Across families
Religious Daoism and Santería (Regla de Ocha / Lucumí)
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: 0.13 (0 would be identical).
The same cosmology, staffed: a vast celestial bureaucracy, an ordained priesthood, liturgy, talismans and the pursuit of bodily transcendence through internal alchemy. Practically the opposite of its philosophical sibling on ritual and authority.
Cuban orisha worship structured around divination, initiation and a strict ritual grammar, with Catholic saints as a historical overlay rather than as theology. Authority is earned through initiation and is not negotiable.
Where they agree
A1 Divine reality
Both sit at a divine reality certainly exists — a gap of 0.00.
E1 Exclusivity
Both sit at between one true path and many valid paths — a gap of 0.00.
E4 Standing of nature
Both sit at animate and itself sacred — a gap of 0.00.
C1 Survival of the self
Both sit at continues in some form — a gap of 0.02.
D3 The body
Both sit at leaning to be celebrated — a gap of 0.02.
A3 Plurality
Both sit at many powers and spirits — a gap of 0.03.
C2 Shape of time
Both sit at between one life, then judgment and cyclical return — a gap of 0.03.
D2 Centrality of ritual
Both sit at essential and prescribed — a gap of 0.03.
A2 Personhood
Both sit at leaning a personal being one can address — a gap of 0.03.
A4 Locus
Both sit at leaning fully present within it and fully present within it respectively — a gap of 0.08.
C3 The human condition
Both sit at leaning ignorant but fundamentally sound — a gap of 0.08.
Where they part company
B2 Reading of sacred text
Religious Daoism: leaning literal and binding. Santería (Regla de Ocha / Lucumí): metaphorical, or no text at all. A gap of 0.58 on an axis running from “literal and binding” to “metaphorical, or no text at all”.
E2 Origin of the cosmos
Religious Daoism: leaning beginningless or natural. Santería (Regla de Ocha / Lucumí): leaning an intentional act. A gap of 0.50 on an axis running from “an intentional act” to “beginningless or natural”.
All seventeen axes
| Axis | Religious Daoism | Santería (Regla de Ocha / Lucumí) | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| A1 Divine reality | a divine reality certainly exists | a divine reality certainly exists | 0.00 |
| A2 Personhood | leaning a personal being one can address | leaning a personal being one can address | 0.03 |
| A3 Plurality | many powers and spirits | many powers and spirits | 0.03 |
| A4 Locus | leaning fully present within it | fully present within it | 0.08 |
| B1 Source of truth | leaning revealed and fixed | between revealed and fixed and reason and direct experience | 0.20 |
| B2 Reading of sacred text | leaning literal and binding | metaphorical, or no text at all | 0.58 |
| B3 Institutional authority | leaning clergy and tradition decide | clergy and tradition decide | 0.13 |
| C1 Survival of the self | continues in some form | continues in some form | 0.02 |
| C2 Shape of time | between one life, then judgment and cyclical return | between one life, then judgment and cyclical return | 0.03 |
| C3 The human condition | leaning ignorant but fundamentally sound | leaning ignorant but fundamentally sound | 0.08 |
| D1 Mechanism of the ultimate good | leaning achieved by effort or insight | between given as grace and achieved by effort or insight | 0.17 |
| D2 Centrality of ritual | essential and prescribed | essential and prescribed | 0.03 |
| D3 The body | leaning to be celebrated | leaning to be celebrated | 0.02 |
| E1 Exclusivity | between one true path and many valid paths | between one true path and many valid paths | 0.00 |
| E2 Origin of the cosmos | leaning beginningless or natural | leaning an intentional act | 0.50 |
| E3 Locus of belonging | between a people, inherited and an individual choice | leaning a people, inherited | 0.23 |
| E4 Standing of nature | animate and itself sacred | animate and itself sacred | 0.00 |
Positions for Religious Daoism rest principally on Daozang liturgical corpus and Quanzhen/Zhengyi practice; for Santería (Regla de Ocha / Lucumí), on Lucumí/Santería ritual practice and Brandon, Santeria from Africa to the New World. 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.