Confucius Quotes
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The gentleman is calm and at ease. The gentleman is dignified but not proud; the small man is proud but not dignified.
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The superior person is in harmony, but does not follow the crowd. The lesser person follows the crowd, but is not in harmony.
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Clever talk can confound the workings of virtue, just as small impatiences can confound great projects.
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If you yourself desire establishment, then help others to get establishment; if you yourself want success, then help others to attain success.
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Learning without thought is labor lost; thought without learning is perilous.
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The master said, 'Quietly to store up knowledge in my mind, to learn without flagging, to teach without growing weary, these present me with no difficulties.'
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Listen widely to remove your doubts and be careful when speaking about the rest and your mistakes will be few.
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Our headstrong passions shut the door of our souls against God.
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The way of the superior man may be compared to what takes place in traveling, when to go to a distance we must first traverse the space that is near, and in ascending a height, when we must begin from the lower ground.
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You judge yourself by what you think you can achieve, others judge you by what have achieved.
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Instead of being concerned that you have no office, be concerned to think how you may fit yourself for office. Instead of being concerned that you are not known, seek to be worthy of being known.
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A good man will certainly also possess courage; but a brave man is not necessarily good.
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Transport a handful of earth everyday and you will make a mountain.
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What the wise seek is in themselves.
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The silent treasuring up of knowledge; learning without satiety; and instructing others without being wearied: which one of these things belongs to me?
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At fifteen my mind was directed to study, and at thirty I knew where to stand.
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Attack the evil that is within yourself, rather than attacking the evil that is in others.
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To err and not reform, this may indeed be called error.
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The Master said of Gong Yechang, “He is marriageable. Although he was once imprisoned and branded as a criminal, he was in fact innocent of any crime.” The Master gave him his daughter in marriage. (Analects 5.1)
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Writing cannot express all words, words cannot encompass all ideas.
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To practice five things under all circumstances constitutes perfect virtue; these five are gravity, generosity of soul, sincerity, earnestness, and kindness.
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An image is better than one thousand words.
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To know and not do, is to not yet know.
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The virtuous will be sure to speak uprightly; but those whose speech is upright may not be virtuous.