The word of a gentleman is harder to retrieve than four horses racing ahead of it.
A gentleman is guided by righteousness, while a petty person is guided by profit.
Do not do to others what you do not wish to have done to you.
Do not be too choosy about the cooking of your food, nor about the cutting of your meat.
A gentleman would rather be tardy in speech than prompt in action.
Silken words and a pleasant countenance are seldom accompanied by benevolence.
Seeing the worthy, think of equaling them; seeing the unworthy, examine yourself.
He narrates but does not create; he believes in and loves antiquity.
Answer resentment with uprightness, and answer virtue with virtue.
Living in the midst of benevolence is the best. If you choose not to live in benevolence, how can you be called wise?
Rotten wood cannot be carved; walls made of dung cannot be plastered.
A gentleman seeks perfection from himself, while a petty person seeks perfection from others.
If a man has no benevolence, what can he do with ritual? If a man has no benevolence, what can he do with music?
What you do not wish for yourself, do not impose on others.
The Master smiled slightly.
Living in the midst of benevolence is the best. If you choose not to live in benevolence, how can you be called wise?
Only the highest sage and the lowest fool are unchangeable.
The purpose of speech is only to convey the meaning clearly.
If there are faults, do not hesitate to correct them.
Without understanding words, one cannot understand people.
All the world is one family of brothers.
Do not shift anger from one person to another; do not repeat the same mistake twice.
Governing by virtue is like the North Star, which stays in its place while all the other stars revolve around it.
Being fond of learning is close to wisdom; being energetic in action is close to benevolence; knowing shame is close to courage.
If a man has no trustworthiness, I do not know how he can stand. Without the yoke, how can a large cart run? Without the tongue, how can a small cart run?