Lao Tzu Quotes

To be okay with not knowing is a sign of a mature person and a mature society.

Learning to live with the given is the great humbling educational process of life.

Maturity, one discovers, has everything to do with the acceptance of ‘not knowing.

Maturity is the art of living in peace with that which cannot be changed, the courage to change that which should be changed, no matter what it takes, and the wisdom to know the difference.

I haven't been given many things, but I've been given ample, limitless patience.

A lot of the powerful religious leaders, from Jesus to Buddha to Tibetan monks, they're really talking about the same things: love and acceptable, and the value of friendship, and respecting yourself so you can respect others.

I think it's nice to age gracefully. OK, you lose the youth, a certain stamina and dewy glow, but what you gain on the inside as a human being is wonderful: the wisdom, the acceptance and the peace of mind. It's a fair exchange.

I feel the older I get, the more I'm learning to handle life. Being on this quest for a long time, it's all about finding yourself.

At this point in my life I'm not bent on proving anything, really.

Life experiences can, at times, be quite humbling, but you learn from them. But I like the changes in my life and what kind of person they've made me into. I'm very open, not as judgmental as I was in my twenties, and a lot more compassionate.

I feel more grounded and more settled than I ever have. I don't know whether that is to do with my spirituality or whether I'm wiser about life, but as you age you become more selective about what you listen to, devote your time to and who you hang out with.

The older I get, the surer I am that I'm not running the show.

To make mistakes is human; to stumble is commonplace; to be able to laugh at yourself is maturity.

A mature person is one who does not think only in absolutes, who is able to be objective even when deeply stirred emotionally, who has learned that there is both good and bad in all people and all things, and who walks humbly and deals charitably with the circumstances of life, knowing that in this world no one is all-knowing and therefore all of us need both love and charity.

The worst thing about age is not quite being able to do what you once did. The best thing is learning to accept what you've got and what you are.

Wisdom. . .is knowing what you have to accept.

Let those who think I have said too little and those who think I have said too much, forgive me; and let those who think I have said just enough thank God with me.

Acceptance of the unacceptable is the greatest source of grace in this world.

I learned 30 years ago that it is foolish to scold. I have enough trouble overcoming my own limitations without fretting over the fact that God has not seen fit to distribute evenly the gift of intelligence.

When they attack you and you notice that you love them with all your heart, your Work is done.

There are questions I'm still not wise enough to answer, just wise enough to no longer ask.

Tolerance is a sign of growth on the spiritual path

Maturity begins when we're content to feel we're right about something without feeling the necessity to prove someone else wrong.

To bear defeat with dignity, to accept criticism with poise, to receive honors with humility - these are marks of maturity and graciousness.

You become more and more charged with your life and with a life that you're observing. When I was younger, I was actually looking forward to getting older, to have more insight, more understanding. I'm much more tolerant with others and with myself. I'm not in rebellion all the time, I'm not angry so much. But all those feelings are really useful [when you're young] because they fire us, as long as they don't get out of control.