--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: A good man is not mine to see. Could I…" description: "\"A good man is not mine to see. Could I see a man possessed of constancy, that would satisfy me.\" — Confucius" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62f/confucius-164_constancy_a-good-man-is-not-mine-to-see-could-i-se_1920970.jpg" --- # A good man is not mine to see. Could I see a man possessed… ![“A good man is not mine to see. Could I see a man possessed of constancy, that would satisfy me.” quote by Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62f/confucius-164_constancy_a-good-man-is-not-mine-to-see-could-i-se_1920970.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62f/confucius-164_constancy_a-good-man-is-not-mine-to-see-could-i-se_1920970.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62f/confucius-164_constancy_a-good-man-is-not-mine-to-see-could-i-se_1920970.jpg) > “A good man is not mine to see. Could I see a man possessed of constancy, that would satisfy me.” [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Consistent character is more valuable than superficial observation. **In simple terms:** Steadfastness matters more than appearances. Key Takeaway Value constancy in yourself and others. Themes virtue character consistency Mood thoughtful serious Type ethical philosophical When to use this quote - leadership - friendship - personal development Key Concepts Confucian ethics moral philosophy Questions to Reflect On - How do you recognize true constancy? - Can steadiness coexist with flexibility? A Different Perspective Constancy alone may not guarantee moral goodness. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Constancy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/constancy/) [Constancy Satisfy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/constancy-satisfy-2949522/) [Good man](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/good-man/) [Greatness](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/greatness/) [Inspirational](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/inspirational/) [Man Possessed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/man-possessed-274162/) [Men](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/men/) [Mines](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/mines/) [Possessed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/possessed/) [Possessed Constancy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/possessed-constancy-2949521/) ## Related quotes > [Seamus Coleman is quiet by nature. He comes in here, he'd be very well mannered. Take him onto the field now and he is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-o-neill/seamus-coleman-is-quiet-by-nature-he-comes-in-here-he-d-be-very-well/) [Martin O'Neill](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-o-neill/) > [A young man had become possessed by a devil. The thing within him burst into loud lamentation and departed from the man. At once…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/saint-augustine/a-young-man-had-become-possessed-by-a-devil-the-thing-within-him/) [Saint Augustine](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/saint-augustine/) > [“Poured his grief into me in the form of a wet violent kiss, and had come alive as soon as we’d fallen to the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/santino-hassell/poured-his-grief-into-me-in-the-form-of-a-wet-violent-kiss-and-had/) [Santino Hassell](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/santino-hassell/) > [I still tour like a man possessed, because I am.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-nugent/i-still-tour-like-a-man-possessed-because-i-am/) [Ted Nugent](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-nugent/) > [“He was ruined in every way, but a man possessed of passion is not a bankrupt in life.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/joseph-conrad/he-was-ruined-in-every-way-but-a-man-possessed-of-passion-is-not-a/) [Joseph Conrad](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/joseph-conrad/) > [Stefan G. Bucher is a man possessed.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/stefan-g-bucher/stefan-g-bucher-is-a-man-possessed/) [Stefan G. Bucher](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/stefan-g-bucher/) > [“This beautifully fucked up and wonderful man had possessed me in every way and I wouldn’t have it any different.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/this-beautifully-fucked-up-and-wonderful-man-had-possessed-me-in/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [I, for my part, wonder of what sort of feeling, mind or reason that man was possessed who was first to pollute his mouth…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/plutarch/i-for-my-part-wonder-of-what-sort-of-feeling-mind-or-reason-that-man/) [Plutarch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/plutarch/) > [a man possessed with peace is always smiling](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/milan-kundera/a-man-possessed-with-peace-is-always-smiling/) [Milan Kundera](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/milan-kundera/) > [Sincerity becomes apparent. From being apparent, it becomes manifest. From being manifest, it becomes brilliant. Brilliant, it affects others. Affecting others, they are changed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/sincerity-becomes-apparent-from-being-apparent-it-becomes-manifest/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [A good many causes tend to make good masters and mistresses quite as rare as good servants… The large and rapid fortunes by which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/fanny-kemble/a-good-many-causes-tend-to-make-good-masters-and-mistresses-quite-as/) [Fanny Kemble](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/fanny-kemble/) > [A good man will certainly also possess courage; but a brave man is not necessarily good.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/a-good-man-will-certainly-also-possess-courage-but-a-brave-man-is-not/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [The wise man delights in water, the Good man delights in mountains. For the wise move; but the Good stay still. The wise are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/the-wise-man-delights-in-water-the-good-man-delights-in-mountains-for/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [Without goodness a man cannot endure adversity for long, nor can he enjoy prosperity for long. The good man is naturally at ease with…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/without-goodness-a-man-cannot-endure-adversity-for-long-nor-can-he/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [I was always anti-marriage. I didn't understand monogamy. I couldn't figure out how that could last. And then I met Bryn and I started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-bello/i-was-always-anti-marriage-i-didn-t-understand-monogamy-i-couldn-t/) [Maria Bello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-bello/) ## More by Confucius > [Attack the evil that is within yourself, rather than attacking the evil that is in others.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/attack-the-evil-that-is-within-yourself-rather-than-attacking-the/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [The superior man is distressed by his want (lack) of ability](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/the-superior-man-is-distressed-by-his-want-lack-of-ability/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [In ancient times, those who wished to illuminate the world with virtue first brought order to their nations. Wishing to order well their nations,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/in-ancient-times-those-who-wished-to-illuminate-the-world-with-virtue/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [Better than the one who knows what is right is the one who loves what is right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/better-than-the-one-who-knows-what-is-right-is-the-one-who-loves-what/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [Knowledge is merely brilliance in organization of ideas and not wisdom. The truly wise person goes beyond knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/knowledge-is-merely-brilliance-in-organization-of-ideas-and-not/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [I live in a very small house, but my windows look out on a very large world.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/i-live-in-a-very-small-house-but-my-windows-look-out-on-a-very-large/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [To rule a country of a thousand chariots, there must be reverent attention to business, and sincerity; economy in expenditure, and love for men;…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/to-rule-a-country-of-a-thousand-chariots-there-must-be-reverent/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [The real fault is to have faults and not amend them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/the-real-fault-is-to-have-faults-and-not-amend-them/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [To know what you know and what you do not know, that is true knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/to-know-what-you-know-and-what-you-do-not-know-that-is-true-knowledge/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [A picture is poem without words.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/a-picture-is-poem-without-words/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [Heaven means to be one with God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/heaven-means-to-be-one-with-god/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [Does Heaven ever speak? The four seasons come and go, and all creatures thrive and grow. Does Heaven ever speak!](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/does-heaven-ever-speak-the-four-seasons-come-and-go-and-all-creatures/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [To study and at times practice what one has learned, is this not a pleasure?](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/to-study-and-at-times-practice-what-one-has-learned-is-this-not-a/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [Recompense injury with justice, and recompense kindness with kindness.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/recompense-injury-with-justice-and-recompense-kindness-with-kindness/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) > [There is only one thing in life which never changes, and it is change.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/there-is-only-one-thing-in-life-which-never-changes-and-it-is-change/) [Confucius](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) [Explore all 1,019 Confucius quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/) ## More Constancy quotes > [I was always anti-marriage. I didn't understand monogamy. I couldn't figure out how that could last. And then I met Bryn and I started…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/maria-bello/i-was-always-anti-marriage-i-didn-t-understand-monogamy-i-couldn-t/) [Maria Bello](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/maria-bello/) > [It is as foolish to make experiments upon the constancy of a friend, as upon the chastity of a wife.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samuel-johnson/it-is-as-foolish-to-make-experiments-upon-the-constancy-of-a-friend/) [Samuel Johnson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samuel-johnson/) > [Perseverance is neither praiseworthy nor blameworthy; for it seems to be only the enduring of certain inclinations and opinions which men neither give themselves…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/perseverance-is-neither-praiseworthy-nor-blameworthy-for-it-seems-to/) [Francois de La Rochefoucauld](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/francois-de-la-rochefoucauld/) > [The word "hope" I take for faith; and indeed hope is nothing else but the constancy of faith.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-calvin/the-word-hope-i-take-for-faith-and-indeed-hope-is-nothing-else-but/) [John Calvin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-calvin/) > [The fickleness of the women I love is only equalled by the infernal constancy of the women who love me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/george-bernard-shaw/the-fickleness-of-the-women-i-love-is-only-equalled-by-the-infernal/) [George Bernard Shaw](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/george-bernard-shaw/) > [By the disposition of a stupendous wisdom, moulding together the great mysterious incorporation of the human race, the whole, at one time, is never…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/edmund-burke/by-the-disposition-of-a-stupendous-wisdom-moulding-together-the-great/) [Edmund Burke](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/edmund-burke/) > [“Even gods decay. Like, in 1890 somebody sold off thousands of mummified Ancient Egyptian sacred cats - \_for fertilizer\_. Get the point? Constancy isn't.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-gash/even-gods-decay-like-in-1890-somebody-sold-off-thousands-of-mummified/) [Jonathan Gash](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-gash/) > [Prayer is the pulse of the renewed soul; and the constancy of its beat is the test and measure of the spiritual life.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/octavius-winslow/prayer-is-the-pulse-of-the-renewed-soul-and-the-constancy-of-its-beat/) [Octavius Winslow](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/octavius-winslow/) > [To grasp life and meaning, we assume constancy where it does not exist. We name experiences, emotions, and subjective states and assume that what…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/to-grasp-life-and-meaning-we-assume-constancy-where-it-does-not-exist/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [Feeling the security and constancy of love from a spouse, a parent or a child is a rich blessing. Such love nurtures and sustains…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-a-bednar/feeling-the-security-and-constancy-of-love-from-a-spouse-a-parent-or/) [David A. Bednar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-a-bednar/) > [But keeping secrets is a discipline. I never use to think of myself as a good liar, but after having had some practice I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lionel-shriver/but-keeping-secrets-is-a-discipline-i-never-use-to-think-of-myself-as/) [Lionel Shriver](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lionel-shriver/) > [Constancy does not begin, but is that which perseveres.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/leonardo-da-vinci/constancy-does-not-begin-but-is-that-which-perseveres/) [Leonardo da Vinci](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/leonardo-da-vinci/) > [“The secret to success is constancy of purpose.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-disraeli/the-secret-to-success-is-constancy-of-purpose/) [Benjamin Disraeli](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-disraeli/) > [Whatever is genuine in social relations endures, despite of time, error, absence, and destiny; and that which has no inherent vitality had better die…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-theodore-tuckerman/whatever-is-genuine-in-social-relations-endures-despite-of-time-error/) [Henry Theodore Tuckerman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-theodore-tuckerman/) > [“Not by fitful efforts, but by constancy, is an end secured. The”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-wortabet/not-by-fitful-efforts-but-by-constancy-is-an-end-secured-the/) [John Wortabet](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-wortabet/) [Browse all 196 Constancy quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/constancy/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "A good man is not mine to see. Could I see a man possessed of constancy, that would satisfy me.", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "Confucius" }, "isPartOf": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website" }, "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/a-good-man-is-not-mine-to-see-could-i-see-a-man-possessed-of/", "about": { "@type": "Thing", "name": "Constancy" }, "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/a-good-man-is-not-mine-to-see-could-i-see-a-man-possessed-of/#quotation", "image": { "@type": "ImageObject", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62f/confucius-164_constancy_a-good-man-is-not-mine-to-see-could-i-se_1920970.jpg", "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62f/confucius-164_constancy_a-good-man-is-not-mine-to-see-could-i-se_1920970.jpg", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/62f/confucius-164_constancy_a-good-man-is-not-mine-to-see-could-i-se_1920970.jpg", "width": 1080, "height": 1080, "caption": "“A good man is not mine to see. Could I see a man possessed of constancy, that would satisfy me.” — Confucius", "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "creator": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } } }, { "@type": "BreadcrumbList", "itemListElement": [ { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 1, "name": "Home", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 2, "name": "Quotes", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 3, "name": "Confucius", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/confucius/" }, { "@type": "ListItem", "position": 4, "name": "A good man is not mine...", "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/a-good-man-is-not-mine-to-see-could-i-see-a-man-possessed-of/" } ], "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/confucius/a-good-man-is-not-mine-to-see-could-i-see-a-man-possessed-of/#breadcrumb" }, { "@type": "WebSite", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "publisher": { "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization" } }, { "@type": "Organization", "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization", "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/", "logo": { "@type": "ImageObject", "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png", "width": 512, "height": 512 } } ] } ```