Lao Tzu Quotes
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I have three precious things which I hold fast and prize. The first is gentleness; the second frugality; the third is humility, which keeps me from putting myself before others. Be gentle and you can be bold; be frugal and you can be liberal; avoid putting yourself before others and you can become a leader among men.
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Praise and disgrace cause fear.
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I have three treasures which I hold and keep. The first is mercy; the second is economy. The third is daring not to be ahead of others. From mercy comes courage; from economy comes generosity; From humility comes leadership.
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Men are born soft and supple; dead, they are stiff and hard. Plants are born tender and pliant; dead, they are brittle and dry. Thus whoever is stiff and inflexible is a disciple of death. Whoever is soft and yielding is a disciple of life. The hard and stiff will be broken. The soft and supple will prevail.
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Take care with the end as you do with the beginning.
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Correct becomes defect. Good becomes ominous. People's delusions have certainly lasted long.
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Everything will settle in its own place automatically.
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Excellent leaders of people lower themselves.
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Meandering leads to perfection.
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A follower of the Way (Tao) loses something each day. Loss after loss until arriving at Non Action (Wu Wei).
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Can you be still and look inside?If so, then you know the truth is always available, and always responsive.
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You cannot receive what you don't give. Outflow determines inflow.
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Cultivate virtue in yourself, and it will be true.
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The leader's main job is to make themselves obsolete.
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A climb of eight hundred feet starts where the foot stands.
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The seed of mystery lies in muddy water. How can I perceive this mystery? Water becomes clear through stillness. How can I become still? By flowing with the stream.
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Do not look only at yourself, and you will see much. Do not justify yourself, and you will be distinguished. Do not brag, and you will have merit. Do not be prideful, and your work will endure.
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Act without doing; work without effort. Think of the small as large and the few as many. Confront the difficult while it is still easy; accomplish the great task by a series of small acts. The Master never reaches for the great; thus she achieves greatness. When she runs into a difficulty, she stops and gives herself to it. She doesn't cling to her own comfort; thus problems are no problem for her.
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The Tao doesn't take sides; it gives birth to both good and evil. The Master doesn't take sides; she welcomes both saints and sinners. The Tao is like a bellows: it is empty yet infinitely capable. The more you use it, the more it produces; the more you talk of it, the less you understand. Hold on to the center.
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When wisdom and knowledge appear, great pretense arises.
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Thus it is that "Some things are increased by being diminished, others are diminished by being increased." What others have taught, I also teach; verily, I will make it the root of my teaching.
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Give evil nothing to oppose and it will disappear by itself.
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He who is able to conquer others is powerful; he who is able to conquer himself is more powerful.
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Solve it before it happens. Order it before chaos emerges.