This distinction can be overstated, though. If you look at what goes on in any Buddhist temple of any tradition, you will see the Buddha generally worshipped just as deities are worshipped. The distinction between a divine being and a 'philosopher' is not that clear in ancient Indian religion- ascetics and yogis like the Buddha have all kind of magical powers and in many ways are equal to or even superior to the gods. Even in some of the earliest Buddhist texts, the Buddha is depicted not just as an individual, but as an archetype that is born into the world again and again, and whose life and teachings are intimately tied to the cycles of the cosmos.