The Art of War
Sun Tzu
1,277 passages indexed from The Art of War (Sun Tzu) — Page 7 of 26
License: Public Domain
The Art of War, passage 205
13. The passage I have put in brackets is omitted in the _T’u Shu_, and may be an interpolation. It was known, however to Chang Shou-chieh of the T’ang dynasty, and appears in the _T’ai P’ing Yu Lan_.
The Art of War, passage 724
6. Moor your craft higher up than the enemy, and facing the sun.
The Art of War, passage 803
36. Too frequent rewards signify that the enemy is at the end of his resources;
The Art of War, passage 972
and do not overtax them. Concentrate your energy and hoard your strength.
The Art of War, passage 1025
37. By altering his arrangements and changing his plans,
The Art of War, passage 52
It is obvious enough that Ssu-ma Ch’ien at least had no doubt about the reality of Sun Wu as an historical personage; and with one exception, to be noticed presently, he is by far the most important authority on the period in question. It will not be necessary, therefore, to say much of such a work as the _Wu Yüeh Ch’un Ch’iu_, which is supposed to have been written by Chao Yeh of the 1st century A.D.
The Art of War, passage 849
9. Should the enemy forestall you in occupying a pass, do not go after him if the pass is fully garrisoned, but only if it is weakly garrisoned.
The Art of War, passage 27
Another feature borrowed from “The Chinese Classics” is the printing of text, translation and notes on the same page; the notes, however, are inserted, according to the Chinese method, immediately after the passages to which they refer. From the mass of native commentary my aim has been to extract the cream only, adding the Chinese text here and there when it seemed to present points of literary interest.
The Art of War, passage 1064
X sets forth six new grounds, with six variations of plan to match. None of these is mentioned again, though the first is hardly to be distinguished from ground no. 4 in the next chapter. At last, in chap. XI, we come to the Nine Grounds par excellence, immediately followed by the variations. This takes us down to § 14. In §§ 43-45, fresh definitions are provided for nos. 5, 6, 2, 8 and 9 (in the order given), as well as for the tenth ground noticed in chap.
The Art of War, passage 813
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.
The Art of War, passage 65
In the bibliographic section of the _Han Shu_, there is an entry which has given rise to much discussion: "The works of Sun Tzŭ of Wu in 82 _p’ien_ (or chapters), with diagrams in 9 _chuan_." It is evident that this cannot be merely the 13 chapters known to Ssu-ma Ch’ien, or those we possess today. Chang Shou-chieh refers to an edition of Sun Tzŭ’s _Art of War_ of which the "13 chapters" formed the first _chuan_, adding that there were two other _chuan_ besides.
The Art of War, passage 780
The animals, maddened with pain, dashed furiously into the enemy’s camp where they caused the utmost confusion and dismay; for their tails acted as torches, showing up the hideous pattern on their bodies, and the weapons on their horns killed or wounded any with whom they came into contact. In the meantime, the band of 5000 had crept up with gags in their mouths, and now threw themselves on the enemy.
The Art of War, passage 395
[Chang Yu says this is done, "By concealing the disposition of his troops, covering up his tracks, and taking unremitting precautions."]
The Art of War, passage 1095
58. Place your army in deadly peril, and it will survive; plunge it into desperate straits, and it will come off in safety.
The Art of War, passage 975
After some time had elapsed, he told off certain persons to find out how the men were amusing themselves. The answer was, that they were contending with one another in putting the weight and long-jumping. When Wang Chien heard that they were engaged in these athletic pursuits, he knew that their spirits had been strung up to the required pitch and that they were now ready for fighting.
The Art of War, passage 630
[Ch’en Hao alludes to Li Kuang-pi’s night ride to Ho-yang at the head of 500 mounted men; they made such an imposing display with torches, that though the rebel leader Shih Ssu-ming had a large army, he did not dare to dispute their passage.]
The Art of War, passage 1145
2. In order to carry out an attack, we must have means available.
The Art of War, passage 50
This is the latest date at which anything is recorded of Sun Wu. He does not appear to have survived his patron, who died from the effects of a wound in 496. In another chapter there occurs this passage:[6]
The Art of War, passage 954
[Mei Yao-ch’en connects this with the foregoing: "Having succeeded in thus dislocating the enemy, they would push forward in order to secure any advantage to be gained; if there was no advantage to be gained, they would remain where they were."]
The Art of War, passage 158
What with the perpetual collisions of the ancient feudal States, the grim conflicts with Huns, Turks and other invaders after the centralization of government, the terrific upheavals which accompanied the overthrow of so many dynasties, besides the countless rebellions and minor disturbances that have flamed up and flickered out again one by one, it is hardly too much to say that the clash of arms has never ceased to resound in one portion or another of the Empire.
The Art of War, passage 923
[Wang Hsi explains the name by saying that "when an army has reached such a point, its situation is serious."]
The Art of War, passage 224
37. Hoa-yin is about 14 miles from T’ung-kuan on the eastern border of Shensi. The temple in question is still visited by those about the ascent of the Western Sacred Mountain. It is mentioned in a text as being "situated five _li_ east of the district city of Hua-yin. The temple contains the Hua-shan tablet inscribed by the T’ang Emperor Hsuan Tsung [713-755]."
The Art of War, passage 626
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.
The Art of War, passage 1077
13): Hannibal, we are told, ordered a guide to lead him into the neighbourhood of Casinum, where there was an important pass to be occupied; but his Carthaginian accent, unsuited to the pronunciation of Latin names, caused the guide to understand Casilinum instead of Casinum, and turning from his proper route, he took the army in that direction, the mistake not being discovered until they had almost arrived.]
The Art of War, passage 485
[Tu Mu says: "He first of all considers the power of his army in the bulk; afterwards he takes individual talent into account, and uses each men according to his capabilities. He does not demand perfection from the untalented."]
The Art of War, passage 326
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.
The Art of War, passage 1102
After the battle, some of Han Hsin’s officers came to him and said: "In the _Art of War_ we are told to have a hill or tumulus on the right rear, and a river or marsh on the left front. [This appears to be a blend of Sun Tzŭ and T’ai Kung. See IX § 9, and note.] You, on the contrary, ordered us to draw up our troops with the river at our back.
The Art of War, passage 933
If a position of this kind is secured first by the enemy, beware of attacking him. Lure him away by pretending to flee—show your banners and sound your drums—make a dash for other places that he cannot afford to lose—trail brushwood and raise a dust—confound his ears and eyes—detach a body of your best troops, and place it secretly in ambuscade. Then your opponent will sally forth to the rescue."]
The Art of War, passage 999
29. The skilful tactician may be likened to the _shuai-jan_. Now the _shuai-jan_ is a snake that is found in the Ch‘ang mountains.
The Art of War, passage 500
if well supplied with food, he can starve him out; if quietly encamped, he can force him to move.
The Art of War, passage 362
if quite unequal in every way, we can flee from him.
The Art of War, passage 207
16. On the other hand, it is noteworthy that _Wu Tzŭ_, which is not in 6 chapters, has 48 assigned to it in the _Han Chih_. Likewise, the _Chung Yung_ is credited with 49 chapters, though now only in one only. In the case of very short works, one is tempted to think that _p’ien_ might simply mean "leaves."
The Art of War, passage 262
[Tu Yu quotes Wang Tzŭ as saying: "Without constant practice, the officers will be nervous and undecided when mustering for battle; without constant practice, the general will be wavering and irresolute when the crisis is at hand."]
The Art of War, passage 1143
the fifth is to hurl dropping fire amongst the enemy.
The Art of War, passage 702
[Tu Mu tells us that Yao Hsing, when opposed in 357 A.D. by Huang Mei, Teng Ch’iang and others shut himself up behind his walls and refused to fight. Teng Ch’iang said: "Our adversary is of a choleric temper and easily provoked; let us make constant sallies and break down his walls, then he will grow angry and come out. Once we can bring his force to battle, it is doomed to be our prey." This plan was acted upon, Yao Hsiang came out to fight, was lured as far as San-yuan by the enemy’s pretended flight, and finally attacked and slain.]
The Art of War, passage 848
[Because then, as Tu Yu observes, "the initiative will lie with us, and by making sudden and unexpected attacks we shall have the enemy at our mercy."]
The Art of War, passage 80
Military writers look upon Sun Wu as the father of their art. But the fact that he does not appear in the _Tso Chuan_, although he is said to have served under Ho Lu King of Wu, makes it uncertain what period he really belonged to.
The Art of War, passage 1017
[Literally, "to deceive their eyes and ears."]
The Art of War, passage 183
1. _Wu Tzŭ_, in 1 _chuan_ or 6 chapters. By Wu Ch’i (_d_. 381 B.C.). A genuine work. See _Shih Chi_, ch. 65.
The Art of War, passage 1142
[Tu Mu says that the things contained in "arsenals" and "magazines" are the same. He specifies weapons and other implements, bullion and clothing. Cf. VII. § 11.]
The Art of War, passage 143
In attempting to provide a critical commentary for Sun Tzŭ’s work, he does not lose sight of the fact that these sayings were intended for states engaged in internecine warfare; that the author is not concerned with the military conditions prevailing under the sovereigns of the three ancient dynasties, [43] nor with the nine punitive measures prescribed to the Minister of War. [44] Again, Sun Wu loved brevity of diction, but his meaning is always deep.
The Art of War, passage 683
8. If our expectation of advantage be tempered in this way, we may succeed in accomplishing the essential part of our schemes.
The Art of War, passage 363
10. Hence, though an obstinate fight may be made by a small force, in the end it must be captured by the larger force.
The Art of War, passage 131
One of the greatest military geniuses that the world has seen, and Napoleonic in the scale of his operations, he was especially famed for the marvelous rapidity of his marches, which has found expression in the line "Talk of Ts’ao Ts’ao, and Ts’ao Ts’ao will appear." Ou-yang Hsiu says of him that he was a great captain who "measured his strength against Tung Cho, Lu Pu and the two Yuan, father and son, and vanquished them all; whereupon he divided the Empire of Han with Wu and Shu, and made himself king.
The Art of War, passage 176
Sun Hsing-yen, the editor of Sun Tzŭ, writes in similar strain:—
The Art of War, passage 610
[That is, when holding a position from which the enemy is trying to dislodge you, or perhaps, as Tu Yu says, when he is trying to entice you into a trap.]
The Art of War, passage 371
15. (3) By employing the officers of his army without discrimination,
The Art of War, passage 527
and his forces being thus distributed in many directions, the numbers we shall have to face at any given point will be proportionately few.
The Art of War, passage 555
28. Do not repeat the tactics which have gained you one victory, but let your methods be regulated by the infinite variety of circumstances.
The Art of War, passage 604
16. Whether to concentrate or to divide your troops, must be decided by circumstances.