Taosim is not religion. Religion is an organized set of beliefs that tend to cast the world in black and white. Heaven and Hell. Good and Evil. With us or against us.

Religion focuses on an external Force as the giver of wisdom and truth. Each religion believes its Force is the one and only true Force. You can pay your money to the 700 Club and buy favor with the One and Only True God. Or you can martyr yourself by blowing up Jews and and be surrounded by umpteen virgins in the Heaven of Mahomet. (What are the women martyrs surrounded by?) Yet it's the same god of Abraham that these religions believe in, and they've been killing each other in the name of that god for millenia.

Taoism accepts that the universe is a vast array of colors, shades and hues. Real truth is not to be found in speculation and external, mystical forces. Truth is found in the reality of the universe as it is.

The way to see that truth is to strip away delusions, prejudices, and false reasoning. The methods of taoism are those of clearing your mind of these bad habits through meditation and improving your internal workings through proper exercise, movement and diet. In this way, the ability of the human organism is maximized and becomes capable of seeing the beauty of the universe directly.

The goal is to see the universe as it is, not through the shrouds of supernatural beliefs and superstitions.