Speaker 1: The Arts of War by Sansu, translated by Lionel Giles,
Speaker 1: read by Bubbefeld. This LibriVox recording is in the public domain.
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Speaker 1: Chapter one laying plans. The art of war is of
Speaker 1: vital importance to the States. It is a matter of
Speaker 1: life and death, a road either to safety or to ruin. Hence,
Speaker 1: it is a subject of inquiry which can on no
Speaker 1: account be neglected. The art of war, then, is governed
Speaker 1: by five constant factors to be taken into account in
Speaker 1: one's deliberations when seeking to determine the conditions obtaining in
Speaker 1: the field. These are the moral law, Heaven, Earth, the Commander, method,
Speaker 1: and discipline. The moral law causes the people to be
Speaker 1: incomplete accord with their ruler, so that they will follow
Speaker 1: him regardless of their lives, undismayed by any danger. Heaven
Speaker 1: signifies night and day, coal and heat, times and seasons.
Speaker 1: Earth comprises distances great and small, danger and security, open
Speaker 1: ground and narrow passes, the chances of life and death.
Speaker 1: The Commander stands for the virtues of wisdom, sincerity, benevolence, courage,
Speaker 1: and strictness, method, and discipline are to be understood, the
Speaker 1: marshaling of the army in its proper subdivisions, the graduations
Speaker 1: of rank among the officers, the maintenance of roads by
Speaker 1: which supplies may reach the army, and the control of
Speaker 1: military expenditure. These five heads should be familiar to every general.
Speaker 1: He who knows them will be victorious. He who knows
Speaker 1: them not will fail. Therefore, in your deliberations when seeking
Speaker 1: to determine the military conditions, but them be made the
Speaker 1: basis of a comparison. In this wise, which of the
Speaker 1: two sovereigns is imbued with the moral law, Which of
Speaker 1: the two generals has most ability? With whom lie the
Speaker 1: advantages derived from Heaven and earth? On which side is disciplined,
Speaker 1: most rigorously enforced, Which army is stronger? On which side
Speaker 1: are officers and men more highly trained? In which army
Speaker 1: is there the greater constancy, both in reward and punishment.
Speaker 1: By means of these seven considerations, I can forecast victory
Speaker 1: or defeat the general that hearkens to my counsel and
Speaker 1: acts upon it, will conquer. Let such a one be
Speaker 1: retained in command. The general that hearkens not to my counsel,
Speaker 1: nor acts upon it, will suffer defeat. Let such a
Speaker 1: one be dismissed while heeding the profit of my counsel.
Speaker 1: Avail yourself also of any helpful circumstances over and beyond
Speaker 1: the ordinary rules. According as circumstances are favorable, one should
Speaker 1: modify one's plans. All warfare is based on deception. Hence,
Speaker 1: when able to attack, we must seem unable. When using
Speaker 1: our forces, we must seem inactive. When we are near,
Speaker 1: we must make the enemy believe we are far away.
Speaker 1: When far away, we must make him believe we are near.
Speaker 1: Hold out bates to entice the enemy, Feign disorder, and
Speaker 1: crush him. If he is secure at all points, be
Speaker 1: prepared for him. If he is in superior strength, evade him.
Speaker 1: If your opponent is of choleric temper, seek to irritate him.
Speaker 1: Pretend to be weak, that he may grow arrogant. If
Speaker 1: he is taking his ease, give him no rest. If
Speaker 1: his forces are united, separate them, Attack him where he
Speaker 1: is unprepared, Appear where you are not expected. These military
Speaker 1: devices leading to victory must not be divulged beforehand. Now,
Speaker 1: the general who wins a battle makes many calculations in
Speaker 1: his temple ere the battle is fought. The general who
Speaker 1: loses a battle makes but few calculations beforehand. Thus do
Speaker 1: many calculations lead to victory, and few calculations to defeat?
Speaker 1: How much more no calculation at all. It is by
Speaker 1: attention to this point that I can foresee who is
Speaker 1: likely to win or lose. Chapter two, Waging war. In
Speaker 1: the operations of war, where there are in the field
Speaker 1: a thousand swift chariots, as many heavy chariots, and one
Speaker 1: hundred thousand male clad soldiers with provisions enough to carry
Speaker 1: them a thousand lee, the expenditure at home and at
Speaker 1: the front, including entertainment of guests, small items such as
Speaker 1: glue and paint and sums spent on chariots and armor,
Speaker 1: will reach the total of one thousand ounces of silver
Speaker 1: per day. Such is the cost of raising an army
Speaker 1: of one hundred thousand men. When you engage in actual fighting,
Speaker 1: if victory is long in coming, then men's weapons will
Speaker 1: grow dull, and their ardor will be damned. If you
Speaker 1: lay siege to a town, you will exhaust your strength again.
Speaker 1: If the campaign is protracted, the resources of the state
Speaker 1: will not be equal to the strain. Now, when your
Speaker 1: weapons are dulled, your ardor damned, your strength exhausted, and
Speaker 1: your treasure spent, other chieftains will spring up to take
Speaker 1: advantage of your extremity. Then no man, however wise, will
Speaker 1: be able to avert the consequences that must ensue. Thus,
Speaker 1: though we have heard of stupid haste in war, cleverness
Speaker 1: has never been seen associated with long delays. There is
Speaker 1: no instance of a country having benefited from prolonged warfare.
Speaker 1: It is only one who is thoroughly acquainted with the
Speaker 1: evils of war that can thoroughly understand the proper way
Speaker 1: of carrying it on. The skillful soldier does not raise
Speaker 1: a second levee, neither are his supply wagons loaded more
Speaker 1: than twice. Bring war material with you from home, but
Speaker 1: forage on the enemy. Thus the army will have food
Speaker 1: enough for its needs. Poverty of the state exchequer causes
Speaker 1: an army to be maintained by contributions from a distance.
Speaker 1: Contributing to maintain an army at a distance causes the
Speaker 1: people to be impoverished. On the other hand, the proximity
Speaker 1: of an army causes prices to go up, and high
Speaker 1: prices cause the people's substance to be drained away. When
Speaker 1: their substance is drained away, the peasantry will be afflicted
Speaker 1: by heavy exactions. With this loss of substance and exhaustion
Speaker 1: of strength, the homes of the people will be stripped bare,
Speaker 1: and three tenths of their income will be dissipated, while
Speaker 1: government expenses for broken chariots, worn out horses, breastplates and helmets,
Speaker 1: bows and arrows, spears and shields, protective mantles, draft oxen,
Speaker 1: and heavy wagons will amount to four tenths of its
Speaker 1: total revenue. Hence, a wise general makes a point of
Speaker 1: foraging on the enemy. One cart load of the enemy's
Speaker 1: provisions is equivalent to twenty of one's own, and likewise
Speaker 1: a single pecool of his provender is equivalents to twenty
Speaker 1: from one's own store. Now, in order to kill the enemy,
Speaker 1: our men must be roused to anger that there may
Speaker 1: be advantage from defeating the enemy. They must have their rewards. Therefore,
Speaker 1: in chariot fighting, when ten or more chariots have been taken,
Speaker 1: those should be rewarded who took the first. Our own
Speaker 1: flags should be substituted for those of the enemy. And
Speaker 1: the chariots mingled and used in conjunction with ours. The
Speaker 1: captured soldiers should be kindly treated and kept. This is
Speaker 1: called using the conquered foe to augment one's own strength
Speaker 1: in war. Then let your great object be victory, not
Speaker 1: lengthy campaigns. Thus it may be known that the leader
Speaker 1: of armies is the arbiter of the people's fate, the
Speaker 1: man on whom it depends whether the nation shall be
Speaker 1: in peace or in peril. Chapter three, Attack by stratagem.
Speaker 1: In the practical art of war, the best thing of
Speaker 1: all is to take the enemy's country whole and intact
Speaker 1: to shatter and destroy it. Is not so good. So too,
Speaker 1: it is better to recapture an army entire than to
Speaker 1: destroy it, to capture a regiment, a detachment, or a
Speaker 1: company entire than to destroy them. Hence, to fight and
Speaker 1: conquer in all your battles is not supreme excellence. Supreme
Speaker 1: excellence consists in breaking the army's resistance without fighting. Thus
Speaker 1: the highest form of generalship is to the enemy's plans.
Speaker 1: The next best is to prevent the junction of the
Speaker 1: enemy's forces. The next in order is to attack the
Speaker 1: enemy's army in the field, and the worst policy of
Speaker 1: all is to besiege walled cities. The rule is not
Speaker 1: to besiege walled cities if it can possibly be avoided.
Speaker 1: The preparation of mantlets, movable shelters, and various implements of
Speaker 1: war will take up to three whole months, and the
Speaker 1: piling up of mounds over against the walls will take
Speaker 1: three months more. The general, unable to control his irritation,
Speaker 1: will launch his men to the assault like swarming ants,
Speaker 1: with the results that one third of his men are
Speaker 1: slain while the town still remains untaken. Such are the
Speaker 1: disastrous effects of a siege. Therefore, the skillful leader subdues
Speaker 1: the enemy's troops without any fighting. He captures their cities
Speaker 1: without laying siege to them. He overthrows their kingdom without
Speaker 1: lengthy operations in the field. With his forces intact, he
Speaker 1: will dispute the mastery of the empire, and thus, without
Speaker 1: losing a man, his triumph will be complete. This is
Speaker 1: the method of attacking by stratagem. It is the rule
Speaker 1: in war. If our forces are ten to the enemies
Speaker 1: one to surround him, if five to one to attack him,
Speaker 1: if twice as numerous to divide our army into two.
Speaker 1: If equally matched, we can offer battle. If slightly inferior
Speaker 1: in numbers, we can avoid the enemy. If quite unequal
Speaker 1: in every way, we can flee from him. Hence, though
Speaker 1: an obstinate fight may be made by a small force,
Speaker 1: in the end it must be captured by a larger force. Now,
Speaker 1: the general is the bulwark of the state. If the
Speaker 1: bulwark is complete at all points, the state will be strong.
Speaker 1: If the bulwark is defective, the state will be weak.
Speaker 1: There are three ways in which a ruler can bring
Speaker 1: misfortune upon his army. One by commanding the army to
Speaker 1: advance or to retreat, being ignorant of the fact that
Speaker 1: it cannot obey. This is called hobbling the army. Two
Speaker 1: by attempting to govern an army in the same way
Speaker 1: as he administers a kingdom, being ignorant of the conditions
Speaker 1: which obtain in an army. This causes restlessness in the
Speaker 1: soldier's minds. Three by employing the officers of his army
Speaker 1: without discrimination through ignorance of the military principle of adaptation
Speaker 1: to circumstances. This shakes the confidence of the soldiers. But
Speaker 1: when the army is restless and distrustful, Trouble is sure
Speaker 1: to come from the other feudal princes. This is simply
Speaker 1: bringing anarchy into the army and flinging victory away. Thus
Speaker 1: we may know that there are five essentials for victory.
Speaker 1: He will win who knows when to fight and when
Speaker 1: not to fight. He will win who knows how to
Speaker 1: handle both superior and inferior forces. He will win whose
Speaker 1: army is animated by the same spirit throughout all its ranks.
Speaker 1: He will win who prepared himself waits to take the
Speaker 1: enemy unprepared. He will win who has military capacity and
Speaker 1: is not interfered with by the sovereign. Hence the saying,
Speaker 1: if you know the enemy and know yourself, you need
Speaker 1: not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you
Speaker 1: know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained,
Speaker 1: you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither
Speaker 1: the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.
Speaker 1: Chapter four, Tactical dispositions. The good fighters of old first
Speaker 1: put themselves beyond the possibility of defeat, and then waited
Speaker 1: for an opportunity of defeating the enemy. To secure ourselves
Speaker 1: against defeat lies in our own hands, But the opportunity
Speaker 1: of defeating the enemy is by the enemy himself. Thus,
Speaker 1: the good fighter is able to secure himself against defeat,
Speaker 1: but cannot make certain of defeating the enemy. Hence the
Speaker 1: saying one may know how to conquer without being able
Speaker 1: to do it. Security against defeat implies defensive tactics. Ability
Speaker 1: to defeat the enemy means taking the offensive. Standing on
Speaker 1: the defensive indicates insufficient strength. Attacking a superabundance of strength.
Speaker 1: The general who is skilled in defense hides in the
Speaker 1: most secret recesses of the earth. He who is skilled
Speaker 1: in attack flashes forth from the topmost heights of heaven. Thus,
Speaker 1: on the one hand, we have ability to protect ourselves,
Speaker 1: on the other, of victory that is complete. To see
Speaker 1: victory only when it is within the ken of the
Speaker 1: common herd is not the acme of excellence. Neither is
Speaker 1: it the acme of excellence if he fights and conquer
Speaker 1: and the whole empire says well done. To lift an
Speaker 1: autumn hair is no sign of great strength. To see
Speaker 1: the sun and moon is no sign of sharp sight.
Speaker 1: To hear the noise of thunder is no sign of
Speaker 1: a quick ear. What the ancients called a clever fighter
Speaker 1: is one who not only wins, but excels in winning
Speaker 1: with ease. Hence, his victories bring him neither reputation for
Speaker 1: wisdom nor credit for courage. He wins his battles by
Speaker 1: making no mistakes. Making no mistakes is what establishes the
Speaker 1: certainty of victory, for it means conquering an enemy that
Speaker 1: is already defeated. Hence, the skillful fighter puts himself into
Speaker 1: a position which makes defeat impossible and does not miss
Speaker 1: the moment for defeating the enemy. Thus it is that
Speaker 1: in war, the victorious strategist only seeks battle after the
Speaker 1: victory has been won, whereas he who is destined to
Speaker 1: defeat first fire rights and afterwards looks for victory. The
Speaker 1: consummate leader cultivates the moral law and strictly adheres to
Speaker 1: method and discipline. Thus it is in his power to
Speaker 1: control success. In respect of military method, we have firstly measurement,
Speaker 1: secondly estimation of quantity, thirdly calculation, fourthly balancing of chances.
Speaker 1: Fifthly victory. Measurement owes its existence to earth estimation of
Speaker 1: quantity to measurement, calculation to estimation of quantity balancing of
Speaker 1: chances to calculation, and victory to balancing of chances. A
Speaker 1: victorious army opposed to a routed one is as a
Speaker 1: pound's weight placed in the scale against a single grain.
Speaker 1: The on rush of a conquering force is like the
Speaker 1: bursting of pent up waters into a chasm of a
Speaker 1: thousand fathoms deep. Chapter five Energy. The control of a
Speaker 1: large force is the same principle as the control of
Speaker 1: a few men. It is merely a question of divining
Speaker 1: up their numbers. Fighting with a large army under your
Speaker 1: command is nowise different from fighting with a small one.
Speaker 1: It is merely a question of instituting signs and signals
Speaker 1: to ensure that your whole host may withstand the brunt
Speaker 1: of the enemy's attack and remain unshaken. This is affected
Speaker 1: by maneuvers direct and indirect. That the impact of your
Speaker 1: army may be like a grindstone dashed against an egg.
Speaker 1: This is affected by the science of weak points and
Speaker 1: strong In all fighting, the direct method may be used
Speaker 1: for joining battle, but indirect methods will be needed in
Speaker 1: order to secure victory. Indirect tactics efficiently applied are inexhaustible,
Speaker 1: as heaven and earth unending, as the flow of rivers
Speaker 1: and streams. Like the sun and moon, they end, but
Speaker 1: to begin a new Like the four seasons, they pass
Speaker 1: away to return once more. There are not more than
Speaker 1: five musical notes, yet the combinations of these five give
Speaker 1: rise to more melodies than can ever be heard. There
Speaker 1: are not more than five primary colors blue, yellow, red, white,
Speaker 1: and black, yet in combination they produce more hues than
Speaker 1: can ever be seen. There are not more than five
Speaker 1: cardinal tastes sour, acrid, salt, sweet, bitter, yet combinations of
Speaker 1: them yield more flavors than can ever be tasted. In battle,
Speaker 1: there are not more than two methods of attack, the
Speaker 1: direct and the indirect. Yet these two, in combination give
Speaker 1: rise to an endless series of maneuvers. The direct and
Speaker 1: the indirect lead on to each other in turn. It
Speaker 1: is like moving in a circle. You never come to
Speaker 1: an end. Who can exhaust the possibilities of their combination.
Speaker 1: The onset of troops is like the rush of a torrents,
Speaker 1: which will even roll stones along in its course. The
Speaker 1: quality of decision is like the well timed swoop of
Speaker 1: a falcon, which enables it to strike and destroy its victim.
Speaker 1: Therefore the good fighter will be terrible in his onset
Speaker 1: and prompt in his decision. Energy may be likened to
Speaker 1: the bending of a crossbow, decision to the releasing of
Speaker 1: a trigger. Amid the turmoil and tumult of battle, there
Speaker 1: may be seeming disorder, and yet no real disorder at all.
Speaker 1: Amid confusion and chaos. Your array may be without head
Speaker 1: or tail, yet it will be proof against defeat. Simulated
Speaker 1: disorder postulates perfect discipline. Simulated fear postulates courage. Simulated weakness
Speaker 1: postulates strength. Hiding order beneath the cloak of disorder is
Speaker 1: simply a question of subdivision. Concealing courage under a show
Speaker 1: of timidity presupposes a fund of latent energy. Masking strength
Speaker 1: with weakness is to be effected by tactical dispositions. Thus,
Speaker 1: one who is skillful at keeping the enemy on the
Speaker 1: move maintains deceitful appearances according to which the enemy will act.
Speaker 1: He sacrifices something that the enemy may snatch at it.
Speaker 1: By holding out bates, he keeps him on the march,
Speaker 1: when with a body of picked men he lies in
Speaker 1: wait for him. The clever combatants looks to the effect
Speaker 1: of combined energy, and does not require too much from individuals,
Speaker 1: hence his ability to pick out the right men and
Speaker 1: utilize combine energy. When he utilizes combined energy, his fighting
Speaker 1: men become, as it were, like unto rolling logs or stones.
Speaker 1: For it is the nature of a log or stone
Speaker 1: to remain motionless on level ground, and to move on
Speaker 1: when on a slope, if four cornered, to come to
Speaker 1: a standstill, but if round shaped, to go rolling down.
Speaker 1: Thus the energy developed by good fighting men is as
Speaker 1: the momentum of a round stone rolled down a mountain
Speaker 1: thousands of feet in height. So much on the subject
Speaker 1: of energy, Chapter six, Weak Points and strong. Whoever is
Speaker 1: first in the field and awaits the coming of the
Speaker 1: enemy will be fresh for the fight. Whoever is second
Speaker 1: in the field and has to hasten to battle, will
Speaker 1: arrive exhausted. Therefore, the clever combatant imposes his will on
Speaker 1: the enemy, but does not allow the enemy's will to
Speaker 1: be imposed on him. By holding out advantages to him,
Speaker 1: he can cause the enemy to approach of his own accord,
Speaker 1: or by inflicting damage, he can make it impossible for
Speaker 1: the enemy to draw near. If the enemy is taking
Speaker 1: his ease, he can harass him. If well supplied with food,
Speaker 1: he can starve him out. If quietly encamped, he can
Speaker 1: force him to move. Appear at points which the enemy
Speaker 1: must hasten to defend. March swiftly to places where you
Speaker 1: are not expected. An army may march great distances without
Speaker 1: distress if it marches through country where the enemy is
Speaker 1: not You can be sure of succeeding in your attacks.
Speaker 1: If you only attack places which are undefended. You can
Speaker 1: assure the safety of your defense if you only hold
Speaker 1: positions that cannot be attacked. Hence, that general is skillful
Speaker 1: in attack whose opponent does not know what to defend,
Speaker 1: and he is skillful in defense whose opponent does not
Speaker 1: know what to attack. Oh, divine art of subtlety and secrecy.
Speaker 1: Through you, we learn to be invisible, Through you inaudible,
Speaker 1: and hence we can hold the enemy's fate in our hands.
Speaker 1: You may advance and be absolutely irresistible. If you make
Speaker 1: for the enemy's weak points, you may retire and be
Speaker 1: safe from pursuit. If your movements are more rapid than
Speaker 1: those of the enemy. If we wish to fight, the
Speaker 1: enemy can be forced to an engagement, even though he
Speaker 1: be sheltered behind a high rampart and a deep ditch.
Speaker 1: All we need do is attack some other place that
Speaker 1: he will be obliged to relieve. If we do not
Speaker 1: wish to fight, we can prevent the enemy from engaging us,
Speaker 1: even though the lines of our encampment may be merely
Speaker 1: traced out on the ground. All we need do is
Speaker 1: to throw something odd and unaccountable in his way. By
Speaker 1: discovering the enemy's dispositions and remaining invisible ourselves, we can
Speaker 1: keep our forces concentrated while the enemies must be divided.
Speaker 1: We can form a single united body, while the enemy
Speaker 1: must split up into fractions. Hence, there will be a
Speaker 1: hole pitted against separate parts of a whole, which means
Speaker 1: that we shall be many to the enemy's view. If
Speaker 1: we are able thus to attack an inferior force with
Speaker 1: a superior one, our opponents will be in dire straits.
Speaker 1: The spot where we intend to fight must not remain known,
Speaker 1: for then the enemy will have to prepare against a
Speaker 1: possible attack at several different points, and his forces being
Speaker 1: thus distributed in many directions, the numbers we shall have
Speaker 1: to face at any given point will be proportionately few.
Speaker 1: For should the enemy strengthen his van, he will weaken
Speaker 1: his rear. Should he strengthen his rear, he will weaken
Speaker 1: his van. Should he strengthen his left, he will weaken
Speaker 1: his right. Should he strengthen his rights, he will weaken
Speaker 1: his left. If he sends reinforcements everywhere, he will everywhere
Speaker 1: be weak. Numerical weakness comes from having to prepare against
Speaker 1: possible attacks. Numerical strength from compelling our adversary to make
Speaker 1: these preparations against us. Knowing the place and the time
Speaker 1: of the coming battle, we may concentrate from the greatest
Speaker 1: distances in order to fight. But if neither time nor
Speaker 1: place be known, then the left wing will be impotent
Speaker 1: to succor the right, the right equally impotent to succor
Speaker 1: the left, the van, unable to relieve the rear or
Speaker 1: the rear to support the van. How much more so
Speaker 1: if the furthest portions of the army are anything under
Speaker 1: a hundred lie apart, and even the nearest are separated
Speaker 1: by several lie. Though according to my estimates, the soldiers
Speaker 1: of Yuey exceed our own in number, that shall avantage
Speaker 1: them nothing in the matter of victory. I say, then,
Speaker 1: that victory can be achieved. Though the enemy be stronger
Speaker 1: in numbers. We may prevent him from fighting scheme so
Speaker 1: as to discover his plans and the likelihood of their success.
Speaker 1: Rouse him and learn the principle of his activity or inactivity.
Speaker 1: Force him to reveal himself so as to find out
Speaker 1: his vulnerable spots. Carefully compare the opposing army with your own,
Speaker 1: so that you may know where strength is superabundant and
Speaker 1: where it is deficient. In making tactical dispositions, the highest
Speaker 1: pitch you can attain is to conceal them. Conceal your dispositions,
Speaker 1: and you will be safe from the prying of the
Speaker 1: subtlest spies from the machinations of the wisest brains. How
Speaker 1: victory may be produced for them out of the enemy's
Speaker 1: own tactics. That is what the multitude cannot comprehend. All
Speaker 1: men can see the tactics whereby I conquer, But what
Speaker 1: none can see is the strategy out of which victory
Speaker 1: is evolved. Do not repeat the tactics which have gained
Speaker 1: you one victory, but let your methods be regulated by
Speaker 1: the infinite variety of circumstances. Military tactics are like unto water.
Speaker 1: For water, in its natural course runs away from high
Speaker 1: places and hastens downwards. So in war the way is
Speaker 1: to avoid what is strong and to strike at what
Speaker 1: is weak. Water shapes its course according to the nature
Speaker 1: of the ground over which it flows. The soldier works
Speaker 1: out his victory in relation to the foe whom he
Speaker 1: is facing. Therefore, just as water retains no constant shape,
Speaker 1: so in warfare there are no constant conditions. He who
Speaker 1: can modify his tactics in relation to his opponent and
Speaker 1: thereby succeed in winning, may be called a heaven born captain.
Speaker 1: The five elements water, fire, wood, metal, earth are not
Speaker 1: always equally predominant. The four seasons make way for each other.
Speaker 1: In turn. There are short days and long the moon
Speaker 1: as its periods of waning and waxing. Chapter seven. Maneuvering
Speaker 1: In war, the general receives his commands from the sovereign.
Speaker 1: Having collected an army and concentrated his forces, He must
Speaker 1: blend and harmonize different elements thereof before pitching his camp.
Speaker 1: After that comes tactical maneuvering, than which there is nothing
Speaker 1: more difficult. The difficulty of tactical maneuvering consists in turning
Speaker 1: the devious into the direct and the misfortune into gain. Thus,
Speaker 1: to take a long and circuitous route after enticing the
Speaker 1: enemy out of the way, and though starting after him,
Speaker 1: to contrive to reach the goal before him, shows knowledge
Speaker 1: of the artifice of deviation. Maneuvering with an army is
Speaker 1: advantageous with an undisciplined multitude most dangerous. If you set
Speaker 1: a fully equipped army in march in order to snatch
Speaker 1: an advantage, the chances are that you will be too late.
Speaker 1: On the other hand, to detach a flying column for
Speaker 1: the purpose involves the sacrifice of its baggage and stores. Thus,
Speaker 1: if you order your men to roll up their buff
Speaker 1: coats and make forced marches without halting day or night,
Speaker 1: covering the usual distance at a stretch, doing a hundred
Speaker 1: lie in order to rest an advantage, the leaders of
Speaker 1: all your three divisions will fall into the hands of
Speaker 1: the enemy. The stronger men will be in front, the
Speaker 1: jaded ones will fall behind, and on this plan only
Speaker 1: one tenth of your army will reach its destination. If
Speaker 1: you march fifty lee in order to outmaneuver the enemy,
Speaker 1: you will lose the leader of your first division and
Speaker 1: only half your force will reach the goal. If you
Speaker 1: march thirty lee with the same object, two thirds of
Speaker 1: your army will arrive. We may take it then that
Speaker 1: an army without its baggage train is lost. Without provisions,
Speaker 1: it is lost. Without basis of supply, it is lost.
Speaker 1: We cannot enter into alliances until we are acquainted with
Speaker 1: the designs of our neighbors. We are not fit to
Speaker 1: lead an army or the march unless we are familiar
Speaker 1: with the face of the country, its mountains and foreasist,
Speaker 1: its pitfalls and precipices, its marshes and swamps. We shall
Speaker 1: be unable to turn natural advantage to account unless we
Speaker 1: make use of local guides. In war, practice dissimulation, and
Speaker 1: you will succeed. Whether to concentrate or to divide your
Speaker 1: troops must be decided by circumstances. Let your rapidity be
Speaker 1: that of the wind, your compactness that of the forest.
Speaker 1: In raiding and plundering, be like fire, in immovability, like
Speaker 1: a mountain. Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night,
Speaker 1: And when you move, fall like a thunderbolt. When you
Speaker 1: plunder a countryside, let the spoil be divided amongst your men.
Speaker 1: When you capture new territory, cut it up into allotments
Speaker 1: for the benefit of the soldiery. Ponder and deliberate before
Speaker 1: you make a move. He will conquer who has learnt
Speaker 1: the artifice of deviation. Such is the arts of maneuvering.
Speaker 1: The Book of Army Management says, on the field of battle,
Speaker 1: the spoken word does not carry far enough, hence the
Speaker 1: institution of gongs and drums. Nor can ordinary objects be
Speaker 1: seen clearly enough, hence the institution of banners and flags.
Speaker 1: Gongs and drums. Banners and flags are means whereby the
Speaker 1: ears and eyes of the host may be focused on
Speaker 1: one particular point the host, thus forming a single united body.
Speaker 1: It is impossible either for the brave to advance alone
Speaker 1: or for the cowardly to retreat alone. This is the
Speaker 1: art of handling large masses of men. In night fighting,
Speaker 1: then make much use of signal, fires and drums, and
Speaker 1: in fighting by day of flags and banners as a
Speaker 1: means of influencing the ears and eyes of your army.
Speaker 1: A whole army may be robbed of its spirit, A
Speaker 1: commander in chief may be robbed of his press sense
Speaker 1: of mind. Now a soldier's spirit is keenest in the morning,
Speaker 1: by noonday it has begun to flag, and in the
Speaker 1: evening his mind is bent only on returning to camp.
Speaker 1: A clever general therefore avoids an army when its spirit
Speaker 1: is keen, but attacks it when it is sluggish and
Speaker 1: inclined to return. This is the art of studying moods, discipline,
Speaker 1: and calm. To await the appearance of disorder and hubbub
Speaker 1: amongst the enemy. This is the art of retaining self possession.
Speaker 1: To be near the goal while the enemy is still
Speaker 1: far from it. To wait at ease while the enemy
Speaker 1: is toiling and struggling. To be well fed while the
Speaker 1: enemy is famished. This is the art of husbanding one's strength.
Speaker 1: To refrain from intercepting an enemy whose banners are in
Speaker 1: perfect order, to refrain from attacking an army drawn up
Speaker 1: in calm and confident array. This is the art of
Speaker 1: studying circumstances. It is a military axiom not to advance
Speaker 1: up hill against the enemy, nor to oppose him when
Speaker 1: he comes downhill. Do not pursue an enemy who simulates flight.
Speaker 1: Do not attack soldiers whose temper is keen. Do not
Speaker 1: swallow bait offered by the enemy. Do not interfere with
Speaker 1: an army that is returning home. When you surround an army,
Speaker 1: leave an outlet free. Do not press a desperate foe
Speaker 1: too hard. Such is the art of warfare, Chapter eight.
Speaker 1: Variation in tactics. In war, the general receives his commands
Speaker 1: from the sovereign, collect his army, and concentrates his forces
Speaker 1: when in difficult country. Do not encamp in country where
Speaker 1: high roads intersect. Join hands with your allies. Do not
Speaker 1: linger in dangerously isolated positions. In hemmed in situations, you
Speaker 1: must resort to stratagem. In desperate position, you must fight.
Speaker 1: There are roads which must not be followed, armies which
Speaker 1: must not be attacked, towns which must not be besieged,
Speaker 1: positions which must not be contested, commands of the sovereign
Speaker 1: which must not be obeyed. The general who thoroughly understands
Speaker 1: the advantages that accompany variation of tactics knows how to
Speaker 1: handle his troops. The general who does not understand these
Speaker 1: may be well acquainted with the configuration of the country,
Speaker 1: yet he will not be able to turn his knowledge
Speaker 1: to practical account. So the student of war who is
Speaker 1: unversed in the art of war, of varying his plans,
Speaker 1: even though he be acquainted with the five advantages, will
Speaker 1: fail to make the best use of his men. Hence,
Speaker 1: in the wise leader's plans, considerations of advantage and of
Speaker 1: disadvantage will be blended together. If our expectation of advantage
Speaker 1: be tempered in this way, we may succeed in accomplishing
Speaker 1: the essential part of our schemes. If, on the other hand,
Speaker 1: in the midst of difficulties, we are always ready to
Speaker 1: seize an advantage, we may extricate ourselves from misfortune, reduce
Speaker 1: the hostile chiefs by inflicting damage on them, and make
Speaker 1: trouble for them, and keep them constantly engaged, hold out
Speaker 1: specious allurements, and make them rush to any given point.
Speaker 1: The art of war teaches us to rely not on
Speaker 1: the likelihood of the enemies not coming, but on our
Speaker 1: own readiness to receive him. Not on the chance of
Speaker 1: his not attacking, but rather on the fact that we
Speaker 1: have made our position unassailable. There are five dangerous faults
Speaker 1: which may affect in general. Recklessness which leads to destruction,
Speaker 1: cowardice which leads to capture, a hasty temper which can
Speaker 1: be provoked by insults. A delicacy of honor which is
Speaker 1: sensitive to shame over solicitude for his men, which exposes
Speaker 1: him to wary and trouble. These are the five besetting
Speaker 1: sins of a general ruinous to the conduct of war.
Speaker 1: When an army is overthrown and its leader slain, the
Speaker 1: cause will surely be found among these five dangerous faults.
Speaker 1: Let them be as subjects of meditation and of Part
Speaker 1: one