Laozi quotes:

Each new day is a blank page in the diary of your life. The secret of success is in turning that diary into the best story you possibly can. I wish you Happy New Year and diary full of best stories ever written in your life.

If the Great Way perishes there will morality and duty. When cleverness and knowledge arise great lies will flourish. When relatives fall out with one another there will be filial duty and love. When states are in confusion there will be faithful servants.

Treat those who are good with goodness, and also treat those who are not good with goodness. Thus goodness is attained. Be honest to those who are honest, and be also honest to those who are not honest. Thus honesty is attained...

Fill your bowl to the brim and it will spill. Keep sharpening your knife and it will blunt.

In the world there is nothing more submissive and weak than water. Yet for attacking that which is hard and strong nothing can surpass it.

Doing nothing is better than being busy doing nothing.

A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving.

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.

An ant on the move does more than a dozing ox.

Loving, hating, having expectations: all these are attachments. Attachment prevents the growth of one's true being.

A good manager is best when people barely know that he exists. Not so good when people obey and acclaim him. Worse when they despise him.

A leader is best when people barely know he exists, when his work is done, his aim fulfilled, they will say: we did it ourselves.

When virtue is lost, benevolence appears, when benevolence is lost right conduct appears, when right conduct is lost, expedience appears. Expediency is the mere shadow of right and truth; it is the beginning of disorder.

The Tao is unpredictable to those that live according to plans. Only those who have no agenda are in harmony with the Tao.

To manage your mind, know that there is nothing, and then relinquish all attachment to nothingness.

See simplicity in the complicated. Achieve greatness in little things

If people live in constant fear of death, and if breaking the law is punished by death, then who would dare?

If a person seems wicked, do not cast him away. Awaken him with your words, elevate him with your deeds, repay his injury with your kindness. Do not cast him away; cast away his wickedness.

Be the chief but never the lord.

Anticipate the difficult by managing the easy.

People in their handlings of affairs often fail when they are about to succeed. If one remains as careful at the end as he was at the beginning, there will be no failure.

The sage does not attempt anything very big, and thus achieves greatness.

Nothing in the world is more flexible and yielding than water. Yet when it attacks the firm and the strong, none can withstand it, because they have no way to change it. So the flexible overcome the adamant, the yielding overcome the forceful. Everyone knows this, but no one can do it.

Instead of being afraid of death, we should try to awake to life; and the only death we should escape from is to forget the presence of God into us.

One who is too insistent on his own views, finds few to agree with him.

To realize that our knowledge is ignorance, This is a noble insight. To regard our ignorance as knowledge, This is mental sickness. Only when we are sick of the sickness Shall we cease to be sick. The Sage is not sick, being sick of sickness; This is the secret of health.

In caring for others and serving heaven, There is nothing like using restraint.

Simply see that you are at the center of the universe, and accept all things and beings as parts of your infinite body. When you perceive that an act done to another is done to yourself, you have understood the great truth.

To be brave without compassion, generous without moderation, and rule without refraining from being first in the world, are certain deaths.

. . . These are notions of the mind, which is like a knife, always chipping away at the Tao, trying to render it graspable and manageable. But that which is beyond form is ungraspable, and that which is beyond knowing is unmanageable. There is, however, this consolation: She who lets go of the knife will find the Tao at her fingertips.

The things that have acquired unity are these: Heaven by unity has become clear; Earth by unity has become steady; The Spirit by unity has become spiritual; The Valley by unity has become full; All things by unity have come into existence.

He who knows others is clever; He who knows himself has discernment.

The most powerful weapon known is the weapon of blessing. Therefore, a clever person relies on it. He wins with peace, not with war.

A scholar who cherishes the love of comfort is not fit to be deemed a scholar.

Of all that is good, sublimity is supreme. Succeeding is the coming together of all that is beautiful. Furtherance is the agreement of all that is just. Perseverance is the foundation of all actions.

When you are content to be simply yourself and don't compare or compete, everybody will respect you.

I do not concern myself with gods and spirits either good or evil nor do I serve any.

When the government is quite unobtrusive, people are indeed pure. When the government is quite prying, people are indeed conniving.

By steadily disciplining the animal nature, until it becomes one pointed, it is possible to establish conscious awareness of The Eternal.

Health is the greatest possession. Contentment is the greatest treasure. Confidence is the greatest friend. Non-being is the greatest joy.

Govern a great nation as you would cook a small fish. Do not overdo it.

Because of a great love, one is courageous.

Covetousness is the greatest misfortune. One who does not know what is enough will never have enough.

Man's enemies are not demons, but human beings like himself.

The wicked leader is he who the people despise. The good leader is he who the people revere. The great leader is he who the people say, 'We did it ourselves.'

Life and death are one thread, the same line viewed from different sides.

All difficult things have their origin in that which is easy, and great things in that which is small.

He who does not trust enough will not be trusted.

People aren't against you; they are for themselves. The most dangerous risk of all - the risk of spending your life not doing what you want on the bet you can buy yourself the freedom to do it later. He who conquers others is strong, he who conquers himself is mighty.

In dwelling, live close to the ground. In thinking, keep to the simple.

In dwelling, live close to the ground. In thinking, keep to the simple. In conflict, be fair and generous. In governing, don't try to control. In work, do what you enjoy. In family life, be completely present.

People who have to fight for their living and are not afraid to die for it are higher persons than those who, stationed high, are too fat to dare to die.

Don't think you can attain total awareness and whole enlightenment without proper discipline and practice. This is egomania. Appropriate rituals channel your emotions and life energy toward the light. Without the discipline to practice them, you will tumble constantly backward into darkness.

We join spokes together in a wheel, but it is the center hole that makes the wagon move. We shape clay into a pot, but it is the emptiness inside that holds whatever we want. We hammer wood for a house, but it is the inner space that makes it livable. We work with being, but non-being is what we use.

Thirty spokes meet in the hub, but the empty space between them is the essence of the wheel. Pots are formed from clay, but the empty space within it is the essence of the pot. Walls with windows and doors form the house, but the empty space within it is the essence of the home.

If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading.

He who knows himself is enlightened.

Knowing others is wisdom, knowing yourself is enlightenment.

Practice not-doing and everything will fall into place.

Complete your task. Seek no reward. Make no claims. Without faltering fully choose to do what you must do.

When family ties are disturbed, devoted children arise.

Abandon benevolence, discard duty, and people will return to the family ties.

A good traveler leaves no tracks. Good speech lacks fault-finding.

There is a time to go ahead and a time to stay behind. There is a time to breathe easy and time to breathe hard. There is a time to be vigorous and a time to be gentle. There is a time to gather and a time to release. Can you see things as they are And let them be all on their own?

When the great Tao is forgotten, goodness and piety appear. When the body's intelligence declines, cleverness and knowledge step forth. When there is no peace in the family, filial piety begins. When the country falls into chaos, patriotism is born.

When a nation is filled with strife, then do patriots flourish.

Standing on "tip toe", one stands not firmly. Straining in stride, one cannot walk far. Flaunting of deeds, one is unfavorably noticed. Being self-righteous, one is not respected. Boasting of self, one's merit is unrecognized. Glorifying of self, one loses the opportunity for greatness. From the viewpoint of Tao These represent imperfect Te, Valued as are filth or disease.

Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don't resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.

Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.

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.

Whatever is fluid, soft, and yielding will overcome whatever is rigid and hard. What is soft is strong.

Water is fluid, soft, and yielding. But water will wear away rock, which is rigid and cannot yield. As a rule, whatever is fluid, soft, and yielding will overcome whatever is rigid and hard. This is another paradox: what is soft is strong.

A good runner leaves no footprints.

Do not attempt to conquer the world with force, for force only causes resistance.

A journey of 1000 miles begins with one step.

He who has achieved this state Is unconcerned with friends and enemies, With good and harm, with honor and disgrace. This therefore is the highest state of man.

Simplicity, patience, compassion. These three are your greatest treasures. Simple in actions and thoughts, you return to the source of being. Patient with both friends and enemies, you accord with the way things are. Compassionate toward yourself, you reconcile all beings in the world.

I have three precious things which I hold fast and prize. The first is gentleness; the second frugality; the third is humility, which keeps me from putting myself before others. Be gentle and you can be bold; be frugal and you can be liberal; avoid putting yourself before others and you can become a leader among men.

Be gentle and you can be bold; be frugal and you can be liberal; avoid putting yourself before others and you can become a leader among men.

Darkness within darkness. The gateway to all understanding.

The snow goose need not bathe to make itself white. Neither need you do anything but be yourself.

To know people is wisdom, but to know yourself is enlightenment. to master people takes force, but to master yourself takes strength. to know contentment is wealth, and to live with strength resolve. to never leave whatever you are is to abide, and to die without getting lost- that is to live on and on.

The tree which needs two arms to span its girth sprang from the tiniest shoot. Yon tower, nine stories high, rose from a little mound of earth. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

Giving to others selflesly and anonymously, radiating light throughout the world and illuminating your own darkness, your virtue becomes a sanctuary for yourself and all beings.

Arms are instruments of ill omen.... When one is compelled to use them, it is best to do so without relish. There is no glory in victory, and to glorify it despite this is to exult in the killing of men.... When great numbers of people are killed, one should weep over them with sorrow. When victorious in war, one should observe mourning rites.

Good men are bad men's instructors, And bad men are good men's materials.

Great accomplishment seems imperfect, Yet it does not outlive its usefulness. Great fullness seems empty, Yet it cannot be exhausted.

When great armies go to war, Sorrow is the sole winner.

You should rule a great country As you would fry a small fish- With the least turning.

The real key to health and happiness and success is self knowledge

Water is the softest thing, yet it can penetrate mountains and earth. This shows clearly the principle of softness overcoming hardness.

The power of intuitive understanding will protect you from harm until the end of your days.

Health is the greatest possession.

Music in the soul can be heard by the universe.

Love is of all passions the strongest, for it attacks simultaneously the head, the heart and the senses.

In the Way of Heaven, there is no partiality of love; it is always on the side of the good man.

The key to growth is the introduction of higher dimensions of consciousness into our awareness.

The career of a sage is of two kinds: He is either honored by all in the world, Like a flower waving its head, Or else he disappears into the silent forest.

Hope and fear are both phantoms that arise from thinking of the self. When we don't see the self as self, what do we have to fear?

The world's big things only can be done by paying attention to their humble beginnings.

Pride attaches undue importance to the superiority of one's status in the eyes of others; and shame is fear of humiliation at one's inferior status in the estimation of others. When one sets one's heart on being highly esteemed, and achieves such rating, then he or she is automatically involved in fear of losing status.

When the hares have all been caught, the hunting dogs are cooked.

One cannot reflect in streaming water. Only those who know internal peace can give it to others.

Too much success is not an advantage. Do not tinkle like jade Or clatter like stone chimes.

Do 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.

A journey of a thousand miles starts with a single step and if that step is the right step, it becomes the last step.

A journey of a thousand miles starts in front of your feet. A tower nine stories high is built from a small heap of earth. A journey of a thousand miles starts in front of your feet.

The journey of a thousand miles starts from beneath your feet. NOTE: Other translations exist, such as:Great trees grow from the smallest shoots;a terraced garden, from a pile of earth,and a journey of a thousand milesbegins by taking the initial step.

A tree that can fill the span of a man's arms grows from a downy tip; A terrace nine stories high rises from level earth; A journey of a thousand miles starts from beneath one's feet.

Without the tao, Kindness and compassion are replaced by law and justice; Faith and trust are supplanted by ritual and ceremony.

Knowing others is intelligence;knowing yourself is true wisdom.Mastering others is strength; mastering yourself is true power.

It is wisdom to know others. It is enlightenment to know oneself.

Be Content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you.

[The Master] doesn't glitter like a jewel... [but is] as rugged and common as a stone.

When the worst student hears about the Way, he laughs out loud. If he did not laugh, it would be unworthy of being the Way.

The 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.

The more laws and order are made prominent, the more thieves and robbers there will be.

To lead people, walk beside them ... As for the best leaders, the people do not notice their existence. The next best, the people honor and praise. The next, the people fear; and the next, the people hate ... When the best leader's work is done the people say, 'We did it ourselves!

Stop leaving and you will arrive, Stop searching and you will see, Stop running away and you will be found.

The world is won by those who let it go.