Lao Tzu Quotes
-
Be as the still mountain; Move like the great river.
-
A vessel is formed from a lump of clay with care, however, it is the empty space within the vessel that makes it useful.
-
He who has achieved this state Is unconcerned with friends and enemies, With good and harm, with honor and disgrace. This therefore is the highest state of man.
-
Know the white, But keep the black, Be an example to the world! Being an example to the world, Ever true and unwavering, Return to the infinite.
-
Only he who does not seek to be ahead of others is capable of living in harmony with everyone.
-
There is no greater crime than desire.
-
Thirty spokes are joined in the wheel's hub. The hole in the middle makes it useful.
-
Let people return to making knots on ropes, instead of writing.
-
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'.
-
He who defends with love will be secure; Heaven will save him, and protect him with love.
-
Other people are joyous, like on the feast of the ox, like on the way up to the terrace in the spring. I alone am inert, giving no sign, like a newborn baby who has not learned to smile.
-
In lightness the root is lost. In haste the ruler is lost.
-
To know that you do not know is the best. To pretend to know when you do not know is a disease.
-
Whoever is planted in the Tao will not be rooted up. Whoever embraces the Tao will not slip away. Her name will be held in honor from generation to generation. Let the Tao be present in your life and you will become genuine. Let it be present in your family and your family will flourish. Let it be present in your country and your country will be an example to all countries in the world. Let it be present in the universe and the universe will sing. How do I know this is true? By looking inside myself.
-
Other people have more than they need, I alone seem wanting.
-
Fame of self: Which matters more? Self or wealth: Which is more precious? Gain or loss: Which is more painful?
-
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.
-
Care about people's approval and you will be their prisoner.
-
Those who show off do not shine.
-
Regardless of how you feel inside, always try to look like a winner. Even if you are behind, a sustained look of control and confidence can give you a mental edge that results in victory. - Diane Arbus By letting it go it all gets done. The world is won by those who let it go. But when you try and try. The world is beyond the winning.
-
Man is ruled by Earth. Earth is ruled by Heaven. Heaven is ruled by the Way. The Way is ruled by itself.
-
If people live in constant fear of death, and if breaking the law is punished by death, then who would dare?
-
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.
-
Knowing the bright, but clinging to the dark, you become a model to the world.