Lao Tzu

“The Tao that can be told is not the eternal Tao.”

“Fill your bowl to the brim and it will spill. Keep sharpening your knife and it will blunt.”

“Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love.”

“A leader is bestWhen people barely know he existsOf a good leader, who talks little,When his work is done, his aim fulfilled,They will say, “We did this ourselves.”

“To know that you do not know is the best.To think you know when you do not is a disease.Recognizing this disease as a disease is to be free of it.”

“If the people must be ever fearful of death, then there will always be an executioner.”

“The snow goose need not bathe to make itself white. Neither need you do anything but be yourself.”

“free from desire, you realize the mysterycaught in the desire, you see only the manifestations.”

“A man who knows how little he knows is well, a man who knows how much he knows is sick. If, when you see the symptoms, you can tell, Your cure is quick.A sound man knows that sickness makes him sick and before he catches it his cure is quick.”

“Knowledge is a treasure, but practice is the key to it.”

“He who controls others may be powerful, but he who has mastered himself is mightier still.”

“Time is a created thing. To say 'I don't have time,' is like saying, 'I don't want to.”

“Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.”

“One who is too insistent on his own views finds few to agree with him.”

“Muddy water, let stand, becomes clear.”

“He who knows that enough is enough will always have enough.”

“Manifest plainness,Embrace simplicity,Reduce selfishness,Have few desires.”

“When the highest type of men hear Tao,They diligently practice it.When the average type of men hear Tao,They half believe in it.When the lowest type of men hear Tao,They laugh heartily at it.Without the laugh, there is no Tao”

“Three men in ten conserve life; three men in ten pursue death. Three men also in ten desire to live, but there acts hasten their journey to the house of death. Why is this? Because of their efforts to preserve life.”

“If you understand others you are smart.If you understand yourself you are illuminated.If you overcome others you are powerful.If you overcome yourself you have strength.If you know how to be satisfied you are rich.If you can act with vigor, you have a will.If you don't lose your objectives you can be long-lasting.If you die without loss, you are eternal.”

“Be careful what you water your dreams with. Water them with worry and fear and you will produce weeds that choke the life from your dream. Water them with optimism and solutions and you will cultivate success. Always be on the lookout for ways to turn a problem into an opportunity for success. Always be on the lookout for ways to nurture your dream.”

“Not seeking, not expecting, she is present, and can welcome all things.”

“The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.”

“To understand the limitation of things, desire them.”

“When nothing is done, nothing is left undone.”

“Stop thinking, and end your problems.”

“To a mind that is still the whole universe surrenders.”

“Thirty spokesShare one hub.Make the nothing therein appropriate, and you will have the use of the cart.”

“Nothingness and Beingness are merely conceptions...”

“A man with outward courage dares to die; a man with inner courage dares to live.”

“By letting go it all gets done.”

“When you are content to be simply yourself and don't compare or compete, everyone will respect you.”

“The truth is not always beautiful, nor beautiful words the truth.”

“To lead people, walk beside them ...As for the best leaders, the people do not notice their existence.The next best, the people honor and praise.The next, the people fear; and the next, the people hate ...When the best leader's work is done the people say,We did it ourselves!”

“If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading.”

“He who acts, spoils; he who grasps, lets slip.”

“The further one goes, the less one knows.”

“Silence is a source of Great Strength.”

“If the force of arms is considered the only means of authority, it is not an auspicious instrument.”

“At the center of your beingyou have the answer;you know who you areand you know what you want.”

“A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving.”

“Simplicity, patience, compassion.These three are your greatest treasures.Simple in actions and thoughts, you return to the source of being.Patient with both friends and enemies,you accord with the way things are.Compassionate toward yourself,you reconcile all beings in the world.”

“The Master is her own physician.She has healed herself of all knowing.Thus she is truly whole.”

“Knowing others is intelligence;knowing yourself is true wisdom.Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power.”

“Be content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are.When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you.”

“Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.”

“Because of a great love, one is courageous.”