Famous Quotes

Quotes by Xun Zi

• A person is born with feelings of envy and hate. If he gives way to them, they will lead him to violence and crime, and any sense of loyalty and good faith will be abandoned.
• Human nature is evil, and goodness is caused by intentional activity.
• Human nature is such that people are born with a love of profit If they follow these inclinations, they will struggle and snatch from each other, and inclinations to defer or yield will die.
• Human nature is what Heaven supplies.
• Human nature refers to what is in people but which they cannot study or work at achieving.
• If knowledge and foresight are too penetrating and deep, unify them with ease and sincerity.
• If the blood humor is too strong and robust, calm it with balance and harmony.
• In antiquity the sage kings recognized that men's nature is bad and that their tendencies were not being corrected and their lawlessness controlled.
• In order to properly understand the big picture, everyone should fear becoming mentally clouded and obsessed with one small section of truth.
• Mencius said that human nature is good. I disagree with that.
• Music is a fantastic peacekeeper of the world, it is integral to harmony, and it is a required fundamental of human emotion.
• Now it is human nature to want to eat to ones fill when hungry, to want to warm up when cold, to want to rest when tired. These all are a part of people's emotional nature.
• Quarreling over food and drink, having neither scruples nor shame, not knowing right from wrong, not trying to avoid death or injury, not fearful of greater strength or of greater numbers, greedily aware only of food and drink - such is the bravery of the dog and boar.
• Since the nature of people is bad, to become corrected they must be taught by teachers and to be orderly they must acquire ritual and moral principles.
• The coming of honor or disgrace must be a reflection of one's inner power.
• The person attempting to travel two roads at once will get nowhere.
• Therefore, a person should first be changed by a teacher's instructions, and guided by principles of ritual. Only then can he observe the rules of courtesy and humility, obey the conventions and rules of society, and achieve order.
• Thus, anybody who follows this nature and gives way its states will be led into quarrels and conflicts, and go against the conventions and rules of society, and will end up a criminal.
• When people lack teachers, their tendencies are not corrected when they do not have ritual and moral principles, then their lawlessness is not controlled.