Tao Quotes - Page 12

• Someone who seeks the Way doesn't look beyond himself.

  Bodhidharma

  Looks, Way

  Bodhidharma (2009). “The Zen Teaching of Bodhidharma”, p.59, Macmillan

  12 Copy quote

  Show source

• 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.

  Laozi

  Opportunity, Greatness, Self

  6 Copy quote

• A follower of the Way (Tao) loses something each day. Loss after loss until arriving at Non Action (Wu Wei).

  Laozi

  Loss, Arriving, Followers

  5 Copy quote

• Every time that a man has, with a pure heart, called upon Osiris, Dionysus, Buddha, the Tao, etc., the Son of God has answered him by sending the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit has acted upon his soul, not by inciting him to abandon his religious tradition, but by bestowing upon him light. It is, therefore, useless to send out missions to prevail upon the peoples of Asia, Africa or Oceania to enter the Church.

  Simone Weil

  Religious, Heart, Son

  "Letter to a Priest". Book by Simone Weil, section 8, 1951.

  16 Copy quote

  Show source

• Would you say that any one sacred book is superior to all others in the world? ... I say the New Testament, after that, I should place the Koran, which in its moral teachings, is hardly more than a later edition of the New Testament. Then would follow according to my opinion the Old Testament, the Southern Buddhist Tripitaka, the Tao-te-king of Laotze, the Kings of Confucius, the Veda and the Avesta.

  Max Muller

  Buddhist, Kings, Book

  "The Life and Letters of Right Honorable Friedrich Max Müller" edited by Georgina Müller, Vol. II, Ch. XXXII, 1902.

  4 Copy quote

  Show source

• The Tao cannot be divided, it cannot be shared.

  Frederick Franck

  Divided

  "Echoes from the Bottomless Well". Book by Frederick Franck, p. 37, 1985.

  4 Copy quote

  Show source

• Let the world unfold without always attempting to figure it all out. Let relationships just be, since everything is going to stretch out in Divine order. Don't try so hard to make something work - simply allow. Don't always toil at trying to understand your mate, your children, your parents, your boss, or anyone else because the Tao is working at all times.

  Wayne Dyer

  Relationship, Children, Divine Order

  Dr Wayne W Dyer (2009). “Change Your Thoughts-Change Your Life (Easyread Large Edition)”, p.5, ReadHowYouWant.com

  6 Copy quote

  Show source

• Since before time and space were, the Tao is. It is beyond is and is not.

  Laozi

  Space, Tao Te Ching, Book Of Tao

  "Tao Te Ching". Book by Laozi (Ch. 21), 4th century BC.

  8 Copy quote

  Show source

• My words are easy to understand and easy to perform,
  Yet no man under heaven knows them or practices them.

  Laozi

  Wisdom, Men, Practice

  Laozi (1997). “道德经”, Vintage

  4 Copy quote

  Show source

• True depth of understanding is wide and steady,
  Shallow understanding is lazy and wandering,
  Words of wisdom are precise and clear

  Zhuangzi

  Wisdom, Understanding, Lazy

  8 Copy quote

• Heaven is in everything: follow the light, hide in the cloudiness and begin in what is. Do this and your understanding will be like not understanding and your wisdom will be like not being wise. By not being wise you will become wise later.

  Zhuangzi

  Wise, Wisdom, Light

  21 Copy quote

• Either in conflict with others or in harmony with them, we go through life like a runaway horse, unable to stop.

  Zhuangzi

  Horse, Conflict, Harmony

  14 Copy quote

• The truly great man dwells on what is real and not what is on the surface.

  Laozi

  Real, Men, Surface

  Laozi (1997). “道德经”, Vintage

  6 Copy quote

  Show source

• It is fitting for a great nation to yield.

  Laozi

  Yield, Fitting, Nations

  Laozi (1997). “道德经”, Vintage

  6 Copy quote

  Show source

• Weapons are instruments of fear; they are not a wise man's tools. He uses them only when he has no choice.

  Laozi

  Wise, Men, Choices

  Laozi (1997). “道德经”, Vintage

  12 Copy quote

  Show source

• Approach the universe with Tao, And evil will have no power. Not that evil is not powerful, But its power will not be used to harm others.

  Laozi

  Powerful, Evil, Used

  Laozi (1997). “道德经”, Vintage

  4 Copy quote

  Show source

• The saying goes, 'The sage rests, truly rests and is at ease.' This manifests itself in calmness and detachment, so that worries and distress cannot affect him, nothing unpleasant can disturb him, his Virtue is complete and his spirit is not stirred up.

  Zhuangzi

  Worry, Sage, Ease

  33 Copy quote

• The true man of the past waited upon Heaven when dealing with people and did not wait upon people when dealing with Heaven.

  Zhuangzi

  Past, Men, People

  8 Copy quote

• One whose inner being is fixed upon such greatness emits a Heavenly glow. Even though he has this Heavenly glow, others will see him as just a man. Someone who has reached this point will begin to be consistent.

  Zhuangzi

  Greatness, Men, Heaven

  23 Copy quote

• Better stop short than fill to the brim. Oversharpen the blade, and the edge will soon blunt. Amass a store of gold and jade, and no one can protect it.

  Laozi

  Gold, Jade, Blunt

  Laozi (1997). “道德经”, Vintage

  4 Copy quote

  Show source

• The Tao is always at ease. It overcomes without competing, answers without speaking a word, arrives without being summoned, accomplishes without a plan. Its net covers the whole universe. And though its meshes are wide, it doesn't let a thing slip through.

  Laozi

  Overcoming, Answers, Ease

  5 Copy quote

• If you realize that all things change, there is nothing you will try to hold on to. If you aren't afraid of dying, there is nothing you can't achieve. Trying to control the future is like trying to take the master carpenter's place. When you handle the master carpenter's tools, chances are that you'll cut your hand.

  Laozi

  Cutting, Hands, Dying

  10 Copy quote

• When they lose their sense of awe, people turn to religion. When they no longer trust themselves, they begin to depend upon authority. Therefore the Master steps back so that people won't be confused. He teaches without a teaching, so that people will have nothing to learn.

  Laozi

  Confused, Teaching, People

  8 Copy quote

• The best athlete wants his opponent at his best. The best general enters the mind of his enemy. The best businessman serves the communal good. The best leader follows the will of the people. All of the embody the virtue of non-competition. Not that they don't love to compete, but they do it in the spirit of play. In this they are like children and in harmony with the Tao.

  Laozi

  Children, Athlete, Play

  11 Copy quote

• If a country is governed with tolerance, the people are comfortable and honest. If a country is governed with repression, the people are depressed and crafty. When the will to power is in charge, the higher the ideals, the lower the results. Try to make people happy, and you lay the groundwork for misery. Try to make people moral, and you lay the groundwork for vice. Thus the Master is content to serve as an example and not to impose her will. She is pointed, but doesn't pierce. Straightforward, but supple. Radiant, but easy on the eyes.

  Laozi

  Country, Eye, People

  4 Copy quote