Taoism Quotes - Page 18

People are born soft and weak. They die hard and stiff.

The unyielding army will not win.

Use the light to return to clarity.

In lightness the root is lost. In haste the ruler is lost.

In the world there are four greats, and the king is one of them.

A great country is like the lower outlet of a river. It is the world's meeting ground, the world's female.

The valley spirit never dies. It is called the mystical female.

When equal armies battle, the grieving one will be victorious.

There is one appointed supreme executioner. Truly, trying to take the place of the supreme executioner is like trying to carve wood like a master carpenter. Of those who try to carve wood like a master carpenter, there are few who do not injure their hands.

Thorn bushes grow where armies have camped.

A climb of eight hundred feet starts where the foot stands.

Thirty spokes are joined in the wheel's hub. The hole in the middle makes it useful.

The Way is eternal. Until your last day, you are free from peril.

The ancients said: Hulk to be whole.

A good mooring needs no knot, still no one can untie it.

Do not strive for the shine of jade, but clatter like stone.

Who can wait in stillness while the mud settles?

The sage embraces the one, and is an example to the world.

I have no desire to desire, and people become like the uncarved wood by themselves.

Pounding an edge to sharpness will not make it last.

The brittle is easy to shatter.

When the emperor is crowned or the three dukes are appointed, rather than sending a gift of jade carried by four horses, remain still and offer the Way.

Must one dread what others dread?

Being a model to the world, eternal virtue will never falter in you, and you return to the boundless.

A good counter needs no calculator.