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Confucius16 quotes
Moral force never dwells in solitude; it will always bring neighbors. — Confucius · 221 BCI for my part am not one of those who have innate knowledge. I am simply one who loves the past and who is diligent in investigating it. — Confucius · 221 BCIs Goodness indeed so far away? If we really wanted Goodness, we should find that it was at our very side. — Confucius · 221 BCIf you desire what is good, the people will be good. The character of a ruler is like wind and that of the people is like grass. In whatever direction the wind blows the grass always bends. — Confucius · 221 BCAt fifteen my mind was set on learning. At thirty my character had been formed. At forty I had no more perplexities. At fifty I knew the Mandate of Heaven. At sixty I was at ease with whatever I heard. At seventy I could follow my heart's desire without transgressing moral principles. — Confucius · 221 BCA gentleman is ashamed to let his words outrun his deeds. — Confucius · 221 BCAll 16 quotes →Lao Tzu11 quotes
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. — Lao Tzu · 400 BCNature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished. — Lao Tzu · 400 BCThe sage does not accumulate for himself.
The more he uses for others, the more he has himself.
The more he gives to others, the more he possesses of his own.
The Way of Heaven is to benefit others and not to injure.
The Way of the sage is to act but not to compete. — Lao Tzu · 400 BCHe who knows does not speak.
He who speaks does not know. — Lao Tzu · 400 BCDo you have the patience to wait until your mud settles and the water is clear? — Lao Tzu · 400 BCIf you try to change it, you will ruin it. Try to hold it, and you will lose it. — Lao Tzu · 400 BCAll 11 quotes →Mencius10 quotes
The great man is the one who does not lose his [originally good] child's heart. — Mencius · 300 BCThe tendency of man's nature to good is like the tendency of water to flow downwards. — Mencius · 300 BCThe root of the kingdom is the state. The root of the state is in the family. The root of the family is in the person of its head. — Mencius · 300 BCThe great man is he who does not lose his child's heart. — Mencius · 300 BCThe people turn to a benevolent rule as water flows downwards, and as wild beasts fly to the wilderness. — Mencius · 300 BCWhen one by force subdues men, they do not submit to him in heart. They submit, because their strength is not adequate to resist. — Mencius · 300 BCAll 10 quotes →Sun Tzu4 quotes
Know the enemy and know yourself; in a hundred battles you will never be defeated. — Sun Tzu · 475 BCBe extremely subtle, even to the point of formlessness. Be extremely mysterious, even to the point of soundlessness. Thereby you can be the director of the opponent's fate. — Sun Tzu · 490 BCTo fight and conquer in all our battles is not supreme excellence; supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting. — Sun Tzu · 500 BCThe best victory is when the opponent surrenders of its own accord before there are any actual hostilities... It is best to win without fighting. — Sun Tzu · 490 BCZhuang Zhou4 quotes
When one is at ease with himself, one is near Tao. — Zhuang Zhou · 221 BCThe universe and I exist together, and all things and I are one. — Zhuang Zhou · 221 BCPeople suppose that words are different from the peeps of baby birds, but is there any difference, or isn't there? — Zhuang Zhou · 220 BCThose who are contented and at ease when the occasion comes and live in accord with the course of Nature cannot be affected by sorrow or joy. This is what the ancients called release from bondage. Those who cannot release themselves are so because they are bound by material things. — Zhuang Zhou · 221 BCGautama Buddha3 quotes
Do not dwell in the past, do not dream of the future, concentrate the mind on the present moment. — Gautama Buddha · 511 BCIf you find a man who points out faults and who reproves, follow such a wise person as you would a guide to hidden treasure. — Gautama Buddha · 520 BCBirth is suffering, aging is suffering, illness is suffering, death is suffering. — Gautama Buddha · 510 BCKrishna2 quotes
I am mighty Time, the source of destruction that comes forth to annihilate the worlds. — Krishna · 200 BCI am all-powerful Time which destroys all things, and I have come here to slay these men. Even if thou dost not fight, all the warriors facing thee shall die. — Krishna · 200 BCAhiqar1 quote
A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush. — Ahiqar · 500 BCBodhidharma1 quote
People of this world are deluded. They're always longing for something-always, in a word, seeking. — Bodhidharma · 528 BCJianzhi Sengcan1 quote
Even to be attached to the idea of enlightenment is to go astray. — Jianzhi Sengcan · 606Kautilya1 quote
The enemy of my enemy is my friend. — Kautilya · 300 BCLady Ho1 quote
When a pair of magpies fly together
They do not envy the pair of phoenixes. — Lady Ho · 300 BCNagarjuna1 quote
Thus shall ye think of all this fleeting world:
A star at dawn, a bubble in a stream;
A flash of lightning in a summer cloud.
A flickering lamp, a phantom, and a dream. — Nagarjuna · 180Sima Qian1 quote
Though bitter, good medicine cures illness. Though it may hurt, loyal criticism will have beneficial effects. — Sima Qian · 109 BCTao Yuanming1 quote
I have done my plowing:
I have sown my seed.
Again I have time to sit and read my books. — Tao Yuanming · 427Xunxi1 quote
To pursue it is to be human, to give it up is to be a beast. — Xunxi · 250 BC