THE WISDOM OF KUNG FU...
there are two kinds of strength. the outer strength is obvious, it fades with age and succumbs to sickness. then there is the qi or inner strength. everyone possesses it too. it is indeed much more difficult to develop. the inner strength lasts through every heat, and every cold, and into old age...and beyond.
FEAR IS THE ONLY DARKNESs.
WHen words are no better than silence, then one should keep silent.
The purpose of discipline is to live more fully, not less.
The bird sings in the forest. does it seek to be admired for its song? let tears come when your heart tells you of its sadness. let joy come, unasked and unplanned.
Deal with evil through strength, but affirm the Good in man through trust. In this way we are prepared for evil, but we encourage Good.
TRUST IS AN IDEAL. In striving for an ideal, we do not seek rewards; yet trust does sometimes bring with it great reward-even greater than Good.
Seek always Peace. Wear no path for the footsteps of others unless the soul is endangered. We are linked by our souls. To endanger one, endangers all, but when one is endangered, then the soul must become a warrior.
See the Way of life as a stream. A man floats, and his way is smooth. The same man, turning to fight upstream, exhausts himself. To be One with the Universe, Each must find his true path and follow it.
To suppress a truth is to give it force beyond endurance.
The greatest victor wins without a battle. Yield and you need not break.
The thorn defends the rose. It harms only those who would steal the blossom from the plant.
In striving for an ideal, we do not seek rewards.
Perfect wisdom is unplanned. Perfect living offers no guarantee to a peaceful death. Learn first, how to live. Learn second, how not to kill. Learn third, how to live with death. Learn fourth, how to die...To know love, be like the running brook, which although it is deaf, yet sings its melody for others to hear. Feel the pain of too much tenderness. Wake at dawn with a winged heart and give thanks for yet another day of loving
The undiscerning mind is like the root of a tree...it absorbs equally all that it touches--even the poison that would kill it.
Is it not better to see yourself truly than to care how others see you?
Hear the law; serve justice.
to be violent is to be weak, for violence has no mind. Is it not wiser to seek a man's love than to desire his swift defeat?
the greatest obligation that we have is To live!
One cannot feel joy unless one can also feel despair. We have no capacity for Good without an equal capacity for Evil.
Perhaps the proper conclusion one can come to is not to come easily to conclusions.
The silkworm dies, the moth lives, yet they are not two separate beings but one and the same. It is the same with a man. His false beliefs must die, so that he may know the joy of the Way. What you felt in the Silence is real. Something in you is dying. It is called Ignorance.
Do wars, famine, disease and death exist? Do lust, greed and hate exist? They are man's creation, brought into being by the dark side of his nature.
He who is open-eyed is open-minded. He who is open-minded is open-hearted. He who is open-hearted is kingly. He who is kingly is Godly. He who is Godly is useful. He who is useful is infinite. He who is infinite is immune. He who is immune is immortal. - Lao tzu
The body is the arrow, the spirit is the bow. You must learn to use the strength of the spirit.
Who can know himself well enough to speak for all? Who is so well founded to hear all? The sage says ”Shape clay into a vessel; cut doors and windows for a room; it is the spaces within which make it useful”...So we must listen for the spaces between us.
Teachers open the door; you enter by yourself.
A wise man teaches not by what he says, but by what he does.
He who asks, is a fool for five minutes; he who does not ask, remains a fool forever.
Never admire a man by his strength; judge him in how he uses it.
He who rides the rickshaw is a man----like those who carry it.
Although a tree is a thousand Chang in height, its leaves still fall to the ground.
If you suspect a man, don't employ him; if you employ him, don't suspect him.
One cannot refuse to eat just because there is a chance of being choked.
Looking for fish; don't climb a tree.
Fish see the worm, not the hook.
Water floats a ship; water sinks a ship.
Don't judge the horse by his saddle.
When riches fill your home, you will not be able to keep the thieves away.
To know the road ahead, ask those coming back.
When you want to test the depths of a stream, don't use both feet.
Words said in anger settle no dispute.
Think twice, then say nothing.
One rat dropping spoils a pot of rice.
Keep your broken arm inside your sleeve.
Before you beat the dog, learn his master's name.
When you fall, pick yourself up.
When you fall, pick up something.
When strict with oneself, one rarely fails.
Dig your well before you are thirsty.
Deviate an inch, lose a thousand miles.
When you do a favor and expect a reward, it is not a favor.
A clear conscience never fears midnight knocking.
Even a hare will bite when it is cornered.
It is not the creed that makes the man. It is the man that justifies the creed.
The mind is like a fertile garden. It will grow anything you wish to plant.
You cannot prevent the birds of sorrow from flying over your head, but you can prevent them from building nests in your hair.
MAKING A MISTAKE AND NOT CORRECTING IT IS THE REAL MISTAKE.
The longer bamboo grows, the lower it bows.
It is better to spend three years looking for a good master than ten years training with a bad one.
When the archer misses the center of the target, he does not blame the bow or arrow. He seeks for the cause of failure within himself.
ONE who speaks does not know and one who knows does not speak.
Among martial artists, there are those who desire recognition through mastery of certain skills rather than a totally upright character, but they will never be genuine martial artists.
The discipline of knowledge lies in the attaining of moral excellence. Granting emotion and desire their place, the true martial artist is not dominated by them.
A martial artist without philosophy is nothing more than a street fighter.
The great essence of the martial arts is its spirit. The outward features are the many techniques it teaches.
The mind commands, strength goes along and follows.
The most important part of a fight begins before you draw your sword.
The tree that does not bend with the wind will be broken by the wind.
A person who does not believe his master's teachings will never reach a depth of understanding; likewise, a person who believes every word of his master's teaching without question will never reach a depth of understanding.
Advance daily throughout your life, becoming more skillful today than yesterday. This is a never
ending process. The Way is in the training.
What is cowardice but the body’s wisdom of its weakness. What is bravery but the body’s wisdom of its strength. The coward and the hero march together within every man. So, to call one man a coward and the other brave is merely to acknowledge the possibilities of one achieving their opposite.
If a man dwells on the past, then he robs the present; but if a man ignores the past, he may rob the future. The seeds of our destiny are nurtured by the roots of our past.
There are three treasures which I hold and keep. The first is mercy, for from mercy comes courage. The second is frugality, from which comes generosity to others. The third is humility, for from it comes leadership.
In a heart that is one with nature, though the body contends, there is no violence, and in the heart that is not one with nature, though the body be at rest, there is always violence. Be, therefore, like the prow of a boat. It cleaves water, yet it leaves in its wake water unbroken.
If you plant rice, rice will grow. If you plant fear, fear will grow.
Remember always, that a wise man walks with his head bowed, humble, like the dust.
The wild boar runs from the tiger, knowing that each, being well-armed by nature with deadly strength, may kill the other. In Running, he saves his own life and that of the tiger. This is not cowardice. It is the love of life.
The courageous fighter shuns violence. The skillful soldier avoids anger. A mighty warrior does not fight for petty conquests.
WHEN ONE EYE IS FIXED ON THE DESTINATION, YOU HAVE ONLY ONE EYE TO SEE THE WAY.
One often meets his destiny on the road he takes to avoid it.
From the Crane, we learn grace and self-control.
The Snake teaches us suppleness and rhythmic endurance. The Praying Mantis teaches us speed and patience. And from the Tiger, we learn tenacity and power. And from the Dragon, we learn to ride the wind. All creatures, the low and the high, are one with nature. If we have the wisdom to learn, all may teach us their virtues.
He who conquers himself is the greatest warrior.
To reach perfection a man must develop equally compassion and wisdom.
Everything has its beauty but not everyone sees it.
Ignorance is the night of the mind, but a night without moon and star.
It does not matter how slowly you go so long as you do not stop.
Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in getting up every time we do.
What the superior man seeks is in himself; what the small man seeks is in others.
They must often change who would be constant in happiness or wisdom.
I am not one who was born in the possession of knowledge; I am one who is fond of antiquity, and earnest in seeking it there.
If a man takes no thought about what is distant, he will find sorrow near at hand.
Learning without thought is labor lost; thought without learning is perilous.
Recompense injury with justice, and recompense kindness with kindness.
The cautious seldom err.
The superior man cannot be known in little matters, but he may be entrusted with great concerns. The small man may not be entrusted with great concerns, but he may be known in little matters.
The superior man is modest in his speech, but exceeds in his actions.
Things that are done, it is needless to speak about…things that are past, it is needless to blame.
Virtue is not left to stand alone. He who practices it will have neighbors.
If you are depressed, you live in the past. If you are anxious, you live in the future. If you are at peace, you live in the present.
