Tao is the source of both fullness and emptiness. But it is itself neither fullness nor emptiness.

He who pursues fame at the risk of losing his self is not a scholar.

The little child learns to speak, though it has no learned teachers - because it lives with those who know how to speak.

Luck implies an absolute absence of any principle.

A man who knows he is a fool is not a great fool.

Great wisdom is generous; petty wisdom is contentious. Great speech is impassioned, small speech cantankerous.

If you want to nourish a bird, you should let it live any way it chooses. Creatures differ because they have different likes and dislikes. Therefore the sages never require the same ability from all creatures. . . concepts of right should be founded on what is suitable. The true saint leaves wisdom to the ants, takes a cue from the fishes, and leaves willfulness to the sheep.