Bay Area

Siddathrata was never ever just a man in Buddhism. There are verses where he talks about coming back to earth to help humanity. Must be dozens of distinct fairytales about his birth alone let alone his physical form.

If you met a being that came from heaven to save humanity, was budded off a women's side instead of normal birth or C-section, who walked as a newborn while flowers grew in his footsteps, who as an adult could spin his hands 360, could warp time and space to avoid knife stabs, whose ears were so long he could suck them, who had webbing that glowed between his super long fingers, soles of feet like a turtle shell, stood 7 cubits tall, could will falling boulders away from himself without even noticing, a natural palm pattern of a thousand spoke wheel, could summon a 7 headed snake as an umbrella, could meditate for 40 days without stop would you call that being human?

This part of the world is a lot like the west before monotheism took over. They have loads of gods. While true that some writers tried to emphasis his humanity they are few and far between.

If Buddhism is not a religion I truly do not know what a religion means. All those people at the temples I have been to, making offerings, engaging in OCD like rituals, seeking blessings, praying, chanting, seem like they were doinf religion to me.