[maverickstruth]

One of the most interesting debates (ie. formal debate with opening and closing arguments, etc.) I've taken part in was about whether or not Daoism is a religion or a philosophy. I think the outcome was a decisive "it depends." When most people think of Daoism, they think of the Daodejing, about yin and yang, about wu wei (if they've even ever heard of wu wei), about the Dao, etc. Very philosophical, but all of those ideas are also part of the larger Chinese consciousness -- not specifically "Daoist."

The religious aspects of Daoism include ritual activities, gods, afterlife beliefs, etc. Many students of religion, when they are first introduced to this side of Daoism, say something like "That doesn't sound anything like the Daoism that I've heard about!" and they're right. If all you know of is the Daodejing, then ritual sex doesn't seem to fit. It's an interesting paradox, and one that is a lot of fun to investigate; I'd encourage anyone to do so.

Philosophy or religion? Probably both. But then again, what is religion anyway? (That's a rhetorical question... the bane of religious studies scholars is that we can't define what we're talking about!)