Quotes by Lao Tzu

• True happiness is found within the simplicity of being content with what you have, rather than always wanting more.
• The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, but it's the determination to keep walking that leads to success.
• Finding balance between ambition and contentment is the true art of living.
• A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, but only those who dare to take it will reach their destination.
• The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, but it's your perseverance that will carry you to the finish line.
• Success is not about having everything, but being content with what you have.
• Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality..
• The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, but it is the persistence in each subsequent step that leads to success.
• The greatest power lies in embracing your true self amidst the chaos of conformity.
• Life is a balancing act of holding on and letting go, finding peace in the ebb and flow of it all.
• Nature is not human hearted.
• Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.
• Music in the soul can be heard by the universe.
• Mastering others is strength. Mastering yourself is true power.
• Manifest plainness, embrace simplicity, reduce selfishness, have few desires.
• Love is of all passions the strongest, for it attacks simultaneously the head, the heart and the senses.
• Man's enemies are not demons, but human beings like himself.
• Nothing is softer or more flexible than water, yet nothing can resist it.
• Of all that is good, sublimity is supreme. Succeeding is the coming together of all that is beautiful. Furtherance is the agreement of all that is just. Perseverance is the foundation of all actions.
• One can not reflect in streaming water. Only those who know internal peace can give it to others.
• One who is too insistent on his own views, finds few to agree with him.
• People in their handlings of affairs often fail when they are about to succeed. If one remains as careful at the end as he was at the beginning, there will be no failure.
• Respond intelligently even to unintelligent treatment.
• Life and death are one thread, the same line viewed from different sides.
• Simulated disorder postulates perfect discipline; simulated fear postulates courage; simulated weakness postulates strength.
• Health is the greatest possession. Contentment is the greatest treasure. Confidence is the greatest friend. Non-being is the greatest joy.
• Silence is a source of great strength.
• If the Great Way perishes there will morality and duty. When cleverness and knowledge arise great lies will flourish. When relatives fall out with one another there will be filial duty and love. When states are in confusion there will be faithful servants.
• He who is contented is rich.
• He who knows himself is enlightened.
• He who knows others is wise. He who knows himself is enlightened.
• He who knows that enough is enough will always have enough.
• He who knows, does not speak. He who speaks, does not know.
• He who obtains has little. He who scatters has much.
• He who talks more is sooner exhausted.
• I do not concern myself with gods and spirits either good or evil nor do I serve any.
• I have just three things to teach: simplicity, patience, compassion. These three are your greatest treasures.
• Knowing others is wisdom, knowing yourself is Enlightenment.
• If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading.
• 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.
• If you would take, you must first give, this is the beginning of intelligence.
• In dwelling, live close to the ground. In thinking, keep to the simple. In conflict, be fair and generous. In governing, don't try to control. In work, do what you enjoy. In family life, be completely present.
• In the world there is nothing more submissive and weak than water. Yet for attacking that which is hard and strong nothing can surpass it.
• It is better to do one's own duty, however defective it may be, than to follow the duty of another, however well one may perform it. He who does his duty as his own nature reveals it, never sins.
• Kindness in words creates confidence. Kindness in thinking creates profoundness. Kindness in giving creates love.
• How could man rejoice in victory and delight in the slaughter of men?
• To know yet to think that one does not know is best; Not to know yet to think that one knows will lead to difficulty.
• The more laws and order are made prominent, the more thieves and robbers there will be.
• When virtue is lost, benevolence appears, when benevolence is lost right conduct appears, when right conduct is lost, expedience appears. Expediency is the mere shadow of right and truth; it is the beginning of disorder.
• The people are hungry: It is because those in authority eat up too much in taxes.
• The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.
• The power of intuitive understanding will protect you from harm until the end of your days.
• The sage does not hoard. The more he helps others, the more he benefits himself, The more he gives to others, the more he gets himself. The Way of Heaven does one good but never does one harm. The Way of the sage is to act but not to compete.
• The softest things in the world overcome the hardest things in the world.
• The wicked leader is he who the people despise. The good leader is he who the people revere. The great leader is he who the people say, 'We did it ourselves.'
• The wise man does not lay up his own treasures. The more he gives to others, the more he has for his own.
• The words of truth are always paradoxical.
• Those who have knowledge, don't predict. Those who predict, don't have knowledge.
• To lead people walk behind them.
• To realize that you do not understand is a virtue; Not to realize that you do not understand is a defect.
• To see things in the seed, that is genius.
• To the mind that is still, the whole universe surrenders.
• Treat those who are good with goodness, and also treat those who are not good with goodness. Thus goodness is attained. Be honest to those who are honest, and be also honest to those who are not honest. Thus honesty is attained.
• Truthful words are not beautiful; beautiful words are not truthful. Good words are not persuasive; persuasive words are not good.
• Violence, even well intentioned, always rebounds upon oneself.
• When a nation is filled with strife, then do patriots flourish.
• When the best leader's work is done the people say, "We did it ourselves."
• When you are content to be simply yourself and don't compare or compete, everybody will respect you.
• Without stirring abroad, One can know the whole world; Without looking out of the window One can see the way of heaven. The further one goes The less one knows.
• The higher the sun ariseth, the less shadow doth he cast; even so the greater is the goodness, the less doth it covet praise; yet cannot avoid its rewards in honours.
• When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.
• Because of a great love, one is courageous.
• The key to growth is the introduction of higher dimensions of consciousness into our awareness.
• A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving.
• A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.
• A scholar who cherishes the love of comfort is not fit to be deemed a scholar.
• All difficult things have their origin in that which is easy, and great things in that which is small.
• Ambition has one heel nailed in well, though she stretch her fingers to touch the heavens.
• An ant on the move does more than a dozing ox.
• Anticipate the difficult by managing the easy.
• At the center of your being you have the answer; you know who you are and you know what you want.
• The career of a sage is of two kinds: He is either honored by all in the world, Like a flower waving its head, Or else he disappears into the silent forest.
• Be the chief but never the lord.
• Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.
• Governing a great nation is like cooking a small fish - too much handling will spoil it.
• He who does not trust enough, Will not be trusted.
• He who controls others may be powerful, but he who has mastered himself is mightier still.
• He who conquers others is strong; He who conquers himself is mighty.
• 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.
• Great acts are made up of small deeds.
• By letting it go it all gets done. The world is won by those who let it go. But when you try and try. The world is beyond the winning.
• Govern a great nation as you would cook a small fish. Do not overdo it.
• From wonder into wonder existence opens.
• From caring comes courage.
• Fill your bowl to the brim and it will spill. Keep sharpening your knife and it will blunt.
• Do the difficult things while they are easy and do the great things while they are small. A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.
• Great indeed is the sublimity of the Creative, to which all beings owe their beginning and which permeates all heaven.
• A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
• Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.
• Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them - that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.
• True strength is not in forcing change upon the world, but in accepting and embracing the beauty of its natural evolution.
• Happiness is not in the destination, but in the journey of self-discovery.
• Embrace the messiness of life, for it is in chaos that true growth and beauty often bloom.
• The only way to truly find peace is to let go of the need for control and embrace the beauty of surrender.
• When you stop chasing the wrong things, you give the right things a chance to catch you.
• True strength is not in how much you can control, but in how gracefully you can surrender.
• The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, but it is the perseverance to take each subsequent step that leads to success.
• Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward.
• Life is a dance between holding on and letting go, finding balance is where true freedom lies.
• The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, but it's the ones taken with courage and determination that lead to greatness.
• True strength is not in the ability to overpower others, but in the courage to stand alone in your truth.
• Trust in the journey, even when you don't understand the path.
• Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don’t resist them - that only creates sorrow. Let reality be the reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.
• True strength is not in fighting battles, but in choosing which battles to fight.
• The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, but it's the courage to keep walking that leads to true greatness.
• True strength lies in being unapologetically authentic, even in a world that constantly demands conformity.
• Every journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, taken with courage and determination.
• A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, but it is the perseverance to keep walking that leads to success.
• Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them - that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality.
• Happiness is not determined by what happens, but how you choose to respond to it.
• Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally.
• The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, but the destination is only reached by those who continue to walk with courage and determination.
• Embrace your unique journey, for it is in your differences that you will find your true strength.
• The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, but it is the moments of doubt and uncertainty that truly define our strength.
• Life is a balance of holding on and letting go, knowing when to fight and when to surrender.
• True wisdom is knowing when to hold on and when to let go, and finding peace in both.
• True power lies not in control, but in surrendering to the flow of life with grace and courage.
• Trust the journey, even when you don't understand it.
• True strength is not measured by how much you can carry, but by how much you can let go.
• The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, but the destination is determined by the footprints we leave behind.
• A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, but the destination is reached by perseverance.
• True happiness is not found in the pursuit of perfection, but in the acceptance of imperfection.
• Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them - that only creates sorrow.
• True strength is not only found in facing your fears, but in embracing them as allies on the journey to self-discovery.
• A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, but it is the persistence to keep walking that leads to greatness.
• A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, but it is the courage to keep moving forward that leads to greatness.
• The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, but it's the ones taken with purpose that lead to true fulfillment.
• A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, but only those who dare to take that step will reach their destination.
• The more you know, the less you understand.
• True strength is not measured by how much you can carry, but by how gracefully you let go of what no longer serves you.
• A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step, but it is the courage to take that step that defines us.
• When you let go of what you are, you become what you might be.
• Time is a created thing. To say 'I don't have time,' is like saying, 'I don't want to.'
• When we let go of what we are, we become what we might be
• Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them - that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward.
• A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step
• Time is a created thing. To say 'I don't have time' is like saying 'I don't want to.
• Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality.
• A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.
• Time is a created thing. To say 'I don't have time,' is like saying, 'I don't want to.
• Time is a created thing. To say 'I don't have time' is like saying 'I don't want to.'
• Time is a created thing. To say 'I don't have time' is like saying 'I don't want to',
• A journey of thousand miles begins with a single step
• The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step..
• Time is a created thing. To say 'I don't have time', is like saying, 'I don't want to.'
• Time is a created thing, to say 'I do not have time' is like saying 'I do not want to.'
• Time is a created thing. To say 'I don’t have time' is like saying, 'I don’t want to.
• Time is a created thing. To say "I don't have time" is like saying, "I don't want to.
• Time is a created thing. To say 'I don’t have time,' is like saying, 'I don’t want to.'
• Time is a created thing. To say 'I don't have time,' is like saying, 'I don't want to'.
• Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them-that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality.
• Time is a created thing. To say 'I don’t have time,' is like saying, 'I don’t want to.
• Time is a created thing. To say 'I don't have time' is like saying 'I don't want to'.
• The journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.
• The only way to make sense out of change is to plunge into it, move with it, and decay with it.
• The journey of a thousand miles may begin with a single step, but don't forget to pack snacks for the road!
• The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step—and possibly a snack.
• Life is a series of natural and instinctive changes—,- don’t resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.
• Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength while loving someone deeply gives you courage.