One could flip it - There's no matter, only awareness. All awareness, when devoid of the body, the thoughts, emotions, memories, are identical. Now, make that

One could flip it - There's no matter, only awareness. All awareness, when devoid of the body, the thoughts, emotions, memories, are identical. Now, make that leap, where `identical == expressing an identity`, where it is all one universal awareness, and that is reality. You now have a pass to: Hindu (Brahman): "Brahman (/brəhmən/; ब्रह्मन्) connotes the highest Universal Principle, the Ultimate Reality in the universe."[1] Islam (Allah): "He is Allah, the one and only. God, The Eternal, the Absolute. He begot not, nor was He begotten, and there is none comparable to. Him." Reality created nothing, nor was reality created.[2] Taoism (Tao) "The unnamable is the eternally real... Free from desire, you realize the mystery. Caught in desire, you see only the manifestations.... mystery and manifestations arise from the same source....." [3] Mystery = presence & essence, manifestation = matter, stuff, things, objects. Christianity (Holy Spirit) If you must, think of Adam and Eve as the first two self-aware beings, and "fruit of the tree of knowledge" as using their special ability for the benefit of their own ego, at the expense of being one with the universe, like all other plants and "lesser" animals. A.k.a "The original sin". In Taoist terms, Adam and Eve stopped seeing the mystery, and full of desire, saw the manifestations, and that's when they were 'cast out of the garden'. One moment perfectly content, next moment cannot ever stop wanting 'more'. [1] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brahman https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brahman [2] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Haqq https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Al-Haqq [3] http://acc6.its.brooklyn.cuny.edu/~phalsall/texts/taote-v3.html#1 http://acc6.its.brooklyn.cuny.edu/~phalsall/texts/taote-v3.h... Religion is about shattering the idea that one is separate from the rest of reality.