Lord Shang (c. 4th century BCE)
“If you are going to act the part of a great man, you must expect the censure of the age. When one is unique in the wisdom of his foresight, he is bound to rouse the animosity of the people. The stupid are blind even to things already done, but the wise can spy what has yet to put out sprouts.”
- From dialogue attributed to Lord Shang (c. 4th century BCE), recorded in the Records of the Grand Historian (Shi Ji 68) by Sima Qian (c. 145-90 BCE). Translated by Burton Watson (Columbia University Press, 1993).
