Q0150

“Indigo is taken from the indigo plant, yet is bluer than the…” — Xunzi (Xunzi, Exhortation to Learning)

Verified English quotation. Primary source: Xunzi, Exhortation to Learning. Theme: learning.

English

Indigo is taken from the indigo plant, yet is bluer than the plant; ice is made of water, yet is colder than water.
Thinker Xunzi
School Confucianism
Source Xunzi, Exhortation to Learning
Theme Learning
Another quotation More from this thinker

Source and attribution

The archive attributes this English wording to Xunzi, Exhortation to Learning and files it under Confucianism. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.

About Xunzi

Xunzi (Xun Kuang, c. 310–c.

How to read this passage

Education is not only information transfer; it is the shaping of attention and character. Confucian learning, Socratic midwifery, and Deweyan growth offer rival models. This passage enters that discussion through learning.

Concepts in this quote

Learning
Learning is philosophy’s practical twin: how judgment is formed through study, error, dialogue, and habit.

How to cite this quotation

APA: Xunzi. (n.d.). Indigo is taken from the indigo plant, yet is bluer than the plant; ice is made of water, yet is colder than water. In Philosophy Blind Box. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0150

MLA: Xunzi. “Indigo is taken from the indigo plant, yet….” Philosophy Blind Box, https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0150.

Chicago: Xunzi. “Indigo is taken from the indigo plant, yet….” Philosophy Blind Box. Accessed 2026. https://www.philosophydef.com/quotes/q0150.

Frequently asked questions

What is the source of the quotation “Indigo is taken from the indigo plant, yet…”?

The passage is attributed to Xunzi, Xunzi, Exhortation to Learning. The archive attributes this English wording to Xunzi, Exhortation to Learning and files it under Confucianism. That locator distinguishes the passage from loose internet attributions: readers can return to the named work or section to check translation, surrounding argument, and edition-specific wording.

What does Xunzi mean by learning?

Education is not only information transfer; it is the shaping of attention and character. Confucian learning, Socratic midwifery, and Deweyan growth offer rival models. This passage enters that discussion through learning.

Explore Xunzi on learning

Same thinker

More from Xunzi

  1. Without accumulating small steps, one cannot reach a thousand li; without accumulating small streams, one cannot form rivers and seas.
  2. Learning must never stop.
  3. Human nature is bad; whatever is good about it is the product of deliberate activity (wei).
  4. The trouble with people is that they are blinkered by one corner and obscure the greater pattern.
  5. Seeing the good, be earnest to preserve it in yourself; seeing the not-good, be anxious to examine yourself.

All quotations by Xunzi

Same theme

More on learning

  1. Leisure without study is death — a tomb for a living man.
  2. The Master said: Is it not a pleasure to learn and to practice what one has learned in due time? Is it not a joy to have friends come from afar? Is it not the mark of a gentleman to remain unresentful when others fail to appreciate one?
  3. The Master said: When three people walk together, one of them is sure to be my teacher. I select what is good in them and follow it; what is not good, I correct in myself.
  4. Zengzi said: Each day I examine myself on three counts: In acting on behalf of others, have I been loyal? In dealings with friends, have I been trustworthy? Have I practiced what was passed on to me?
  5. The Master said: Those who know it are not equal to those who love it; those who love it are not equal to those who delight in it.

Browse the learning theme