Confucius eliminated four faults: he did not speculate without evidence, did not insist on absolute certainty, did not cling to rigid opinions, and did not prioritize his own self.
A person from Daxiang said, “How great is Confucius! He is immensely learned, yet he has not become famous for any single skill.” When Confucius heard this, he said to his disciples, “What should I specialize in? Should I take up charioteering or archery? I’ll go with charioteering.”
Confucius rarely spoke about profit. He spoke much more often about fate (the Mandate of Heaven) and humaneness (benevolence).
The Master said:“The Way is not distant from people.If one pursues the Way in a way that estranges it from human life, it cannot be called the true Way.”
The Master said:“How supreme is the Doctrine of the Mean!Yet among the people, few have been able to practice it for long!”
Mencius said: “The noble person pursues deep learning through the proper Way, aiming to attain understanding on their own. When one truly grasps it from within, they can dwell in it with peace; dwelling in it with peace leads to profound accumulation; and with profound accumulation, one can draw upon it freely and abundantly…
Mencius said: “When it comes to understanding a person, nothing is more revealing than their eyes.The eyes cannot conceal a person’s evil.”