To know that you do not know is the best. To pretend to know when you do not know is a disease.

Simulated disorder postulates perfect discipline; simulated fear postulates courage; simulated weakness postulates strength.

The Master doesn't seek fulfillment. For only those who are not full are able to be used which brings the feeling of completeness.

She who is centered in the Tao can go where she wishes, without danger. She perceives the universal harmony, even amid great pain, because she has found peace in her heart. Music or the smell of good cooking may make people stop and enjoy. But words that point to the Tao seem monotonous and without flavor. When you look for it, there is nothing to see. When you listen for it, there is nothing to hear. When you use it, it is inexhaustible.

Quarrel with a friend - and you are both wrong.

The noble must make humility his root.

What makes a kingdom great is its being like a down-flowing river,--the central point towards which all the smaller streams under Heaven converge; or like the female throughout the world, who by quiescence always overcomes the male. And quiescence is a form of humility.