if you don't believe in god, heaven, hell, karma, nirvana or any of that shit, what reason do you have to follow a set of rules and laws that are obviously based on religious teachings that have been used for thousands of years?
This doesn't have much to do with the thread and I'm not sure if you were posing this question yourself or if you were just laying out a question that another person might ask, but I'd like to answer it as best as I can.
I have gradually become what might be called an "agnostic" over the past few years; that is, I don't think it's possible to state without a reasonable doubt, that God exists. He might exist, but if he does, I don't believe he has an influence in our world. If he doesn't exist, well then that makes sense as well. I think that religion is, as Marx put it, "the opium of the masses." Having said that, Marx also declares that "religion is the heart of a heartless world. It is the soul of soul-less conditions." He is right there, too. Religion is positive in the sense that it gives people hope; it lays down a set of moral rules and obligations to be followed and it can be argued that one might lead a happier, more substantial life if they are treating each other as they would like to be treated; if they are living their lives for this belief in a supreme power so that they can live in a paradise after death. Living life without this "hope" that religion provides is scary. Not many people want to sit and ponder about how when they die, they are going to be a pile of bones six feet in the dirt. It is much easier to believe that there will be recompense for living a selfless and fruitful life. On the flip side, it is difficult to go through life thinking that all of these terrible people who commit deplorable atrocities are simply going to die like the rest of us, with no hell to burn in for eternity; that is, no tangible punishment for their wrongdoing after they leave this world.
However, I decided some time ago that I would be living a lie if I believed in this shit. I had to make a choice -
1. Believe in religion and God and afterlife and paradise and go through life more hopeful and fulfilled
or
2. Disregard such things that I do not know to be true and face the reality of the world - face things as they actually are, not as I would like them to be.
I made the second choice. And to answer the question you posed, the fact that I do not necessarily believe in God or an afterlife does not diminish my nature and who I am as a human being. I believe that human beings are born with a moral sense; whether it's inherent or something that developed over time through evolution as a result of a religious impact, I can't say. But I can say in all honesty that I have a moral sense that does not condone certain behaviors that are detrimental to members of my fellow race. In that same vein, benevolent deeds make me feel good inside. I feel fulfilled when I put a smile on someone else's face, when I help someone in need, when I treat people with kindness and respect. Yes, many of these values, you could argue, derive from religion. Yet I am not disputing the values that religion imposes, I am disputing the extraordinary claims to those things that I can't know exist. I was born with senses and I use them to the best of my ability. If I can be made to believe in God and devils, ghosts and demons, flying saucers and UFO's, I can be made to believe anything. Once I give up my ability to reason and my reliance on my senses and other gifts provided by nature, I do not feel as though I'm an independent, free-thinking individual. On the contrary, I am a pawn, someone's chess piece used to further their own goals, whatever those might be.
I refuse to be brainwashed into believing things that can't be known. I believe that the religion does more harm than good, although I believe that it is well-intentioned. More people have died and spilled blood over religion than anything else in world history. If people didn't have religion and instead relied on their moral sense and their character to do right by one another, the human race might not be in the turmoil that it is in today.
I know this is going to be controversial, but that is how I see it.
. I would have posted a few pictures of her.She died yesterday at the age of 24 as a result of cocaine use. She suffered multiple heart attacks last Sunday morning and had been on a life support since then. 
