Lao Tzu Quotes
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Meandering leads to perfection.
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Ever desireless, one can see the mystery. Ever desiring, one can see the manifestations. These two spring from the same source but differ in name; this appears as darkness. Darkness within darkness. The gate to all mystery.
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Its name-what passes not away.
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Thorn bushes grow where armies have camped.
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The Master gives himself up to whatever the moment brings. He knows that he is going to die, and her has nothing left to hold on to: no illusions in his mind, no resistances in his body. He doesn't think about his actions; they flow from the core of his being. He holds nothing back from life; therefore he is ready for death, as a man is ready for sleep after a good day's work.
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Those who defeat others are strong, those who defeat themselves are mighty.
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Without going out-of-doors, one can know all he needs to know. Without even looking out of his window, one can grasp the nature of everything. Without going beyond his own nature, one can achieve ultimate wisdom. Therefore, the intelligent man knows all he needs to know without going away, And sees all he needs to see without looking elsewhere, And does all he needs to do wihout undue exertion.
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No misfortune is worse than underestimating the enemy. Underestimating the enemy, I risk losing my treasure.
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If you overesteem great men, people become powerless. If you overvalue possessions, people begin to steal. The Master leads by emptying people's minds and filling their cores, by weakening their ambition and toughening their resolve. He helps people lose everything they know, everything they desire, and creates confusion in those who think that they know. Practice not-doing, and everything will fall into place.
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Why is the sea king of a hundred streams? Because it lies below them... If the sage would guide the people, he must serve with humility. If he would lead them, he must follow behind. In this way when the sage rules, the people will not feel oppressed.
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Be still. Stillness reveals the secrets of eternity.
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Health is the greatest possession.
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Don't think you can attain total awareness and whole enlightenment without proper discipline and practice. This is egomania. Appropriate rituals channel your emotions and life energy toward the light. Without the discipline to practice them, you will tumble constantly backward into darkness.
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I alone am different from the others, because I am nourished by the great mother.
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I let go of all desire for the common good, and the good becomes as common as the grass.
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You will understand a great truth when you get to realize that what you do to others, you are doing to yourself.
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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 the worst student hears about the Way, he laughs out loud. If he did not laugh, it would be unworthy of being the Way.
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Whatever one cultivates, is what one becomes.
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One's own self or material goods, which has more worth? Loss (of self) or possession (of goods), which is the greater evil? He who loves most, spends most, He who hoards much loses much.
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Understand this if nothing else: spiritual freedom and oneness with the Tao are not randomly bestowed gifts, but the rewards of conscious self-transformation and self-evolution.
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Pounding an edge to sharpness will not make it last.
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If you have really attained wholeness, everything will flock to you.
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Those who show off do not shine.