Chanakya (Vishnugupta, Political Scientist, Bharatavarsha, 4th Century B.C.).
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"A person should never be totally honest. Straight trees are cut first and honest people are screwed first."
"Even if a snake is not venomous, it should pretend to be so."
"Never ever share your secrets with anybody. If you do, you will be destroyed."
"There is always some self-interest behind every friendship. There is no friendship without self-interest. This is the bitter truth."
"Before you start any work, always ask yourself three questions - Why am I doing it, What the results might be and Will I be successful. Only when you think deeply and find satisfactory answers to these questions, go ahead."
"As soon as fear approaches near, attack and destroy it."
"Once you start a working on something, don't be afraid of failure and don't abandon it. People who work sincerely are the happiest."
"Fragrance of flowers spread only with the wind. But the goodness of a person spreads in all direction."
"Whores shun the company of poor men, citizens never support a weak company and birds don't build nests on a tree that doesn't bear fruits."
"God is not present in idols. Your feelings are your god. The soul is your temple."
"A man is great by deeds, not by birth."
"Treat your child as a cherished one for the first five years. During the next five years, discipline them. By the time they turn sixteen, treat them as you would a friend. Your grown-up children are your best friends."
"Books are as useful to stupid men as mirrors are to the blind."
"Education is the best friend. Education beats beauty and youth. A king is revered only in his own kingdom, but a scholar is revered everywhere."
…
"A person should never be totally honest. Straight trees are cut first and honest people are screwed first."
"Even if a snake is not venomous, it should pretend to be so."
"Never ever share your secrets with anybody. If you do, you will be destroyed."
"There is always some self-interest behind every friendship. There is no friendship without self-interest. This is the bitter truth."
"Before you start any work, always ask yourself three questions - Why am I doing it, What the results might be and Will I be successful. Only when you think deeply and find satisfactory answers to these questions, go ahead."
"As soon as fear approaches near, attack and destroy it."
"Once you start a working on something, don't be afraid of failure and don't abandon it. People who work sincerely are the happiest."
"Fragrance of flowers spread only with the wind. But the goodness of a person spreads in all direction."
"Whores shun the company of poor men, citizens never support a weak company and birds don't build nests on a tree that doesn't bear fruits."
"God is not present in idols. Your feelings are your god. The soul is your temple."
"A man is great by deeds, not by birth."
"Treat your child as a cherished one for the first five years. During the next five years, discipline them. By the time they turn sixteen, treat them as you would a friend. Your grown-up children are your best friends."
"Books are as useful to stupid men as mirrors are to the blind."
"Education is the best friend. Education beats beauty and youth. A king is revered only in his own kingdom, but a scholar is revered everywhere."
…