The great Way is easy, yet people prefer the side paths. Be aware when things are out of balance. Stay centered within the Tao.

Chanting is no more holy than listening to the murmur of a stream, counting prayer beads no more sacred than simply breathing. . . . If you wish to attain oneness with the Tao, don't get caught up in spiritual superficialities.

Keeping plenty of gold and jade in the palace makes no one able to defend it.

A sage is skilled at helping people without excluding anyone.

The ten thousand things flourish and then each returns to the root from which it came. Returning to the root is stillness. Through stillness each fulfils its destiny.

Clay is used to make vases, but it is the emptiness they contain that makes them useful.

If you tell me, I will listen. If you show me, I will see. If you let me experience, I will learn!