I was quite amused when I saw a post claiming that Einstein was
a Buddhist. Einstein is held in such high regard that Buddhism,
Christians and Atheists would like to claim him as their own.
Einstein the Buddhist:
A human being is part of the
whole, called by us 'Universe'; a part limited in time and space.
He experiences himself, his thoughts and feelings as something
separated from the rest--a kind of optical delusion of his
consciousness. This delusion is a kind of prison for us,
restricting us to our personal desires and affection for a few
persons nearest us. Our task must be to free ourselves from this
prison by widening our circle of compasion to embrace all living
creatures and the whole nature in its beauty. Nobody is able to
achieve this completely but striving for such achievement is, in
itself, a part of the liberation and a foundation for inner
security.
and
The religion of the future will
be a cosmic religion. The religion which is based on experience,
which refuses dogmatism. If there's any religion that would cope
the scientific needs it will be Buddhism
Einstein the Atheist:
"It was, of course, a lie what
you read about my religious convictions, a lie which is being
systematically repeated. I do not believe in a personal God and I
have never denied this but have expressed it clearly."
and
"I believe in Spinoza's God who
reveals himself in the orderly harmony of what exists, not in a God
who concerns himself with fates and actions of human
beings."
Einstein the Christian:
I was not actually able to find any quotes that would indicate that
Einstein was a Christian though I keep hearing Christians claim
that. To be fair though, I think majority of Christians now concede
that Einstein was not a Christian.
The closest quote would be that:
"God does not play dice with the
universe."
