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The sage is sharp but does not cut, pointed but does not pierce, forthright but does not offend, bright but does not dazzle.

Laozi

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Laozi
Archivist
Philosopher
Writer
Lao-tze
Lao Tzu
Lao-tzu
Lao-tsu
Li Er
Laotze
Sage
Taoism
Sharp
Bright
Forthright
Cutting
Dazzle
Doe
Offend
Pierce
Pointed

More quotes by Laozi

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All streams flow to the sea because it is lower than they are. Humility gives it its power.
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The supreme rulers are hardly known by their subjects. The lesser are loved and praised. The even lesser are feared. The least are despised.
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The more laws and order are made prominent, the more thieves and robbers there will be.
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By letting it go it all gets done. The world is won by those who let it go. But when you try and try. The world is beyond the winning.
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The real is empty and the empty real
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Not valuing wealth prevents theft.
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The best leaders are those their people hardly know exist. The next best is a leader who is loved and praised. Next comes the one who is feared. The worst one is the leader that is despised ... The best leaders value their words, and use them sparingly. When they have accomplished their task, the people say, Amazing! We did it, all by ourselves!
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The best fighter is never angry.
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To be brave without compassion, generous without moderation, and rule without refraining from being first in the world, are certain deaths.
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When the palace is magnificent, the fields are filled with weeds, and the granaries are empty.
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Let the country be small, and the inhabitants few.
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Ancient masters of excellence had a subtle essence, and a depth too profound to comprehend.
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. . . These are notions of the mind, which is like a knife, always chipping away at the Tao, trying to render it graspable and manageable. But that which is beyond form is ungraspable, and that which is beyond knowing is unmanageable. There is, however, this consolation: She who lets go of the knife will find the Tao at her fingertips.
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Use justice to rule a country. Use surprise to wage war. Use non-action to govern the world.
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Understand this if nothing else: spiritual freedom and oneness with the Tao are not randomly bestowed gifts, but the rewards of conscious self-transformation and self-evolution.
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(The Tao) is always present and always available. . . . If you are willing to be lived by it, you will see it everywhere, even in the most ordinary things.
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The sage wears coarse clothes, concealing jade.
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For all things difficult to acquire, the intelligent man works with perseverance.
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A great country is like the lower outlet of a river. It is the world's meeting ground, the world's female.
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Those who are one with deprivation are deprived of deprivation.
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