I think gods needing to be worshipped represents humanity. People like to be praised and each god/goddess, regardless of the religious and philosophical teachings, tend to like to be praised, to a point where they demand it. It's like a human though in that you do work that benefits many and you get swept under the rug and not recognized.
Humans also like to think that when they believe in something, then they're correct, especially if it's as a group. So when a god/goddess says they're the only one, then it seems to represent the ethnocentric-like features of humans and this makes sense because humans envision these beings.
I think the gods also represent what groups of humans believe or want to achieve. It's like a way of demonstrating one's beliefs and show how they're right. It's a circular concept; humans envision the gods, the gods require humans to worship them and the humans envision that. I think eventually this circular concept grows in strength and eventually people become somewhat blinded by what they try to educate themselves and others with. As this grows and more people adhere to it, worshipping the god/goddess gains another meaning or purpose, which is to remain within the group because once people are kicked out or leave voluntarily, they're uncomfortable. When these groups are challenged, such as saying their belief is wrong, then they get upset because they've essentially brain-washed themselves into thinking they're right. Denying the opposer I think is also a reaction of fear of being wrong and being not part of the group that's correct. As a result, they minimize this fear by proclaiming their god (which is really a reflection of them) saying they're right and others are wrong. It serves to strengthen themselves individually and as a group while increasing resistence to opposing forces.
So I think the gods/goddesses needing to be worshipped represents humanity's need to be together and recognized.
In essence, it's easier for the average layperson to criticize someone else rather than criticize themselves by challenging the belief system. If they criticize someone else, then they increase their own strength. If the opposer folds and agrees, then the religious person gets another increase. On the other hand, if the religious person criticizes their own belief system, they risk rejection of their group and are left as a "free-floater", with other groups glaring them down. So even if one may not fully agree with their belief system, they remain with it because the fear of being alone is too overwhelming. Hence, gods/goddesses fear this too as a projection of humanity's fear.
