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What a ruler has to rely upon is only the human heart. Human hearts are to the ruler what roots are to a tree, what oil is to a lamp, water to fish, fields to a farmer, or money to a merchant.

— Su Shi Sources of Chinese Tradition: From Earliest Times to 1600 (1999)

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More quotes by Su Shi

For ten long years the living of the dead knows nought.
Though to my mind not brought,
Could the dead be forgot?

The brimming waves delight the eye on sunny days;
The dimming hills give a rare view in rainy haze.
The West Lake looks like the fair lady at her best
Whether she is richly adorned or plainly dressed.

Families when a child is born
Hope it will turn out intelligent.
I, through intelligence
Having wrecked my whole life,
Only hope that the baby will prove
Ignorant and stupid.
Then he'll be happy all his days
And grow into a cabinet minister.

From the side, a whole range; from the end, a single peak;
far, near, high, low, no two parts alike.
Why can't I tell the true shape of Lu-shan?
Because I myself am in the mountain.

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Attribution

Quote text and notes from Wikiquote: Su Shi (page history), available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Source quality and labels are our own summary of what Wikiquote records.