Truthful words are not beautiful;
beautiful words are not truthful.
Good words are not persuasive;
persuasive words are not good.
- Lao Tzu
He who talks more is sooner exhausted.
- Lao Tzu
To the mind that is still,
the whole universe surrenders.
- Lao Tzu 
Silence is a source of great strength.
- Lao Tzu
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.
- Lao Tzu
He who knows others is wise.
He who knows himself is enlightened.
- Lao Tzu
A good traveler has no fixed plans,
and is not intent on arriving.
- Lao Tzu
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.
- Lao Tzu
The words of truth are always paradoxical.
- Lao Tzu
A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.
- Lao Tzu (Chinese Proverb)
He who is contented is rich.
- Lao Tzu
Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.
- Lao Tzu
One can not reflect in streaming water.
Only those who know internal peace can give it to others.
- Lao Tzu
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.
- Lao Tzu
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.
- Lao Tzu
Born to be wild - live to outgrow it.
- Lao Tzu
The more laws and order are made prominent,
the more thieves and robbers there will be.
- Lao Tzu
The power of intuitive understanding
will protect you from harm until the end of your days.
- Lao Tzu
Stay at the center
and let all things take their course.
- Lao Tzu
To realize that you do not understand is a virtue;
Not to realize that you do not understand is a defect.
- Lao Tzu
He who controls others may be powerful,
but he who has mastered himself is mightier still.
- Lao Tzu
If you would take, you must first give,
this is the beginning of intelligence.
- Lao Tzu
The Tao of the sage is work without effort.
Practice non-action. Work without doing.
- Lao Tzu
Govern a great nation as you would cook a small fish.
Do not overdo it.
- Lao Tzu
Nature is not human hearted.
- Lao Tzu
The people are hungry:
It is because those in authority
eat up too much in taxes.
- Lao Tzu
From wonder into wonder existence opens.
- Lao Tzu
The Tao abides in non-action,
Yet nothing is left undone.
- Lao Tzu
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.
- Lao Tzu
He who knows, does not speak.
He who speaks, does not know.
- Lao Tzu
Those who are highly evolved,
maintain an undiscriminating perception.
Seeing everything, labeling nothing,
they maintain their awareness of the Great Oneness.
Thus they are supported by it.
- Lao Tzu
Manifest plainness, embrace simplicity,
reduce selfishness, have few desires.
- Lao Tzu
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.
- Lao Tzu
Don't think you can attain total awareness and whole enlightenment
without proper discipline and practice. This is egomania.
Appropriate rituals channel your emotions
and life energy toward the light.
Without the discipline to practice them,
you will tumble constantly backward into darkness.
- Lao Tzu
From caring comes courage.
- Lao Tzu
A tree that is unbending, is easily broken.
- Lao Tzu
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.
- Lao Tzu
Governing a great nation is like cooking a small fish -
too much handling will spoil it.
- Lao Tzu
Simply see that you are at the center of the universe,
and accept all things and beings
as parts of your infinite body.
When you perceive that an act done to another
is done to yourself,
you have understood the great truth.
- Lao Tzu
The things that have acquired unity are these:
Heaven by unity has become clear;
Earth by unity has become steady;
The Spirit by unity has become spiritual;
The Valley by unity has become full;
All things by unity have come into existence.
- Lao Tzu
At the center of your being you have the answer;
you know who you are and you know what you want.
- Lao Tzu
When a nation is filled with strife,
then do patriots flourish.
- Lao Tzu
A leader is most effective when people barely know he exists.
When his work is done, his aim fulfilled,
his troops will feel they did it themselves.
- Lao Tzu
Freedom from desire leads to inner peace.
- Lao-Tzu
The key to growth is the introduction of
higher dimensions of consciousness into our awareness.
- Lao Tzu
A leader is best when people barely know he exists,
not so good when people obey and acclaim him,
worst when they despise him.
But of a good leader, who talks little,
when his work is done, his aim fulfilled,
they will say, "We did this ourselves."
- Lao Tzu
He who obtains has little.
He who scatters has much.
- Lao Tzu
Simulated disorder postulates perfect discipline;
simulated fear postulates courage;
simulated weakness postulates strength.
- Lao Tzu
Because of a great love, one is courageous.
- Lao Tzu
Ambition has one heel nailed in well,
though she stretch her fingers to touch the heavens.
- Lao Tzu
The things of this world exist;
they are; you can't refuse them.
- Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching - Book One #2 - version by Ursula K. Le Guin
The softest things in the world overcome
the hardest things in the world.
- Lao Tzu
The Master acts without doing, and everything gets done.
- Lao Tzu
All difficult things have
their origin in that which is easy,
and great things in that which is small.
- Lao Tzu
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.
- Lao Tzu
Life and death are one thread,
the same line viewed from different sides.
- Lao Tzu
The wise man looks into space,
and does not regard the small as too little,
nor the great as too much;
for he knows that there is no limit to dimensions.
- Lao Tzu
If the Great Way perishes, there will be 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.
- Lao Tzu
I have just three things to teach:
simplicity, patience, compassion.
These three are your greatest treasures.
- Lao Tzu
Man's enemies are not demons, but human beings like himself.
- Lao Tzu
To love someone deeply gives you strength.
Being loved by someone deeply gives you courage.
- Lao Tzu
If you do not change direction,
you may end up where you are heading.
- Lao Tzu
To manage your mind,
know that there is nothing,
and then relinquish all attachment to nothingness.
- Lao Tzu
I have three precious things which I hold fast and prize.
The first is gentleness;
the second is frugality;
the third is humility, which keeps me from putting myself before others.
Be gentle and you can be bold;
be frugal and you can be generous;
avoid putting yourself before others
and you can become a leader among men.
- Lao Tzu
The higher the sun rises, the less shadow it casts;
even so, the greater is the goodness, the less it covets praise;
yet cannot avoid its rewards in honors.
- Lao Tzu
Knowing others is intelligence;
knowing yourself is true wisdom.
Mastering others is strength;
mastering yourself is true power.
- Lao Tzu
I do not concern myself with gods and spirits
either good or evil, nor do I serve any.
- Lao Tzu
Those who have knowledge, don't predict.
Those who predict, don't have knowledge.
- Lao Tzu
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.
- Lao Tzu
Great acts are made up of small deeds.
- Lao Tzu
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.
- Lao Tzu
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- Jonathan Lockwood Huie
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