Tse Lao Quotes

To attain knowledge, add things everyday. To attain wisdom, remove things every day.

The road you can talk about is not the road you can walk on

If there is to be peace in the world, There must be peace in the nations. If there is to be peace in the nations, There must be peace in the cities. If there is to be peace in the cities, There must be peace between neighbors. If there is to be peace between neighbors, There must be peace in the home. If there is to be peace in the home, There must be peace in the heart.

Darkness within darkness. The gateway to all understanding

Kind prince there is nothing in the realm of ideas that is absolute, therefore all efforts to form ideologies are ultimately futile.

The unnamable is the eternally real. Naming is the origin of all particular things.

Aquél que obtiene una victoria sobre otro hombre es fuerte, pero quien obtiene una victoria sobre sí mismo es poderoso.

Un camino de mil millas comienza con un primer paso.

Gravity is the root of lightness; stillness, the ruler of movement.

Klar sieht, wer von ferne sieht, nebelhaft, wer Anteil nimmt.

¿Cuál es la verdadera esencia de lo que revelan mis ojos?

Respeta tu propia visión interior y confía en tus pensamientos naturales

el tao que puede ser expresado no es el verdadero tao.

Ruling a large kingdom is like cooking a small fish...

Ist eine Lehre zur Satzung erstarrt, hat sie geendet.

No te empeñes en forzar las cosas, lo que es tuyo irá a ti.

Todo lo que ahora necesito,está aquí.

Libérate de la influencia de las opiniones de los demás.

De wijze heeft geen onwrikbare beginselen. Hij past zich aan anderen aan. (Free translation into English: The wise man has no firm principles. He adapts to others.)

In the words of Chuang-tse, the mind of Wu Wei “flows like water, reflects like a mirror, and responds like an echo.

To Lao-tse (LAOdsuh), the harmony that naturally existed between heaven and earth from the very beginning could be found by anyone at any time, but not by following the rules of the Confucianists.

When you discard arrogance, complexity, and a few other things that get in the way, sooner or later you will discover that simple, childlike, and mysterious secret known to those of the Uncarved Block: Life is Fun.

Darum: Wer LEBEN hat, hält sich an seine Pflicht, wer kein LEBEN hat, hält sich an sein Recht

We simply need to believe in the power that’s within us, and use it. When we do that, and stop imitating others and competing against them, things begin to work for us.

But, through working in harmony with life’s circumstances, Taoist understanding changes what others may perceive as negative into something positive.

The Master, by residing in the Tao, sets an example for all beings. Because he doesn't display himself, people can see his light. Because he has nothing to prove, people can trust his words. Because he doesn't know who he is, people recognize themselves in him. Because he has no goal in mind, everything he does succeeds.

You are good not for what you do, but for who you are. When you recognize your deep inherent value, you make wise decisions that lead to greater good for you and everyone involved. Lao Tse would say, “Trust what you are, and all that you do will bless the world.

Try as we will to take the “cure” of ineffectuality; to meditate on the Taoist fathers’ doctrine of submission, of withdrawal, of a sovereign absence; to follow, like them, the course of consciousness once it ceases to be at grips with the world and weds the form of things as water does, their favorite element—we shall never succeed. They scorn both our curiosity and our thirst for suffering; in which they differ from the mystics, and especially from the medieval ones, so apt to recommend the virtues of the hair shirt, the scourge, insomnia, inanition, and lament. “A life of intensity is contrary to the Tao,” teaches Lao Tse, a normal man if ever there was one. But the Christian virus torments us: heirs of the flagellants, it is by refining our excruciations that we become conscious of ourselves. Is religion declining? We perpetuate its extravagances, as we perpetuate the macerations and the cell-shrieks of old, our will to suffer equaling that of the monasteries in their heyday. If the Church no longer enjoys a monopoly on hell, it has nonetheless riveted us to a chain of sighs, to the cult of the ordeal, of blasted joys and jubilant despair. The mind, as well as the body, pays for “a life of intensity.” Masters in the art of thinking against oneself, Nietzsche, Baudelaire, and Dostoevsky have taught us to side with our dangers, to broaden the sphere of our diseases, to acquire existence by division from our being. And what for the great Chinaman was a symbol of failure, a proof of imperfection, constitutes for us the sole mode of possessing, of making contact with ourselves.

The efficiency of Wu Wei is like that of water flowing over and around the rocks in its path—not the mechanical, straight-line approach that usually ends up short-circuiting natural laws, but one that evolves from an inner sensitivity to the natural rhythm of things.

In pursuit of knowledge, every day something is acquired. In pursuit of wisdom, every day something is dropped.

When we learn to work with our own Inner Nature, and with the natural laws operating around us, we reach the level of Wu Wei.

While the Clear mind listens to a bird singing, the Stuffed-Full-of-Knowledge-and-Cleverness mind wonders what kind of bird is singing.

Do you want to be really happy? You can begin by being appreciative of who you are and what you’ve got.

If people were Superior to Animals, they’d take better care of the world,” said Pooh.

To Lao-tse, the world was not a setter of traps but a teacher of valuable lessons.

The three masters are K’ung Fu-tse (Confucius), Buddha, and Lao-tse, author of the oldest existing book of Taoism.

In the final section of the Tao Te Ching, Lao-tse wrote, “The wise are not learned; the learned are not wise”—an attitude shared by countless Taoists before and since.

The wise are Children Who Know. Their minds have been emptied of the countless minute somethings of small-learning, and filled with the wisdom of the Great Nothing, the Way of the Universe.

From the state of the Uncarved Block comes the ability to enjoy the simple and the quiet, the natural and the plain. Along with that comes the ability to do things spontaneously and have them work, odd as that may appear to others at times. As Piglet put it in Winnie-the-Pooh, “Pooh hasn’t much Brain, but he never comes to any harm. He does silly things and they turn out right.

Once you face and understand your limitations, you can work with them, instead of having them work against you and get in your way, which is what they do when you ignore them, whether you realize it or not. And then you will find that, in many cases, your limitations can be your strengths.

We put thirty spokes together and call it a wheel, But it is on the space where there is nothing that the usefulness of the wheels depends. We turn clay to make vessel, But it is on the space where there is nothing that the usefulness of the vessel depends. We pierce doors and windows to make a house, And it is on these spaces where there is nothing that the usefulness of the house depends. Therefore just as we take advantage of what is, we should recognize the usefulness of what is not.

The essence of the principle of the Uncarved Block is that things in their original simplicity contain their own natural power, power that is easily spoiled and lost when that simplicity is changed.

And yet, you’d be surprised how many people violate this simple principle every day of their lives and try to fit square pegs into round holes, ignoring the clear reality that Things Are As They Are.

Twenty-five centuries ago, Lao-tse, a Chinese sage, said some thing that readers of this book might use today: " The reason why rivers and seas receive the homage of a hundred mountain streams is that they keep below them. Thus they are able to reign over all the mountain streams. So the sage, wishing to be above men, putteth himself below them; wishing to be before them, he putteth himself behind them. Thus, though his place be above men, they do not feel his weight; though his place be before them, they do not count it an injury.

You might say that while Rabbit’s little routine is that of Knowledge for the sake of Being Clever, and while Owl’s is that of Knowledge for the sake of Appearing Wise, Eeyore’s is Knowledge for the sake of Complaining About Something.

Gradually the idea for a book began to take shape. It was to be a wildly ambitious and intolerant work, a kind of 'Anatomy of Restlessness' that would enlarge on Pascal's dictum about the man sitting quietly in a room. The argument, roughly, was as follows: that in becoming human, man had acquired, together with his straight legs and striding walk, a migratory 'drive' or instinct to walk long distances through the seasons; that this 'drive' was inseparable from his central nervous system; and, that, when warped in conditions of settlement, it found outlets in violence, greed, status-seeking or a mania for the new. This would explain why mobile societies such as the gypsies were egalitarian, thing-free and resistant to change; also why, to re-establish the harmony of the First State, all the great teachers - Buddha, Lao-tse, St Francis - had set the perpetual pilgrimage at the heart of their message and told their disciples, literally, to follow The Way.

Im Verlaufe nicht nur der ökonomischen, sondern auch der politischen Globalisierung kann das kardinale völkerrechtliche Prinzip der Nichteinmischung in Gefahr geraten. Besonders gilt dies für dasVerhältnis des Westens zur islamischen Kultur. Vornehmlich von meinem toten muslimischen Freunde Anwar as-Sadat habe ich den Respekt gegenüber anderen Religionen gelernt. Ich habe von ihm gelernt die gleichen Wurzeln von Judentum und Christentum und Islam. Und inzwischen habe ich ausserdem gelernt, dass Konfuzius, Sokrates oder Lao Tse und ebenso Zarathustra und Gautama Buddha ein halbes Jahrtausend, Moses oder Echnaton ein ganzes Jahrtausend vor Jesus von Nazareth gelebt haben - und dass sie wahrscheinlich deswegen doch nicht unglücklicher gewesen sind als wir Heutigen. Unter den globalisierten Umständen der heutigen Menschheit geziemt jedermann Respekt und Toleranz gegenüber den Kulturen der anderen.

Sólo tengo tres cosas que enseñar: simplicidad, paciencia, compasión. Estas tres son tus mayores tesoros. Simple en el pensamiento y la acción, retornas a la fuente del ser. Paciente con tus amigos y enemigos, armonizas con el modo de ser de las cosas. Compasivo contigo mismo, reconcilias a todos los seres del mundo.

Those who know do not speak. Those who speak do not know.

Knowing others is wisdom, knowing yourself is Enlightenment.

The best runner leaves no tracks

If you are a good leader, Who talks little, They will say, When your work is done, And your aim fulfilled, “We did it ourselves.” - Lao Tse

Lo que la oruga llama fin el resto del mundo lo llama mariposa (Lao Tse)

A lot of people try to buy Happiness and Importance in the same sort of way. But you can be happy and important without doing that, you know.

Quién practica el no-obrar todo lo gobierna.

In other words, Knowledge and Experience do not necessarily speak the same language.

It’s about how to stay happy and calm under all circumstances!” I yelled.

The Wise are Who They Are. They work with what they’ve got and do what they can do.

Working with the Tiddely-Pom Principle, you use respect to build Respect. The more it snows, the more it goes:

Wenn du depressiv bist, lebst du in der Vergangenheit. Wenn du ängstlich bist, lebst du in der Zukunft. Wenn du in Frieden lebst, lebst du in der Gegenwart.

Wenn du depressiv bist, lebst du in der Vergangenheit. Wenn du ängstlich bist, lebst du in der Zukunft. Wenn du in Frieden lebst, lebst di in der Gegenwart.

That the soft overcomes the hard, and the yielding overcomes the resistant, is a fact known by all, but practiced by few.

Nur derjenige, der an den Leiden leidet, wird von den Leiden befreit.

Nur derjenige, der an den Leiden leidet, wird von den Leiden befreit

Cleverness tries to devise craftier ways of making pegs fit where they don’t belong.

All it really is, though, is being Sensitive to Circumstances.

The Way of Self-Reliance starts with recognizing who we are, what we’ve got to work with, and what works best for us.

Las palabras verdaderas no son elocuentes; las palabras elocuentes no son verdaderas. Los sabios no precisan probar su opinión; quienes precisan probar su opinión no son sabios.

I take no action and people are reformed. I enjoy peace and people become honest. I do nothing and people become rich. I have no desires and people return to the good and simple life

At least they do when you let them, when you work with circumstances instead of saying, “This isn’t supposed to be happening this way,” and trying hard to make it happen some other way.

Si los impuestos son excesivos, la gente pasa hambre. Si el gobierno se entromete en demasía, la gente pierde su espíritu. Actúa en beneficio de las gentes. Confía en ellas; déjalas solas.

The Comparative Mythologists contend that the common origin is the common ignorance, and that the loftiest religious doctrines are simply refined expressions of the crude and barbarous guesses of savages, of primitive men, regarding themselves and their surroundings. Animism, fetishism, nature-worship, sun-worship — these are the constituents of the primeval mud out of which has grown the splendid lily of religion. A Krishna, a Buddha, a Lao-tse, a Jesus, are the highly civilized but lineal descendants of the whirling medicine-man of the savage. God is a composite photograph of the innumerable Gods who are the personifications of the forces of nature. And so forth. It is all summed up in the phrase: Religions are branches from a common trunk — human ignorance.

Cleverness, after all, has its limitations. Its mechanical judgments and clever remarks tend to prove inaccurate with passing time, because it doesn’t look very deeply into things to begin with.

Cleverness, as usual, takes all the credit it possibly can. But it’s not the Clever Mind that’s responsible when things work out. It’s the mind that sees what’s in front of it, and follows the nature of things.

Now, scholars can be very useful and necessary, in their own dull and un-amusing way. They provide a lot of information. It’s just that there is Something More, and that Something More is what life is really all about.

A journey of a thousand miles begins with one step.’— Lao-Tse ‘The first draft of anything is shit!’— Ernest Hemingway ‘Don’t be afraid to go out on a limb. That’s where the fruit is.’— H. Jackson Browne ‘Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbour. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover.’— Mark Twain

A basic principle of Lao-tse’s teaching was that this Way of the Universe could not be adequately described in words, and that it would be insulting both to its unlimited power and to the intelligent human mind to attempt to do so.

Property was thus appall’d That the self was not the same; Single nature’s double name Neither two nor one was call’d. Reason in itself confounded, Saw division grow together; To themselves yet either neither Simple were so well compounded.

No-saber es auténtica sabiduría. Presumir que se sabe es una enfermedad. Primero, date cuenta de que estás enfermo; sólo entonces podrás recobrar la salud. El Maestro es su propio médico. Se ha curado a sí mismo de todo saber, por eso verdaderamente está completo.

Zoroaster taught it to his followers in Persia twenty-five hundred years ago. Confucius preached it in China twenty-four centuries ago. Lao-tse, the founder of Taoism, taught it to his disciples in the Valley of the Han. Buddha preached it on the bank of the Holy Ganges five hundred years before Christ. The sacred books of Hinduism taught it a thousand years before that. Jesus taught it among the stony hills of Judea nineteen centuries ago. Jesus summed it up in one thought—probably the most important rule in the world: “Do unto others as you would have others do unto you.

If there is peace in the heart, there will be beauty in the character. If there is beauty in the character, there will be harmony in the home. If there is harmony in the home, there will be order in the nation. When there is order in the nation, there will be peace in the world.” — Lao Tse

If you understand others, you are smart. If you understand yourself, you are illuminated. If you overcome others, you are powerful. If you overcome yourself, you have strength. If you know how to be satisfied, you are rich. If you can act with vigor, you have a will. If you don’t lose your objectives, you can be long-lasting. If you die without loss, you are eternal.

I think that what you are most passionate about is the strongest magnet to bring you reward on many levels.” When we release what was, then what is or what could be has space to be born. Children are the happiest people on the planet because they are not dragging the baggage of a long heavy past around with them. If they trip and fall or get upset, they get over it quickly. Nor are they pondering or planning what comes next. The now moment provides them with all the entertainment and fulfillment they need. At some point we all got hung up on time and we abandoned the current moment. We have distracted ourselves with what is not here. Yet the now moment is always available for us to reclaim our soul. At any instant we can step back into heaven. Lao Tse would urge us to pitch our tent right here, the only place life truly lives.

Fama o integridad: ¿Qué es más importante? Dinero o felicidad: ¿Qué es más valioso? Éxito o fracaso: ¿Qué es más destructivo? Si miras a otros en busca de plenitud nunca alcanzarás la auténtica plenitud. Si tu felicidad depende de posesiones nunca estarás feliz contigo mismo. Conténtate con lo que tienes; regocíjate en que las cosas son como son. Cuando comprendes que nada falta, el mundo entero te pertenece.

Likewise, in many relationships there is a period of ripeness during which we connect and uplift each other’s lives. When that phase is complete, it is time to move on. Attempting to hold on will only create frustration and delay the next golden intersection. As much as we would like to hold on to sweet situations forever, we must let go when they have run their course. This is the way of the Tao. Lest you grow wistful because golden intersections do not last forever, take comfort in knowing that (1) you can still love and appreciate the person and the time you shared even if you are no longer together; (2) there is always another (often better) golden intersection coming to replace the one that ended; and (3) some golden relationships do last a lifetime and perhaps many lifetimes. The Great Way, Lao Tse would assure us, is never devoid of gold.

Acoge la desgracia como agradable sorpresa, y estima la calamidad como a tu propio cuerpo." ¿Por qué debemos "acoger la desgracia como agradable sorpresa"? Porque un estado humilde es un favor: caer en él es una agradable sorpresa, ¡y también la es el remontarlo! Por ello, debemos "acoger la desgracia como agradable sorpresa". ¿Por qué debemos "estimar la calamidad como a nuestro propio cuerpo"? Porque nuestro cuerpo es la fuente misma de nuestras calamidades. Si no tuviéramos cuerpo, ¿qué desgracias nos podrían suceder?

To Lao-tse (LAOdsuh), the harmony that naturally existed between heaven and earth from the very beginning could be found by anyone at any time, but not by following the rules of the Confucianists. As he stated in his Tao To Ching (DAO DEH JEENG), the "Tao Virtue Book," earth was in essence a reflection of heaven, run by the same laws - not by the laws of men. These laws affected not only the spinning of distant planets, but the activities of the birds in the forest and the fish in the sea. According to Lao-tse, the more man interfered with the natural balance produced and governed by the universal laws, the further away the harmony retreated into the distance. The more forcing, the more trouble. Whether heavy or fight, wet or dry, fast or slow, everything had its own nature already within it, which could not be violated without causing difficulties. When abstract and arbitrary rules were imposed from the outside, struggle was inevitable. Only then did life become sour. To Lao-tse, the world was not a setter of traps but a teacher of valuable lessons. Its lessons needed to be learned, just as its laws needed to be followed; then all would go well. Rather than turn away from "the world of dust," Lao-tse advised others to "join the dust of the world." What he saw operating behind everything in heaven and earth he called Tao (DAO), "the Way.

We see three men standing around a vat of vinegar. Each has dipped his finger into the vinegar and has tasted it. The expression on each man's face shows his individual reaction. Since the painting is allegorical, we are to understand that these are no ordinary vinegar tasters, but are instead representatives of the "Three Teachings" of China, and that the vinegar they are sampling represents the Essence of Life. The three masters are K'ung Fu-tse (Confucius), Buddha, and Lao-tse, author of the oldest existing book of Taoism. The first has a sour look on his face, the second wears a bitter expression, but the third man is smiling. To Kung Fu-tse (kung FOOdsuh), life seemed rather sour. He believed that the present was out step with the past, and that the government of man on earth was out of harmony with the Way of Heaven, the government of, the universe. Therefore, he emphasized reverence for the Ancestors, as well as for the ancient rituals and ceremonies in which the emperor, as the Son of Heaven, acted as intermediary between limitless heaven and limited earth. Under Confucianism, the use of precisely measured court music, prescribed steps, actions, and phrases all added up to an extremely complex system of rituals, each used for a particular purpose at a particular time. A saying was recorded about K'ung Fu-tse: "If the mat was not straight, the Master would not sit." This ought to give an indication of the extent to which things were carried out under Confucianism. To Buddha, the second figure in the painting, life on earth was bitter, filled with attachments and desires that led to suffering. The world was seen as a setter of traps, a generator of illusions, a revolving wheel of pain for all creatures. In order to find peace, the Buddhist considered it necessary to transcend "the world of dust" and reach Nirvana, literally a state of "no wind." Although the essentially optimistic attitude of the Chinese altered Buddhism considerably after it was brought in from its native India, the devout Buddhist often saw the way to Nirvana interrupted all the same by the bitter wind of everyday existence. To Lao-tse (LAOdsuh), the harmony that naturally existed between heaven and earth from the very beginning could be found by anyone at any time, but not by following the rules of the Confucianists. As he stated in his Tao To Ching (DAO DEH JEENG), the "Tao Virtue Book," earth was in essence a reflection of heaven, run by the same laws - not by the laws of men. These laws affected not only the spinning of distant planets, but the activities of the birds in the forest and the fish in the sea. According to Lao-tse, the more man interfered with the natural balance produced and governed by the universal laws, the further away the harmony retreated into the distance. The more forcing, the more trouble. Whether heavy or fight, wet or dry, fast or slow, everything had its own nature already within it, which could not be violated without causing difficulties. When abstract and arbitrary rules were imposed from the outside, struggle was inevitable. Only then did life become sour. To Lao-tse, the world was not a setter of traps but a teacher of valuable lessons. Its lessons needed to be learned, just as its laws needed to be followed; then all would go well. Rather than turn away from "the world of dust," Lao-tse advised others to "join the dust of the world." What he saw operating behind everything in heaven and earth he called Tao (DAO), "the Way." A basic principle of Lao-tse's teaching was that this Way of the Universe could not be adequately described in words, and that it would be insulting both to its unlimited power and to the intelligent human mind to attempt to do so. Still, its nature could be understood, and those who cared the most about it, and the life from which it was inseparable, understood it best.

«Ocúpate de ser completa y todas las cosas vendrán a ti. Lao Tse».

Lao Tse calls us to dig in rather than lean out; to let ourselves be guided by internal wisdom rather than external opinion. This is the mark of a mature soul.

Lao Tse, village philosopher, believed that the richer a nation is, the poorer it becomes. He believed that knowing war teaches peace, because suffering inhabits glory: Every action provokes reactions. Violence always returns. Only thistles and thorns grow where armies encamp. War summons hunger. He who delights in conquest, delights in human pain. Every victory should be celebrated with a funeral.

There is nothing as weak as water, but when it attacks and is persistent, nothing can withstand it. -Lao Tse

As Lao-tse pointed out, the bad can be raw material for the good. So quite often, the easiest way to get rid of a Minus is to change it into a Plus.

Wil je echt gelukkig zijn? Dan kun je beginnen met te waarderen wie je bent en wat je hebt. Wil je je echt ellendig voelen? Dan kun je beginnen met ontevreden zijn. Zoals Lao-tse schreef: 'Een boom zo dik dat je hem net kunt omspannen begint met een klein zaadje; een reis van duizend kilometer begint met één stap.

«Ser profundamente amado por alguien te da fuerzas, mientras que amar profundamente a alguien te da coraje» —Lao-Tse

Los hombres nacen suaves y flexibles; cuando mueren son tiesos y duros. Las plantas nacen tiernas y dóciles; cuando mueren son frágiles y secas. Por esto quien es tieso y duro es un discípulo de la muerte. Quien es suave y flexible es un discípulo de la vida. Lo duro y tieso se romperá. Lo suave y flexible prevalecerá. LAO TSE

Those with knowledge, don’t predict. Those who predict, don’t have knowledge.” – LAO TSE, Chinese philosopher (604-507 B.C.)

Esto apoya el sentimiento atribuido a Lao Tse: “En el trabajo, haz aquello que disfrutes. En la vida familiar, está completamente presente”.

Conocer a los demás es sabiduría, conocerte a sí mismo es iluminación. —Lao Tse

In the forty-eighth chapter of the Tao Te Ching, Lao-tse wrote, "To attain knowledge, add things every day. To attain wisdom, remove things every day".