Dao

Chinese for 'way' or 'path': the guiding way of right conduct or, in Daoism, the way of the whole cosmos.

Also: tao, the Way, dào, 道

What it means

Dao literally means a path or way, and by extension guidance: a course that can be found, chosen and followed. It is among the most important concepts in Chinese philosophy. Confucians and Mohists used it mainly for human ways: the right customs and conduct for society. Daoists extended it to the natural course of all things. The Daodejing describes the dao as nameless and formless, calls it the "mother of all things", and treats the word 'dao' itself as only a label for what cannot be fully defined. Commentators disagree about how to read this: Heshang Gong linked the dao to the cosmic energy qi, while Wang Bi treated it as an underlying ground rather than a substance.

The questions it belongs to

• 3.2 Normative EthicsWhat should I look at to tell whether an act is right?
• 1.1 OntologyWhat is there?

Thinkers

• Laozi
• Zhuangzi
• Confucius
• Wang Bi

Traditions

• Chinese

To read

• Analects — Confucius
• Commentary on the Laozi — Wang Bi
• Daodejing — Laozi

Sources and further reading

• Daoism (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)
• Laozi (Stanford Encyclopedia of Philosophy)
• Laozi (Lao-tzu) (Internet Encyclopedia of Philosophy)

Written by the Coordinates of Thought editors and checked against the sources above on 29 October 2026. Not peer-reviewed. How we write and check.

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