Quotes by Mencius

“Integrity, wisdom, skill, intelligence – such things are forged in adversity.””

“So it is that whenever Heaven invests a person with great responsibilities, it first tries his resolve, exhausts his muscles and bones, starves his body, leaves him destitute, and confound his every endeavor. In this way his patience and endurance are developed, and his weaknesses are overcome. We change and grow only when we make mistakes. We realize what to do only when we work through worry and confusion. And we gain people’s trust and understanding only when our inner thoughts are revealed clearly in our faces and words.””

“Reality is the perfect enemy: it always fights back, it can never be defeated, and infinite energy can be expended in unsuccessfully resisting it.””

“People are distressed by their inability to do it. The problem, however, is simply that they don't do it.””

“The feeling of right or wrong is the beginning of wisdom””

“Filling with food,Warming with clothes,Living leisurely without learning,It is little short of animals.””

“That's like climbing a tree to find a fish.””

“Cthulhu may swim slowly. But he only swims left. Isn’t that interesting?””

“A man must not be without shame, for the shame of being without shame is shamelessness indeed.””

“Sincerity is the way to Heaven.””

“A great man is he who has not lost the heart of a child.””

“There’s only one way to know if people are good or evil: look at the choices they make. We each contain precious and worthless, great and small. Never injure the great for the sake of the small, or the precious for the sake of the worthless. Small people nurture what is small in them; great people nurture what is great in them.””

“Make your learning abundant and speak of it with precision, then you will speak of essentials.””

“Don’t do what should not be done, and don’t desire what should not be desired. Abide by this one precept, and everything else will follow.””