If there were a god, he'd be like water that brings life to things without trying. Water seeks the lowest place and cleanses what it touches. It is as satisfied with the humble as with the exalted. Still, deep, clear, true, kind, useful, generous, prompt. This is also the true man, liquid, and at ease.

Nothing is more yielding than water. And yet nothing can resist it in the long run; it shapes the earth. Therefore for conquest substitute generosity. In the long run, what hardens itself and makes rules erodes into it. I'm serious about this. The sage knows that dishonor inculcates real virtue. Power gives only pride, only death. True words appear