Confucius Quotes
It is easy to hate and it is difficult to love. This is how the whole scheme of things works. All good things are difficult to achieve; and bad things are very easy to get.
Confucius
Wisdom, compassion, and courage are the three universally recognized moral qualities of men.
Confucius
The will to win, the desire to succeed, the urge to reach your full potential... these are the keys that will unlock the door to personal excellence.
Confucius
There are three methods to gaining wisdom. The first is reflection, which is the highest. The second is limitation, which is the easiest. The third is experience, which is the bitterest.
Confucius
I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.
Confucius
Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.
Confucius
Learning without thought is labor lost; thought without learning is perilous.
Confucius
Speak the truth, do not yield to anger; give, if thou art asked for little; by these three steps thou wilt go near the gods.
Confucius
When we see men of worth, we should think of equaling them; when we see men of a contrary character, we should turn inwards and examine ourselves.
Confucius
The man who in view of gain thinks of righteousness; who in the view of danger is prepared to give up his life; and who does not forget an old agreement however far back it extends - such a man may be reckoned a complete man.
Confucius
When you know a thing, to hold that you know it, and when you do not know a thing, to allow that you do not know it - this is knowledge.
Confucius
If we don't know life, how can we know death?
Confucius
It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.
Confucius
To go beyond is as wrong as to fall short.
Confucius
Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance.
Confucius
When it is obvious that the goals cannot be reached, don't adjust the goals, adjust the action steps.
Confucius
The superior man...does not set his mind either for anything, or against anything; what is right he will follow.
Confucius
In a country well governed, poverty is something to be ashamed of. In a country badly governed, wealth is something to be ashamed of.
Confucius
Be not ashamed of mistakes and thus make them crimes.
Confucius
Old age, believe me, is a good and pleasant thing. It is true you are gently shouldered off the stage, but then you are given such a comfortable front stall as spectator.
Confucius
The superior man thinks always of virtue; the common man thinks of comfort.
Confucius
Everything has its beauty but not everyone sees it
Confucius
Study the past if you would define the future.
Confucius
You cannot open a book without learning something.
Confucius
The superior man, when resting in safety, does not forget that danger may come. When in a state of security he does not forget the possibility of ruin. When all is orderly, he does not forget that disorder may come. Thus his person is not endangered, and his States and all their clans are preserved.
Confucius
We should feel sorrow, but not sink under its oppression.
Confucius
I am not one who was born in the possession of knowledge; I am one who is fond of antiquity, and earnest in seeking it there.
Confucius
When you are laboring for others let it be with the same zeal as if it were for yourself.
Confucius
To see what is right and not to do it is want of courage.
Confucius
What the superior man seeks is in himself; what the small man seeks is in others.
Confucius
Forget injuries, never forget kindnesses.
Confucius
The cautious seldom err.
Confucius
Have no friends not equal to yourself.
Confucius
If a man takes no thought about what is distant, he will find sorrow near at hand.
Confucius
Wheresoever you go, go with all your heart.
Confucius
I have not seen a person who loved virtue, or one who hated what was not virtuous. He who loved virtue would esteem nothing above it.
Confucius
Hold faithfulness and sincerity as first principles.
Confucius
The expectations of life depend upon diligence; the mechanic that would perfect his work must first sharpen his tools.
Confucius
What you do not want done to yourself, do not do to others.
Confucius
When we see men of a contrary character, we should turn inwards and examine ourselves.
Confucius
Fine words and an insinuating appearance are seldom associated with true virtue.
Confucius
They must often change who would be constant in happiness or wisdom.
Confucius
He who speaks without modesty will find it difficult to make his words good.
Confucius
Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life.
Confucius
Better a diamond with a flaw than a pebble without.
Confucius
To practice five things under all circumstances constitutes perfect virtue; these five are gravity, generosity of soul, sincerity, earnestness, and kindness.
Confucius
If a man withdraws his mind from the love of beauty, and applies it as sincerely to the love of the virtuous; if, in serving his parents, he can exert his utmost strength; if, in serving his prince, he can devote his life; if in his intercourse with his friends, his words are sincere - although men say that he has not learned, I will certainly say that he has
Confucius