me give another example of experience versus theoretical “science.”
We can think all we want about love. We can write deep discussions about it. We can have opinions about love coming from “renown” individuals… latest experiments about love, latest research about it…all of that cannot make us understand what is love. We need to experience it. We need to feel it, to know love. To “Be it.”