Happiness perches on misery. Misery crouches beneath happiness.
The difficult problems in life always start off being simple. Great affairs always start off being small.
The Wise Man is square but not sharp, honest but not not malign, straight but not severe, bright but not dazzling.
All things in the world are born out of being. Being is born out of non-being.
The river and the sea can be kings of a hundred valleys, because they lie below them.
The one who does not honor the teacher and the one who does not honor the task, although ever so knowledgeable, they are confused.
Make the small big and the few many.
Those who take long steps cannot keep the pace.
A scholar who cherishes the love of comfort is not fit to be deemed a scholar.
From wonder into wonder existence opens.
The wise man, after learning something new, is afraid to learn anything more until he has put his first lesson into practice.
Governing a large country is like frying a small fish. You spoil it with too much poking. Center your country in the Tao and evil will have no power. Not that it isn’t there, but you’ll be able to step out of its way. Give evil nothing to oppose and it will disappear by itself.
My teachings are easy to understand and easy to put into practice. Yet your intellect will never grasp them, and if you try to practice them, you’ll fail. My teachings are older than the world. How can you grasp their meaning? If you want to know me, look inside your heart.
The real art of governing consists, so far as possible, in doing nothing.
The cords of passion and desire weave a binding net around you. Worldly confrontation makes you stiff and inflexible. The trap of duality is tenacious. Bound, rigid, and trapped, you cannot experience liberation.
Can you let go of words and ideas, attitudes and expectations? If so, then the Tao will loom into view.
The Way is empty, yet inexhaustible, like an abyss!
Not knowing of the eternal leads to unfortunate errors.
Heavy is the root of light.
The Way begets one; one begets two; two begets three; three begets the myriad creatures.