Piyavadana

In ancient times, people used faith to bring hope and comfort when they faced desperate situations – problems beyond our control, hopelessness. In such situations, faith provides some hope. For example, there is the threat of animals at night, so more fear in the dark. With light, we feel more secure. The source of light is the sun, therefore the sun is something holy and so some people worshiped the sun. Fire provides comfort when we are cold and so some considered fire as something good. Fire sometimes comes from lightning, which is mysterious, and therefore both fire and lightning are holy. These are primitive faiths, with no philosophy.

His Holiness the Dalai Lama