Jung's case against Westerners trying to practice the golden flower
method would have been stronger if he had been able to clarify what was
culture specific and could not be imitated usefully, and if he had adequately
defined cultic behaviors that inhibit the efficiency of mind-purifying
practices. But even so, he made a useful contribution to the study of this
issue by raising doubts that needed expression and questions that called for
examination.
Many Westerners today have had more opportunity for exposure to
Eastern teachings and to psychological studies of cultism than had Jung and
his contemporaries. Cult behavior continues to exist, nevertheless, so it is
important to distinguish it from authentic spiritual practice.
In order to do this, it is necessary to observe the cult mentality from the
point of view of the golden flower and avoid confusing this process with
observing the golden flower practice from the point of view of the cult
mentality.
Jung's goal of understanding religion in terms of psychology was an
approach that made religious teachings of all kinds more accessible to
Westerners. Its full realization may have been thwarted by a combination of
factors, including lack of sufficient data, due to which Jung was unable to
understand Eastern teachings clearly and therefore could not come to
definitive conclusions. Unaware that Taoists and Buddhists had themselves
