Famous Confucius Quotes from the Analects

學而時習之 不亦說乎

xué ér shí xí zhī, bù yì yuè hū · Analects 1.1

Is it not a joy to learn and to practice what one has learned at the proper time?

The opening sentence of the Analects. Learning here includes the cultivation of character, and the joy comes when a lesson is practiced until it becomes your own.

己所不欲 勿施於人

jǐ suǒ bù yù, wù shī yú rén · Analects 12.2

Do not impose on others what you yourself do not desire.

Often called the Golden Rule of Confucian ethics. When Zigong asked for one word to practice throughout life, Confucius answered with reciprocity and explained it with this sentence.

三人行 必有我師焉

sān rén xíng, bì yǒu wǒ shī yān · Analects 7.22

When three people walk together, there is always someone among them who can be my teacher.

“Three” is an idiomatic way of saying several people: anyone walking beside you can teach you something. Confucius applied this humility to himself.

溫故而知新 可以爲師矣

wēn gù ér zhī xīn, kě yǐ wéi shī yǐ · Analects 2.11

By reviewing what is old and discovering what is new, one may become a teacher.

The source of the idiom wēn gù zhī xīn (溫故知新). Returning to what you already know until it yields a fresh insight is what makes a person fit to teach.

學而不思則罔 思而不學則殆

xué ér bù sī zé wǎng, sī ér bù xué zé dài · Analects 2.15

Learning without reflection leads to confusion; reflection without learning leads to peril.

Learning and reflection as the two wheels of one cart. Memorizing without thinking leaves you lost; thinking without learning puts you in danger.

知之爲知之 不知爲不知 是知也

zhī zhī wéi zhī zhī, bù zhī wéi bù zhī, shì zhì yě · Analects 2.17

To acknowledge what you know as known, and what you do not know as unknown—that is wisdom.

Spoken to the disciple Zilu, who sometimes acted as though he knew things he did not. Admitting what you do not know is where real understanding begins.

巧言令色 鮮矣仁

qiǎo yán lìng sè, xiǎn yǐ rén · Analects 1.3

Clever words and an ingratiating expression are rarely associated with humaneness.

A warning against polish without sincerity. The teaching appears twice in the Analects, a sign of how much weight Confucius gave it.

見賢思齊焉 見不賢而內自省也

jiàn xián sī qí yān, jiàn bù xián ér nèi zì xǐng yě · Analects 4.17

When you see someone worthy, think of becoming their equal; when you see someone unworthy, look within and examine yourself.

Two ways to learn from other people: emulate the worthy, and let the unworthy prompt you to examine yourself. Every encounter becomes a lesson.

三十而立 四十而不惑

sān shí ér lì, sì shí ér bù huò · Analects 2.4

At thirty, I stood firmly; at forty, I was free from confusion.

From Confucius’s review of his own life. Standing firm at thirty means one’s values are established; freedom from confusion at forty means judgment that temptation no longer shakes.

朝聞道 夕死可矣

zhāo wén dào, xī sǐ kě yǐ · Analects 4.8

If I hear the Way in the morning, I may die content that evening.

The Way is the path human beings ought to walk. The deliberate exaggeration, content to die by evening, shows how intensely Confucius longed for it.

德不孤 必有鄰

dé bù gū, bì yǒu lín · Analects 4.25

Virtue is never solitary; it always has neighbors.

Doing what is right can feel lonely, but it does not leave you alone for good. People who share the same purpose eventually gather around a person of virtue.

知者不惑 仁者不憂 勇者不懼

zhì zhě bù huò, rén zhě bù yōu, yǒng zhě bù jù · Analects 9.29

The wise are not confused, the humane are not burdened by worry, and the courageous are not afraid.

Wisdom, humaneness, and courage, the three virtues Confucian tradition treats as central to mature character. Each one frees you from a burden: confusion, worry, or fear.

歲寒然後知松柏之後凋也

suì hán rán hòu zhī sōng bǎi zhī hòu diāo yě · Analects 9.28

Only when the year turns cold do we know that the pine and cypress are the last to fade.

Evergreens stand out only in winter. Confucius compares a person who keeps their integrity in hard times to the pine that stays green after other trees have faded.

君子和而不同 小人同而不和

jūn zǐ hé ér bù tóng, xiǎo rén tóng ér bù hé · Analects 13.23

The exemplary person seeks harmony without conformity; the petty person seeks conformity without harmony.

Harmony is a fitting relationship among differences; conformity is mere sameness. The exemplary person respects other views without blindly agreeing.

其身正 不令而行 其身不正 雖令不從

qí shēn zhèng, bù lìng ér xíng, qí shēn bù zhèng, suī lìng bù cóng · Analects 13.6

When a leader is upright, things proceed without commands; when a leader is not upright, commands will not be obeyed.

Leadership by example: an upright leader is followed without orders, while a crooked one is not obeyed even with them. Influence comes from character, not authority.

質勝文則野 文勝質則史 文質彬彬 然後君子

zhì shèng wén zé yě, wén shèng zhì zé shǐ, wén zhì bīn bīn, rán hòu jūn zǐ · Analects 6.18

When substance outweighs refinement, one is crude; when refinement outweighs substance, one is merely ornate. Only when substance and refinement are balanced does one become an exemplary person.

Substance is inner reality; refinement is cultivated expression. Too much of either spoils a person, and maturity is the balance of both.

不憤不啓 不悱不發

bù fèn bù qǐ, bù fěi bù fā · Analects 7.8

I do not enlighten those who are not eager to understand, nor do I prompt those who are not struggling to express themselves.

Confucius taught only after a student had struggled with a question. An answer received before wrestling with the problem never fully becomes your own.

後生可畏 焉知來者之不如今也

hòu shēng kě wèi, yān zhī lái zhě zhī bù rú jīn yě · Analects 9.23

The younger generation deserves our respect; how can we know that those to come will not equal those of today?

Those born later may well equal those of today. The saying encourages the young and asks older generations for humility.

工欲善其事 必先利其器

gōng yù shàn qí shì, bì xiān lì qí qì · Analects 15.10

A craftsperson who wishes to do good work must first sharpen the tools.

A craftsperson sharpens the tools before the work. Confucius used the image when Zigong asked how to practice humaneness: preparation comes before results.

人無遠慮 必有近憂

rén wú yuǎn lǜ, bì yǒu jìn yōu · Analects 15.12

A person who gives no thought to the future is certain to face worries close at hand.

Neglecting the future guarantees trouble close at hand. Confucius had watched rulers lose their states while pursuing only present advantage.

不患人之不己知 患不知人也

bù huàn rén zhī bù jǐ zhī, huàn bù zhī rén yě · Analects 1.16

Do not worry that others do not understand you; worry that you do not understand others.

Whether others understand you lies outside your control; making the effort to understand them lies within it. Confucius redirects the energy of worry.

人能弘道 非道弘人

rén néng hóng dào, fēi dào hóng rén · Analects 15.29

People can broaden the Way; the Way does not broaden people.

Good values do nothing by themselves. The Way takes form in the world only through people who practice it.