--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: That philosopher and poet of ancient…" description: "\"“That philosopher and poet of ancient China, Lao Tzu was right when he said, “If you are depressed, you live in the past. If you are anxious, you live ..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/291/j-c-ryan-52128_live-in-the-present_that-philosopher-and-poet-of-ancient-chi_2426640.jpg" --- # That philosopher and poet of ancient China, Lao Tzu was… ![“That philosopher and poet of ancient China, Lao Tzu was right when he said, “If you are depressed, you live in the past. If you are anxious, you live in the future… If you are happy … You live in the present.” quote by J.C. Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/291/j-c-ryan-52128_live-in-the-present_that-philosopher-and-poet-of-ancient-chi_2426640.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/291/j-c-ryan-52128_live-in-the-present_that-philosopher-and-poet-of-ancient-chi_2426640.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/291/j-c-ryan-52128_live-in-the-present_that-philosopher-and-poet-of-ancient-chi_2426640.jpg) > ““That philosopher and poet of ancient China, Lao Tzu was right when he said, “If you are depressed, you live in the past. If you are anxious, you live in the future… If you are happy … You live in the present.”” [J.C. Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-c-ryan/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. The quote paraphrases Lao Tzu, linking depression to past focus, anxiety to future focus, and happiness to present focus. **In simple terms:** Living in the present brings happiness; past and future cause distress. Key Takeaway Focus on the present moment. Themes mental health mindfulness philosophy well‑being Mood reflective calm Type advice philosophical When to use this quote - daily meditation - cognitive reframing - therapy sessions Key Concepts present‑moment awareness emotional regulation stress reduction Questions to Reflect On - What practices keep you grounded? - How does past focus affect your mood? A Different Perspective Present focus can be challenging amid distractions. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Live In The Future](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/live-in-the-future/) [Live in the present](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/live-in-the-present/) [Philosophy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/philosophy/) [Poetry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/poetry/) [Time](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/time/) ## Related quotes > [I would like to be a philosopher in ancient Athens and a poet in ancient China.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shan-sa/i-would-like-to-be-a-philosopher-in-ancient-athens-and-a-poet-in/) [Shan Sa](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shan-sa/) > [“A great poet from ancient times put it this way: Love is the beauty of the soul.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jeff-wheeler/a-great-poet-from-ancient-times-put-it-this-way-love-is-the-beauty-of/) [Jeff Wheeler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jeff-wheeler/) > [Once someone said to me If you keep being depressed, then your gonna have your own raincloud and I replied Only if the rain…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/once-someone-said-to-me-if-you-keep-being-depressed-then-your-gonna/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“A friend called the other day. 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If life is not now, it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wendell-berry/it-is-no-more-possible-to-live-in-the-future-than-it-is-to-live-in/) [Wendell Berry](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wendell-berry/) > [“If you are depressed, you are living in the past. If you are anxious, you are living the future. If you are at peace,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/if-you-are-depressed-you-are-living-in-the-past-if-you-are-anxious-2/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [“If you are depressed, you are living in the past; if you are anxious, you are living in the present; if you are at…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lao-tzu/if-you-are-depressed-you-are-living-in-the-past-if-you-are-anxious/) [Lao Tzu](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lao-tzu/) ## More by J.C. Ryan > [“You can always count on the government to do the right thing, after it’s tried everything else.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-c-ryan/you-can-always-count-on-the-government-to-do-the-right-thing-after-it/) [J.C. Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-c-ryan/) > [“specifically that we couldn’t cripple her,”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-c-ryan/specifically-that-we-couldn-t-cripple-her/) [J.C. Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-c-ryan/) > [“Two-One Alpha, ready for you. Move it. We’re in kind of a hurry to find a quieter place!” Two wounded men were hauled to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-c-ryan/two-one-alpha-ready-for-you-move-it-we-re-in-kind-of-a-hurry-to-find/) [J.C. Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-c-ryan/) > [“hutch things that sat over the”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-c-ryan/hutch-things-that-sat-over-the/) [J.C. Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-c-ryan/) > [“No legitimate field of study should be suppressed because of academic politics.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/j-c-ryan/no-legitimate-field-of-study-should-be-suppressed-because-of-academic/) [J.C. Ryan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-c-ryan/) [Explore all 6 J.C. Ryan quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/j-c-ryan/) ## More Live in the present quotes > [Never worry about anything. Live in the present. Live now. Be happy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marsilio-ficino/never-worry-about-anything-live-in-the-present-live-now-be-happy/) [Marsilio Ficino](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marsilio-ficino/) > [You must live in the present, launch yourself on every wave, find your eternity in each moment. 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Because he sacrifices his health in order to make money.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-dalai-lama-when-asked-what-surprised-him-most-about-humanity-he/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [If I am incapable of washing dishes joyfully, if I want to finish them quickly so I can go and have dessert, I will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/nhat-hanh/if-i-am-incapable-of-washing-dishes-joyfully-if-i-want-to-finish-them/) [Nhat Hanh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/nhat-hanh/) > [“live in the present not the past , because is not worth going to the same path of the ugliness past”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/xena-viera/live-in-the-present-not-the-past-because-is-not-worth-going-to-the/) Xena Viera > [The living moment is everything.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/d-h-lawrence/the-living-moment-is-everything/) [D. H. Lawrence](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/d-h-lawrence/) > [“Food and eating often mask our pain, our inner longing for God, for acceptance. It is key to know our motivation for eating as…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mary-deturris-poust/food-and-eating-often-mask-our-pain-our-inner-longing-for-god-for/) [Mary DeTurris Poust](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mary-deturris-poust/) [Browse all 417 Live in the present quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/live-in-the-present/) ```json { "@context": "https://schema.org", "@graph": [ { "@type": "Quotation", "text": "“That philosopher and poet of ancient China, Lao Tzu was right when he said, “If you are depressed, you live in the past. If you are anxious, you live in the future… If you are happy … You live in the present.”", "creator": { "@type": "Person", "name": "J.C. 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