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Confucius on fatherhood, character, and how to live

11 sourced quotes from Confucius, each with the original work, the year, and links to a primary or scholarly source you can check yourself. Selected for what they say to a man raising children.

“A youth, when at home, should be filial, and, abroad, respectful to his elders. He should be earnest and truthful.”
The Analects, Book I, Chapter 6, c. 479 BC
“A young man should serve his parents at home and be respectful to elders outside his home. He should be earnest and truthful, loving all, but become…”
The Analects, Book I, Chapter 6
“When you have faults, do not fear to abandon them.”
The Analects, Book I, Chapter 8, c. 479 BC
“When you know a thing, to hold that you know it; and when you do not know a thing, to allow that you do not know it—this is knowledge.”
The Analects, Book II, Chapter 17, c. 479 BC
“At fifteen my heart was set on learning; at thirty I stood firm; at forty I had no more doubts; at fifty I knew the will of heaven; at sixty my ear…”
The Analects, Book II, Chapter 4
“Virtue is not left to stand alone. He who practises it will have neighbors.”
The Analects, Book IV, Chapter 25, c. 479 BC
“The prosecution of learning may be compared to what may happen in raising a mound. If there want but one basket of earth to complete the work, and I…”
The Analects, Book IX, Chapter XVIII, c. 479 BC
“A youth is to be regarded with respect. How do we know that his future will not be equal to our present?”
The Analects, Book IX, Chapter XXII, c. 479 BC
“When the year becomes cold, then we know how the pine and the cypress are the last to lose their leaves.”
The Analects, Book IX, Chapter XXVII, c. 479 BC
“The man of virtue makes the difficulty to be overcome his first business, and success only a subsequent consideration: this may be called perfect…”
The Analects, Book VI, Chapter 22
“The superior man is modest in his speech, but exceeds in his actions.”
The Analects, Book XIV, Chapter 29

The right words for exactly where you are right now.

DadVice matches wisdom like this to the real situations of fatherhood — the hard conversation, the long night, the moment you do not know what to say. Every quote is sourced. No motivational filler.

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Works quoted here: The Analects, Book I, Chapter 6, The Analects, Book I, Chapter 8, The Analects, Book II, Chapter 17, The Analects, Book II, Chapter 4, The Analects, Book IV, Chapter 25, The Analects, Book IX, Chapter XVIII, The Analects, Book IX, Chapter XXII, The Analects, Book IX, Chapter XXVII, The Analects, Book VI, Chapter 22, The Analects, Book XIV, Chapter 29.