Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn.Benjamin Franklin never said those words, he was falsely attributed on a respected quotation website and it spread from there. The quote comes from the Xunzi.Xun Kuang was a Chinese Confucian philosopher that lived from 312-230 BC. His works were collected into a set of 32 books called the Xunzi, by Liu Xiang in about 818 AD. There are woodblock copies of these books that are almost 1100 years old.Book 8 is titled Ruxiao (The Teachings of the Ru). The quotation in question comes from Chapter 11 of that book. In Chinese the quote is:不闻不若闻之, 闻之不若见之, 见之不若知之, 知之不若行之It is derived from this paragraph:Not having heard something is not as good as having heard it; having heard it is not as good as having seen it; having seen it is not as good as knowing it; knowing it is not as good as putting it into practice. (From the John Knoblock translation, which is viewable in Google Books)The first English translation of the Xunzi was done by H.H. Dubs, in 1928, one-hundred and thirty-eight years after Benjamin Franklin died.

~ Xun Kuang

Xun Kuang Benjamin Franklin Inspirational Spiritual Wisdom

If the blood humor is too strong and robust, calm it with balance and harmony.

~ Xun Kuang

Xun Kuang Strong Balance Calm

Human nature is evil, and goodness is caused by intentional activity.

~ Xun Kuang

Xun Kuang Evil Human Nature Human

Therefore, a person should first be changed by a teacher's instructions, and guided by principles of ritual. Only then can he observe the rules of courtesy and humility, obey the conventions and rules of society, and achieve order.

~ Xun Kuang

Xun Kuang Society Humility Rules

When people lack teachers, their tendencies are not corrected; when they do not have ritual and moral principles, then their lawlessness is not controlled.

~ Xun Kuang

Xun Kuang People Principles Moral

A person is born with feelings of envy and hate. If he gives way to them, they will lead him to violence and crime, and any sense of loyalty and good faith will be abandoned.

~ Xun Kuang

Xun Kuang Faith Hate Violence

If knowledge and foresight are too penetrating and deep, unify them with ease and sincerity.

~ Xun Kuang

Xun Kuang Deep Sincerity Ease

In order to properly understand the big picture, everyone should fear becoming mentally clouded and obsessed with one small section of truth.

~ Xun Kuang

Xun Kuang Truth Small Picture

The person attempting to travel two roads at once will get nowhere.

~ Xun Kuang

Xun Kuang Roads Person Two