Across thousands of years and many cultures, wise people have tried to put the deepest truths into a few words. Some of those lines still feel startlingly fresh, as if they were written for this very morning.

You don’t need to memorise all of them. Often a single line, carried through the day, can do more than a whole book. Here are ten to choose from, each taken from the writer’s own work. Read them slowly and notice which one makes you pause.

Lines worth carrying

  • “A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.” Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching, chapter 64
  • “Knowing others is intelligence; knowing yourself is true wisdom.” Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching, chapter 33
  • “He who knows that enough is enough will always have enough.” Lao Tzu, Tao Te Ching, chapter 46
  • “You cannot step twice into the same river.” Heraclitus, Fragments
  • “We suffer more often in imagination than in reality.” Seneca, Letters to Lucilius, Letter 13
  • “Men are disturbed not by things, but by the opinions about things.” Epictetus, Enchiridion
  • “The soul becomes dyed with the colour of its thoughts.” Marcus Aurelius, Meditations
  • “Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one.” Marcus Aurelius, Meditations
  • “The impediment to action advances action. What stands in the way becomes the way.” Marcus Aurelius, Meditations
  • “In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, but in the expert’s there are few.” Shunryu Suzuki, Zen Mind, Beginner’s Mind

English translations of these older texts vary a little in their wording, but each line comes from the writer’s own work.

How to work with one line

Choose the line that speaks to you today. Then try this short practice:

  1. Sit comfortably and take three slow breaths.
  2. Read the line slowly, once or twice.
  3. Notice what it stirs in you: a memory, a feeling, a question.
  4. Ask, Where in my life could this help today?
  5. Carry the line with you. Bring it to mind at the kettle, on a walk or before a difficult conversation.

Two minutes is plenty.

Letting a truth grow

Wisdom tends to grow slowly. A line you read today might mean something quite different in a year. That’s part of its beauty. Come back to it whenever you like, and let your understanding deepen with your life.

If stories speak to you more than sayings, 6 awesome Zen stories that will teach you important life lessons is a lovely next read.

How little is enough

One line, one week. Let it keep you company and see what it teaches you.

If writing helps you make sense of change, there’s a short guided journal waiting on the Guides page.