Top 100+ Confucius Quotes
Here we have gathered the top Confucius quotes for you to read. Confucius has been considered as one of most famous philosophers and political theorists of all time. The quotes from Confucius are focused on self-cultivation and wisdom that is beneficial for everyone willing to learn. The philosophy of Confucianism gives great weight and importance to family and social harmony. On this list you’re likely to find quotes that help you see life from a more realistic perspective and the big picture. All the Confucius quotes on this list have been organized with the most popular ones ranked on the top, as the quotes on this list are ranked by votes. Please remember to vote your own favourite Confucius quote in order to help it move up the list!
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1
Confucius
“Time flows away like the water in the river. ” ― Confucius
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2
Confucius
“Never contract friendship with a man that is not better than thyself. ” ― Confucius
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3
Confucius
“Respect yourself and others will respect you.” ― Confucius, Sayings of Confucius
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4
Confucius
“If what one has to say is not better than silence, then one should keep silent.” ― Confucius
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5
Confucius
“Education breeds confidence. Confidence breeds hope. Hope breeds peace.” ― Confucius
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6
Confucius
“Have no friends not equal to yourself.” ― Confucius
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7
Confucious
“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.” ― Confucious
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8
Confucious
“Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it.” ― Confucious
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9
Confucius
“Wheresoever you go, go with all your heart.” ― Confucius
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10
Confucius
“It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.” ― Confucius
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11
Confucius
“He who knows all the answers has not been asked all the questions.” ― Confucius
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12
Confucius
“Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.” ― Confucius
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13
Confucius
“The man who moves a mountain begins by carrying away small stones.” ― Confucius, Confucius: The Analects
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14
Confucius
“If you make a mistake and do not correct it, this is called a mistake.” ― Confucius
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15
Confucius
“Study the past if you would define the future.” ― Confucius
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16
Confucius
“The funniest people are the saddest ones” ― Confucius
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17
Confucius
“Before you embark on a journey of revenge, dig two graves.” ― Confucius
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18
Confucius
“To be wronged is nothing, unless you continue to remember it.” ― Confucius
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19
Confucius
“Silence is a true friend who never betrays.” ― Confucius
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20
Confucius
“You cannot open a book without learning something.” ― Confucius
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21
Confucius
“When you see a good person, think of becoming like her/him. When you see someone not so good, reflect on your own weak points.” ― Confucius
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22
Confucius
“The man who asks a question is a fool for a minute, the man who does not ask is a fool for life.” ― Confucius
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23
Confucius
“Attack the evil that is within yourself, rather than attacking the evil that is in others.” ― Confucius
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24
Confucius
“What the superior man seeks is in himself; what the small man seeks is in others.” ― Confucius
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25
Confucius
“I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.” ― Confucius
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26
Confucius
“And remember, no matter where you go, there you are.” ― Confucius
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27
Confucius
“Hold faithfulness and sincerity as first principles.” ― Confucius, The Analects
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28
Confucius
“Forget injuries, never forget kindnesses.” ― Confucius
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29
Confucius
“Better a diamond with a flaw than a pebble without.” ― Confucius
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30
Confucius
“When it is obvious that the goals cannot be reached, don’t adjust the goals, adjust the action steps.” ― Confucius
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31
Confucius
“A lion chased me up a tree, and I greatly enjoyed the view from the top.” ― Confucius
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32
Confucius
“To be wealthy and honored in an unjust society is a disgrace.” ― Confucius, The Analects
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33
Confucius
“If your plan is for one year plant rice. If your plan is for ten years plant trees. If your plan is for one hundred years educate children. ” ― Confucius
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34
Confucius
“In a country well governed, poverty is something to be ashamed of. In a country badly governed, wealth is something to be ashamed of.” ― Confucius
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35
Confucius
“Don’t do unto others what you don’t want done unto you.” ― Confucius
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36
Confucius
“To see what is right and not do it is the worst cowardice.” ― Confucius
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37
Confucius
“The beginning of wisdom is to call things by their proper name.” ― Confucius
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38
Confucious
“The superior man thinks always of virtue; the common man thinks of comfort.” ― Confucious
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39
Confucius
“When a wise man points at the moon the imbecile examines the finger.” ― Confucius
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40
Confucius
“Don’t complain about the snow on your neighbor’s roof when your own doorstep is unclean.” ― Confucius
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41
Confucius
“Without knowing the force of words, it is impossible to know more.” ― Confucius
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42
Confucius
“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.” ― Confucius
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43
Confucius
“The Master said, “A true gentleman is one who has set his heart upon the Way. A fellow who is ashamed merely of shabby clothing or modest meals is not even worth conversing with.”
(Analects 4.9)” ― Confucius -
44
Confucius
“Consideration for others is the basis of a good life, a good society.” ― Confucius
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45
Confucius
“Learning without thought is labor lost; thought without learning is perilous.” ― Confucius
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46
Confucius
“Tzu Chang asked Confucius about jen. Confucius said, “If you can practice these five things with all the people, you can be called jen.”
Tzu Chang asked what they were.
Confucius said, “Courtesy, generosity, honesty, persistence, and kindness.
If you are courteous, you will not be disrespected;
if you are generous, you will gain everything.
If you are honest, people will rely on you.
If you are persistent you will get results.
If you are kind, you can employ people.” ― Confucius -
47
Confucius
“Never give a sword to a man who can’t dance.” ― Confucius, The Analects
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48
Confucius
“The superior man is modest in his speech, but exceeds in his actions.” ― Confucius
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49
Confucius
“The Man who says he can, and the man who says he can not.. Are both correct” ― Confucius
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50
Confucius
“We have two lives, and the second begins when we realize we only have one.” ― Confucius
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51
Confucius
“The nobler sort of man emphasizes the good qualities in others, and does not accentuate the bad. The inferior does.” ― Confucius
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52
Confucius
“The noble-minded are calm and steady. Little people are forever fussing and fretting.” ― Confucius, Analects of Confucius
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53
Confucius
“The Master said, “A true teacher is one who, keeping the past alive, is also able to understand the present.”
(Analects 2.11)” ― Confucius -
54
Confucius
“roads were made for journeys not destinations” ― Confucius
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55
Confucius
“The Master said, “If your conduct is determined solely by considerations of profit you will arouse great resentment.” ― Confucius
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56
Confucius
“Worry not that no one knows you; seek to be worth knowing.” ― Confucius
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57
Confucious
“The strength of a nation derives from the integrity of the home.” ― Confucious
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58
Confucius
“Those who know the TRUTH are not equal to those who love it.” ― Confucius
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59
Confucius
“A common man marvels at uncommon things. A wise man marvels at the commonplace.” ― Confucius
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60
Confucius
“Behind every smile there’s teeth.” ― Confucius
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61
Confucius
“The superior man understands what is right; the inferior man understands what will sell.” ― Confucius
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62
Confucius
“By nature, men are nearly alike; by practice, they get to be wide apart.” ― Confucius
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63
Confucius
“The Master said, “The gentleman understands what is right, whereas the petty man understands profit.”
(Analects 4.16)” ― Confucius -
64
Confucius
“If there is righteousness in the heart, there will be beauty in the character.
If there is beauty in the character, there will be harmony in the home.
If there is harmony in the home, there will be order in the nations.
When there is order in the nations, there will peace in the world.” ― Confucius -
65
Confucius
“Knowledge is merely brilliance in organization of ideas and not wisdom. The truly wise person goes beyond knowledge.” ― Confucius
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66
Confucius
“Settle one difficulty, and you keep a hundred away.” ― Confucius
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67
Confucius
“No lake so still but it has its wave.
No circle so perfect but that it has its blur.
I would change things for you if I could; As I can’t you must take them as they are.” ― Confucius -
68
Confucius
“If one should desire to know whether a kingdom is well governed, if its morals are good or bad, the quality of its music will furnish the answer.”― Confucius
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69
Confucius
“When the wind blows,the grass bends.” ― Confucius, The Analects
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70
Confucius
“He Who Knows And Knows That He Knows Is A Wise Man – Follow Him;
He Who Knows Not And Knows Not That He Knows Not Is A Fool – Shun Him” ― Confucius, The Analects -
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Confucius
“If you look into your own heart, and you find nothing wrong there, what is there to worry about? What is there to fear?” ― Confucius
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72
Confucious
“Ignorance is the night of the mind, but a night without moon or star.” ― Confucious
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73
Confucius
“Fix your mind on truth, hold firm to virtue, rely on loving kindness, and find your recreation in the Arts.” ― Confucius, The Analects
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74
Confucius
“He who conquers himself is the mightiest warrior.” ― Confucius
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75
Confucius
“You will never know how sharp a sword is unless it’s drawn from its sheath” ― Confucius
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76
Confucius
“Learn as if you were not reaching your goal and as though you were scared of missing it” ― Confucius
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77
Confucius
“The way of the superior person is threefold; virtuous, they are free from anxieties; wise they are free from perplexities; and bold they are free from fear.” ― Confucius
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78
Confucius
“The green reed which bends in the wind is stronger than the mighty oak which breaks in a storm.” ― Confucius
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79
Confucius
“Faced with what is right, to leave it undone shows a lack of courage.” ― Confucius
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80
Confucius
“One joy dispels a hundred cares.” ― Confucius
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81
Confucius
“A youth is to be regarded with respect. How do we know that his future will not be equal to our present?” ― Confucius, The Life and Wisdom of Confucius
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82
Confucius
“The superior man, when resting in safety, does not forget that danger may come. When in a state of security he does not forget the possibility of ruin. When all is orderly, he does not forget that disorder may come. Thus his person is not endangered, and his States and all their clans are preserved.” ― Confucius, Confucian Analects, The Great Learning The Doctrine of the Mean
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83
Confucius
“Some are born with knowledge, some derive it from study, and some acquire it only after a painful realization of their ignorance.
But the knowledge being possessed, it comes to the same thing.
Some study with a natural ease, some from a desire for advantages, and some by strenuous effort.
But the achievement being made, it comes to the same thing.” ― Kung Fu-Tze (Confucius) -
84
Confucius
“If there were one word that could act as a standard of conduct for one’s entire life, perhaps it would be ‘thoughtfulness.” ― Confucius
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85
Confucius
“If you don’t want to do something,don’t impose on others” ― Confucius
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86
Confucius
“To be able under all circumstances to practice five things constitutes perfect virtue; these five things are gravity, generosity of soul, sincerity, earnestness and kindness.” ― Confucius
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87
Confucius
“We take greater pains to persuade others that we are happy than in endeavoring to think so ourselves” ― Confucius
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88
Confucius
“The scholar does not consider gold and jade to be precious treasures, but loyalty and good faith.” ― Confucius, The Ethics of Confucius
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89
Confucius
“The Essence of Knowledge is, having it, to use it.” ― Confucius
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90
Confucius
“Lead the people with administrative injunctions and put them in their place with penal law, and they will avoid punishments but will be without a sense of shame. Lead them with excellence and put them in their place through roles and ritual practices, and in addition to developing a sense of shame, they will order themselves harmoniously” ― Confucius, The Analects
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91
Confucius
“Without feelings of respect, what is there to distinguish men from beasts?” ― Confucius
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92
Confucius
“At fifteen I set my heart upon learning.
At thirty, I had planted my feet firm upon the ground.
At forty, I no longer suffered from perplexities.
At fifty, I knew what were the biddings of Heaven.
At sixty, I heard them with docile ear.
At seventy, I could follow the dictates of my own heart; for what I desired no longer overstepped the boundaries of right.” ― Confucius -
93
Confucius
“They must often change who would remain constant in happiness and wisdom.” ― Confucius
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94
Confucius
“Ability will never catch up with the demand for it.” ― Confucius
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95
Confuscious
“I want you to be everything that’s you, deep at the center of your being.”
“Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated” ― Confuscious -
96
Confucius
“We should keep the dead before our eyes, and honor them as though still living” ― Confucius
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97
Confucius
“he who will not economize will have to agonize” ― Confucius
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98
Confucius
“Don’t use cannon to kill musquito.” ― Confucius
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99
Confucius
“A man without a mustache is a man without a soul.” ― Confucius
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100
Confucius
“He who speaks without modesty will find it difficult to make his words good.” ― Confucius
