Thanks Alaster
I have just joined the group as well and the pragmatic razor edge feel to The Taoist approach suits me too.
I spent years and years out of curiosity just trying work through different books, some famous and well known some not so much, At the end of it though i was told through encountering Tai Chi and Chinese Medicine Taoist approach was about action, rather than finding some mystical key in a haystack of scriptures to the answer of the universe or the Tao
To answer attempt to even answer your question (i will likely be off beat or wrong ) but my thought is Tao as its rolled out in first lesson would even be beyond being the basis of aything at all. Love and Unity are and arent the Tao at the same time. And Even these words dont begin to draw the picture. It cant be drawn.