Lao Tzu Quotes
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In dwelling, be close to the land. In meditation, go deep in the heart. In dealing with others, be gentle and kind. In speech, be true. In ruling, be just. In daily life, be competent. In action, be aware of the time and the season.
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Those who are one with deprivation are deprived of deprivation.
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Without the tao, Kindness and compassion are replaced by law and justice; Faith and trust are supplanted by ritual and ceremony.
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True perfection seems imperfect, yet it is perfectly itself. True fullness seems empty, yet it is fully present. True straightness seems crooked. True wisdom seems foolish. True art seems artless. The Master allows things to happen. She shapes events as they come. She steps out of the way and lets the Tao speak for itself.
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Be as the still mountain; Move like the great river.
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A tree as wide as a man's embrace grows from a tiny shoot.
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The group will not prosper if the leader grabs the lion's share of the credit for the good work that has been done.
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Free from desire, you realize the mystery, caught in the desire, you see only the manifestations.
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Keep your mouth shut, and close up the doors of sight and sound, and as long as you live you will have no vexation. But open your mouth, or become inquisitive, and you will be in trouble all your life long.
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He who defends with love will be secure; Heaven will save him, and protect him with love.
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Do not attempt to conquer the world with force, for force only causes resistance.
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In lightness the root is lost. In haste the ruler is lost.
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The wise does not think that only he is right -thus he knows the truth.
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To know that you do not know is the best. To pretend to know when you do not know is a disease.
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Care about people's approval and you will be their prisoner.
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Who is unhappy with little, won't be with much; who doesn't appreciate the small won't be able to take care of the large; who doesn't have enough with enough is at the margin or virtue, for the physical body lives from one day to another and if it gets what it really needs, there will be time for meditation, as long as if we try to give it everything it desires, endless will be the task.
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From What-is all the world of things was born But What-is sprang in turn from What-is-not.
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The grandest virtue seems deficient.
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He who stands on tiptoe doesn't stand firm. He who rushes ahead doesn't go far. He who tries to shine dims his own light. He who defines himself can't know who he really is. He who has power over others can't empower himself. He who clings to his work will create nothing that endures.
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To lead, one must follow.
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Words have divided man from woman, one from another, this from that, until only sages know how to put things together. Without words, without even understanding, lovers find each other. The moment of finding is always a surprise, like meeting an old friend never before known.
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When good thing are accomplished, it does not claim (or name) them. This is Te, which is close in meaning to power or virtue. It is something within a person, and it is enhanced by following the Tao, or 'that from which nothing can deviate'.
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The small is easy to scatter.
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As soon as rules were made, names were given. There are already many names. One must know when it is enough.