Lao Tzu Quotes
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Therefore, if a great kingdom humbles itself before a small kingdom, it shall make that small kingdom its prize. And if a small kingdom humbles itself before a great kingdom, it shall win over that great kingdom. Thus the one humbles itself in order to attain, the other attains because it is humble. If the great kingdom has no further desire than to bring men together and to nourish them, the small kingdom will have no further desire than to enter the service of the other. But in order that both may have their desire, the great one must learn humility.
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Rule a kingdom as though you were cooking a small fish - don't overdo it.
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Man takes his law from the Earth; the Earth takes its law from Heaven; Heaven takes its law from the Tao. The law of the Tao is its being what it is.
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Nature is not human hearted.
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Abandon benevolence, discard duty, and people will return to the family ties.
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Water is fluid, soft, and yielding. But water will wear away rock, which is rigid and cannot yield. As a rule, whatever is fluid, soft, and yielding will overcome whatever is rigid and hard. This is another paradox: what is soft is strong.
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Whoever relies on the Tao in governing men doesn't try to force issues or defeat enemies by force of arms. For every force there is a counterforce. Violence, even well intentioned, always rebounds upon oneself. The Master does his job and then stops. He understands that the universe is forever out of control, and that trying to dominate events goes against the current of the Tao. Because he believes in himself, he doesn't try to convince others. Because he is content with himself, he doesn't need others' approval. Because he accepts himself, the whole world accepts him.
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The wise man puts himself last and finds himself first.
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The sage attends to the belly, and not to what he sees.
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When a nation is filled with strife, then do patriots flourish.
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The real key to health and happiness and success is self knowledge.
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New beginnings are often disguised as painful endings.
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My words have an origin. My deeds have a sovereign. Truly, because people do not understand this, they do not understand me.
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To rejoice in conquest is to rejoice in murder.
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From now back to antiquity, its (Tao's) name has not been lost. Thereby, see the origin of all.
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The superior leader keeps informed about everything but interferes hardly at all.
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First, we must do our own personal work, then we tend the necessary work of our family, then our community, then the world.
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To consider this desirable would be to delight in the slaughter of men; and he who delights in the slaughter of men cannot get his will in the kingdom.
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The softest of stuff in the world, penetrates quickly the hardest, insubstantial, it enters where there is no room.
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The heavy is the root of the light. The unmoved is the source of all movement. Thus the Master travels all day without leaving home. However splendid the views, she stays serenely in herself. Why should the lord of the country flit about like a fool? If you let yourself be blown to and fro, you lose touch with your root. If you let restlessness move you, you lose touch with who you are.
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The Tao is unpredictable to those that live according to plans. Only those who have no agenda are in harmony with the Tao.
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When you are content to be simply yourself and don't compare or compete, everybody will respect you.
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Yet mystery and imagination arise from the same source. This source is called darkness ... Darkness within darkness, the gateway to all understanding.
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Heaven's Way is like stretching a bow. The high is lowered and the low is raised. Excess is reduced and deficiency is replenished. Heaven's Way reduces excess and replenishes deficiency. People's Way is not so. They reduce the deficient and supply the excessive.