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The Art of War has 13 chapters.
I. Laying Plans
1. Sun Tzu said: The art of war is of
vital importance to the
State.
2. It is a matter of life and death,
a road either to safety or
to ruin. Hence it is a subject of inquiry
which can on no account be neglected.
3. The art of war, then, is governed
by five constant factors, to
be taken into account in one's
deliberations, when seeking to determine the
conditions obtaining in the field.
4. These are: (1) The Moral Law; (2)
Heaven; (3) Earth; (4) The
Commander; (5) Method and discipline.
5,6. The Moral Law causes the people
to be in complete accord with
their ruler, so that they will follow him
regardless of their lives, undismayed
by any danger.
7. Heaven signifies night and day,
cold and heat, times and
seasons.
8. Earth comprises distances, great
and small; danger and security;
open ground and narrow passes; the chances
of life and death.
9. The Commander stands for the
virtues of wisdom, sincerely, benevolence,
courage and strictness.
10. By method and discipline are to
be understood the marshaling of
the army in its proper subdivisions, the
graduations of rank among the officers,
the maintenance of roads by which supplies
may reach the army, and the
control of military expenditure.
11. These five heads should be
familiar to every general: he
who knows them will be victorious; he who
knows them not will fail.
12. Therefore, in your deliberations,
when seeking to determine the
military conditions, let them be made the
basis of a comparison, in this
wise:--
13. (1) Which of the two sovereigns
is imbued with the Moral law?
(2) Which of the two generals has most
ability? (3) With whom lie the
advantages derived from Heaven and Earth?
(4) On which side is discipline most
rigorously enforced? (5) Which army is
stronger? (6) On which side are
officers and men more highly trained? (7) In
which army is there the greater
constancy both in reward and punishment?
14. By means of these seven
considerations I can forecast victory
or defeat.
15. The general that hearkens to my
counsel and acts upon it,
will conquer: let such a one be retained in
command! The general that hearkens
not to my counsel nor acts upon it, will
suffer defeat:--let such a
one be dismissed!
16. While heading the profit of my
counsel, avail yourself also
of any helpful circumstances over and beyond
the ordinary rules.
17. According as circumstances are
favorable, one should modify
one's plans.
18. All warfare is based on
deception.
19. Hence, when able to attack, we
must seem unable; when using
our forces, we must seem inactive; when we
are near, we must make the
enemy believe we are far away; when far
away, we must make him believe we
are near.
20. Hold out baits to entice the
enemy. Feign disorder, and
crush him.
21. If he is secure at all points, be
prepared for him. If he is
in superior strength, evade him.
22. If your opponent is of choleric
temper, seek to irritate him.
Pretend to be weak, that he may grow
arrogant.
23. If he is taking his ease, give
him no rest. If his forces are
united, separate them.
24. Attack him where he is
unprepared, appear where you are
not expected.
25. These military devices, leading
to victory, must not be
divulged beforehand.
26. Now the general who wins a battle
makes many calculations in
his temple ere the battle is fought. The
general who loses a battle makes
but few calculations beforehand. Thus do
many calculations lead to
victory, and few calculations to defeat: how
much more no calculation at
all! It is by attention to this point that I
can foresee who is likely to
win or lose.
II. Waging War
1. Sun Tzu said: In the operations of
war, where there are in the
field a thousand swift chariots, as many
heavy chariots, and a
hundred thousand mail-clad soldiers, with
provisions enough to carry them
a thousand li, the expenditure at home and
at the front, including entertainment
of guests, small items such as glue and
paint, and sums spent on
chariots and armor, will reach the total of
a thousand ounces of silver per
day. Such is the cost of raising an army of
100,000 men.
2. When you engage in actual
fighting, if victory is long in
coming, then men's weapons will grow dull
and their ardor will be damped. If
you lay siege to a town, you will exhaust
your strength.
3. Again, if the campaign is
protracted, the resources of the
State will not be equal to the strain.
4. Now, when your weapons are dulled,
your ardor damped, your
strength exhausted and your treasure spent,
other chieftains will spring
up to take advantage of your extremity. Then
no man, however wise, will
be able to avert the consequences that must
ensue.
5. Thus, though we have heard of
stupid haste in war, cleverness has
never been seen associated with long delays.
6. There is no instance of a country
having benefited from prolonged
warfare.
7. It is only one who is thoroughly
acquainted with the evils
of war that can thoroughly understand the
profitable way of carrying it
on.
8. The skillful soldier does not
raise a second levy, neither are
his supply-wagons loaded more than twice.
9. Bring war material with you from
home, but forage on the
enemy. Thus the army will have food enough
for its needs.
10. Poverty of the State exchequer
causes an army to be maintained
by contributions from a distance.
Contributing to maintain an army
at a distance causes the people to be
impoverished.
11. On the other hand, the proximity
of an army causes prices to
go up; and high prices cause the people's
substance to be drained away.
12. When their substance is drained
away, the peasantry will
be afflicted by heavy exactions.
13,14. With this loss of substance
and exhaustion of strength, the
homes of the people will be stripped bare,
and three-tenths of their income
will be dissipated; while government
expenses for broken chariots, worn-out
horses, breast-plates and helmets, bows and
arrows, spears and shields,
protective mantles, draught-oxen and heavy
wagons, will amount to
four-tenths of its total revenue.
15. Hence a wise general makes a
point of foraging on the enemy.
One cartload of the enemy's provisions is
equivalent to twenty of
one's own, and likewise a single picul of
his provender is equivalent to
twenty from one's own store.
16. Now in order to kill the enemy,
our men must be roused to
anger; that there may be advantage from
defeating the enemy, they must have
their rewards.
17. Therefore in chariot fighting,
when ten or more chariots have
been taken, those should be rewarded who
took the first. Our own flags should
be substituted for those of the enemy, and
the chariots mingled and
used in conjunction with ours. The captured
soldiers should be kindly treated
and kept.
18. This is called, using the
conquered foe to augment one's own
strength.
19. In war, then, let your great
object be victory, not lengthy
campaigns.
20. Thus it may be known that the
leader of armies is the arbiter
of the people's fate, the man on whom it
depends whether the nation shall
be in peace or in peril.
III. Attack by Stratagem
1. Sun Tzu said: In the practical art
of war, the best thing of
all is to take the enemy's country whole and
intact; to shatter and
destroy it is not so good. So, too, it is
better to recapture an army entire
than to destroy it, to capture a regiment, a
detachment or a company entire
than to destroy them.
2. Hence to fight and conquer in all
your battles is not supreme
excellence; supreme excellence consists in
breaking the enemy's resistance
without fighting.
3. Thus the highest form of
generalship is to balk the enemy's plans;
the next best is to prevent the junction of
the enemy's forces; the
next in order is to attack the enemy's army
in the field; and the worst policy
of all is to besiege walled cities.
4. The rule is, not to besiege walled
cities if it can possibly be
avoided. The preparation of mantlets,
movable shelters, and various implements
of war, will take up three whole months; and
the piling up of mounds
over against the walls will take three
months more.
5. The general, unable to control his
irritation, will launch his
men to the assault like swarming ants, with
the result that one-third of
his men are slain, while the town still
remains untaken. Such are the disastrous
effects of a siege.
6. Therefore the skillful leader
subdues the enemy's troops without
any fighting; he captures their cities
without laying siege to them;
he overthrows their kingdom without lengthy
operations in the field.
7. With his forces intact he will
dispute the mastery of the
Empire, and thus, without losing a man, his
triumph will be complete. This
is the method of attacking by stratagem.
8. It is the rule in war, if our
forces are ten to the enemy's one,
to surround him; if five to one, to attack
him; if twice as numerous, to
divide our army into two.
9. If equally matched, we can offer
battle; if slightly inferior
in numbers, we can avoid the enemy; if quite
unequal in every way, we
can flee from him.
10. Hence, though an obstinate fight
may be made by a small force,
in the end it must be captured by the larger
force.
11. Now the general is the bulwark of
the State; if the bulwark
is complete at all points; the State will be
strong; if the bulwark is
defective, the State will be weak.
12. There are three ways in which a
ruler can bring misfortune upon
his army:--
13. (1) By commanding the army to
advance or to retreat, being
ignorant of the fact that it cannot obey.
This is called hobbling the
army.
14. (2) By attempting to govern an
army in the same way as he
administers a kingdom, being ignorant of the
conditions which obtain in
an army. This causes restlessness in the
soldier's minds.
15. (3) By employing the officers of
his army without discrimination, through
ignorance of the military principle of
adaptation to circumstances. This
shakes the confidence of the soldiers.
16. But when the army is restless and
distrustful, trouble is
sure to come from the other feudal princes.
This is simply bringing anarchy
into the army, and flinging victory away.
17. Thus we may know that there are
five essentials for victory:
(1) He will win who knows when to fight and
when not to fight. (2) He
will win who knows how to handle both
superior and inferior forces. (3)
He will win whose army is animated by the
same spirit throughout all its
ranks. (4) He will win who, prepared
himself, waits to take the enemy unprepared.
(5) He will win who has military capacity
and is not interfered with
by the sovereign.
18. Hence the saying: If you know the
enemy and know yourself, you
need not fear the result of a hundred
battles. If you know yourself but
not the enemy, for every victory gained you
will also suffer a defeat. If
you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you
will succumb in every battle.
IV. Tactical Dispositions
1. Sun Tzu said: The good fighters of
old first put themselves beyond
the possibility of defeat, and then waited
for an opportunity of defeating
the enemy.
2. To secure ourselves against defeat
lies in our own hands, but
the opportunity of defeating the enemy is
provided by the enemy himself.
3. Thus the good fighter is able to
secure himself against defeat,
but cannot make certain of defeating the
enemy.
4. Hence the saying: One may know how
to conquer without being
able to do it.
5. Security against defeat implies
defensive tactics; ability to
defeat the enemy means taking the offensive.
6. Standing on the defensive
indicates insufficient strength; attacking,
a superabundance of strength.
7. The general who is skilled in
defense hides in the most secret
recesses of the earth; he who is skilled in
attack flashes forth from
the topmost heights of heaven. Thus on the
one hand we have ability to
protect ourselves; on the other, a victory
that is complete.
8. To see victory only when it is
within the ken of the common
herd is not the acme of excellence.
9. Neither is it the acme of
excellence if you fight and conquer
and the whole Empire says, "Well
done!"
10. To lift an autumn hair is no sign
of great strength; to see
the sun and moon is no sign of sharp sight;
to hear the noise of thunder
is no sign of a quick ear.
11. What the ancients called a clever
fighter is one who not
only wins, but excels in winning with ease.
12. Hence his victories bring him
neither reputation for wisdom
nor credit for courage.
13. He wins his battles by making no
mistakes. Making no mistakes
is what establishes the certainty of
victory, for it means conquering an
enemy that is already defeated.
14. Hence the skillful fighter puts
himself into a position which
makes defeat impossible, and does not miss
the moment for defeating the
enemy.
15. Thus it is that in war the
victorious strategist only seeks
battle after the victory has been won,
whereas he who is destined to
defeat first fights and afterwards looks for
victory.
16. The consummate leader cultivates
the moral law, and strictly
adheres to method and discipline; thus it is
in his power to control success.
17. In respect of military method, we
have, firstly, Measurement; secondly,
Estimation of quantity; thirdly,
Calculation; fourthly, Balancing of
chances; fifthly, Victory.
18. Measurement owes its existence to
Earth; Estimation of
quantity to Measurement; Calculation to
Estimation of quantity; Balancing of
chances to Calculation; and Victory to
Balancing of chances.
19. A victorious army opposed to a
routed one, is as a pound's weight
placed in the scale against a single grain.
20. The onrush of a conquering force
is like the bursting of
pent-up waters into a chasm a thousand
fathoms deep.
V. Energy
1. Sun Tzu said: The control of a
large force is the same principle
as the control of a few men: it is merely a
question of dividing up
their numbers.
2. Fighting with a large army under
your command is nowise different
from fighting with a small one: it is merely
a question of instituting signs
and signals.
3. To ensure that your whole host may
withstand the brunt of the
enemy's attack and remain unshaken-- this is
effected by maneuvers direct
and indirect.
4. That the impact of your army may
be like a grindstone dashed
against an egg--this is effected by the
science of weak points and strong.
5. In all fighting, the direct method
may be used for joining battle,
but indirect methods will be needed in order
to secure victory.
6. Indirect tactics, efficiently
applied, are inexhaustible as
Heaven and Earth, unending as the flow of
rivers and streams; like the sun
and moon, they end but to begin anew; like
the four seasons, they pass away
to return once more.
7. There are not more than five
musical notes, yet the combinations of
these five give rise to more melodies than
can ever be heard.
8. There are not more than five
primary colors (blue, yellow, red,
white, and black), yet in combination they
produce more hues than can
ever been seen.
9. There are not more than five
cardinal tastes (sour, acrid, salt,
sweet, bitter), yet combinations of them
yield more flavors than can
ever be tasted.
10. In battle, there are not more
than two methods of attack--the direct
and the indirect; yet these two in
combination give rise to an endless series
of maneuvers.
11. The direct and the indirect lead
on to each other in turn.
It is like moving in a circle--you never
come to an end. Who can exhaust
the possibilities of their combination?
12. The onset of troops is like the
rush of a torrent which will
even roll stones along in its course.
13. The quality of decision is like
the well-timed swoop of a
falcon which enables it to strike and
destroy its victim.
14. Therefore the good fighter will
be terrible in his onset, and
prompt in his decision.
15. Energy may be likened to the
bending of a crossbow; decision,
to the releasing of a trigger.
16. Amid the turmoil and tumult of
battle, there may be seeming
disorder and yet no real disorder at all;
amid confusion and chaos, your
array may be without head or tail, yet it
will be proof against defeat.
17. Simulated disorder postulates
perfect discipline, simulated fear
postulates courage; simulated weakness
postulates strength.
18. Hiding order beneath the cloak of
disorder is simply a
question of subdivision; concealing courage
under a show of timidity presupposes
a fund of latent energy; masking strength
with weakness is to be
effected by tactical dispositions.
19. Thus one who is skillful at
keeping the enemy on the move
maintains deceitful appearances, according
to which the enemy will act.
He sacrifices something, that the enemy may
snatch at it.
20. By holding out baits, he keeps
him on the march; then with
a body of picked men he lies in wait for
him.
21. The clever combatant looks to the
effect of combined energy,
and does not require too much from
individuals. Hence his ability to
pick out the right men and utilize combined
energy.
22. When he utilizes combined energy,
his fighting men become as
it were like unto rolling logs or stones.
For it is the nature of a log
or stone to remain motionless on level
ground, and to move when on a
slope; if four-cornered, to come to a
standstill, but if round-shaped, to
go rolling down.
23. Thus the energy developed by good
fighting men is as the
momentum of a round stone rolled down a
mountain thousands of feet in
height. So much on the subject of energy.
VI. Weak Points and Strong
1. Sun Tzu said: Whoever is first in
the field and awaits the
coming of the enemy, will be fresh for the
fight; whoever is second in
the field and has to hasten to battle will
arrive exhausted.
2. Therefore the clever combatant
imposes his will on the enemy,
but does not allow the enemy's will to be
imposed on him.
3. By holding out advantages to him,
he can cause the enemy to
approach of his own accord; or, by
inflicting damage, he can make it impossible
for the enemy to draw near.
4. If the enemy is taking his ease,
he can harass him; if well
supplied with food, he can starve him out;
if quietly encamped, he can
force him to move.
5. Appear at points which the enemy
must hasten to defend; march
swiftly to places where you are not
expected.
6. An army may march great distances
without distress, if it
marches through country where the enemy is
not.
7. You can be sure of succeeding in
your attacks if you only
attack places which are undefended.You can
ensure the safety of your defense
if you only hold positions that cannot be
attacked.
8. Hence that general is skillful in
attack whose opponent does
not know what to defend; and he is skillful
in defense whose opponent does
not know what to attack.
9. O divine art of subtlety and
secrecy! Through you we learn
to be invisible, through you inaudible; and
hence we can hold the enemy's
fate in our hands.
10. You may advance and be absolutely
irresistible, if you make
for the enemy's weak points; you may retire
and be safe from pursuit if
your movements are more rapid than those of
the enemy.
11. If we wish to fight, the enemy
can be forced to an engagement even
though he be sheltered behind a high rampart
and a deep ditch. All we
need do is attack some other place that he
will be obliged to relieve.
12. If we do not wish to fight, we
can prevent the enemy from
engaging us even though the lines of our
encampment be merely traced out
on the ground. All we need do is to throw
something odd and unaccountable in
his way.
13. By discovering the enemy's
dispositions and remaining invisible
ourselves, we can keep our forces
concentrated, while the enemy's must
be divided.
14. We can form a single united body,
while the enemy must split
up into fractions. Hence there will be a
whole pitted against separate parts
of a whole, which means that we shall be
many to the enemy's few.
15. And if we are able thus to attack
an inferior force with a
superior one, our opponents will be in dire
straits.
16. The spot where we intend to fight
must not be made known; for
then the enemy will have to prepare against
a possible attack at several different
points; and his forces being thus
distributed in many directions, the
numbers we shall have to face at any given
point will be proportionately few.
17. For should the enemy strengthen
his van, he will weaken his
rear; should he strengthen his rear, he will
weaken his van; should he
strengthen his left, he will weaken his
right; should he strengthen his
right, he will weaken his left. If he sends
reinforcements everywhere, he
will everywhere be weak.
18. Numerical weakness comes from
having to prepare against possible
attacks; numerical strength, from compelling
our adversary to make
these preparations against us.
19. Knowing the place and the time of
the coming battle, we may
concentrate from the greatest distances in
order to fight.
20. But if neither time nor place be
known, then the left wing
will be impotent to succor the right, the
right equally impotent to succor
the left, the van unable to relieve the
rear, or the rear to support the
van. How much more so if the furthest
portions of the army are anything under
a hundred LI apart, and even the nearest are
separated by several LI!
21. Though according to my estimate
the soldiers of Yueh exceed
our own in number, that shall advantage them
nothing in the matter of
victory. I say then that victory can be
achieved.
22. Though the enemy be stronger in
numbers, we may prevent him
from fighting. Scheme so as to discover his
plans and the likelihood of
their success.
23. Rouse him, and learn the
principle of his activity or inactivity.
Force him to reveal himself, so as to find
out his vulnerable spots.
24. Carefully compare the opposing
army with your own, so that
you may know where strength is superabundant
and where it is deficient.
25. In making tactical dispositions,
the highest pitch you can
attain is to conceal them; conceal your
dispositions, and you will be
safe from the prying of the subtlest spies,
from the machinations of the
wisest brains.
26. How victory may be produced for
them out of the enemy's own
tactics--that is what the multitude cannot
comprehend.
27. All men can see the tactics
whereby I conquer, but what none
can see is the strategy out of which victory
is evolved.
28. Do not repeat the tactics which
have gained you one victory,
but let your methods be regulated by the
infinite variety of circumstances.
29. Military tactics are like unto
water; for water in its natural
course runs away from high places and
hastens downwards.
30. So in war, the way is to avoid
what is strong and to strike
at what is weak.
31. Water shapes its course according
to the nature of the ground
over which it flows; the soldier works out
his victory in relation to
the foe whom he is facing.
32. Therefore, just as water retains
no constant shape, so in
warfare there are no constant conditions.
33. He who can modify his tactics in
relation to his opponent and
thereby succeed in winning, may be called a
heaven-born captain.
34. The five elements (water, fire,
wood, metal, earth) are
not always equally predominant; the four
seasons make way for each other
in turn. There are short days and long; the
moon has its periods of
waning and waxing.
VII. Maneuvering
1. Sun Tzu said: In war, the general
receives his commands from
the sovereign.
2. Having collected an army and
concentrated his forces, he
must blend and harmonize the different
elements thereof before pitching his
camp.
3. After that, comes tactical
maneuvering, than which there is
nothing more difficult. The difficulty of
tactical maneuvering consists in
turning the devious into the direct, and
misfortune into gain.
4. Thus, to take a long and
circuitous route, after enticing the
enemy out of the way, and though starting
after him, to contrive to reach
the goal before him, shows knowledge of the
artifice of deviation.
5. Maneuvering with an army is
advantageous; with an undisciplined multitude,
most dangerous.
6. If you set a fully equipped army
in march in order to snatch
an advantage, the chances are that you will
be too late. On the other
hand, to detach a flying column for the
purpose involves the sacrifice of
its baggage and stores.
7. Thus, if you order your men to
roll up their buff-coats, and
make forced marches without halting day or
night, covering double the usual
distance at a stretch, doing a hundred LI in
order to wrest an advantage, the
leaders of all your three divisions will
fall into the hands of the enemy.
8. The stronger men will be in front,
the jaded ones will fall
behind, and on this plan only one-tenth of
your army will reach its destination.
9. If you march fifty LI in order to
outmaneuver the enemy, you
will lose the leader of your first division,
and only half your force will
reach the goal.
10. If you march thirty LI with the
same object, two-thirds of
your army will arrive.
11. We may take it then that an army
without its baggage-train is
lost; without provisions it is lost; without
bases of supply it is lost.
12. We cannot enter into alliances
until we are acquainted with
the designs of our neighbors.
13. We are not fit to lead an army on
the march unless we are
familiar with the face of the country--its
mountains and forests, its pitfalls
and precipices, its marshes and swamps.
14. We shall be unable to turn
natural advantage to account unless
we make use of local guides.
15. In war, practice dissimulation,
and you will succeed.
16. Whether to concentrate or to
divide your troops, must be
decided by circumstances.
17. Let your rapidity be that of the
wind, your compactness that
of the forest.
18. In raiding and plundering be like
fire, is immovability like
a mountain.
19. Let your plans be dark and
impenetrable as night, and when
you move, fall like a thunderbolt.
20. When you plunder a countryside,
let the spoil be divided amongst
your men; when you capture new territory,
cut it up into allotments for
the benefit of the soldiery.
21. Ponder and deliberate before you
make a move.
22. He will conquer who has learnt
the artifice of deviation. Such
is the art of maneuvering.
23. The Book of Army Management says:
On the field of battle, the
spoken word does not carry far enough: hence
the institution of gongs and
drums. Nor can ordinary objects be seen
clearly enough: hence the institution
of banners and flags.
24. Gongs and drums, banners and
flags, are means whereby the
ears and eyes of the host may be focused on
one particular point.
25. The host thus forming a single
united body, is it impossible either
for the brave to advance alone, or for the
cowardly to retreat alone. This
is the art of handling large masses of men.
26. In night-fighting, then, make
much use of signal-fires and
drums, and in fighting by day, of flags and
banners, as a means of influencing
the ears and eyes of your army.
27. A whole army may be robbed of its
spirit; a commander-in-chief may
be robbed of his presence of mind.
28. Now a soldier's spirit is keenest
in the morning; by noonday
it has begun to flag; and in the evening,
his mind is bent only on
returning to camp.
29. A clever general, therefore,
avoids an army when its spirit
is keen, but attacks it when it is sluggish
and inclined to return. This
is the art of studying moods.
30. Disciplined and calm, to await
the appearance of disorder and
hubbub amongst the enemy:--this is the art
of retaining self-possession.
31. To be near the goal while the
enemy is still far from it,
to wait at ease while the enemy is toiling
and struggling, to be well-fed while
the enemy is famished:--this is the art of
husbanding one's strength.
32. To refrain from intercepting an
enemy whose banners are in
perfect order, to refrain from attacking an
army drawn up in calm and
confident array:--this is the art of
studying circumstances.
33. It is a military axiom not to
advance uphill against the
enemy, nor to oppose him when he comes
downhill.
34. Do not pursue an enemy who
simulates flight; do not attack
soldiers whose temper is keen.
35. Do not swallow bait offered by
the enemy. Do not interfere with
an army that is returning home.
36. When you surround an army, leave
an outlet free. Do not
press a desperate foe too hard.
37. Such is the art of warfare.
VIII. Variation in Tactics
1. Sun Tzu said: In war, the general
receives his commands from
the sovereign, collects his army and
concentrates his forces
2. When in difficult country, do not
encamp. In country where
high roads intersect, join hands with your
allies. Do not linger in
dangerously isolated positions. In hemmed-in
situations, you must resort to
stratagem. In desperate position, you must
fight.
3. There are roads which must not be
followed, armies which must
be not attacked, towns which must be
besieged, positions which must not
be contested, commands of the sovereign
which must not be obeyed.
4. The general who thoroughly
understands the advantages that
accompany variation of tactics knows how to
handle his troops.
5. The general who does not
understand these, may be well acquainted
with the configuration of the country, yet
he will not be able to
turn his knowledge to practical account.
6. So, the student of war who is
unversed in the art of war
of varying his plans, even though he be
acquainted with the Five Advantages, will
fail to make the best use of his men.
7. Hence in the wise leader's plans,
considerations of advantage and
of disadvantage will be blended together.
8. If our expectation of advantage be
tempered in this way, we
may succeed in accomplishing the essential
part of our schemes.
9. If, on the other hand, in the
midst of difficulties we are
always ready to seize an advantage, we may
extricate ourselves from misfortune.
10. Reduce the hostile chiefs by
inflicting damage on them; and
make trouble for them, and keep them
constantly engaged; hold out specious allurements,
and make them rush to any given point.
11. The art of war teaches us to rely
not on the likelihood of
the enemy's not coming, but on our own
readiness to receive him; not on
the chance of his not attacking, but rather
on the fact that we have made
our position unassailable.
12. There are five dangerous faults
which may affect a general: (1)
Recklessness, which leads to destruction;
(2) cowardice, which leads to
capture; (3) a hasty temper, which can be
provoked by insults; (4) a delicacy
of honor which is sensitive to shame; (5)
over-solicitude for his
men, which exposes him to worry and trouble.
13. These are the five besetting sins
of a general, ruinous to
the conduct of war.
14. When an army is overthrown and
its leader slain, the cause
will surely be found among these five
dangerous faults. Let them be
a subject of meditation.
IX. The Army on the March
1. Sun Tzu said: We come now to the
question of encamping the
army, and observing signs of the enemy. Pass
quickly over mountains, and
keep in the neighborhood of valleys.
2. Camp in high places, facing the
sun. Do not climb heights in
order to fight. So much for mountain
warfare.
3. After crossing a river, you should
get far away from it.
4. When an invading force crosses a
river in its onward march,
do not advance to meet it in mid-stream. It
will be best to let half
the army get across, and then deliver your
attack.
5. If you are anxious to fight, you
should not go to meet the
invader near a river which he has to cross.
6. Moor your craft higher up than the
enemy, and facing the sun.
Do not move up-stream to meet the enemy. So
much for river warfare.
7. In crossing salt-marshes, your
sole concern should be to
get over them quickly, without any delay.
8. If forced to fight in a
salt-marsh, you should have water and
grass near you, and get your back to a clump
of trees. So much for operations
in salt-marches.
9. In dry, level country, take up an
easily accessible position with
rising ground to your right and on your
rear, so that the danger may be
in front, and safety lie behind. So much for
campaigning in flat country.
10. These are the four useful
branches of military knowledge which
enabled the Yellow Emperor to vanquish four
several sovereigns.
11. All armies prefer high ground to
low and sunny places to
dark.
12. If you are careful of your men,
and camp on hard ground, the
army will be free from disease of every
kind, and this will spell victory.
13. When you come to a hill or a
bank, occupy the sunny side,
with the slope on your right rear. Thus you
will at once act for the
benefit of your soldiers and utilize the
natural advantages of the ground.
14. When, in consequence of heavy
rains up-country, a river which
you wish to ford is swollen and flecked with
foam, you must wait until
it subsides.
15. Country in which there are
precipitous cliffs with torrents running
between, deep natural hollows, confined
places, tangled thickets, quagmires
and crevasses, should be left with all
possible speed and not approached.
16. While we keep away from such
places, we should get the enemy
to approach them; while we face them, we
should let the enemy have them
on his rear.
17. If in the neighborhood of your
camp there should be any
hilly country, ponds surrounded by aquatic
grass, hollow basins filled with
reeds, or woods with thick undergrowth, they
must be carefully routed out
and searched; for these are places where men
in ambush or insidious spies
are likely to be lurking.
18. When the enemy is close at hand
and remains quiet, he is
relying on the natural strength of his
position.
19. When he keeps aloof and tries to
provoke a battle, he is
anxious for the other side to advance.
20. If his place of encampment is
easy of access, he is tendering
a bait.
21. Movement amongst the trees of a
forest shows that the enemy
is advancing. The appearance of a number of
screens in the midst of
thick grass means that the enemy wants to
make us suspicious.
22. The rising of birds in their
flight is the sign of an ambuscade.
Startled beasts indicate that a sudden
attack is coming.
23. When there is dust rising in a
high column, it is the sign
of chariots advancing; when the dust is low,
but spread over a wide area,
it betokens the approach of infantry. When
it branches out in different directions,
it shows that parties have been sent to
collect firewood. A few
clouds of dust moving to and fro signify
that the army is encamping.
24. Humble words and increased
preparations are signs that the
enemy is about to advance. Violent language
and driving forward as if
to the attack are signs that he will
retreat.
25. When the light chariots come out
first and take up a position
on the wings, it is a sign that the enemy is
forming for battle.
26. Peace proposals unaccompanied by
a sworn covenant indicate a
plot.
27. When there is much running about
and the soldiers fall into
rank, it means that the critical moment has
come.
28. When some are seen advancing and
some retreating, it is a
lure.
29. When the soldiers stand leaning
on their spears, they are
faint from want of food.
30. If those who are sent to draw
water begin by drinking themselves,
the army is suffering from thirst.
31. If the enemy sees an advantage to
be gained and makes no
effort to secure it, the soldiers are
exhausted.
32. If birds gather on any spot, it
is unoccupied. Clamor by
night betokens nervousness.
33. If there is disturbance in the
camp, the general's authority is
weak. If the banners and flags are shifted
about, sedition is afoot. If
the officers are angry, it means that the
men are weary.
34. When an army feeds its horses
with grain and kills its cattle
for food, and when the men do not hang their
cooking-pots over the camp-fires,
showing that they will not return to their
tents, you may know that
they are determined to fight to the death.
35. The sight of men whispering
together in small knots or
speaking in subdued tones points to
disaffection amongst the rank and file.
36. Too frequent rewards signify that
the enemy is at the end of
his resources; too many punishments betray a
condition of dire distress.
37. To begin by bluster, but
afterwards to take fright at the
enemy's numbers, shows a supreme lack of
intelligence.
38. When envoys are sent with
compliments in their mouths, it
is a sign that the enemy wishes for a truce.
39. If the enemy's troops march up
angrily and remain facing ours
for a long time without either joining
battle or taking themselves off
again, the situation is one that demands
great vigilance and circumspection.
40. If our troops are no more in
number than the enemy, that
is amply sufficient; it only means that no
direct attack can be made. What
we can do is simply to concentrate all our
available strength, keep a
close watch on the enemy, and obtain
reinforcements.
41. He who exercises no forethought
but makes light of his opponents
is sure to be captured by them.
42. If soldiers are punished before
they have grown attached to
you, they will not prove submissive; and,
unless submissive, then will be
practically useless. If, when the soldiers
have become attached to you, punishments
are not enforced, they will still be unless.
43. Therefore soldiers must be
treated in the first instance with
humanity, but kept under control by means of
iron discipline. This is a
certain road to victory.
44. If in training soldiers commands
are habitually enforced, the
army will be well-disciplined; if not, its
discipline will be bad.
45. If a general shows confidence in
his men but always insists
on his orders being obeyed, the gain will be
mutual.
X. Terrain
1. Sun Tzu said: We may distinguish
six kinds of terrain, to
wit: (1) Accessible ground; (2) entangling
ground; (3) temporizing ground;
(4) narrow passes; (5) precipitous heights;
(6) positions at a great
distance from the enemy.
2. Ground which can be freely
traversed by both sides is called
accessible.
3. With regard to ground of this
nature, be before the enemy in
occupying the raised and sunny spots, and
carefully guard your line of
supplies. Then you will be able to fight
with advantage.
4. Ground which can be abandoned but
is hard to re-occupy is
called entangling.
5. From a position of this sort, if
the enemy is unprepared, you
may sally forth and defeat him. But if the
enemy is prepared for your coming,
and you fail to defeat him, then, return
being impossible, disaster will
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