The superior man, when resting in safety, does not forget that danger may come. When in a state of security he does not forget the possibility of ruin. When all is orderly, he does not forget that disorder may come. Thus his person is not endangered, and his States and all their clans are preserved.

Without feelings of respect, what is there to distinguish men from beasts?

All people are the same; only their habits differ.

At seventy, I could follow the dictates of my own heart; for what I desired no longer overstepped the boundaries of right.

Knowledge is recognizing what you know and what you don't.

Don't worry about being acknowledged by others; worry about failing to acknowledge them.

The way of Heaven and Earth may be completely declared in one sentence: They are without any doubleness, and so they produce things in a manner that is unfathomable.