Top 100 Confucius Quotes (2024 Update)
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51. “Charity, like the sun, brightens every object on which it shines.”

— Confucius

52. “To put the world in order, we must first put the nation in order; to put the nation in order, we must first put the family in order; to put the family in order; we must first cultivate our personal life; we must first set our hearts right.”

— Confucius

53. “Only the wisest and stupidest of men never change.”

— Confucius

54. “Don’t complain about the snow on your neighbor’s roof when your own doorstep is unclean.”

— Confucius

55. “What you do not wish upon yourself, extend not to others.”

— Confucius

56. “Learning without thought is labor lost; thought without learning is perilous.”

— Confucius

57. “When a wise man points at the moon the imbecile examines the finger.”

— Confucius

58. “To be wronged is nothing, unless you continue to remember it.”

— Confucius

59. “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

60. “The superior man is slow in his words and earnest in his conduct.”

— Confucius

61. “Have no friends not equal to yourself.”

— Confucius

62. “Faced with what is right, to leave it undone shows a lack of courage.”

— Confucius

63. “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

64. “If I am walking with two other men, each of them will serve as my teacher. I will pick out the good points of the one and imitate them, and the bad points of the other and correct them in myself.”

— Confucius

65. “Behind every smile there’s teeth.”

— Confucius

66. “The superior man understands what is right; the inferior man understands what will sell.”

— Confucius

67. “Consideration for others is the basis of a good life, a good society.”

— Confucius

68. “He who requires much from himself and little from others, will keep himself from being the object of resentment.”

— Confucius

69. “Time flows away like the water in the river.”

— Confucius

70. “The noble-minded are calm and steady. Little people are forever fussing and fretting.”

— Confucius

71. “The Essence of Knowledge is, having it, to use it.”

— Confucius

72. “Riches and honor are what everyone desires, but if they can be gained only by doing evil, they must not be held. Don’t worry about not being in office, worry about qualifying yourself for office. Don’t worry that no one knows you, but seek to be worthy of being known.”

— Confucius

73. “The funniest people are the saddest once.”

— Confucius

74. “The scholar does not consider gold and jade to be precious treasures, but loyalty and good faith.”

— Confucius

75. “By nature, men are nearly alike; by practice, they get to be wide apart.”

— Confucius

76. “Hold faithfulness and sincerity as first principles.”

— Confucius

77. “True goodness springs from a man’s own heart. All men are born good.”

— Confucius

78. “A common man marvels at uncommon things. A wise man marvels at the commonplace.”

— Confucius

79. “Never give a sword to a man who can’t dance.”

— Confucius

80. “If you think in terms of a year, plant a seed; if in terms of ten years, plant trees; if in terms of 100 years, teach the people.”

— Confucius

81. “Shall I teach you what knowledge? When you know a thing, say that you know it; when you do not know a thing, admit that you do not know it. That is knowledge.”

— Confucius

82. “The man of wisdom is never of two minds; the man of benevolence never worries; the man of courage is never afraid.”

— Confucius

83. “It is more shameful to distrust our friends than to be deceived by them.”

— Confucius

84. “The nobler sort of man emphasizes the good qualities in others, and does not accentuate the bad. The inferior does.”

— Confucius

85. “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

86. “To be wealthy and honored in an unjust society is a disgrace.”

— Confucius

87. “The strength of a nation derives from the integrity of the home.”

— Confucius

88. “If a man takes no thought about what is distant, he will find sorrow near at hand.”

— Confucius

89. “Knowledge is merely brilliance in organization of ideas and not wisdom. The truly wise person goes beyond knowledge.”

— Confucius

90. “One joy dispels a hundred cares.”

— Confucius

91. “If there were one word that could act as a standard of conduct for one’s entire life, perhaps it would be ’thoughtfulness.”

— Confucius

92. “Fix your mind on truth, hold firm to virtue, rely on loving kindness, and find your recreation in the Arts.”

— Confucius

93. “Ignorance is the night of the mind, but a night without moon or star.”

— Confucius

94. “Without knowing the force of words, it is impossible to know more.”

— Confucius

95. “They must often change who would remain constant in happiness and wisdom.”

— Confucius

96. “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

97. “A youth is to be regarded with respect. How do we know that his future will not be equal to our present?”

— Confucius

98. “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

99. “We take greater pains to persuade others that we are happy than in endeavoring to think so ourselves.”

— Confucius

100. “Virtuous people often revenge themselves for the constraints to which they submit by the boredom which they inspire.”

— Confucius