black
grey
blue
red
brown
white

The play-it-safe pessimists of the world never accomplish much of anything, because they don’t look clearly and objectively at situations, they don’t recognize or believe in their own abilities to overcome even the smallest amount of risk.

Benjamin Hoff

When you know and respect your Inner Nature, you know where you belong. You also know where you don’t belong.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Belong Job Respect Tao
The wise know their limitations; the foolish do not.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Foolish Pooh Tao Wise
To Buddha, the second figure in the painting, life on earth was bitter, filled with attachments and desires that led to suffering.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Attachment Desire Suffering
A way of life that keeps saying ‘Around the next corner, above the next step,’ works against the natural order of things and makes it so difficult to be happy and good.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Next Order Steps Way
Treat gain and loss the same.’ Don’t be Intimidated. Don’t make a Big Deal of anything – just accept things as they come to you.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Accepting Gains Loss
Practically everything from hairstyles to lifestyles is endorsed as some sort of drug to be taken Now for Instant Relief.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Drug relief Taken
You’d be surprised how many people violate this simple principle every day of their lives and try to fit square pegs into round holes, ignoring the clear reality that Things Are As They Are.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Reality Simple Square
Like silence after noise, or cool, clear water on a hot, stuffy day, Emptiness cleans out the messy mind and charges up the batteries of spiritual energy. Many people are afraid of Emptiness, however, because it reminds them of Loneliness.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Loneliness People Spiritual
There is more to knowing than just being correct
BENJAMIN HOFF

Correct Just Being Knowing
Enjoy the simple, the natural and the plain. Along with that comes the ability to do things spontaneously and have them work.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Pooh Simple Simplicity Tao
When you discard arrogance, complexity, and a few other things that get in the way, sooner or later you will discover that simple, childlike, and mysterious secret known to those of the Uncarved Block: Life is Fun.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Block Discover Fun Life
“Rabbit’s clever,” said Pooh thoughtfully. “Yes,” said Piglet, “Rabbit’s clever.” “And he has Brain.” “Yes,” said Piglet, “Rabbit has Brain.” There was a long silence. “I suppose,” said Pooh, “that that’s why he never understands anything.”
BENJAMIN HOFF

Clever Funny Humor
A well-frog cannot imagine the ocean, nor can a summer insect conceive of ice. How then can a scholar understand the Tao? He is restricted by his own learning.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Ice Ocean Summer
Reality is what one makes it. And the more negative reality one nurtures and creates, the more of it one has.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Negative Nurture Reality
Under Confucianism, the use of precisely measured court music, prescribed steps, actions, and phrases all added up to an extremely complex system of rituals, each used for a particular purpose at a particular time.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Phrases Purpose Steps
The Infinite Universal Power is more than just a narrow-minded gatekeeper to a spiritual County Club.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Clubs Infinite Spiritual
From the Taoist point of view, the natural result of this harmonious way of living is happiness.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Happiness Pooh Tao Views Way
It is very hard to be brave,” said Piglet, sniffing slightly, “when you’re only a Very Small Animal.” Rabbit, who had begun to write very busily, looked up and said: “It is because you are a very small animal that you will be Useful in the adventure before us.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Adventure Animal Writing
Modern man’s difficulties, dangerous beliefs and feelings of loneliness, spiritual emptiness,and personal weakness are caused by his illusions about, and separation from, the natural world.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Loneliness Men Spiritual
Without difficulties, life would be like a stream without rocks and curves – about as interesting as concrete. Without problems, there can be no personal growth, no group achievement, no progress of humanity. But what mattes about problems is what one does with them.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Curve Interesting Rocks
We simply need to believe in the power that’s within us, and use it.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Believe Needs Use
No matter how useful we may be, sometimes it takes us a while to recognize our own value.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Limitation Matter May Sometimes
One sometimes gets the impression that those intimidating words are there to keep us from understanding. That way, the scholars can appear Superior, and will not likely be suspected of Not Knowing Something.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Knowing Understanding Way
But isn’t the knowledge that comes from experience more valuable than the knowledge that doesn’t? It seems fairly obvious to some of us that a lot of scholars need to go outside and sniff around – walk through the grass, talk to the animals. That sort of thing.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Animal Needs Pooh Tao
Cleverness, after all, has its limitations. Its mechanical judgments and clever remarks tend to prove inaccurate with passing time, because it doesn’t look very deeply into things to begin with.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Clever Looks Pooh
Do you really want to be happy? You can begin by being appreciative of who you are and what you’ve got.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Cheer Up Want
The Universe knows what it’s doing. So don’t develop a big ego, and don’t be afraid.
BENJAMIN HOFF

Bigs Ego Knows

The play-it-safe pessimists of the world never accomplish much of anything, because they don’t look clearly and objectively at situations, they don’t recognize or believe in their own abilities to overcome even the smallest amount of risk.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

The play-it-safe pessimists of the world never accomplish much of anything, because they don’t look clearly and objectively at situations, they don’t recognize or believe in their own abilities to overcome even the smallest amount of risk.

Related Topics

Popular Authors

More Benjamin Hoff Quotes