If the impulse to daring and bravery is too fierce and violent, stay it with guidance and instruction.
XUNZIThe drum is surely the lord of music, is it not?
More Xunzi Quotes
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Human nature is evil, and goodness is caused by intentional activity.
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If the quickness of the mind and the fluency of the tongue are too punctilious and sharp, moderate them in your activity and rest.
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Music is a fantastic peacekeeper of the world, it is integral to harmony, and it is a required fundamental of human emotion.
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If knowledge and foresight are too penetrating and deep, unify them with ease and sincerity.
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Men of all social stations live together: they are equal in their desires, yet vary in their methods; they are equal in their passions, yet different in their intelligence; that is their nature-given vitality.
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Therefore, a person should first be changed by a teacher’s instructions, and guided by principles of ritual. Only then can he observe the rules of courtesy and humility, obey the conventions and rules of society, and achieve order.
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If there is no dull and determined effort, there will be no brilliant achievement.
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If the blood humor is too strong and robust, calm it with balance and harmony.
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You look upon the seasons with expectation and await them: wy not seize the seasonal opportunities and exploit them?
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Thus, that one can find no place to walk through the breadth of the earth is not because the earth is not tranquil but because the danger to every step of the traveler lies generally with words.
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In antiquity the sage kings recognized that men’s nature is bad and that their tendencies were not being corrected and their lawlessness controlled.
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Since the nature of people is bad, to become corrected they must be taught by teachers and to be orderly they must acquire ritual and moral principles.
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Misery is evil; quarreling, a misfortune. There is only one possibility of avoiding both: a clear division of society. [Otherwise] the strong tyrannize the weak, the intelligent frighten the stupid, the inferior resist the superior, and the young mock the old.
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Thus, anybody who follows this nature and gives way its states will be led into quarrels and conflicts, and go against the conventions and rules of society, and will end up a criminal.
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Human nature refers to what is in people but which they cannot study or work at achieving.
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I once tried standing up on my toes to see far out in the distance, but I found that I could see much farther by climbing to a high place.
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There are successful scholars, public-spirited scholars, upright scholars, cautious scholars, and those who are merely petty men.
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Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn.
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The drum is surely the lord of music, is it not?
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One must remember equality, yet also be aware of difference, for if the people are allowed to act as it pleases them without coming up against displeasure, if one gives rein to its desires without setting [any] limit, it becomes confused and can no longer take delight in anything.
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If the gentleman has ability, he is magnanimous, generous, tolerant, and straightforward, through which he opens the way to instruct others.
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Mencius said that human nature is good. I disagree with that.
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The petty man is eager to make boasts, yet desires that others should believe in him. He enthusiastically engages in deception, yet wants others to have affection for him. He conducts himself like an animal, yet wants others to think well of him.
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The person attempting to travel two roads at once will get nowhere.
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When a man sees something desirable, he must reflect on the fact that with time it could come to involve what is detestable. When he sees something that is beneficial, he should reflect that sooner or later it, too, could come to involve harm.
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They are done merely for ornament. … the common people regard them as supernatural.
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