Religion = Placebo

While traveling in India, I often found myself in a crowd where, on the right, someone was performing an astrological ritual, and on the left, someone was performing a superstitious ritual, and in front, someone was performing a religious ritual.  It become so obvious that they are all the same thing, and done for the same reason.  Astrology, superstition, and religion are all placebos.  There is no reason why they should provide any benefit, yet people are addicted to them, because the "placebo effect" is real.  Anyone who believes that performing a ritual will somehow help does create a positive mental attitude in themselves, and a positive attitude does help them.

(Now I need to figure out why astrology and superstition do not make people want to murder others, but religion does.)