The way is near, but men seek it afar. It is in easy things, but men seek for it in difficult things.
MENCIUSOne who believes all of a book would be better off without books.
More Mencius Quotes
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The foundation of the world lies in the nation. The foundation of the nation lies in the family. The foundation of the family lies in the individual.
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To feed men and not to love them is to treat them as if they were barnyard cattle. To love them and not respect them is to treat them as if they were household pets.
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A man must first despise himself, and then others will despise him.
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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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Friendship with a man is friendship with his virtue, and does not admit of assumptions of superiority.
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Men must be decided on what they will not do, and then they are able to act with vigor in what they ought to do.
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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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The great man is he who does not lose his child’s heart.
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A real man is he whose goodness is a part of himself.
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The ways are two: love and want of love. That is all.
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Truth uttered before its time is dangerous.
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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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The way of truth is like a great road. It is not difficult to know it. The evil is only that men will not seek it.
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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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