Xunzi Quotes on Knowledge
Xunzi was a Chinese Confucian philosopher of the late Warring States period and one of the three great classical Confucian thinkers, alongside Confucius and Mencius. This page collects quotes attributed to Xunzi on the topic of knowledge, drawn from across the philosopher's works.
Quotes
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Attributed to Xunzi:
“Learning should never cease.”
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Attributed to Xunzi:
“If you do not climb a high mountain, you will not comprehend the highness of the heavens.”
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“The person attempting to travel two roads at once will get nowhere.”
Quoted in: Errick A. Ford (2010) Iron Sharpens Iron: Wisdom of the Ages, p. 48 -
“Quoted in: Errick A. Ford (2010) Iron Sharpens Iron: Wisdom of the Ages, p. 48”
The person attempting to travel two roads at once will get nowhere. -
“Quoted in: Joan Klostermann-Ketels (2011) HumaniTrees, p. 96”
In order to properly understand the big picture, everyone should fear becoming mentally clouded and obsessed with one small section of truth. -
“Not having heard of it is not as good as having heard of it. Having heard of it is not as good as having seen it. Having seen it is not as good as knowing it. Knowing it is not as good as putting it into practice. Learning arrives at putting it into practice and then stops.”
As translated by Eric L. Hutton in Xunzi: The Complete Text (2024), Ch. 8 :The Achievements of the Ru | Variant translations: | Not having learned it is not as good as having learned it; having learned it is not as good as having seen it carried out; having seen it is not as good as understanding it; understanding it is not as good as doing it. The development of scholarship is to the extreme of d -
“As translated by Eric L. Hutton in Xunzi: The Complete Text (2024), Ch. 8 :The Achievements of the Ru”
Not having heard of it is not as good as having heard of it. Having heard of it is not as good as having seen it. Having seen it is not as good as knowing it. Knowing it is not as good as putting it into practice. Learning arrives at putting it into practice and then stops. -
“See also derivatives at "Quote Origin: Tell Me and I Forget; Teach Me and I May Remember; Involve Me and I Learn" at the Quote Investigator”
Not having heard of it is not as good as having heard of it. Having heard of it is not as good as having seen it. Having seen it is not as good as knowing it. Knowing it is not as good as putting it into practice. Learning arrives at putting it into practice and then stops.