ABSTRACT
Within the context of Western criticism of religion, it has become common to distinguish various types of anti-theistic arguments. This can also be useful in structuring the various forms of Buddhist critique of creator-beliefs.1 Basically, there are three groups of arguments: a first group endeavours to show that the existence of a creator-god cannot be proven, that is, it criticizes pro-theistic arguments. A second group tries to refute the assumption that there is a divine creator, arguing that a creator’s existence is incompatible with various features of the world as we experience it. Finally, a third group of arguments adopts a pragmatic approach, pointing out that belief in a divine creator is dysfunctional, that it is either irrelevant and superfluous or even harmful.2 I will now examine each of these three groups.
