Confucius Quotes
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The man of perfect virtue, wishing to be established himself, seeks also to establish others; wishing to be enlarged himself, he seeks also to enlarge others.
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A person of character takes as much trouble to discover what is right as the lesser men take to discover what will pay.
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A true gentleman makes demands upon himself but not upon others.
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The parents age must be remembered, both for joy and anxiety.
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A happy union with wife and child is like the music of lutes and harps.
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It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.
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We can know a person by observing his behaviour, understanding the reasons for his actions and ascertaining his intentions. If we do this, how can we not know him?
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To know what is the right thing to do and not do it is the greatest cowardice.
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If doing what ought to be done be made the first business and success a secondary consideration--is not this the way to exalt virtue?
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If you look into your own heart, and you find nothing wrong there, what is there to worry about? What is there to fear?
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If you don't know how to live, why wonder about death?
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The superior person is calm and composed; the lesser person is continuously worried and distressed.
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If I do not participate in the sacrifice, it is as if I did not sacrifice at all.
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The wise find pleasure in water; the virtuous find pleasure in hills. The wise are active; the virtuous are tranquil. The wise are joyful; the virtuous are long-lived.
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He who flatters a man is his enemy. he who tells him of his faults is his maker.
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A gentleman would be ashamed should his deeds not match his words.
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If I am building a mountain and stop before the last basketful of earth is placed on the summit, I have failed.
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The beginning of wisdom is to call things by their proper name.
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As in the case of making a mound, if, before the very last basketful, I stop, then I shall have stopped. As in the case of leveling the ground, if, though tipping only one basketful, I am going forward, then I shall be making progress.
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Unify your attention. Do not listen with your ears, but with your mind. Do not listen with your mind but with your essence.
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The way of the superior person is threefold; virtuous, they are free from anxieties; wise they are free from perplexities; and bold they are free from fear.
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Without an acquaintance with the rules of propriety, it is impossible for the character to be established.
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There are three unfilial acts: the greatest of these is the failure to produce sons.
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If language is not rectified, words do not correspond to meaning, and if words do not correspond to meaning, our deeds cannot be accomplished.