metzu Posted September 21, 2008 In giving the name Tao to this idea, didn't the writers actually create another strawdog? Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
doc benway Posted September 21, 2008 Definitely. On the other hand it's instructive to look at the name that was chosen. I think it was chosen with great care. The top portion is the radical for head and the bottom is a pictograph of a foot or footstep and it implies stopping at a crossroads. The name means "the way" or "the path" or "to walk a path" and so forth. But the selection of radicals implies having or making a choice about which direction to take. It can be interpreted in many ways, one being as our choice regarding our way in our world - our life - our existence. That is experiential and is not a straw dog. The word is never the thing. It is simply a verbal and conceptual (and in Chinese, a pictorial) convenience to facilitate communication. Â You can look at it like the symbol that was used by the artist formerly known as Prince - he tried to drop the name as well. Â Or we could drop it and just refer to it as Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
