Confucius

“A youth, when at home, should be filial and, abroad, respectful to his elders. He should be earnest and truthful. He should overflow in love to all and cultivate the friendship of the good. When he has time and opportunity, after the performance of these things, he should employ them in polite studies.”

“The Master said, “What a worthy man was Yan Hui! Living in a narrow alley, subsisting upon meager bits of rice and water—other people could not have borne such hardship, and yet it never spoiled Hui’s joy. What a worthy man was Hui!”(Analects 6.11)”

“If you expect great things of yourself and demand little of others, you’ll keep resentment far away.”

“Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.”

“If names be not correct, language is not in accordance with the truth of things.”

“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.”

“The superior man acts before he speaks, and afterwards speaks according to his action.”

“How to play music may be known. At the commencement of the piece, all the parts should sound together. As it proceeds, they should be in harmony while severally distinct and flowing without break, and thus on to the conclusion.”

“The cautious seldom err.”

“I am not one who was born with great wisdom. I love the ancients and diligently seek wisdom among them.”

“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.”

“כשחבורת אנשים צועדת במדרון, האחרון נמצא במקום הכי גבוה.”

“ללא עקרונות משותפים לא כדאי להיכנס לוויכוחים.”

“השמחה נמצאת בכל; צריך לדעת להפיקה.”

“התהילה הגדולה ביותר שלנו אינה בלעולם לא ליפול, אלא בלקום בכל פעם שאנו נופלים.”

“לכל דבר יש את יופיו, אך לא כל אחד רואה אותו.”

“הבערות היא לילה של המחשבה, אך לילה ללא כוכבים ולבנה.”

“אין אדם יותר ריק מזה שממלא את עצמו.”

“אפילו הגדול שבלוויתנים חסר ערך במדבר.”

“מי שרודף אחרי שני ארנבים לא תופס אפילו אחד.”