"They only want authority over others, to raise their own rank, and paste gold on their face pretending to be a Buddha. It is not my concern whether they slight me or not. Students who think they are better than their teachers are really the most despicable of all, and in the end they get nothing. So why should I worry or bother to confront them. Their own greed for recognition, authority, fame, and profit will be their retribution."

"Now it may be the case that a student does become equally or more skilled than their teacher, which is what every teacher should hope to accomplish with their students, but to slight the teacher who helped them get that skill is a most unforgivable sin. They are like sons denying that they came from their mother's stomach. If they cannot honor their teacher, they cannot get the teacher's art."

"Whenever a person says something like, 'I can defeat my teacher, or I am better than my teacher,' run away from that person. If they have no respect for their teacher they will have no respect for their students. Everything about them is a deception to feign authority or wealth. They have no true art." "…So these students who slight me are of no concern. To me they are like a mosquito biting my flesh to get a little blood."

T.T. Liang

P173, Steal My Art