Philosophical Quotes of Confucius

Attitude towards life

Scholars who aspire to the Tao and are ashamed of those who wear bad clothes and eat poorly are not worthy of discussion.

When you are so angry you forget to eat, when you are happy you forget about your worries, and you don’t know that old age is coming...

Eat sparingly, drink water, bend your arms and rest your head on it, and enjoy it. Being rich and noble without justice is like a floating cloud to me.

Xianzai, come back! A basket of food and a ladle of drink, in a back alley, people can't bear to worry about it. Even if I return, I will not change my joy.

Xianzai, come back!

Wealth and honor are what people want; if they don’t follow the right path, they won’t get it. Poverty and lowliness are what people hate;

If you don’t follow the right path, you won’t get rid of them.

If you are rich and can be sought after, even if you are a man with a whip, I will do it. If you can't ask for it, do as I like.

Isn’t it great to have friends from far away?

Think of righteousness when you see benefit, and give orders when you see danger.

Cultivation of oneself to bring respect to oneself, Cultivation of oneself to bring peace of mind to others... Cultivation of oneself to bring peace of mind to the people.

You can support an orphan six feet away, you can send a life a hundred miles away, and you can't take it away during a big festival.

A man with lofty ideals and benevolence will not harm his benevolence by seeking life, but will kill himself to achieve benevolence.

The king died due to illness and his name was not known.

Those who are upright are upright and righteous. Observe words and colors, and consider the following people.

A gentleman is arrogant but not arrogant, and a villain is arrogant but not arrogant.

It is easy for a gentleman to say (pleasant) but difficult to say (pleasant). Saying (pleasant) is not done in the right way, not saying (pleasant).

A gentleman's official duties are to act righteously.

Zi said Yu Chan. There are four principles of a gentleman: he behaves respectfully towards himself, he is respectful in his conduct, he benefits the people when he supports them, and he treats the people righteously.

Gentlemen are harmonious but different; villains are harmonious but not harmonious.

A gentleman is reserved and does not fight, and he is a group but not a party.

A gentleman is not careful in comparing himself with others, and a villain is not careful in comparing himself with others.

A gentleman is magnanimous, but a villain is always worried.

The benevolent do not worry, the wise do not be confused, the brave do not fear.

Acting with interests in mind leads to more resentment.

If you seek benevolence and gain benevolence, there is no need to complain.

If quality is better than literature, then the country will be wild; if literature is better than quality, then history will be achieved. Be gentle and polite, then be a gentleman.

A gentleman seeks the road but not food; a gentleman worries about the road but not poverty.

How can I be ignorant of the French language? Change it to expensive. Is it possible to talk to him with his hand without saying anything?

Is it possible? Make it valuable. If I say it without interpreting it, and therefore without changing it, then I am no longer as good as I am.

Seeing the good is like exploring the soup.

A gentleman respects the virtuous and tolerates others, praises the good but is reserved.

It is not enough to be a scholar just because you care about your home!

Life motto

If you don’t learn etiquette, you can’t stand up.

Do to others what you don’t want others to do.

If you want to establish yourself, you can establish others; if you want to achieve yourself, you can achieve others.

If you are generous to yourself but do not blame others, you will be far from resentful.

When you see the virtuous, you think about them all; when you see the virtuous, you reflect on yourself.

When three people walk together, they must have a teacher. Choose the good ones and follow them, and choose the bad ones and change them.

I examine myself three times every day: Am I being unfaithful to others? Have you ever left a letter with a friend? Are you not used to it?

Be respectful when you live, be respectful when working, and be loyal to others.

A gentleman is respectful and courteous, and he is respectful and courteous to others. He is a brother in the world.

He is loyal in words and respectful in actions, even in a barbaric country. If you are not faithful in words and respectful in deeds, how can you do it even if you live in the state?

He who behaves his own way with shame, and who can serve in all directions without dishonoring the emperor's orders, can be called a scholar.

Confucius said: "He who can do the five things is benevolent in the world." Please ask. Said: "Gong, generosity, trust, sensitivity, and benefit. Being respectful means not insulting, being lenient means winning people, being trustworthy means being able to do whatever you want, being sensitive means being successful, and being merciful means being able to win over others."

A gentleman takes righteousness as a pledge, conducts it with propriety, develops it as a grandson, and fulfills it with faith. What a gentleman!

To make mistakes without correcting them is to make mistakes!

If it is passed, it will be changed in a hurry.

Don’t express your anger and don’t make mistakes.

The three armies can seize the commander, but an ordinary man cannot seize the will!

If a person has no long-term worries, he must have immediate worries.

No haste, no small gain. If you want haste, you will not achieve anything; if you see small gains, you will not achieve great things.

Scholars must be ambitious and have a long way to go. Isn’t it important to think of benevolence as one’s own responsibility? Isn't it just too far to die before oneself?

If you don’t uphold your virtues and don’t believe deeply, how can you live or die?

When making friends, keep your word.

Use literature to make friends, and friends to help people.

Three friends will benefit you, and three friends will harm you. Friends who are straight, friends who are understanding, and friends who are knowledgeable are beneficial. If you have friends, you will be brave. If you are friendly, you will be gentle. If you have friends, you will be sycophantic, which is a loss.

A gentleman wants to be slow in words but quick in deeds.

A gentleman has nothing to eat and nothing to live in, and he is sensitive to things and careful in his words.

Smooth words and bad morals.

Clever words and charming words are fresh and benevolent.

Strongness, perseverance, woodiness, indifference and benevolence.

Those who are virtuous must educate themselves in words, but those who are eloquent do not need to cultivate virtues.

Listen to what they say and watch what they do.

You don’t use your words to lift people up, and you don’t use people to trash your words.

The ancients couldn’t say anything, and they were ashamed of themselves.

A gentleman’s name must be something to be said, and his words must be actionable. A gentleman is nothing more than scrupulous about his words.

If you can talk to someone but don't talk to them, you will miss someone; if you talk to someone you can't talk to, you will miss your words. He who knows does not lose people, nor does he lose words.

To say something without mentioning it is called impatience; to say something but not say anything is called concealment; to say it without seeing the color is called blindness.

If you love benevolence but don’t learn, you will be a fool; if you love knowledge but don’t learn, you will be a fool; if you love faith but don’t learn, you will be a thief; if you love straightforwardness but don’t learn, then you will be blind; if you love to be brave but don’t learn, then you will be blind. If you love to learn, you will be confused; if you are rigid and don't want to learn, you will be crazy.

Being respectful but rude will lead to fatigue, being cautious but rude will lead to turmoil, being brave but rude will lead to chaos, being straight but rude will lead to strangulation.

Serve the king with respect, and then eat with him.

In terms of etiquette, harmony is the most valuable thing.

Acting with interests in mind leads to more resentment.

Confucius on Learning

Knowing is knowing, not knowing is not knowing, this is knowing.

If I am the author without knowing it, I am not the author. If you hear a lot, choose the good ones and follow them; if you see a lot, you will recognize them.

If you are holy, I can’t do it. I am never tired of learning and never tire of teaching.

If you are not good at learning, you are afraid of losing it.

Smart and eager to learn, and not ashamed to ask questions.

Use the able to ask questions about the incompetent, ask too many questions about the few; if there is something there, if there is nothing, if it is true, then it will be false, and you will make mistakes without correcting them.

Prosperous in poetry and established in etiquette. Be happy.

Aspire to Tao, base on virtue, rely on benevolence, and wander in art.

If you are not angry, you will not be enlightened; if you are not angry, you will not be angry. If you take one corner and don't turn it back with three, it won't happen again.

Those who know something are not as good as those who are good at it, and those who are good at it are not as good as those who are happy.

I don’t eat all day long and stay up all night just thinking about it, it’s useless, it’s not as good as learning.

Learning without thinking is a waste, thinking without learning is peril.

Everyone who is evil must be investigated; everyone who is fond of it must be observed.

Isn’t it true that one should learn and practice it from time to time?

You can become a teacher by reviewing the past and learning the new.

The sun knows where he is dead, and the moon has not forgotten what he can do. It can be said that he is eager to learn.

If you don’t learn poetry, you won’t be able to express it.

Poetry can be exciting, watchable, group-building, and resentful. Those who are near serve the father, those who are far away serve the king; they are more familiar with the names of birds, beasts, grass and trees.

Human beings have no permanence and cannot be witch doctors.

There is no distinction between teaching and learning.

I am not without teachings even if I have to restrain myself.

Political mottos