There are enough flaws in Wilhelm's readings of grammar, terminology,
and conceptual structures to render his translation practically dysfunctional.
Perhaps sensing this, but attributing it to cultural differences, Jung went
further afield in transmogrifying the central concepts of the text.
Jung warned his readers away from trying to practice the secret of the
golden flower, professing psychoanalysis to be its Western equivalent. His
reasoning was that
Europeans lacked the cultural basis for practicing Eastern disciplines and
had to work with their own traditions. There is obviously some truth to this
part of the argument, and Buddhists have long said that teachings must be
adapted to local psychological and social climates. I do not agree, however,
that Jung's approach to the unconscious outlined in his introduction to The
Secret of the Golden Flower is actually equivalent to the golden flower
practice.
What Jung seems to have been against in reality was blind imitation of
techniques, undertaken with the wrong motivations and attitudes. This is a
useful warning, and he himself was aware that Buddhist proverb says the
same thing. It is not necessary to believe, however, that all Westerners will
inevitably behave in this mariner toward Eastern teachings. Furthermore,
the behavior will not necessarily change simply because its object is
changed. The problem is in the behavior, not in the object.
