If what the heart approves conforms to proper patterns, then even if one’s desires are many, what harm would they be to good order?
XUNZIThe 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.
More Xunzi Quotes
-
-
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.
XUNZI -
There are successful scholars, public-spirited scholars, upright scholars, cautious scholars, and those who are merely petty men.
XUNZI -
The noble person uses things; the lesser man is used by things.
XUNZI -
Human nature is evil, and goodness is caused by intentional activity.
XUNZI -
The coming of honor or disgrace must be a reflection of one’s inner power.
XUNZI -
When you concentrate on agriculture and industry and are frugal in expenditures, Heaven cannot impoverish your state.
XUNZI -
If the impulse to daring and bravery is too fierce and violent, stay it with guidance and instruction.
XUNZI -
Human nature is what Heaven supplies.
XUNZI -
Music is a fantastic peacekeeper of the world, it is integral to harmony, and it is a required fundamental of human emotion.
XUNZI -
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.
XUNZI -
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.
XUNZI -
Human nature is such that people are born with a love of profit If they follow these inclinations, they will struggle and snatch from each other, and inclinations to defer or yield will die.
XUNZI -
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.
XUNZI -
Mencius said that human nature is good. I disagree with that.
XUNZI -
I once tried thinking for an entire day, but I found it less valuable than one moment of study.
XUNZI -
If there is no dull and determined effort, there will be no brilliant achievement.
XUNZI -
Those whose character is mean and vicious will rouse others to animosity against them.
XUNZI -
Sacrifice is a state of mind in which our thoughts turn with longing [toward Heaven, the Ancestors], It is the supreme expression of loyalty, love, and respect.
XUNZI -
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.
XUNZI -
The drum is surely the lord of music, is it not?
XUNZI -
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.
XUNZI -
If the blood humor is too strong and robust, calm it with balance and harmony.
XUNZI -
The person attempting to travel two roads at once will get nowhere.
XUNZI -
If the quickness of the mind and the fluency of the tongue are too punctilious and sharp, moderate them in your activity and rest.
XUNZI -
You look upon the seasons with expectation and await them: wy not seize the seasonal opportunities and exploit them?
XUNZI -
They are done merely for ornament. … the common people regard them as supernatural.
XUNZI