This ancient Chinese manual of spiritual alchemy was brought to the West in translation by missionary and theologian Richard Wilhelm. According to Carl Jung, he had reached an impasse in his work on the psychology of the unconscious when Wilhelm introduced him to The Secret of the Golden Flower. This proved to be a monumental event in Jung's career and he credits this text with having provided him with a key to the resolution of this impasse. In view of the influence of Jung's work in the subsequent development of psychology, religious studies and New Age culture in general, the importance of this work in the introduction of traditional oriental psychology into modern Western mental culture has been great indeed. Written over 200 years ago as a revival of an ancient teaching, the work is a popular guide to Buddhist and Taoist techniques, for clarifying the mind and awakening its latent potential.