SCIENCE, RELIGION, ATHEISM & SPIRITUALITY :

The first scientist of the earliest advancing Homo-sapiens was ,perhaps an `atheist` and not a blind believer who adored Nature more out of fear and ignorance ,overwhelmed by the `magic power of the Sun, the Moon ,Lightning & Fire on Earth.
In Vedic World this approach was named - `Samkhya Yoga` or the path od discriminatory knowledge. The athiest has the gifted power of challenging everything and accept nothing without discriminatory analysis and final acceptance. As he denies the rule of anthropomorphic God (with a belly- button) who protect and help only homo-sapiens ; he shifts the responsibility on himself to better the condition of suffering beings.
The other way was and still is the way of self-realisation by Vedic Sages who ventured the thesis of `Know thyself( Atmanang biddhi`) by diving within ( RAJA Yoga ) and taking the daring role of Analysis of Consciousness ( Observer-field & observation of phenomena),

It is important to know that, occidental term `Philosophy and the Vedantic term `Darshan` are not synonym. While philosophy means love for knowledge, Darshan is the self realizing experience of sages of Vedic Age which is neither leaning nor knowing through ~Credit-Card- borrowing of information .from external source. An atheist in certain way is really a scientist or a Samkhya follower and better placed than blind believer and timid follower (under influence )