The Tao is near and people seek it far away.
MENCIUSIncessant falls teach men to reform, and distress rouses their strength. Life springs from calamity, and death from ease.
More Mencius Quotes
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The way is near, but men seek it afar. It is in easy things, but men seek for it in difficult things.
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Mankind fears an evil man but heaven does not.
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The great man is he who does not lose his child’s heart.
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Every duty is a charge, but the charge of oneself is the root of all others.
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The feeling of right or wrong is the beginning of wisdom.
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The regular path of virtue is to be pursued without any bend, and from no view to emolument.
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He who loves others is constantly loved by them. He who respects others is constantly respected by them.
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The way of learning is none other than finding the lost mind.
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People are eager to comment on something when they themselves are not in the situation of doing it.
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Only when someone refuses to do certain things will he be capable of doing great things.
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Friends are the siblings God never gave us.
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To act without clear understanding, to form habits without investigation, to follow a path all one’s life without knowing where it really leads; such is the behavior of the multitude.
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Sincerity is the way to heaven; to think how to be sincere is the way of man.
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Where it is permissible both to die and not to die, it is an abuse of valour to die.
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It is not difficult to govern. All one has to do is not to offend the noble families.
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He who wishes to be benevolent will not be rich.
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Try your best to treat others as you would wish to be treated yourself, and you will find that this is the shortest way to benevolence.
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All people have the common desire to be elevated in honour, but all people have something still more elevated in themselves without knowing it.
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Let not a man do what his sense of right bids him not to do, nor desire what it forbids him to desire. This is sufficient. The skillful artist will not alter his measures for the sake of a stupid workman.
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If the King loves music, it is well with the land.
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In abundance prepare for scarcity.
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A small country cannot contend with a great; the few cannot contend with the many; the weak cannot contend with the strong.
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The myriad things are complete in us. There is no greater joy than to reflect on ourselves and become sincere.
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Only those who develop their minds and spirits to the utmost can serve Heaven and fulfill their own destinies.
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Human nature is good, just as water seeks low ground. There is no man who is not good, just as there is no water that does not flow downward.
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I dislike death, however, there are some things I dislike more than death. Therefore, there are times when I will not avoid danger.
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