Zhuangzi Sayings and Quotes

Below you will find our collection of inspirational, wise, and humorous old Zhuangzi quotes, Zhuangzi sayings, and Zhuangzi proverbs, collected over the years from a variety of sources.'

The sage embraces things. Ordinary men discriminate amongst them and parade their discriminations before others. So I say; those who discriminate, fail to see. Zhuangzi
Take care of your body, then the rest will automatically become stronger. Zhuangzi
Great wisdom is generous; petty wisdom is contentious. Zhuangzi
A frog in a well cannot conceive of the ocean. Zhuangzi
Eyes that are blind have no way to tell the loveliness of faces and features; eyes with no pupils have no way to tell the beauty of colored and embroidered silks. Zhuangzi
The petty thief is imprisoned but the big thief becomes a feudal lord. Zhuangzi
Cherish that which is within you, and shut off what which is without; for much knowledge is a curse. Zhuangzi
We cling to our own point of view, as though everything depended on it. Yet our opinions have no permanence; like autumn and winter, they gradually pass away. Zhuangzi
Easy is right. Begin right and you are easy. Continue easy and you are right. The right way to go easy is to forget the right way, and forget that the going is easy. Zhuangzi
Only he who has no use for the empire is fit to be entrusted with it. Zhuangzi
Men of this world all rejoice in others being like themselves, and object to others not being like themselves. Zhuangzi
To examine oneself makes good use of sight. Zhuangzi
We cling to our own point of view, as though everything depended on it. Yet our opinions have no permanence; like autumn and winter, they gradually pass away. Zhuangzi
Good order results spontaneously when things are let alone. Zhuangzi
Human life is limited, but knowledge is limitless. To drive the limited in pursuit of the limitless is fatal; and to presume that one really knows is fatal indeed! Zhuangzi
Life comes from the earth and life returns to the earth. Zhuangzi
Those who seek to satisfy the mind of man by hampering it with ceremonies and music and affecting charity and devotion have lost their original nature. Zhuangzi
You cannot speak of ocean to a well-frog, the creature of a narrower sphere. You cannot speak of ice to a summer insect, the creature of a season. Zhuangzi
Those that think that wealth is the proper thing for them cannot give up their revenues; those that seek distinction cannot give up the thought of fame; those that cleave to power cannot give the handle of it to others. While they hold their grasp of those things, they are afraid of losing them. When they let them go, they are grieved and they will not look at a single example, from which they might perceive the folly of their restless pursuits - such men are under the doom of heaven. Zhuangzi
A sage steers by the bright light of confusion and doubt. Zhuangzi
Good fortune is as light as a feather, but nobody knows how to pick it up. Misfortune is as heavy as earth, but nobody knows how to stay out of it's way. Zhuangzi
Men cannot see their reflection in running water, / but only in still water. Only that which is itself still / can still the seekers of stillness . . . If water derives / lucidity from stillness, how much more the / faculties of the mind! The mind of the sage, being / in repose, becomes the mirror of the universe. Zhuangzi
I know the joy of fishes in the river through my own joy, as I go walking along the same river. Zhuangzi
Great wisdom is generous; petty wisdom is contentious. Great speech is impassioned, small speech cantankerous. Zhuangzi
You can't discuss the ocean with a well frog - he's limited by the space he lives in. You can't discuss ice with a summer insect - he's bound to a single season. Zhuangzi
Listening stops with the ears, the mind stops with recognition, but spirit is empty and waits on all things. Zhuangzi
A frog in a well cannot conceive of the ocean. Zhuangzi
Life comes from the earth and life returns to the earth. Zhuangzi
Forget the years, forget distinction. Leap into the boundless and make it your home. Zhuangzi
Forget the years, forget distinctions. Leap into the boundless and make it your home. Zhuangzi