124 Lao Tzu Quotes and sayings
Lao Tzu also known as Laozi, or Lao-Tze was a Chinese philosopher and writer. This “Old Master” has played a central role in Chinese culture for millennia. Lao Tzu has traditionally been regarded as the author of the Tao Te Ching, an ancient Chinese text that describes the Tao (or Dao) as the source of all existence. Here we have curated Lao Tzu quotes to give insight into this wise man and his teachings.
Lao Tzu Quotes
- “Water is the softest thing, yet it can penetrate mountains and earth. This shows clearly the principle of softness overcoming hardness.” – Lao Tzu
- “Time is a created thing. To say ‘I don’t have time,’ is like saying, ‘I don’t want to.” – Lao Tzu
- “Do you have the patience to wait until your mud settles and the water is clear?” – Lao Tzu
- “Be content with what you have; rejoice in the way things are. When you realize there is nothing lacking, the whole world belongs to you.” – Lao Tzu
- “Great acts are made up of small deeds.” – Lao Tzu
- “It is better to leave a vessel unfilled, than to attempt to carry it when it is full.” – Lao Tzu
- “If the people must be ever fearful of death, then there will always be an executioner.” – Lao Tzu
- “Our enemies are not demons, but human beings like ourselves.” – Lao Tzu
- “When you are at one with loss, the loss is experienced willingly.” – Lao Tzu
- “To be worn out is to be renewed.” – Lao Tzu
- “There is no disaster greater than not being content; there is no misfortune greater than being covetous.” – Lao Tzu
- “The reason why the universe is eternal is that it does not live for itself; it gives life to others as it transforms.” – Lao Tzu
- “The flame that burns twice as bright burns half as long.” – Lao Tzu
- “Ordinary men hate solitude. But the Master makes use of it, embracing his aloneness, realizing he is one with the whole universe.” – Lao Tzu
- “Life is a series of natural and spontaneous changes. Don’t resist them; that only creates sorrow. Let reality be reality. Let things flow naturally forward in whatever way they like.” – Lao Tzu
Inspirational Lao Tzu Quotes
- “Go to the people. Live with them, learn from them, love them.” – Lao Tzu
- “Your own positive future begins in this moment. All you have is right now. Every goal is possible from here.” – Lao Tzu
- “If lightning is the anger of the gods, then the gods are concerned mostly about trees.” – Lao Tzu
- “Is it not through her selflessness that she is able to perfect herself?”
- “The world belongs to those who let go.” – Lao Tzu
- “Health is the greatest possession. Contentment is the greatest treasure. Confidence is the greatest friend.” – Lao Tzu
- “If you do not value rare treasures, you will stop others from stealing.” – Lao Tzu
- “Care about what other people think and you will always be their prisoner.” – Lao Tzu
- “A violent wind does not last for a whole morning; a sudden rain does not last for the whole day.” – Lao Tzu
- “He who knows he has enough is rich. Perseverance is a sign of will power. He who stays where he is endures. To die but not to perish is to be eternally present.” – Lao Tzu
- “Nature is not human hearted.” – Lao Tzu
- “He who defends with love will be secure; Heaven will save him, and protect him with love.” – Lao Tzu
- “Respond to anger with virtue. Deal with difficulties while they are still easy. Handle the great while it is still small.” – Lao Tzu
- “Just remain in the center; watching. And then forget that you are there.” – Lao Tzu
- “The way to do is to be.” – Lao Tzu
Famous Lao Tzu Quotes
- “He who talks more is sooner exhausted.” – Lao Tzu
- “As soon as you have made a thought, laugh at it.” – Lao Tzu
- “A scholar who cherishes the love of comfort is not fit to be deemed a scholar.” – Lao Tzu
- “If you want to know me, look inside your heart.” – Lao Tzu
- “A man with outward courage dares to die; a man with inner courage dares to live.” – Lao Tzu
- “The truth is not always beautiful, nor beautiful words the truth.” – Lao Tzu
- “Muddy water, let stand, becomes clear.” – Lao Tzu
- “He who knows others is wise; he who knows himself is enlightened.” – Lao Tzu
- “Do you imagine the universe is agitated? Go into the desert at night and look at the stars. This practice should answer the question.” – Lao Tzu
- “He who controls others may be powerful, but he who has mastered himself is mightier still.” – Lao Tzu
- “The Wise Man is square but not sharp, honest but not not malign, straight but not severe, bright but not dazzling.” – Lao Tzu
- “The softest things in the world overcome the hardest things in the world. Through this I know the advantage of taking no action.” – Lao Tzu
- “Give evil nothing to oppose and it will disappear by itself.” – Lao Tzu
- “Do your work, then step back. The only path to serenity.” – Lao Tzu
- “To realize that you do not understand is a virtue; not to realize that you do not understand is a defect.” – Lao Tzu
Short Inspiring Quotes by Lao Tzu
- “From wonder into wonder existence opens.” – Lao Tzu
- “The best fighter is never angry.” – Lao Tzu
- “If you do not change direction, you may end up where you are heading.” – Lao Tzu
- “Act without expectation.” – Lao Tzu
- “Ambition has one heel nailed in well, though she stretches her fingers to touch the heavens.” – Lao Tzu
- “When you are content to be simply yourself and don’t compare or compete, everyone will respect you.” – Lao Tzu
- “The way of heaven is to help and not harm.” – Lao Tzu
- “What is firmly rooted cannot be pulled out.” – Lao Tzu
- “I have just three things to teach: simplicity, patience, compassion. These three are your greatest treasures.” – Lao Tzu
- “A good traveler leaves no tracks.” – Lao Tzu
- “The hard and mighty lie beneath the ground
While the tender and weak dance on the breeze above.” – Lao Tzu - “Loss is not as bad as wanting more.” – Lao Tzu
- “Spring comes, and the grass grows by itself.” – Lao Tzu
- “Silence is a source of great strength.” – Lao Tzu
- “Do not conquer the world with force, for force only causes resistance. Thorns spring up when an army passes. Years of misery follow a great victory. Do only what needs to be done without using violence.” – Lao Tzu
Lao Tzu Quotes
- “What the caterpillar calls the end, the rest of the world calls a butterfly.” – Lao Tzu
- “The master observes the world but trusts his inner vision. He allows things to come and go. He prefers what is within to what is without.” – Lao Tzu
- “At the center of your being you have the answer; you know who you are and you know what you want.” – Lao Tzu
- “If you realize that all things change, there is nothing you will try to hold on to. If you are not afraid of dying, there is nothing you cannot achieve.” – Lao Tzu
- “The heart that gives, gathers.” – Lao Tzu
- “Those who flow as life flows know they need no other force.” – Lao Tzu
- “Water is fluid, soft, and yielding. But water will wear away rock, which is rigid and cannot yield. As a rule, whatever is fluid, soft, and yielding will overcome whatever is rigid and hard. This is another paradox: what is soft is strong.” – Lao Tzu
- “He who acts, spoils; he who grasps, lets slip.” – Lao Tzu
- “The wise man is one who knows what he does not know.” – Lao Tzu
- “One who is too insistent on his own views finds few to agree with him.” – Lao Tzu
- “A bad man is a good man’s job.” – Lao Tzu
- “Love is of all the passions the strongest, for it attacks simultaneously the head, the heart, and the senses.” – Lao Tzu
- “When the student is ready the teacher will appear. When the student is truly ready… The teacher will disappear.” – Lao Tzu
- “Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength, while loving someone deeply gives you courage.” – Lao Tzu
- “If you wish to be out front, then act as if you were behind.” – Lao Tzu
Motivational Lao Tzu Quotes
- “To attain knowledge, add things everyday. To attain wisdom, remove things every day.” – Lao Tzu
- “When pure sincerity forms within, it is outwardly realized in other people’s hearts.” – Lao Tzu
- “The road you can talk about is not the road you can walk on.” – Lao Tzu
- “When the people of the world all know beauty as beauty, there arises the recognition of ugliness. When they all know the good as good, there arises the recognition of evil.” – Lao Tzu
- “The difficult problems in life always start off being simple. Great affairs always start off being small.” – Lao Tzu
- “Some lose yet gain, others gain and yet lose.” – Lao Tzu
- “Knowing how to yield is strength.” – Lao Tzu
- “Not seeking, not expecting, she is present, and can welcome all things.” – Lao Tzu
- “Chanting is no more holy than listening to the murmur of a stream, counting prayer beads no more scared than simply breathing, religious robes no more spiritual than work clothes.” – Lao Tzu
- “There is no illusion greater than fear.” – Lao Tzu
- “If I had just a little bit of wisdom I should walk the great path and fear only straying from it.” – Lao Tzu
- “Composure is the ruler of instability.” – Lao Tzu
- “With few there is attainment. With much there is confusion.” – Lao Tzu
- “Fill your bowl to the brim and it will spill. Keep sharpening your knife and it will blunt.” – Lao Tzu
- “He who knows that enough is enough will always have enough.” – Lao Tzu
Best Lao Tzu Quotes
- “There is no greater danger than underestimating your opponent.” – Lao Tzu
- “Life and death are one thread, the same line viewed from different sides.” – Lao Tzu
- “Governing a great nation is like cooking a small fish – too much handling will spoil it.” – Lao Tzu
- “People in their handlings of affairs often fail when they are about to succeed. If one remains as careful at the end as he was at the beginning, there will be no failure.” – Lao Tzu
- “Hope and fear are both phantoms that arise from thinking of the self. When we don’t see the self as self, what do we have to fear?”– Lao Tzu
- “I do not concern myself with gods and spirits either good or evil nor do I serve any.” – Lao Tzu
- “From caring comes courage.” – Lao Tzu
- “The key to growth is the introduction of higher dimensions of consciousness into our awareness.” – Lao Tzu
- “By letting go it all gets done.” – Lao Tzu
- “If you are depressed you are living in the past.
Lao Tzu Quotes
- “When there is no desire, all things are at peace.” – Lao Tzu
- “If you are anxious you are living in the future. If you are at peace you are living in the present.” – Lao Tzu
- “To hold, you must first open your hand. Let go.” – Lao Tzu
- “A good traveler has no fixed plans and is not intent on arriving.” – Lao Tzu
- “When you accept yourself, the whole world accepts you.” – Lao Tzu
- “Because of a great love, one is courageous.” – Lao Tzu
- “An over sharpened sword cannot last long. “
- “Sincere words are not fine; fine words are not sincere.” – Lao Tzu
- “New beginnings are often disguised as painful endings.” – Lao Tzu
- “Stop thinking, and end your problems.” – Lao Tzu
Top Lao Tzu Quotes
- “The more laws and order are made prominent, the more thieves and robbers there will be.” – Lao Tzu
- “To see things in the seed, that is genius.” – Lao Tzu
- “Take care with the end as you do with the beginning.” – Lao Tzu
- “The further one goes, the less one knows.” – Lao Tzu
- “When goodness is lost there is morality.” – Lao Tzu
- “The Tao is nowhere to be found. Yet it nourishes and completes all things.” – Lao Tzu
- “When men lost their understanding of the Tao, intelligence came along, bringing hypocrisy with it.” – Lao Tzu
- “Manifest plainness, Embrace simplicity, Reduce selfishness, Have few desires.” – Lao Tzu
- “When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.” – Lao Tzu
- “If you try to change it, you will ruin it. Try to hold it, and you will lose it.” – Lao Tzu
- “He who obtains has little. He who scatters has much.” – Lao Tzu
- “If you want to lead them you must place yourself behind them.” – Lao Tzu
- “Music in the soul can be heard by the universe.” – Lao Tzu
- “Doing nothing is better than being busy doing nothing.” – Lao Tzu
