第七章
Chapter 7
天长地久。天地所以能长且久者，以其不自生，故能长生。是以圣人后其身而身先，外其身而身存。非以其无私邪？故能成其私。
Heaven endures and earth lasts long. The reason heaven and earth can endure and last long is that they do not live for themselves. Therefore they can live forever. Thus the sage puts himself last and finds himself first; regards his body as external and his body is preserved. Is it not because he is selfless that he can fulfill himself?
白话译文
天地之所以能够长久存在，是因为它们不是为自己而存在，所以能长久。因此圣人把自己放在后面，反而能处于领先地位；把自身置之度外，反而能保全自身。这不正是因为他的无私吗？所以反而能够成就他个人的目的。
AI 解读
无私与成就自我在此达成了奇妙的统一。老子发现了一个深刻的悖论：越是不执着于自我，自我反而越能得到保全。这并非虚伪的策略，而是当我们真正放下自我执着时，自然而然获得的结果。