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Zicheng Hong Quotes

Philosopher

Zicheng Hong was a prominent philosopher during the Ming and Qing dynasties in China. He is known for his contributions to Neo-Confucian philosophy, particularly his work on the nature of human nature and moral cultivation. His teachings have had a lasting impact on Chinese intellectual history.

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All Taoism People Ifs Mind Should Enlightened May Way Desire Knows Giving Feelings Careful Clear Fortune Humans Pure World Arise Dies

Famous Zicheng Hong Quotes

“When you are constantly hearing offensive words and always have some irritating matter in mind, only then do you have a whetstone for character development. If you hear only what pleases you, and deal only with what thrills you, then you are burying your life in deadly poison.”

Ifs Mind Matter Character Deals Development Please Hearing Poison Taoism Offensive Irritating Character Development Burying

Author:Zicheng Hong

“There is a true Buddha in family life; there is a real Tao in everyday activities. If people can be sincere and harmonious, promoting communication with a cheerful demeanor and friendly words, that is much better than formal meditation practice.”

People Ifs Real Practice Meditation Communication Activity Everyday Friendly Taoism Sincere Formal Cheerful Tao Promoting Family Life Harmonious Meditation Practice Demeanor

Author:Zicheng Hong

“Think about food on a full stomach and you find you don't care about taste. Think of lust after making love, and you find you don't care about sex. Therefore, if people always reflect on the regret they will feel afterward to forestall folly at the moment, they will be stable and will not err in action.”

People Ifs Thinking Feels Moments Care Action Sex Regret Taste Don't Care Lust Folly Taoism Stomach Stable Making Love

Author:Zicheng Hong

“The learned should be vigorous and diligent, but they should also be free-spirited. If they are too rigorous and austere, they have the death-dealing quality of autumn but lack the life-giving quality of spring. How can they develop people then?”

People Ifs Giving Should Quality Spring Taoism Autumn Vigorous Diligent Spirited

Author:Zicheng Hong

“If the mind is illumined, there is clear blue sky in a dark room. If the thoughts are muddled, there are malevolent ghosts in broad daylight.”

Ifs Mind Dark Rooms Clear Sky Blue Ghost Taoism Broads Daylight Blue Sky Dark Room Clear Blue Sky

Author:Zicheng Hong

“If you fear that people will know if you do something bad, then there is something good in bad. If you are eager for people to know when you do something good, then there is something bad in good.”

People Ifs Knows Taoism

Author:Zicheng Hong

“Even a wild horse can be tamed; even metal that is difficult to work eventually goes into a mold. If you take it easy and do not stir yourself, you will never make any progress. It has been said, "It is no disgrace to have many afflictions: I would worry if there never were any afflictions."”

Ifs Has Beens Said Easy Difficult Worry Progress Horse Taoism Metals Affliction Disgrace Mold Tamed Take It Easy Wild Horses

Author:Zicheng Hong

“The eyes and ears, seeing and hearing, are external plunderers; emotions, desires, and opinions are internal plunderers. But if the inner mind is awake and alert, sitting aloof in the middle of it all, then these plunderers change and become members of the household.”

Ifs Mind Eye Desire Emotion Opinion Seeing Middle Members Sitting Ears Hearing Awake Internals Taoism Household Aloof

Author:Zicheng Hong

“Even if you do no work that is particularly lofty or far-reaching, if you can shed mundane feelings, that is a great achievement. Even if you do not strive much for progress in learning, if you can minimize the influence things have on you, you will soar into the realm of sages.”

Ifs Feelings Progress Influence Achievement Strive Realms Reaching Taoism Shed Soar Sage Mundane Lofty Great Achievement

Author:Zicheng Hong

“In whatever you do, if you leave a sense of incompleteness, then Creation cannot resent you, ghosts and spirits cannot harm you. If you insist on fulfillment in your work and perfection in achievement, you will become either inwardly deranged or outwardly unsettled.”

Ifs Spirit Creation Achievement Perfection Harm Ghost Fulfillment Taoism Resent Deranged Incompleteness Resent You

Author:Zicheng Hong

“If a poor house is well kept, or a poor girl well groomed, there is elegance if not beauty. If good people should come upon hard times, why should they immediately give up on themselves?”

People Ifs Giving Should Wells Hard Girl House Poor Giving Up Hard Times Taoism Good People Elegance

Author:Zicheng Hong

“If you are not lax when at leisure, you will be effective when busy. If you are not absentminded in tranquility, that will be useful in action. If you are not hypocritical in private, that will show up in public.”

Ifs Shows Action Busy Taoism Leisure Tranquility Hypocritical Lax

Author:Zicheng Hong

“Delicious foods are drugs that will inflame the gut and rot the bones, but there is no harm if one eats moderately. Delightful things are all purveyors of destruction and decadence, but there is no regret if one enjoys them moderately.”

Ifs Enjoy Regret Drug Destruction Bones Harm Guts Taoism Delightful Delicious No Regrets Decadence Delicious Food Delightful Things

Author:Zicheng Hong

“People's shortcomings should be treated with tact; if you expose them crudely, this is attacking weakness with a weakness. When people are stubborn, it requires skill to influence them; if you treat them with anger and spite, this is treating stubbornness with stubbornness.”

People Ifs Should Influence Skills Weakness Treats Treated Spite Taoism Stubborn Attacking Shortcomings Stubbornness Tact

Author:Zicheng Hong

“Unexpected hardship refines people; if you can accept it, both mind and body will benefit. If you cannot accept it, on the other hand, both mind and body will be harmed.”

People Ifs Mind Body Hands Accepting Benefits Unexpected Taoism Hardship Mind And Body

Author:Zicheng Hong

“If those who give are conscious of their own generosity and those who receive feel indebted, they are no longer family but rather strangers doing business.”

Ifs Giving Feels Conscious Stranger Generosity Taoism Indebted

Author:Zicheng Hong

“To get rid of villains and knaves, it is necessary to give them a way out. If you don't give them any leeway at all, they will be like trapped rats. If every way out is closed to them, they will chew up everything good.”

Ifs Way Giving Taoism Villain Trapped Rats Knaves

Author:Zicheng Hong

“When enlightened people are so poor that they cannot help others, if they speak a word to awaken the confused or to resolve a problem, there is also boundless merit in that.”

People Ifs Helping Problem Speak Poor Helping Others Merit Confused Enlightened Taoism Resolve Boundless

Author:Zicheng Hong

“Generosity should begin lightly and deepen later, fro when it is first rich and then lessens, people forget the kindness. Authority should begin strictly and loosen up later, for if it is loose first and then strict, people will resent the severity.”

People Ifs Should Firsts Forget Kindness Rich Authority Generosity Taoism Strict Resent Severity

Author:Zicheng Hong

“If you do not join the polluted, then you are pure; if you reject society in search of purity, that is not purity but fanaticism.”

Ifs Pure Purity Taoism Rejects Fanaticism

Author:Zicheng Hong

“Attention is the mind's feet; if you do not control your attention strictly, it runs into misleading pathways.”

Ifs Mind Running Attention Feet Taoism Mislead Pathways

Author:Zicheng Hong

“Sexual desire may burn like fire, but when you give a thought to when you are ill, then your excitement dies down. Fame and fortune may be sweet as candy, but when you give a thought to when you die, then their flavor is like chewing wax. Therefore, if people are usually concerned about death and illness, this can also dissolve unreal activities and develop longing for the way.”

People Ifs Way Giving May Desire Dies Fire Sweet Activity Fame Concerned Longing Fortune Ill Illness Excitement Taoism Flavor Candy Unreal Chewing Sexual Desire

Author:Zicheng Hong

“Even if you can't get rid of the heat, as long as you can get rid of bother with the heat, your body is always on a cool terrace. Even if you can't get rid of poverty, as long as you can get rid of the sadness of poverty, your mind always lives in a comfortable abode.”

Ifs Mind Long Body Poverty Sadness Comfortable Your Body Bother Heat Taoism Abode Terrace

Author:Zicheng Hong

“If you know that whatever is made inevitable breaks down, you needn't seek too hard for achievement. If you know that all living beings inevitably die, you needn't work too hard on health lore.”

Ifs Knows Made Hard Dies Break Achievement Inevitable Taoism Breaking Down

Author:Zicheng Hong

“The powerful and prominent soar like dragons, the heroic and valiant fight like tigers: but if you look upon them with cool eyes, they are like ants gathering on rancid meet, like flies swarming on blood. Judgments of right and wrong bristle like porcupine quills: but if you meet them with cool feelings, that is like a forge melting metal, like hot water dissolving snow.”

“The realms of good fortune and calamity in human life are all made of thoughts and imaginings. Therefore Buddhists say that the burning of desire for gain is itself a pit of fire, while drowning in greedy love is itself a bitter sea. The moment thoughts are pure, fierce flames become a pond; the moment you become aware, the boat has arrived on the further shore. If your thoughts vary at all, your world will immediately differ, so can we not be careful?”

“Flowers should be viewed when half open, wine should be drunk only to subtle intoxication; there is great fun in this. If you view flowers in full bloom and drink to drunkenness, it becomes a bad experience. Those who are living to the full should think about this.”

Ifs Thinking Should Fun Views Half Flower Drink Wine Drunk Subtle Taoism Drunkenness Intoxication Bad Experiences

Author:Zicheng Hong

About the Author

Born: 1593
Died: 1665
Known for: Philosopher
Quotes: 95

Related Topics

Taoism People Ifs Mind Should Enlightened May Way Desire Knows Giving Feelings Careful Clear Fortune Humans Pure World Arise Dies

Popular Topics

People Ifs Thinking Knows Men World Way Want Love Life Inspirational Needs Giving Feels Should Writing Trying Years Mind Firsts

Books & Sources

A Chinese Garden of Serenity: Epigrams from the Ming DynastyRelated source material

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