The greatest wisdom often consist in ignorance.
The sage never seems to know his own merits, for only by not noticing them can you call others' attention to them.
Mix a little mystery with everything, for mystery arouses veneration.
It is therefore an excellent device to acquire knowledge from everybody.
Exaggeration is a prodigality of the judgment which shows the narrowness of one's knowledge or one's taste.
Politeness and a sense of honor have this advantage: we bestow them on others without losing a thing.