When the principles differ, you cannot find a common language.
Five things define absolute virtue: earnestness, generosity of soul, sincerity, diligence, and kindness.
The middle is the nearest place to wisdom; not reaching it is the same as overcoming it.
I have not seen any absolutely wise man. It is enough to see a noble man. I didn't see any good people. It is enough to see a consistent man.
This is the relationship between the leader and the people: The emperor is the visitation, the officials and the laws are the bridle and reins, and the people are the horse. To handle the horses well, you have to saddle them correctly, and keep the reins straight, you have to match the strength of the horses and see that the latter run in a coordinated manner. Under these conditions, the driver does not need to make any sound, nor snap the reins, nor urge them with words - the horses will run by themselves.
Archery teaches us how to seek the truth. When the archer makes a mistake, he does not blame others but looks for the cause in himself.
He who guards other people's property also guards his own.
He who is morally gifted, surely knows how to speak beautifully.
He who tends to know the right way, but dresses unkempt and eats poorly, is not worthy of interest.
He who arouses only antipathy by the age of forty is a finished man.
He who, bending over the old, is able to discover something new, is worthy to be a teacher.
To die of hunger is a trifle, but to lose one's morals is a misfortune.
Man increases the Way, not the Way increases Man. At the age of 15 I turned my thoughts to teaching; on the 30th, I graduated; at 40, I had no more doubts; at 50, I found out about Heaven's Walk; at 60, I became humble; at 70, following the urge of my heart, I did not exceed the measure.
Once, Confucius saw a woman crying and asked her what her bitterness was. She told him that a tiger had torn apart all her relatives, one after another. "Why don't you leave these places?" wondered the sage. "In other places, the rulers oppress the people," answered the woman. "You see," said Confucius the student then, "a bloody tyrant is more to be feared by man than a ferocious animal."
"Is there immortality?" Confucius was asked. "We do not know what life is, so how can we know what death is?" he replied.
"Is there a word by which we can rule our lives?" Confucius was asked. "Yes, it is," he replied. Allowance.”
If someone lies and says he is lying, is he lying or is he telling the truth?
Soothsayers only know what has already happened.
The flaker is hit with the double whip.
If power unites with justice, what can be higher than this union?
It is easy for the happy to teach the miserable.
Love is, if you can call love the mad caprice of the feminine will, fiercer than the plague, worse than the storm.
Wise is not he who knows much, but whose knowledge is useful.
Do not raise the tone, tell the story without haste. May your faces and your gaze be full of sober silence.
Unenviable is the fate of the one whom no one envies.
The need cannot be overcome.
Kinship and friendship are the ultimate strength.
Once you have done something, answer for your actions.
I tell you openly: I hate the gods.
Forced marriage is terrible.