A lovely face is the solace of wounded hearts and the key of locked-up gates.
The wise man tells not what he knows. It is not prudent to sport with one’s head by revealing the king’s secrets.
He who is a slave to his stomach seldom worships God.
Expose not the secret failings of mankind, otherwise you must verily bring scandal upon them and distrust upon yourself.
Two orders of mankind are the enemies of church and state; the king without clemency, and the holy man without learning.
Avoid that which an enemy tells you to do; for if you follow his advice, you will smite your, knees with the hand of sorrow. If he shows you a road straight as an arrow, turn from it and go the other way.
That sorrow which is the harbinger of joy is preferable to the joy which is followed by sorrow.
Nothing is so good for an ignorant man as silence; and if he was sensible of this he would not be ignorant.
Anger that has no limit causes terror, and unseasonable kindness does away with respect. Be not so severe as to cause disgust, nor so lenient as to make people presume.
Joy and sorrow, beauty and deformity, equally pass away.
Do good even to the wicked; it is as well to shut a dog’s mouth with a crumb.
Be not in the desire of thine own ease.
Virtue is in the mind, not in the appearance.
Roam abroad in the world, and take thy fill of its enjoyments before the day shall come when thou must quit it for good.
Whatever is produced in haste goes hastily to waste.
Publish not men’s secret faults, for by disgracing them you make yourself of no repute.
If thou art of elephant-strength or of lion-claw, still peace is, in my opinion, better than strife.
Take care what you say before a wall, as you cannot tell who may be behind it.
To the eye of enmity virtue appears the ugliest blemish.
Where the hand of tyranny is long we do not see the lips of men open with laughter.