Learning without thought is labor lost; thought without learning is perilous.

A person of character takes as much trouble to discover what is right as the lesser men take to discover what will pay.

The superior person tries to promote music as a means to the perfection of human culture. When such music prevails, and people's minds are led towards the right ideals and aspirations, we may see the appearance of a great nation.

When you are ignorant about something, to know that you are ignorant about it - that is knowledge.

If you don't know how to live, why wonder about death?

A good man does not make a warrior, just as good steel does not go for nails.

The Master said, “What a worthy man was Yan Hui! Living in a narrow alley, subsisting upon meager bits of rice and water—other people could not have borne such hardship, and yet it never spoiled Hui’s joy. What a worthy man was Hui!” (Analects 6.11)