Belief Compass

Across families

Santería (Regla de Ocha / Lucumí) and Shinto

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: 0.11 (0 would be identical).

Santería (Regla de Ocha / Lucumí)Afro-diasporic

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.

ShintoEast Asian

Kami are everywhere — in rivers, mountains, ancestors and the occasional remarkable person — and the religion is what you do rather than what you believe. There is no sin to be saved from, only impurity to be washed off.

Where they agree

  • D2 Centrality of ritual

    Both sit at essential and prescribed — a gap of 0.00.

  • D1 Mechanism of the ultimate good

    Both sit at between given as grace and achieved by effort or insight — a gap of 0.02.

  • A3 Plurality

    Both sit at many powers and spirits — a gap of 0.03.

  • A4 Locus

    Both sit at fully present within it — a gap of 0.05.

  • E2 Origin of the cosmos

    Both sit at leaning an intentional act — a gap of 0.07.

  • E4 Standing of nature

    Both sit at animate and itself sacred — a gap of 0.07.

  • A1 Divine reality

    Both sit at a divine reality certainly exists — a gap of 0.08.

  • C3 The human condition

    Both sit at leaning ignorant but fundamentally sound and ignorant but fundamentally sound respectively — a gap of 0.08.

  • D3 The body

    Both sit at leaning to be celebrated and between to be disciplined and to be celebrated respectively — a gap of 0.10.

  • E3 Locus of belonging

    Both sit at leaning a people, inherited and a people, inherited respectively — a gap of 0.10.

  • B1 Source of truth

    Both sit at between revealed and fixed and reason and direct experience — a gap of 0.10.

All seventeen axes

AxisSantería (Regla de Ocha / Lucumí)ShintoGap
A1 Divine realitya divine reality certainly existsa divine reality certainly exists0.08
A2 Personhoodleaning a personal being one can addressbetween impersonal principle or order and a personal being one can address0.13
A3 Pluralitymany powers and spiritsmany powers and spirits0.03
A4 Locusfully present within itfully present within it0.05
B1 Source of truthbetween revealed and fixed and reason and direct experiencebetween revealed and fixed and reason and direct experience0.10
B2 Reading of sacred textmetaphorical, or no text at allleaning metaphorical, or no text at all0.13
B3 Institutional authorityclergy and tradition decideleaning clergy and tradition decide0.25
C1 Survival of the selfcontinues in some formbetween ends at death and continues in some form0.35
C2 Shape of timebetween one life, then judgment and cyclical returnleaning one life, then judgment0.23
C3 The human conditionleaning ignorant but fundamentally soundignorant but fundamentally sound0.08
D1 Mechanism of the ultimate goodbetween given as grace and achieved by effort or insightbetween given as grace and achieved by effort or insight0.02
D2 Centrality of ritualessential and prescribedessential and prescribed0.00
D3 The bodyleaning to be celebratedbetween to be disciplined and to be celebrated0.10
E1 Exclusivitybetween one true path and many valid pathsleaning many valid paths0.16
E2 Origin of the cosmosleaning an intentional actleaning an intentional act0.07
E3 Locus of belongingleaning a people, inheriteda people, inherited0.10
E4 Standing of natureanimate and itself sacredanimate and itself sacred0.07

Positions for Santería (Regla de Ocha / Lucumí) rest principally on Lucumí/Santería ritual practice and Brandon, Santeria from Africa to the New World; for Shinto, on Kojiki, Nihon Shoki, and Jinja Honcho practice guidance. Per-cell sources are listed on each tradition’s own page.

Which of the two is closer to you?

The questionnaire places your answers on these same axes and ranks all 65 traditions by how closely they match. Take it.