Quotes on Taoism

When nothing is done, nothing is left undone.

A good traveler has no fixed plans, and is not intent on arriving.

Knowing others is wisdom, knowing yourself is enlightenment.

In the world there is nothing more submissive and weak than water. Yet for attacking that which is hard and strong nothing can surpass it.

Rule your mind with serenity rather than with force and manipulation.

Good leaders reach solutions, and then stop. They do not dare to rely on force.

Treat those who are good with goodness, and also treat those who are not good with goodness. Thus goodness is attained. Be honest to those who are honest, and be also honest to those who are not honest. Thus honesty is attained.

He (the sage) wants all things to follow their own nature, but dares not act.

All the fish needs is to get lost in the water. All man needs is to get lost in Tao.

Can you dissolve your ego? Can you abandon the idea of self and other? Can you relinquish the notions of male and female, short and long, life and death? Can you let go of all these dualities and embrace the Tao without skepticism or panic? If so, you can reach the heart of the Integral Oneness.

Let people return to making knots on ropes, instead of writing.

If you realize that you have enough, you are truly rich.

No disaster is worse than being discontented.

Excellent warriors are not violent.

Love is of all passions the strongest, for it attacks simultaneously the head, the heart and the senses.

Why can't we simply borrow what is useful to us from Buddhism, Hinduism, Taoism, especially Zen, as we borrow from Christianity, science, American Indian traditions and world literature in general, including philosophy, and let the rest go hang? Borrow what we need but rely principally upon our own senses, common sense and daily living experience.

Abandon cleverness, discard profit, and thieves and robbers will disappear.

Mold clay into a bowl. The empty space makes it useful.

To lead people, walk behind them.

When the palace is magnificent, the fields are filled with weeds, and the granaries are empty.

At the center of your being you have the answer; you know who you are and you know what you want.