Liezi Quotes
Liezi, also known as Lie Yukou, was a Chinese Taoist philosopher of the fifth century BC, traditionally regarded as one of the three foundational thinkers of philosophical Taoism alongside Lao Tzu and Zhuangzi. The text that bears his name, the Liezi, is a collection of Taoist parables, anecdotes, and short philosophical dialogues, surviving in a redaction probably compiled in the third or fourth century AD. The quotes below are attributed to Liezi, organized by topic.
Browse Liezi by topic
Liezi on Death
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“Many people sweat and toil and feel satisfied that they have accomplished many things. However, in the end we are not all that different from this polished piece of bone. In a hundred years, everyone we know will be just a pile of bones. What is there to gain in life, and what is there to lose in death?”
Wikiquote -
“When we are rich and famous and powerful, we do not want to die. On the other hand, if we are miserable and suffering, we want to die and leave it all. But can joy or misery last forever?”
Passage 70:The King Who Wanted to Live Forever -
“Life and death will come of their own. Why be greedy about life and afraid of death?”
Passage 70:The King Who Wanted to Live Forever -
“Someone asked Yang Zhu, "What do you think of people who pray for immortality?" Yang Zhu replied, "Everyone must die sometime. Praying won’t help."”
Passage 79:Everyone Must Die Sometime -
“When you live, you should accept life and let it run its course. When you die, you should accept death and go to it peacefully.”
Passage 79:Everyone Must Die Sometime -
“Life and death come by themselves. We should let them run their course and not try to speed or delay them.”
Passage 79:Everyone Must Die Sometime -
“If heaven does not know, how can mortals know? If heaven does not bless you, crying won’t help. If we all weep together, Will it lengthen life and chase away death? Even doctors and shamans arc not miracle workers.”
Passage 66:The Three Doctors -
“When you die, you’ll leave everything. What’s the use of planning for things that happen afterward?”
Passage 72:A Name is Nothing and Titles are Empty
Liezi on Happiness
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“To be truly happy and contented, you must let go of the idea of what it means to be happy or content. When you understand there is really nothing to be happy or sad about, then you will be truly contented.”
Wikiquote -
“Joy and sorrow, gain and loss, war and peace, good government and bad repeat themselves throughout history. Why live a hundred years to see the same things come and go?”
Passage 79:Everyone Must Die Sometime -
“Someone with neither social status nor a reputation to uphold may be a freer and happier person. Why then work so hard to gain social recognition when it will only diminish your freedom and happiness?”
Passage 72:A Name is Nothing and Titles are Empty
Liezi on Justice
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“The teachings of the sages can be summed up as virtue and justice.”
Wikiquote
Liezi on Knowledge
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Attributed to Liezi:
“Not knowing how far one's words may travel, one should not waste them on the careless.”
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“While sounds are heard, that which made the sounds has not yet begun to resonate.”
Wikiquote -
“By knowing and doing nothing, you can know all and do all.”
Wikiquote -
“A parallel to Zhuangzi section 18.6”
Lieh-tzu left his home in Cheng and journeyed to the kingdom of Wei. While walking down a dusty road, he saw the remains of a skull lying by the wayside. Lieh-tzu saw that it was the skull of a human that was over a hundred years old. He picked up the bone, brushed the dirt off it, and looked at it for a while. Finally, he put the skull down, sighed, and said to his student who was standing nearby -
“Note: in Daoist tradition, Confucius, along with numerous other perceived "sages", are often used to explain the author's own views on a subject, regardless of the actual views of that figure. Historically, Confucians frequently feuded with Daoists, and many sections of works such as the Zhuangzi are devoted to mocking their views. Other prominent philosophers of Liezi's era, including Gongung Long and Yang Zhu, are used for the same purpose in the Liezi .”
Then who do you think is a sage?", [the minister asked.] Confucius would not be hurried, so he waited until the minister calmed down again and replied, "Maybe far away in the West is a person who doesn’t talk about the art of government and yet his country is orderly and peaceful. He rarely speaks about promises but he is trusted by all. He does not use force, so everything runs smoothly. His hear -
“A wise ruler does not let personal grudges cloud his judgment of people’s abilities. Moreover, a good ruler always thinks about the welfare of his country first and his personal needs second.”
Passage 64:The Friendship of Guan Zheng and Bao Shuya -
“A person with a mind cannot know; If you can point to it, then you cannot reach it; You can never finish dividing something; A shadow cannot move; A single hair can hold up a thousand stones; A white horse is not a horse; An orphaned calf has never had a mother.”
Passage 45:The Strange Arguments of Gongsung Long | This is a reference to the historical Gongsung Long, of the School of Logicians, who distinguished between categories and members of those categories by famously proclaiming "A White Horse is not a Ho
Liezi on Life
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Attributed to Liezi:
“Those who dream of feasting awake to lamentation.”
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Attributed to Liezi:
“He who has no concern for life and death, what can move him?”
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“Our time in this world is a journey through the cycle we call life. As guests, we linger for a while in this realm before we depart for another. And who can tell how long this traveler will stay in the next realm before embarking on another visit to the realm of the living?”
Wikiquote -
“Travel is such a wonderful experience! Especially when you forget you are traveling. Then you will enjoy whatever you see and do. Those who look into themselves when they travel will not think about what they see. In fact, there is no distinction between the viewer and the seen. You experience everything with the totality of yourself, so that every blade of grass, every mountain, every lake is alive and is a part of you.”
Wikiquote
Liezi on Mind
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Attributed to Liezi:
“When the heart is at peace, the body is at ease.”
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Attributed to Liezi:
“The man who has no opinions has nothing to defend, and so cannot be defeated.”
Liezi on Nature
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Attributed to Liezi:
“Heaven and earth do not act with intention, yet all things flourish.”
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“People who are attracted to the external world are always looking for something new and wonderful that will satisfy their senses. However, only people who look into themselves will find true satisfaction.”
Wikiquote -
“In order to maintain your reputation, you have damaged your heart by suppressing your natural inclinations.”
Passage 78:Unrestrained Pleasure and Hard Work
Liezi on Time
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“This is a reference to the historical Gongsung Long, of the School of Logicians, who distinguished between categories and members of those categories by famously proclaiming "A White Horse is not a Horse".”
Passage 45:The Strange Arguments of Gongsung Long
Liezi on Truth
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“Honesty and riches do not often go hand in hand. So the honest man who is socially recognized as a virtuous person is often poor.”
Passage 72:A Name is Nothing and Titles are Empty -
“True friendship is not simply looking out for your friends and ignoring their faults.”
Passage 64:The Friendship of Guan Zheng and Bao Shuya