DEITY(S)

Exceptions
• Over time, Bodhisattvas, beings who have reached enlightenment and merited nirvana, but chose to stay back and help others, were worshipped in the same way as gods and goddesses.
• Mahayana Buddhism and Tantric (Vajrayana) Buddhism worships hindu gods as deities.

Siddhartha Gautama did not believe in the need for gods to pursue and obtain enlightenment. Although he didn't reject the existence of gods or deny other religions of them, he didn't indulge them into Buddhism and wished to not be worshipped as god by his followers. As Buddhism is a philosophical religion, gods aren't a part of it.