Quotes from bookTao Te Ching
The Tao Te Ching , also known as Lao Tzu or Laozi, is a Chinese classic text traditionally credited to the 6th-century BC sage Laozi. The text's authorship, date of composition and date of compilation are debated. The oldest excavated portion dates back to the late 4th century BC, but modern scholarship dates other parts of the text as having been written—or at least compiled—later than the earliest portions of the Zhuangzi.The Tao Te Ching, along with the Zhuangzi, is a fundamental text for both philosophical and religious Taoism. It also strongly influenced other schools of Chinese philosophy and religion, including Legalism, Confucianism, and Buddhism, which was largely interpreted through the use of Taoist words and concepts when it was originally introduced to China. Many artists, including poets, painters, calligraphers, and gardeners, have used the Tao Te Ching as a source of inspiration. Its influence has spread widely outside East Asia and it is among the most translated works in world literature.
“Since before time and space were,
the Tao is.
It is beyond is and is not.”
Laozi book Tao Te Ching
Source: Tao Te Ching, Ch. 21, as interpreted by Stephen Mitchell (1992)
Context: Since before time and space were,
the Tao is.
It is beyond is and is not.
How do I know this is true?
I look inside myself and see.
“Qiān lǐ zhī xíng shǐ yú zú xià.”
Laozi book Tao Te Ching
千里之行始於足下。
A journey of a thousand li starts with a single step.
Variant translations:
A journey of a thousand [miles] starts with a single step.
A journey of a thousand miles started with a first step.
A thousand-mile journey starts from your feet down there.
As translated by Dr. Hilmar Klaus
Every journey begins with a single step.
Source: Tao Te Ching, Ch. 64, line 12
“The Tao is called the Great Mother:
empty yet inexhaustible,
it gives birth to infinite worlds.”
Laozi book Tao Te Ching
Source: Tao Te Ching, Ch. 6, as interpreted by Stephen Mitchell (1992)
“Governing a large country is like frying a small fish.”
Laozi book Tao Te Ching
Source: Tao Te Ching, Ch. 60
“To attain knowledge, add things every day.
To attain wisdom, remove things every day.”
Laozi book Tao Te Ching
Source: Tao Te Ching, Ch. 48
Laozi book Tao Te Ching
Variants:
A good traveller has no fixed plan and is not intent on arriving.
As quoted in In Search of King Solomon's Mines (2003) by Tahir Shah, p. 217
A true traveller has no fixed plan, and is not intent on arriving.
Source: Tao Te Ching, Ch. 27, as interpreted by Stephen Mitchell (1992)
Laozi book Tao Te Ching
Variant translation by Lin Yutang: "He who knows others is learned; he who knows himself is wise".
Source: Tao Te Ching, Ch. 33, as interpreted by Stephen Mitchell (1992)
“The more laws and order are made prominent, the more thieves and robbers there will be.”
Laozi book Tao Te Ching
Variant translation: The more prohibitions there are, the poorer the people will be.
Source: Tao Te Ching, Ch. 57
“When men lack a sense of awe, there will be disaster.”
Laozi book Tao Te Ching
Source: Tao Te Ching, Chapter 72, translated by Gia Fu Feng
Laozi book Tao Te Ching
A longer paraphrase of this quotation, with modern embellishments, is often attributed to Laozi: see "Misattributed" below.
Source: Tao Te Ching, Ch. 17
“This source is called darkness.
Darkness born from darkness.
The beginning of all understanding.”
Laozi book Tao Te Ching
Source: Tao Te Ching, Ch. 1, as translated by J.H.McDonald (1996) http://www.wright-house.com/religions/taoism/tao-te-ching.html [Public domain translation] <br class="br">Context: The tao that can be described<br>is not the eternal Tao.<br>The name that can be spoken<br>is not the eternal Name.<br>The nameless is the boundary of Heaven and Earth.<br>The named is the mother of creation.<br>Freed from desire, you can see the hidden mystery.<br>By having desire, you can only see what is visibly real.<br>Yet mystery and reality<br>emerge from the same source.<br>This source is called darkness.<br>Darkness born from darkness.<br>The beginning of all understanding.
Laozi book Tao Te Ching
Source: Tao Te Ching, Ch. 1, as translated by J.H.McDonald (1996) http://www.wright-house.com/religions/taoism/tao-te-ching.html [Public domain translation] <br class="br">Context: The tao that can be described<br>is not the eternal Tao.<br>The name that can be spoken<br>is not the eternal Name.<br>The nameless is the boundary of Heaven and Earth.<br>The named is the mother of creation.<br>Freed from desire, you can see the hidden mystery.<br>By having desire, you can only see what is visibly real.<br>Yet mystery and reality<br>emerge from the same source.<br>This source is called darkness.<br>Darkness born from darkness.<br>The beginning of all understanding.
