Follow heaven and forsake the self.
智に働けば角が立つ。情に棹させば流される。意地を通せば窮屈だ。とかくに人の世は住みにくい。
Writers & Literary Figures
Natsume Sōseki
Natsume Soseki (1867-1916) is Japan's most celebrated modern novelist, known for masterworks such as 'Kokoro,' 'Botchan,' and 'I Am a Cat.' A scholar of English literature who studied in London, he fused Western literary techniques with Japanese sensibility to create psychologically penetrating novels that explore the isolation of the modern individual.
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Natsume Sōseki's Other Quotes
You cannot receive benefit from others without exposing your weaknesses. You cannot give benefit to others without exposing your weaknesses.
If you work by reason, you grow rough-edged. If you follow your feelings, you get swept away. If you insist on having your way, you feel boxed in. In any case, the human world is hard to live in.
のんきと見える人々も、心の底を叩いてみると、どこか悲しい音がする。
Related Quotes
We have two ears and one mouth, so we should listen more than we say.
-- Zeno of Citium
人間五十年、下天の内をくらぶれば、夢幻のごとくなり。
-- Oda Nobunaga
There is nothing to be done about it.
-- Tokugawa Ieyasu
There is nothing to be done about it.
-- Tokugawa Ieyasu
Life is like a long journey carrying a heavy burden. Never hurry.
-- Tokugawa Ieyasu
Life is like a long journey carrying a heavy burden. Never hurry.
-- Tokugawa Ieyasu