Across families
Shaktism and Umbanda
Different families with 10 axes in close agreement — the sort of pairing a quiz weighting only the divine axes would never surface. Mean distance across all seventeen axes: 0.16 (0 would be identical).
The Goddess as the power that is the world, not a deity who made it — the highest immanence value in the matrix. Ritual is central and the body is treated as a site of the sacred rather than as a problem to solve.
A Brazilian synthesis of Yoruba orixás, Kardecist reincarnation and Catholic saints, in which spirits work through mediums to do practical good. Charity is the point, syncretism is the method, and no existing quiz can return it.
Where they agree
A1 Divine reality
Both sit at a divine reality certainly exists — a gap of 0.00.
D2 Centrality of ritual
Both sit at essential and prescribed — a gap of 0.00.
C2 Shape of time
Both sit at cyclical return — a gap of 0.02.
A4 Locus
Both sit at fully present within it — a gap of 0.03.
E4 Standing of nature
Both sit at animate and itself sacred — a gap of 0.03.
B3 Institutional authority
Both sit at leaning clergy and tradition decide — a gap of 0.06.
A2 Personhood
Both sit at a personal being one can address and leaning a personal being one can address respectively — a gap of 0.07.
D1 Mechanism of the ultimate good
Both sit at between given as grace and achieved by effort or insight — a gap of 0.07.
C3 The human condition
Both sit at leaning ignorant but fundamentally sound — a gap of 0.08.
C1 Survival of the self
Both sit at continues in some form — a gap of 0.10.
Where they part company
E2 Origin of the cosmos
Shaktism: leaning beginningless or natural. Umbanda: leaning an intentional act. A gap of 0.57 on an axis running from “an intentional act” to “beginningless or natural”.
All seventeen axes
| Axis | Shaktism | Umbanda | Gap |
|---|---|---|---|
| A1 Divine reality | a divine reality certainly exists | a divine reality certainly exists | 0.00 |
| A2 Personhood | a personal being one can address | leaning a personal being one can address | 0.07 |
| A3 Plurality | between strictly one and many powers and spirits | many powers and spirits | 0.37 |
| A4 Locus | fully present within it | fully present within it | 0.03 |
| B1 Source of truth | between revealed and fixed and reason and direct experience | leaning reason and direct experience | 0.27 |
| B2 Reading of sacred text | between literal and binding and metaphorical, or no text at all | metaphorical, or no text at all | 0.40 |
| B3 Institutional authority | leaning clergy and tradition decide | leaning clergy and tradition decide | 0.06 |
| C1 Survival of the self | continues in some form | continues in some form | 0.10 |
| C2 Shape of time | cyclical return | cyclical return | 0.02 |
| C3 The human condition | leaning ignorant but fundamentally sound | leaning ignorant but fundamentally sound | 0.08 |
| D1 Mechanism of the ultimate good | between given as grace and achieved by effort or insight | between given as grace and achieved by effort or insight | 0.07 |
| D2 Centrality of ritual | essential and prescribed | essential and prescribed | 0.00 |
| D3 The body | leaning to be celebrated | between to be disciplined and to be celebrated | 0.13 |
| E1 Exclusivity | between one true path and many valid paths | many valid paths | 0.32 |
| E2 Origin of the cosmos | leaning beginningless or natural | leaning an intentional act | 0.57 |
| E3 Locus of belonging | between a people, inherited and an individual choice | between a people, inherited and an individual choice | 0.24 |
| E4 Standing of nature | animate and itself sacred | animate and itself sacred | 0.03 |
Positions for Shaktism rest principally on Devi Mahatmya and the Shakta Tantras; for Umbanda, on Umbanda terreiro practice and Ortiz, A Morte Branca do Feiticeiro Negro. 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.