【Original text】
郑子产有疾，谓于太叔曰：“我死，子必为政。唯有德者能以宽服民，其次莫如猛(1)。夫火烈，民望而畏之，故鲜死焉；水懦弱， 民狎而玩之(2)，则多死焉，故宽难。”疾数月而卒。
Zheng Zi was ill during pregnancy, so he said to his uncle, "When I die, I will be in charge. Only a virtuous man can serve the people with leniency, and the next best thing is ferocity (1). Fire is fierce, and the people look at it and fear it, so it is rare to die; water is cowardly, and people play with it (2), many people will die, so it is difficult to be tolerant." The disease died in a few months.
大叔为政，不忍猛而宽。郑国多盗，取人于崔苻之泽③。大叔 悔之，曰：“吾早从夫子，不及此。”兴徒兵以崔苻之盗(4)，尽杀 之，盗少止。
The uncle is in charge of politics and cannot bear to be fierce and tolerant. Zheng Guo had many thieves and took people from Cui Fu's Zee③. The uncle regretted it and said: "I have followed the master for a long time, but I can't do this." He raised his disciples to steal Cui Fu (4), and killed them all, but the thieves stopped.
仲尼曰：“善哉！政宽则民慢，慢则纠之以猛⑤；猛则民残，残 则施之以宽。宽以济猛(6)，猛以济宽，政是以和。《诗》曰：‘民亦 劳止，讫可小康；惠此中国，以绥四方(7)。’施之以宽也。‘母从诡 随，以谨无良；式遏寇虐，惨不畏明(8)。’纠之以猛也。‘柔远能达， 以定我王(9)。’平之以和也。又曰：‘不竟不俅，不刚不柔，布政优 优，百禄是遒(10)。’和之至也。”
Zhongni said: "How good! If the government is lenient, the people will be slow, and if it is slow, it will be violent. 5; if it is fierce, the people will be crippled, and if it is crippled, it will be lenient. Broadness will help the fierce (6), fierceness will help lenient, and the government will be harmonious. "Poetry" said: 'The people will also work hard, and they will be well-off at the end; benefit this China, and bring peace to all directions (7).' Give it leniently. 'Mother Conggui' To follow is to be unscrupulous; to be ruthless and cruel is not to be afraid of the bright. "To be gentle and to reach far is to be peaceful." It is also said: "not to be rigid but not to be gentle, to be good in administration, and to be harmonious" (10).
及子产卒，仲尼闻之，出涕曰(11)：“古之遗爱也(12)。”
When his son died in childbirth, Zhongni heard about it and burst into tears and said (11): "This is a legacy of love from ancient times (12)."
【注释】
【Note】
①猛：严厉。②狎(xia)：轻视，轻忽。③取：同“聚”。人。 指强盗。崔苻(wan fu)：湖泽的名称。(4)徒兵：步兵。⑤纠：矫正。 (6)济：帮助，调节。(7)这四句诗出自《诗•大雅•民劳》。汔（qi）： 也许可以。康：安。中国。指京城。绥。安抚。四方：指四方诸侯国。 (8)这四句诗出自《诗•大雅•民劳》。从：同“纵”，放纵。诡随：狡诈行骗 的人。谨：管束。遏：制止，禁止。寇虐：指抢劫行凶的人。惨：曾，乃。明： 法度。(9)这两句诗出自《诗•大雅’民劳》。柔：安抚。能：亲善。 (10)这四句诗出自《诗•商颂•长发》。竞：急。求：缓。优优：温和宽厚的样 子。道：聚集。(11)涕：眼泪。(12)遗爱：流传下来的慈惠的人。
① Fierce: severe. ②玎(xia): despise, neglect. ③ Take: same as "get together". people. Refers to robbers. Cui Fu (wan fu): the name of the lake. (4) Infantry: infantry. ⑤Correction: Correction. (6) Ji: help, adjust. (7) These four lines of poetry are from "Poetry·Daya·MinLao".汔(qi): Maybe. Kang: An. China. Refers to the capital city. Sui. appease. Sifang: refers to the vassal states in the four directions. (8) These four lines of poetry are from "Poetry·Daya·MinLao". Cong: Same as "vertical", indulgence. Guisui: A cunning and deceitful person. Sincerely: Control. Curb: stop, prohibit. Kou Shao: Refers to a person who commits robbery. Miserable: Zeng, Nai. Ming: Law. (9) These two lines of poetry are from "Poetry Daya Min Lao". Soft: appease. Ability: Friendly. (10) These four lines of poetry are from "Poetry·Ode to Shang·Long Hair". Jing: Urgent. Request: Slow down. Youyou: Gentle and generous. Tao: Gather. (11) Tears: tears. (12) Legacy: A kind person who has been passed down.
【译文】
【Translation】
郑国的子产生了病，他对太叔说：“我死了以后，您肯定会执 政。只有有德行的人，才能够用宽和的方法来使民众服从，差一 等的人不如用严厉的方法。火的特点是猛烈，百姓一看见就害怕， 所以很少有人死在火里；水的特点是柔弱，百姓轻视而玩弄它，有 很多人便死在水里，因此运用宽和的施政方法很难。”子产病了几 个月后就去世了。
Zheng Guo's son fell ill, and he said to his uncle: "After I die, you will definitely be in power. Only virtuous people can use lenient methods to make the people obey, and those who are inferior should use harsh methods. The characteristics of fire are fierce, and the people are afraid when they see it, so few people die in the fire; the characteristics of water are weak, and the people despise and play with it, some Many people died in the water, so it was difficult to use lenient governance methods. "Zi Chan died after a few months of illness.
子大叔执政，不忍心严厉而用宽和方法施政。郑回的盗贼很 多，聚集在叫做崔苻的湖沼里。子太叔很后悔，说：“要是我早听 他老人家的话，就不会到这种地步了。”于是，他派步兵去攻打崔 符的盗贼，把他们全部杀了，盗贼才有所收敛。
When Uncle Zi was in power, he could not bear to be strict and used lenient methods to govern. There were many thieves in Zheng Hui, and they gathered in the lake called Cuifu. Uncle Zi Tai regretted and said, "If I had listened to his old man, I wouldn't have reached this point." So he sent infantry to attack Cui Fu's thieves and killed them all, so that the thieves restrained themselves.
孔子说：“好啊！施政宽和，百姓就怠慢，百姓怠慢就用严厉 措施来纠正；施政严厉，百姓就会受到伤害，百姓受到伤害就用 宽和的方法。宽和用来调节严厉，严厉用来调节宽和，政事因此 而和谐。《诗•大雅•民劳》中说；“民众辛苦又勤劳，企盼稍稍 得安康；京城之中施仁政，四方诸侯能安抚。’这是施政宽和。 ‘不能放纵欺诈者，管束心存不良者；制止抢夺残暴者，他们从不 惧法度。’这是用严厉的方法来纠正。‘安抚远方和近邻，用此安 定我王室。’这是用和睦来安定国家。又说：‘既不急躁也不慢，既 不刚猛也不柔，施政温和又宽厚，百种福禄全聚 。’这是宽和达 到了顶点。”
Confucius said: "Okay! If the government is lenient, the people will be lazy, and if the people are lazy, use harsh measures to correct it; if the government is harsh, the people will be harmed, and if the people are harmed, use lenient methods. Leniency is used to regulate severity, and severity is used to regulate lenity, so political affairs are harmonious. "Poetry·Daya·Minlao" says: "The people are hardworking and industrious, hoping for a little health; if benevolent governance is implemented in the capital, the princes from all directions can appease them. ’ This is lenient governance. ‘Don’t indulge the deceivers, control those with bad intentions; stop the robbing and ruthless ones, they never fear the law. ’ This is a harsh correction. ‘To appease distant and near neighbors, use this to stabilize my royal family. ’ This is to use harmony to stabilize the country. He also said: "Neither impatient nor slow, neither strong nor soft, his administration is gentle and generous, and he has all kinds of blessings." ’ This is the culmination of breadth and success. "
等到子产去世，孔子得到了消息，流著眼泪说：“他是古代传 下来的有仁爱的人。”
When Zichan died, Confucius received the news and said with tears: "He is a benevolent person passed down from ancient times. "
【读解】
【Interpretation】
凡事都有两面，古人很早就认识到了这一点，并且一直注意 并提倡在相反的两个方面之间寻求平衡。按照传统的观点，失去 平衡，偏重一方面，忽视另一方面，事情就会出毛病。阴阳调和， 刚柔相济，事情就会1烦利发展，兴旺发达。
Everything has two sides. The ancients have recognized this very early and have always paid attention to and advocated seeking a balance between the two opposite aspects. According to the traditional view, if you lose balance and focus on one aspect and neglect the other, things will go wrong. When yin and yang are harmonious, and hardness and softness complement each other, things will develop smoothly and prosper.
也许有人会觉得这种观点陈旧过时了，总在讲寻求平衡的中 庸之道，为什么就不可以偏激一点，极端一点？为什么不可以矫 枉过正？
Some people may think that this view is outdated and always talks about the golden mean of seeking balance. Why can't it be a little more extreme? Why not overcorrect?
当然可以。但不要忘记，极端到底，就会了引起强烈的反作用。 正如弹簧，用以压迫的力越大，反弹就越高，反作用力就越大。认 真想来，造成这种现象的原因，仍是受著平衡律的支配。因为平 衡律是宇宙间的一条普遍规律。
Of course. But don’t forget that taking it to the extreme will cause strong reactions. Just like a spring, the greater the force used to compress, the higher the rebound and the greater the reaction force. If you think about it seriously, the reason for this phenomenon is still governed by the law of balance. Because the law of balance is a universal law in the universe.
宽大仁慈，并不意味著软弱。它实№上既体现了胸襟和气度， 也体现了涵养与明智。宽大为怀，是为了征服人心，使人心服，也 是自信心的表现，可以当作笼络人心的“胡萝卜”。
To be lenient and kind does not mean to be weak. It actually reflects not only mind and magnanimity, but also self-cultivation and wisdom. Tolerance is to conquer people's hearts and convince them. It is also an expression of self-confidence and can be used as a "carrot" to win over people's hearts.
威猛严厉，也不意味著残忍。它所体现的是决心和力度，为 的是以强硬手段迫使越轨者和不法之徒循规蹈矩，遵纪守法，平 等竞争。
Being powerful and severe does not mean being cruel. What it embodies is determination and strength, in order to use strong means to force deviants and lawbreakers to follow the rules, abide by the law, and compete on an equal footing.
过分的宽大仁慈容易使人误以为软弱，从而得寸进尺，变本加 厉；过分的威猛严厉容易导致残暴，从而引起强烈反抗，法纪 大乱。所以，宽和与严厉相互补充调节，可以避免走极端造成的 不良后果，让人们心服口服地遵纪守法。
Excessive leniency and kindness can easily lead to misunderstandings of weakness, which can lead to exaggeration and intensification; excessive force and severity can easily lead to cruelty, which can lead to strong resistance and chaos in law and order. Therefore, leniency and severity can complement and adjust each other to avoid the adverse consequences of going to extremes and make people obey the law with conviction.
