Liezi Quotes on Knowledge
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. This page collects quotes attributed to Liezi on the topic of knowledge, drawn from across the philosopher's works.
Quotes
-
Attributed to Liezi:
“Not knowing how far one's words may travel, one should not waste them on the careless.”
-
“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 -
“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 -
“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