ABSTRACT
This chapter presents Daoism from the particular point of view of a subsect of Complete Perfection Daoism called Gold Mountain. It explains the Daoist concept of the human person and the initial steps of alchemical transformation, as understood in Gold Mountain Daoism. The Dao – 'the Way' – is an impersonal, self-generating source of events and is the Daoist expression of Ultimate Reality. The fifth-century Precepts and Rules Taught by the Celestial Master states: The Dao takes harmony as its virtue and opposes what is not harmonious. Although sages and immortals operate out of a perfect resonance with the Dao, aspirants can approach the Dao by following the admonitions and precepts. If a Gold Mountain Daoist had to choose from the Christian-driven menu of philosophy of religions, the best choice would be S. Mark Heim's adaptation of Nicholas Rescher's 'orientational pluralism'.
