Confucius Quotes
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Study the past, if you would divine the future.
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Yin and yang, male and female, strong and weak, rigid and tender, heaven and earth, light and darkness, thunder and lightning, cold and warmth, good and evil...the interplay of opposite principles constitutes the universe.
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The man who is master of himself drinks gravely and wisely.
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The object of the superior man is truth.
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Wherever you go, go with all your heart.
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The superior man cannot be known in little matters, but he may be entrusted with great concerns. The small man may not be entrusted with great concerns, but he may be known in little matters.
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Even in killing men, observe the rules of propriety.
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Sincerity is the end and beginning of things; without sincerity there would be nothing.
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A disciple having asked for a definition of charity, the Master said LOVE ONE ANOTHER.
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Love of goodness without love of learning degenerates into simple-mindedness. Love of knowledge without love of learning degenerates into utter lack of principle. Love of faithfulness without love of learning degenerates into injurious disregard of consequences. Love of uprightness without love of learning degenerates into harshness. Love of courage without love of learning degenerates into insubordination. Love of strong character without love of learning degenerates into mere recklessness.
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The superior man governs men, according to their nature, with what is proper to them, and as soon as they change what is wrong, he stops.
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A scholar who loves comfort is not fit to be called a scholar.
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Coarse rice to eat, water to drink, my bended arm for a pillow - therein is happiness. Wealth and rank attained through immoral means are nothing but drifting clouds.
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If I am virtuous and worthy, for whom should I not maintain a proper concern?
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Humanity is the equity of the heart.
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The Superior Man is aware of Righteousness, the inferior man is aware of advantage.
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When you know a thing, to hold that you know it, and when you do not know a thing, to allow that you do not know it - this is knowledge.
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What you do not wish upon yourself, extend not to others.
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If a superior man abandon virtue, how can he fulfil the requirements of that name?
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He is the truly courageous man who never desponds.
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The archer who misses his mark does not blame the target. He stops, corrects himself and shoots again.
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The superior man, when resting in safety, does not forget that danger may come. When in a state of security he does not forget the possibility of ruin. When all is orderly, he does not forget that disorder may come. Thus his person is not endangered, and his States and all their clans are preserved.
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A youth, when at home, should be filial, and, abroad, respectful to his elders.
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In antiquity men studied for their own sake; nowadays men study for the sake of impressing others.