Tao is a word full of meaning. It may mean to speak, or to guide. It may mean a principle, or a system of logic. It also means a way, both in the sense of a pathway and in the sense of a method. In all of its meanings, Tao has specific and general usages. An art or a science is referred to as such and such a way, and the key to success in each particular case is called the Way of such and such an art. In its most encompassing senses, the Way means the way things are, the source of this natural order, and methods of harmonizing with the vital spirit of the Way.
In its pristine sense, the meaning of following the Tao, later called Taoism or wayfaring, included the whole spectrum of the search for knowledge.
Thomas Cleary
