The best people are like water, which benefits all things and does not compete with them. It stays in lowly places that others reject. This is why it is so similar to the Way.
LaoziHighest good is like water. Because water excels in benefiting the myriad creatures without contending with them and settles where none would like to be, it comes closest to the way.
LaoziIf you fail to honor your people, They will fail to honor you; It is said of a good leader that When the work is done, the aim fulfilled, The people will say, "We did this ourselves."
LaoziWhy separate your spiritual life and your practical life? To an integral being, there is no such distinction.
LaoziDo the difficult things while they are easy and do the great things while they are small. A journey of a thousand miles must begin with a single step.
LaoziIn order to contract, It is necessary first to expand. In order to weaken, It is necessary first to strengthen. In order to destroy, It is first necessary to promote. In order to grasp, It is necessary first to give. This is called subtle light. The weak and the tender overcome the hard and the strong.
LaoziA tree that cannot bend will crack in the wind. Thus by nature's own decree, the soft and gentle are triumphant.
LaoziWarriors say: I dare not be like the host, but would rather be like the guest. I dare not advance an inch, but would rather retreat a foot.
LaoziThe superior student listens to the Way and follows it closely. The average student listens to the Way and follows some and some not. The lesser student listens to the Way and laughs out loud. If there were no laughter it would not be the Way.
LaoziSimulated disorder postulates perfect discipline; simulated fear postulates courage; simulated weakness postulates strength.
LaoziGo to the people. Learn from them. Live with them. Start with what they know. Build with what they have. The best of leaders when the job is done, when the task is accomplished, the people will say we have done it ourselves.
LaoziA good athlete can enter a state of body-awareness in which the right stroke or the right movement happens by itself, effortlessly, without any interference of the conscious will. This is a paradigm for non-action: the purest and most effective form of action. The game plays the game; the poem writes the poem; we can't tell the dancer from the dance. It happens when we trust the intelligence of the universe in the same way that an athlete or a dancer trusts the superior intelligence of the body.
LaoziKnowing others is wisdom; Knowing the self is enlightenment; Mastering others requires force; Mastering the self needs strength.
LaoziWeapons are the tools of violence;all decent men detest them.Weapons are the tools of fear;a decent man will avoid themexcept in the direst necessityand, if compelled, will use themonly with the utmost restraint.Peace is his highest value.If the peace has been shattered,how can he be content?His enemies are not demons,but human beings like himself.He doesn't wish them personal harm.Nor does he rejoice in victory.How could he rejoice in victoryand delight in the slaughter of men?He enters a battle gravely,with sorrow and with great compassion,as if he were attending a funeral
LaoziThose who have hardened, have a covenant with Death. Those who remain gentle are conjoined with Life.
LaoziThose who know others are intelligent Those who know themselves have insight. Those who master others have force Those who master themselves have strength.Those who know what is enough are wealthy. Those who persevere have direction. Those who maintain their position endure. And those who die and yet do not perish, live on.
LaoziThe transformation toward eternal life is gradual. The heavy gross energy of body, mind, and spirit must first be purified and uplifted. When the energy ascends... then self mastery can be sought.
LaoziAs it acts in the world, the Tao is like the bending of a bow. The top is bent downward; the bottom is bent up. It adjusts excess and deficiency so that there is perfect balance.
LaoziOnly those who leisurely approach that which the masses are busy about can be busy about that which the masses take leisurely.
LaoziIf you overesteem great men, people become powerless. If you overvalue possessions, people begin to steal. The Master leads by emptying people's minds and filling their cores, by weakening their ambition and toughening their resolve. He helps people lose everything they know, everything they desire, and creates confusion in those who think that they know. Practice not-doing, and everything will fall into place.
LaoziWhat is strong and rigid is snapped and laid low. What is flexible and soft will always prevail.
LaoziLoving, hating, having expectations: all these are attachments. Attachment prevents the growth of one's true being.
LaoziThe sage wears clothes of coarse cloth but carries jewels in his bosom; He knows himself but does not display himself; He loves himself but does not hold himself in high esteem.
LaoziThe wise man does not lay up treasure. The more he expends on others, the more he gains for himself. The more he gives to others, the more he has for his own.
Laozi