Across families
Pantheism and Philosophical Daoism
Different families with 11 axes in close agreement — the sort of pairing a quiz weighting only the divine axes would never surface. Mean distance across all seventeen axes: 0.10 (0 would be identical).
The universe is the divine — not made by it, not containing it, identical to it. Scores the matrix maximum on immanence and near it on the sacredness of nature, while denying a personal God entirely.
The Dao is the way things go, not a being who arranges them — so the move is to stop interfering and act in accord with it. Almost no ritual, almost no authority, and a naturalism that arrives at reverence rather than at disenchantment.
Where they agree
C1 Survival of the self
Both sit at leaning ends at death — a gap of 0.00.
C3 The human condition
Both sit at ignorant but fundamentally sound — a gap of 0.00.
E2 Origin of the cosmos
Both sit at beginningless or natural — a gap of 0.02.
A2 Personhood
Both sit at impersonal principle or order — a gap of 0.03.
E1 Exclusivity
Both sit at many valid paths and leaning many valid paths respectively — a gap of 0.03.
D2 Centrality of ritual
Both sit at leaning optional or absent — a gap of 0.04.
A4 Locus
Both sit at fully present within it — a gap of 0.05.
E3 Locus of belonging
Both sit at an individual choice and leaning an individual choice respectively — a gap of 0.06.
B3 Institutional authority
Both sit at individual conscience decides and leaning individual conscience decides respectively — a gap of 0.08.
E4 Standing of nature
Both sit at animate and itself sacred — a gap of 0.10.
B1 Source of truth
Both sit at reason and direct experience and leaning reason and direct experience respectively — a gap of 0.10.
All seventeen axes
| Axis | Pantheism | Philosophical Daoism | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| A1 Divine reality | a divine reality certainly exists | between nothing beyond the natural and a divine reality certainly exists | 0.33 |
| A2 Personhood | impersonal principle or order | impersonal principle or order | 0.03 |
| A3 Plurality | strictly one | leaning strictly one | 0.18 |
| A4 Locus | fully present within it | fully present within it | 0.05 |
| B1 Source of truth | reason and direct experience | leaning reason and direct experience | 0.10 |
| B2 Reading of sacred text | metaphorical, or no text at all | leaning metaphorical, or no text at all | 0.17 |
| B3 Institutional authority | individual conscience decides | leaning individual conscience decides | 0.08 |
| C1 Survival of the self | leaning ends at death | leaning ends at death | 0.00 |
| C2 Shape of time | between one life, then judgment and cyclical return | leaning cyclical return | 0.15 |
| C3 The human condition | ignorant but fundamentally sound | ignorant but fundamentally sound | 0.00 |
| D1 Mechanism of the ultimate good | achieved by effort or insight | leaning achieved by effort or insight | 0.18 |
| D2 Centrality of ritual | leaning optional or absent | leaning optional or absent | 0.04 |
| D3 The body | leaning to be celebrated | between to be disciplined and to be celebrated | 0.14 |
| E1 Exclusivity | many valid paths | leaning many valid paths | 0.03 |
| E2 Origin of the cosmos | beginningless or natural | beginningless or natural | 0.02 |
| E3 Locus of belonging | an individual choice | leaning an individual choice | 0.06 |
| E4 Standing of nature | animate and itself sacred | animate and itself sacred | 0.10 |
Positions for Pantheism rest principally on Spinoza’s Ethics and the World Pantheist Movement statement; for Philosophical Daoism, on Daodejing and Zhuangzi. Per-cell sources are listed on each tradition’s own page.
The questionnaire places your answers on these same axes and ranks all 65 traditions by how closely they match. Take it.