Humans are an Extension of Gods

Most answers can be cast as natural results of a simpler notion: everything grows. A god seeks out followers because all life, however advanced, seeks this grow. One axis which growth can be measured, and would seem 'natural' to a hyper-advanced, hyper-powerful being, is the extent of those who follow it, over whom it can exert influence.

That a following appears to be a religion is actually more the happenstance of the follower than the followed: human followers seem cult-like. However, pets are a great example of followers that don't organize as a religion: Fido does not worship (perform rituals, etc.) his owner - he's just a dog that follows the owner around and barks at things that might be a threat.

Consider, then, that your 'gods' are simply advanced beings, and one way they seek to protect themselves is by modifying the ecosystem around them. Humans do this: they build buildings, for instance, and cache supplies where they can find them. They do it on grander scales as well, such as the creation of cities, the weather channel and the Emergency Broadcast System. The universal sign for 'choking' or stop signs aren't religion; but everyone adheres to an understanding about what they mean. This is so everyone benefits.

Businesses do this two, particularly in computers, where they promote 'complementary products' and develop 'ecosystems' for their product to flourish. Sometimes this comes in the form of stifling particular competition, or giving away part of their product for free, or seeking a subsidy or tax break for their product, or encouraging a behavior that creates a need for their product. Branding is, in this way, similar to proselytizing. These are called 'industrial complexes' because they go beyond the bounds of the business itself.

How does this relate to a god? Even hyper-advanced beings will find some things easier than others. Therefore, it is in their best interest to encourage conditions that make most of what they do easy, including safeguard themselves. 'Religions', or large groups of self-organizing followers, are a great way to do this. When you have many people who follow you it is easy to:

• Call on them if something unexpected comes up.
• Use the organization they have already set up to get something done without first having to herd cats. (Right down to sheer labor.)
• Not worry about explaining complicated ideas, because they'll take it on faith, saving time.
• Quarantine or suppress conflicting ideas, groups of people or other situations that will have a particular adverse effect.
• Discover, filter and deliver information to you about a wide variety of things that you would otherwise have to take effort to do. Or, perhaps not just information, but raw material or actual power (energy, oil, 'belief', human blood).
• React on their own without your intervention.

Now, will a following always do exactly the right thing? Probably not: but the reason to cultivate it is that then it is more likely they will do the right thing. They become extensions of the 'god': just like you might not parry correctly with a sword, if you practice with a sword a lot it can become an extension of you, and a parry becomes very easy to do.

In the end, as with less god-like human leaders, this is a symbiotic relationship. The god can find great utility in a following, both for the raw people they influence but also the environment they promote with their every action. They may feel fondly towards this group as a result (think of celebrities always thanking their fans), and even crave the adoration they give: having and using followers successfully feels good, and so they will be encouraged to do it more and more, and try more complicated things. This is simply an extension of any human societal structure, just taken to the utmost: where the number of humans involved is huge, where the god's ability to influence them is massive and the difference in perspective is particularly large. And to return to the initial point: because the benefits of having many beings working in concert with you is great, there is no reason to do anything except to grow that. It feels good. It has utility. There are thousands of secondary reasons. Why wouldn't you pursue developing a following? The only reason is if the opportunity cost in comparison to another pursuit was greater, but it's hard to imagine what that might be.