How do atheists explain the origin of the universe?

[nohorn]

After following all the atheists discussions of various topics, I can't recall any of them attempting to explain the origin of the universe, or is it necessary to even know the origin as an atheists?

[Nadis]

When a flower grows, it grows from a seed.
What was before the seed? Nothing.....perhaps.

[boxtops]

..but the seed grew in the parent plant due to a certain set of circumstances coming together. That's not nothing, that was "action" following a protocol of sorts.

[Nadis]

Where did the parent plant originally come from?

[boxtops]

It's the chicken and egg question, nadis!

[vascop]

If you are an atheist you're under no obligation to explain the origin of the universe. Atheism is not a faith. The wording of your question makes it sound as though atheists all subscribe to the same set of ideas - like a religious sect. They don't. All atheists are different, the one thing they have to have in common is that they don't see any sense in postulating a god.

[jomifl]

They don't so you can carry on with your belief unquestioned if that is what you want :o)

[mibn2cweus]

Meaningful, productive contemplation of the origin of the universe is only possible following the emergence within the universe of an entity with the capacity to do so. To suggest the prior existence of a creative purposeful intelligence which preceded the existence of the universe within which such a capacity could become manifest is to ignore the causal means and process by which such an intelligence became possible . . . in spite of any evidence to the contrary provided by ones own apparent lack thereof.

[jomifl]

It is naive to try and draw an analogy with things we know, like seeds. The origin of the universe, (if it had an origin, given that this notion presumes the independance of time from the universe) is so far beyond our experience that is must be pretty well intuitively incomprehensible. The reason atheists haven't attempted to explain the origin of the universe may well be that they aren't given too much to expounding fanciful ideas as god given truth :o)