Lao Tzu

Wise people cannot be sufficiently educated, and educated people cannot be sufficiently wise.

Those who have weak faith themselves cannot arouse faith in others.

Everything in this world blooms, grows, and returns to its roots. Returning to one’s roots means becoming united with nature; becoming united with nature involves eternity. The destruction of your body holds no danger in itself.

There is nothing in this world more tender and more pliable than water, yet hard and rigid things cannot resist it. Weakness defeats strength, tenderness defeats rigidity. Everyone knows this law, but no one acts upon it. The weakest in the world gain victory over the strongest; therefore, there is a great advantage in humility and silence. Only a few people in this world are truly humble.

In those countries where wise people are in power, their subjects do not notice the existence of their rulers.

A holy person's lives in the world, but he is concerned most of all about his attitude to people. He can feel all people, and he can sense all people, and all people turn their ears and eves to him.

A wise man innately knows how to act without searching, because he has the divine within himself. The further you search and seek, the less you know.

He who is really skillful in communicating with people is usually a humble and quiet person. This is called the virtue of nonresistance. This is called harmony with Heaven.

In order not to pour out a vessel full of water, you should hold it evenly. Inorder to have a razor sharp, you should sharpen it. The same should happen with your soul if you are looking for real goodness.

He who defeats others is strong; he who defeats himself is powerful, and he who knows when he dies that he will not be destroyed is eternal.

Always respond to hatred with kindness. The most difficult enterprises are easiest at their inception, and the greatest of enterprises have humble origins. Confront difficulties while they are still easy, then, and tackle a big thing when it is still small.

A person who stands on his tiptoes cannot stand long, and a person who is too proud of himself cannot set a good example.

The rivers and seas are the masters of the valleys across which they flow. This is because they are lower than the valleys. In the same way, a person who wants to be higher than other people should be lower than they; if he wants to guide people, he should be below them.

A saint lives with his inner life; he denies outer life.

Kind people are never involved in arguments, and those who like to argue are never kind. Truthful words are not always pleasant, and pleasant words are not necessarily truthful.

An intellect which can be understood is not an eternal intellect; a being which can be named is not an eternal being.

To be strong, you have to be like water: if there are no obstacles, it flows: if there is an obstacle it stops; if a dam is broken, then it flows further; if a vessel is square, then it has a square form; if a vessel is round, then it has a round form. Because it is so soft and flexible, it is the most necessary and the strongest thing.

The most powerful weapon known is the weapon of blessing. Therefore, a clever person relies on it. He wins with peace, not with war.

Heaven and earth are eternal. They are eternal because they do not exist for themselves. In the same way, a truly holy person does not live for himself, and therefore he can become eternal, and can achieve anything.

Abstention should be a habit in your life; it should support you in your virtues. For he who is resolute in goodness, there is nothing that he could not overcome.