第七十二章

Chapter 72

民不畏威，则大威至。无狎其所居，无厌其所生。夫唯不厌，是以不厌。是以圣人自知，不自见；自爱，不自贵。故去彼取此。

When people do not fear authority, then a greater authority descends. Do not intrude into their homes; do not oppress their livelihoods. Only when you do not oppress them will they not be weary of you. Therefore the sage knows himself but does not show himself; loves himself but does not exalt himself. So he rejects the one and accepts the other.

白话译文

当百姓不再畏惧统治者的威压时，那么大的祸乱就要来了。不要逼迫百姓的居所，不要压榨百姓的生计。只有不压迫百姓，百姓才不会厌弃你。因此圣人有自知之明但不自我表现，珍爱自己但不自我抬高。所以抛弃那种做法而选择这种做法。

AI 解读

这是老子对暴政的直接警告：当恐惧已经不能控制人民时，更大的动荡就在眼前。统治的根本不在于制造恐惧，而在于让百姓安居乐业。圣人的自知与自爱是内在的，不需要通过外在的炫耀和抬高来实现。