many people find it difficult to reconcile religion and atheism.
however, hinduism is not simply a religion, but a way of life.
the supposedly "liberal" west persecuted avowed atheists well into the 1950s... so much so that some had to resort to the distorted nutcase ideology of communism to come to terms with their atheist convictions.
today millions of muslims and christians have died in the name of their god or absolutist ideology.
the reason i embrace the philosphy of my forefathers, stretching far back into the aryan times, is that hinduism is never absolutist; it accomodates so many different views on life - thus mirroring our own lives where we always see so many shades of grey, in a way that none of the monotheist faiths so far have managed to do...
hinduism is the earliest form of liberalism... and it has stood the test of time.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atheism_in_Hinduism
well, i'm glad i got that of my chest! flame away!
EDIT: those of you who have little or no knowledge of hinduism will, of course, resort to the familiar stereotyping of "caste and curry blah blah"... however, in india, casteism exists in all faiths, including indian christianity and islam. it is actually a very unfortunate social, not religious, problem - somewhat like racism in the west.
[This message has been edited by Korvkpt123 (edited 02-07-2007).]