Philosophy of Taoism is the Theory / Basic fundamental.
(Dao Xue)

Religion of Taoism is the Tradition of Taoism.
(Dao Jiao)

Spiritual of Taoism is the Method of Spiritual Exercise.
(Dao Shu)

Cultivation of Taoism is the Real APPLICATION  in daily life
(Xiu Dao)

As an illustration, it is somewhat similar to today's modern science wherein the beginning is a theory/conceptual idea, this is followed by testing / lab work. From the experience of lab trials conclusions can be drawn as to whether the theory is right or wrong. Thus from theory comes action and from action theory is finalized.

These four things can not be separated in order to receive Tao.

Taoist philosophy originated from a simple thinking of thinking mystery of life. Without an exercise and action (cultivation) philosophical thinking will never reach high level.
The true understanding of Taoism can only be achieved through
PERSONAL SPIRITUAL EXERCISE.

Just like the 'sweet' taste of sugarcane, we will never really understand its true taste by just reading a book about the taste of sugarcane.
Since there is absolutely no one can transfer the understanding of 'sweet taste' in any words to the reader who has not actually experienced that taste.

Therefore, a Spiritual Taoist teacher/master should also be well-versed about Taoist Philosophy. Because the bottom line is that Taoist philosophy and spiritual are one. And every Dao Shu (Spiritual Taoist Practitioners) religion must be Taoism (Dao Jiao) because they practice the Taoist tradition.

The separation of Philosophy side of Taoism from the 'core' of Taoism started when a great Taoist master began to write his own personal experiences and thoughts about life in a book. Afterward, this book was spread throughout society. It gave birth to certain groups that specifically studied Taoist theory about life and neglected the spiritual studies of Taoism.

There is nothing wrong with this group, except that they are not Taoist practitioners. They are only experts of certain philosophical books and perhaps become professors when they enroll in certain universities. They are at least moving in the right direction.

The misconception became even larger when people from other belief systems tried to evaluate and judge Taoism from their own perspectives. They assumed that the authors of some Taoist books were from the philosophical group of people, when in fact, the authors actually understood and practiced the spiritual side of Taoism. There are many hidden messages, in form of poems, inside Taoist literature which are actually methods of spiritual, meditation, and breathing exercises. Because the real meaning has been cloaked/hidden, it is too difficult for ordinary people to understand it. They then assume the works are simply philosophical.

Taoism is very broad and its history very long (more than 7000 years ago). The practitioners of Taoism are countless from the past. They very seldom to revealed themselves. Lao Zi (Author of Tao De Cing) and Chuang Tzu (Author of Nan Hua Cing) are only a small part of those great Taoist masters from the past. They are known because they left some books for society. However, there were countless other masters in the past that never left or wrote a book about their thinking. Especially when the topic is of Spiritual Method, it has been hidden. And most times the teaching was only passed down to a few selected disciples.

In order to understand Taoism one cannot simply read a book. This is especially true for the ordinary non-Taoist person. What they can comprehend from the literature is only surface level knowledge. Therefore, the need to have a Taoist Spiritual Master is required.