"The whole world knows that the good is good, and this is how evil arises. The whole world knows that the beautiful is beautiful, and this is how ugliness arises."

"The sage rules by emptying their minds and filling their bellies, by weakening their wills and strengthening their bones."

"The sage puts his person last, and it comes first. He treats his person as an outsider, and it is preserved."

"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."

"He who acts destroys; he who grasps loses."