“If you try to change it, you will ruin it. Try to hold it, and you will lose it.”

“If you realize that all things change, there is nothing you will try to hold on to. If you are not afraid of dying, there is nothing you cannot achieve.”

“Everything under heaven is a sacred vessel and cannot be controlled. Trying to control leads to ruin. Trying to grasp, we lose. Allow your life to unfold naturally. Know that it too is a vessel of perfection. Just as you breathe in and breathe out, there is a time for being ahead and a time for being behind; a time for being in motion and a time for being at rest; a time for being vigorous and a time for being exhausted; a time for being safe and a time for being in danger.”

“Do you want to improve the world?I don't think it can be done.The world is sacred.It can't be improved.If you tamper with it, you'll ruin it.If you treat it like an object, you'll lose it.There is a time for being ahead,a time for being behind;a time for being in motion,a time for being at rest;a time for being vigorous,a time for being exhausted;a time for being safe,a time for being in danger.The Master sees things as they are,without trying to control them.She lets them go their own way,and resides at the center of the circle.”

“We try to grasp it, and do not get hold of it, and we name it 'the Subtle.”

“Trying to control the future is like trying to take the master carpenter's place. When you handle the master carpenter's tools, chances are that you'll cut your hand.”

“My teachings are easy to understand and easy to put into practice.Yet your intellect will never grasp them,and if you try to practice them,you'll fail.My teachings are older than the world.How can you grasp their meaning?If you want to know me,Look inside your heart.”