Lao Tzu Quotes
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The universe is deathless; Is deathless because, having no finite self, it stays infinite. A sound man by not advancing himself stays the further ahead of himself, By not confining himself to himself sustains himself outside himself: By never being an end in himself he endlessly becomes himself.
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There is a thing inherent and natural which existed before heaven and earth. Motionless and fathomless, It stands alone and never changes; It pervades everywhere and never becomes exhausted. It may be regarded as the Mother of the Universe. I do not know its name. If I am forced to give It a name, I call it Tao, and I name it as supreme.
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The True Person governs by emptying the heart of desire and filling the belly with food, weakening ambitions and strengthening bones.
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Intelligent people know others. Enlightened people know themselves.
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The sage is sharp but does not cut, pointed but does not pierce, forthright but does not offend, bright but does not dazzle.
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He who controls the past controls the future.
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Because he (the Sage) demands no honor, he will never be dishonored.
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The mature person perceives the fruitlessness of rigid, external methodologies.
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Why is the tao so valuable? Because it is everywhere, and everyone can use it. This is why those who seek will find, And those who reform will be forgiven; Why the good will be rewarded, And the thief who is cunning will escape.
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Those who stand on their toes are not steady.
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Heaven's Way does not contend, yet it certainly triumphs. It does not speak, yet it certainly answers. It does not summon, yet things come by themselves. It seems to be at rest, yet it certainly has a plan.
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It is the child that sees the primordial secret in Nature and it is the child of ourselves we return to. The child within us is simple and daring enough to live the Secret.
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Worlds and particles, bodies and beings, time and space: All are transient expressions of the Tao.
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The eternal void is filled with infinite possibilities.
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The Tao never acts with force, yet there is nothing that it can not do.
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The hard and stiff are death's companions. The soft and weak are life's companions.
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What should be shrunken must first be stretched.
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The subtlest of subtleties, this is the gateway to all mysteries.
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If Heaven were not clear it might rend. If Earth were not firm it might crumble.
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Seeing the small is called clarity.
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When the palace is magnificent, the fields are filled with weeds, and the granaries are empty.
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Perfect kindness acts without thinking of kindness.
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The world is ruled by letting things take their course. It cannot be ruled by interfering.
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To manage your mind, know that there is nothing, and then relinquish all attachment to nothingness.