The Chinese culture has a rich history of ancient inventions and discoveries, philosophy, and ancient quotes with very deep meanings. Ancient Chinese philosophers like Confucious, Tao, and the Buddha played pivotal roles in shaping modern–day Chinese thought, society, and governance. However, many of their quotes still have powerful lessons that could inspire, educate, and make one wiser in various aspects of life.
Whether in business, love, war, or career, etcetera, these ancient Chinese quotes will inspire you to achieve even greater success in all you do. Read on and be inspired!
Table of Contents
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Quotes about contentment and happiness
- “The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” – Lao Tzu
- “Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.” – 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
- The skillful artist will not alter his measures for the sake of a stupid workman. – Mencius
- There is no crime greater than having too many desires. There is no disaster greater than not being content. There is no misfortune greater than being covetous. – Lao Tzu
Quotes about life and wisdom
- “When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.” – Lao Tzu
- “Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.” – Confucius
- “New beginnings are disguised as painful endings.” – Lao Tzu
- “Roads were made for journeys, not destinations.” – Confucius
- “We have two lives, and the second begins when we realize we only have one.” – Confucius
- If they spit at you behind your back, it means you’re ahead of them. – Confucious
- The disease of men is that they neglect their own fields and go to weed the fields of others. – Mencius
- Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves. – Confucious
- “He who knows all the answers has not been asked all the questions.” – Confucius
- “The wise man is one who knows what he does not know.” – Lao Tzu
- “Learning without thought is labor lost. Thought without learning is perilous.” – Confucius
- “By three methods, we may learn wisdom: First by reflection, which is noblest; Second by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.” – Confucius
- A healthy man wants a thousand things. A sick man only wants one. – Confucious
- Don’t criticize your neighbor’s roof for a lot of snow when your door is not clean. – Confucious
- If you hate, then you have been defeated – Confucious
- “We have two lives, and the second begins when we realize we only have one.” – Confucius
- 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
- “Man dies from birth.” – Lao Tzu
- “Your life is what your thoughts make it.” – Confucius
- If what one has to say is not better than silence, then one should keep silent. – Confucious
- Nature does not hurry yet everything is accomplished. – Lao Tzu
- You can’t trust a man who has nothing to lose. – Sun Tzu
- Whoever talks a lot often fails. – Lao Tzu
- Care about what other people think, and you will always be their prisoner. – Lao Tzu
- Even a loss can turn into a profit, or a profit can turn into a loss. – Lao Tzu
- The feeling of right or wrong is the beginning of wisdom. – Mencius
- “Give a bowl of rice to a man and you will feed him for a day. Teach him to grow his own rice and you will save his life.” – Confucius
- Who knows? Doesn’t say. Who speaks? Doesn’t know. – Lao Tzu
- What is evil to one at one time becomes good at another time to somebody else. – Mencius
- “True words are not pleasant. Pleasant words are not true.” – Lao Tzu
- The truth is not always beautiful, nor are beautiful words the truth. – Lao Tzu
- We gained by losing. Lose by gaining. – Lao Tzu
- Truth uttered before its time is always dangerous. – Mencius
Quotes about love and friendship
- “Being deeply loved by someone gives you strength while loving someone deeply gives you courage.” – Lao Tzu
- “Happiness is when you are understood. Great happiness is when you are loved. Real happiness is when you love.” – Confucius
- “Friendship is one mind and two bodies.” – Mencius
- “It is more shameful to distrust our friends than to be deceived by them.” – Confucious
- “Friends are the siblings God never gave us.” – Mencius
- He who flatters a man is his enemy. He who tells him of his faults is his maker. – Confucious
- “An enemy is a friend who knows too much about you.” – Sun Tzu
- “Beware of sugar that is mixed with poison. Beware of the fly that sat on a dead snake.” – Sun Tzu
- It is easy to love your friend, but sometimes the hardest lesson to learn is to love your enemy. – Sun Tzu
- It is easy to hate and it is difficult to love. This is how the whole scheme of things works. All good things are difficult to achieve and bad things are very easy to get. – Confucious
Quotes about power and leadership
- “A leader leads by example, not by force.” – Sun Tzu
- “To lead people, follow them.” – Lao Tzu
- “Respect yourself, and others will respect you.” – Confucius
- “A sage who wants to be above people, puts himself below them, wanting to be ahead of them. He becomes behind.” – Lao Tzu
Quotes about mindfulness and inner peace
- “If you are depressed, you are living in the past. If you are anxious, you are living in the future. If you are at peace, you are living in the present.” – Lao Tzu
- “Get rid of the desire to have.” – Lao Tzu
- Work on clearing your thoughts. If you do not have bad thoughts, there will be no bad deeds.– Confucious
- We take greater pains to persuade others that we are happy and endeavoring to think so ourselves. – Confucious
- The funniest people are the saddest ones. – Confucious
- He who is satisfied with his lot is rich. – Lao Tzu
- Live for the praise of others and you will become their prisoner. – Lao Tzu
- You have to believe in yourself. – Sun Tzu
- “Watch your thoughts. They become your words. Watch your words. They become your actions. Watch your actions. They become your habits. Watch your habits. They become your character. Watch your character. It becomes your destiny.” – Lao Tzu
- “Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.” – Lao Tzu
- “The wise man avoids all extremes.” – Lao Tzu
- “Victory over oneself gives fearlessness.” – Lao Tzu
- “You are controlled by the one who makes you angry.” – Lao Tzu
- “Health is the greatest possession. Contentment is the greatest treasure. Confidence is the greatest friend.” – Lao Tzu
- “The snow goose needs not bathe to make itself white. Neither need you do anything but be yourself.” – Lao Tzu
- To complain about an unpleasant thing is to double the evil. To laugh at it is to destroy it. – Confucious
- You can always rise above those who offend you by forgiving them. – Lao Tzu
- By remaining true to yourself without seeking to compare and compete. You will achieve universal respect. – Lao Tzu
- To recognize your insignificance is empowering. – Lao Tzu
- Do not seek. Otherwise, you will lose. Do not seek and you will find. – Lao Tzu
- “If someone wants to offend you greatly, then it is even worse for him.” – Confucius
- A man dies easily because he has too much will to live. – Lao Tzu
- The one who offends you takes away your negative energy and gives you his positive energy. – Confucius
Quotes about strategy and war
- “Appear weak when you are strong; and strong when you are weak.” – Sun Tzu
- “To know your enemy, you must become your enemy.” – Sun Tzu
- Who wishes to fight must first count the cost. – Sun Tzu
- Soft and weak winds over hard and strong. – Lao Tzu
- Be extremely subtle, even to the point of formlessness. Be extremely mysterious, even to the point of soundlessness. Thereby, you can be the director of the opponent’s fate. – Sun Tzu
- “What the ancients called a clever fighter is one who not only wins but excels in winning with ease.” – Sun Tzu
- “Ultimate excellence lies not in winning every battle, but in defeating the enemy without ever fighting.” – Sun Tzu
- “Therefore, just as water retains no constant shape, so when warfare, there are no constant conditions.” – Sun Tzu
- Ponder and deliberate before you make a move. – Sun Tzu
- If he sends reinforcements everywhere, he will be weak everywhere. – Sun Tzu
- Think of tomorrow. The past can’t be mended. – Confucious
- Who do not know the evils of war cannot appreciate its benefits. – Sun Tzu
- Every animal with blood in its veins and horns on its head will fight when it is attacked. – Sun Tzu
Quotes about self–control and discipline
- “He who conquers others is strong; he who conquers himself is mighty.” – Lao Tzu
- “To see what is right and not do it is the worst cowardice.” – Confucius
- “When anger rises, think of the consequences.” – Confucius
- “The superior man is modest in his speech but exceeds in his actions.” – Confucius
- “A man with outward courage dares to die. A man with inner courage dares to live.” – Lao Tzu
- The noble person uses things. The lesser man is used by things. – Xunzi
- Man’s nature is evil. Goodness is the result of conscious activity. – Xunzi
- “You can overcome bad habits only today, not tomorrow.” – Confucius
- “If you make a mistake and do not correct it, this is called a mistake.” – Confucius
- “Temperance is the first step of virtue, which is the beginning of moral perfection.” – Lao Tzu
- “When I let go of what I am, I become what I might be.” – Lao Tzu
- “Victory over others gives strength. Victory over oneself gives fearlessness.” – Lao Tzu
- A man must not be without shame, for the shame of being without shame is shamelessness indeed. – Mencius
- People of higher morality do not consider themselves moral. Therefore, they have the highest morality. – Lao Tzu
Quotes about opportunity and success
- Three things never come back. Time, word, and opportunity. Therefore, do not waste time, choose words, and do not miss the opportunity. – Confucious
- “Plan for what is difficult while it is easy. Do what is great while it is small.” – Sun Tzu
- “In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity.” – Sun Tzu
- “The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.” – Confucius
- “Opportunities multiply as they are seized.” – Sun Tzu
- “Great results can be achieved with small forces.” – Sun Tzu
- The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step. – Lao Tzu
- “There are 1,000 lessons in defeat, but only one in victory.” – Confucius
- The man who says he can and the man who says he cannot are both correct. – Confucious
- “It does not matter how slowly you go, as long as you do not stop.” – Confucius
- “If there is no dull and determined effort, there will be no brilliant achievement.” – Xunzi
- “Success is as dangerous as failure. Hope is as hollow as fear.” – Lao Tzu
- “If the mind is willing, the flesh could go on and on without many things.” – Sun Tzu
- Choose a job you love and you will never have to work a day in your life. – Confucious
- Time is a created thing. To say I don’t have time is like saying I don’t want to. – Lao Tzu
- It is better to light one small candle than to curse the darkness. – Confucious
- Getting something done is like digging a well. You can dig a well 70 feet deep, but if you don’t hit water, it’s just an abandoned well. – Mencius
- Success is as dangerous as failure. Hope is as hollow as fear. –Lao Tzu
- Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall. – Confucius
- “If you are alone for a long time, soon you will accept loneliness. You will never know your potential if you are afraid to be alone.” – Lao Tzu
Quotes about knowledge and understanding
- Learn as if you constantly feel you lack your knowledge. And as if you are constantly afraid of losing your knowledge. – Confucious
- Learn as if you were not reaching your goal and as though you were scared of missing it. – Confucius
- “You cannot open a book without learning something.” – Confucius
- “Learning without thought is labor lost; thought without learning is perilous.” – Confucius
- “Knowledge is the treasure, and practice is the key to it.” – Lao Tzu
- “If you are the smartest person in the room, then you are in the wrong room.” – Confucius
- “Study the past, if you would define the future.” – Confucius
- Fill your bowl to the brim and it will spill. Keep sharpening your knife and it will be blunt. – Lao Tzu
- The one who knows and pretends not to know is on top. Who, without knowledge, pretends to be knowledgeable, he is sick. – Lao Tzu
- Tell me and I will forget. Show me and I may remember. Involve me and I will understand. – Confucious
- The whole being knows without learning, sees without looking, and attains without doing. – Lao Tzu
- No matter how busy you may think you are, you must find time for reading or surrender yourself to self–chosen ignorance. – Confucious
- If you make a mistake and do not correct it, this is called a mistake. – Confucius
- The man who asks the question is a fool for a minute. The man who does not ask is a fool for life. – Confucius
- We accept advice and drops, but we distribute it in buckets. – Confucious
- A great man clings to the essentials and leaves the insignificant. He does everything in truth, but he will never rely on laws. – Lao Tzu
Quotes about kindness and compassion
- What do you do not want done to yourself? Do not do to others. – Confucious
- Great is the man who has not lost his childlike heart. – Mencius
- “Forget injuries. Never forget kindness.” – Confucius
- Try your best to be to others as you would wish to be treated yourself. And you will find that this is the shortest way to benevolence. – Mencius
Quotes about growth and determination
- Whoever undertaking a business hurries too quickly to achieve a result will do nothing. – Lao Tzu
- He, who carefully finishes his work as he began, will not fail. – Confucius
- Never say never because the days go by so fast and nothing stays the same. – Lao Tzu
- If you lack faith, then existence does not believe in you. – Lao Tzu
- I have just three things to teach: Simplicity, patience, and compassion. These three are your greatest treasures. – Lao Tzu
- The way of truth is like a great road. It is not difficult to know it. The evil is only that men will not seek it. – Mencius
- A trail through the mountains, if used, becomes a path in a short time. But if unused becomes blocked by grass and an equally short time. – Mencius
- “The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” – Lao Tzu
- “What the caterpillar calls the end, the rest of the world calls a butterfly.” – Lao Tzu
- “Nature does not hurry, yet everything is accomplished.” – Lao Tzu
Quotes about dignity and pride
- “People in ancient times did not like to talk much. They considered it a shame for themselves not to keep up with their own words.” – Confucius
- Respect yourself and others will respect you. – Confucious
Quotes about morals and evil communication
- When true virtue is lost, good nature appears. When good nature is lost, justice appears. When justice is lost, decency appears. The rules of decency are only the semblance of truth and the beginning of all disorder. – Lao Tzu
- “Even the finest sword plunged into salt water will eventually rust.” – Sun Tzu
- “Be attentive to your thoughts. They are the beginning of actions.” – Lao Tzu
- What is a good man but a bad man’s teacher? What is a bad man but a good man’s job? – Lao Tzu
Quotes about sex
- “The more you don’t have sex, the less you want it.” – Confucius
- “A long absence of sex turns a person into a neurotic.” – Confucius
Quotes about humility
- Pride in excess brings disaster to man. – Xunzi
- “Sometimes you must yield in order to win. And sometimes maintaining a low place leads you to win.” – Lao
- When people know a lot, it is difficult to manage them. – Lao Tzu
- Be bent and you will stay straight. Be empty and you will remain complete. Be worn out. And you will stay new. – Lao Tzu
Quote about justice and karma
- “Wheels of Justice grind slow, but grind fine.” – Sun Tzu
Quotes on responsibility and personal development
- A noble person blames himself and an insignificant person blames others. – Confucious
- Attack the evil that is within yourself rather than attacking the evil that is in others. – Confucious
- When I free myself from who I am, I become who I can be. – Lao Tzu
- People are distressed by their inability to do it. The problem, however, is simply that they don’t do it. – Mencius
- Worry not that no one knows you. Seek to be worth knowing. – Confucius
Quotes about focus and direction
- “The man who chases two rabbits catches neither.” – Confucius
- The person attempting to travel two roads at once will get nowhere. – Xunzi
- Sometimes we see a lot but do not notice the main thing. – Confucious
Quote about flexibility
- There is nothing softer and more flexible than water. But try to resist it. – Lao Tzu
Quotes about courage and strength
- “Disorder came from order. Fear came from courage. Weakness came from strength.” – Sun Tzu
- “If you aren’t afraid of dying, there is nothing you can’t achieve.” – Lao Tzu
Quotes about finding purpose
- The way is near, but men seek it afar. It is an easy thing, but men seek it in difficult things. – Mencius
- So the unwilling soul sees what’s hidden and the ever–wanting soul sees only what it wants. – Lao Tzu
- There is beauty in everything, but not everyone can see it. – Confucious
Final words
I have carefully categorized these powerful ancient Chinese quotes with deep meaning, and I hope they inspire you to be a better version of yourself every day. And if there is any whose meaning and application you do not exactly understand, ask a question in the comment section below.
Which of the above quotes resonated well with you? Let me know what lessons you learned from it/them below.
