The Art of War by Sun Tzu
Ref: Sun Tzu (unk). The Art of War.
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Summary
Art of War is a book of theories of the Warring States period of China, when each antagonist tried to outwit the other.
Only when the enemy could not be overcome by non-military means was there recourse to armed force, which was to be applied so that victory was gained.
In the shortest possible time.
At the least possible cost in lives and effort.
With infliction on the enemy of the fewest possible casualties.
Confucius had wandered from one Chinese state to another in a vain attempt to persuade the rulers of his time to forsake the struggle for power and return to the enlightened path of the Sage Kings. But most men of this later age realized that peregrinations devoted to the promotion of pacific and ethical objectives were a waste of time. The most pressing problems were those of practical statecrafts; of internal administration and foreign policy. The crucial aspects of the latter were then the same as they have always been: to preserve and enrich the state and enhance its power and influence at the expense of enemies either actual or potential.
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Introduction
Perception (of Sun Tzu) that war was no longer a regulated pastime, but the ultimate instrument of statecraft.
The strategic and tactical doctrines expounded in "The Art of War" are based on deception, the creation of false appearances to mystify and delude the enemy, the indirect approach, ready adaptability to the enemy situation, flexible and coordinated maneuver of separate combat elements, and speedy concentration against points of weakness.
Moral strength and the intellectual faculty of man are decisive in war.
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Ch 1: Laying Plans
No evil is greater than commands of the sovereign from the court; when ignorant of military affairs, to participate in their administration. This causes the officers to be perplexed.
Five Fundamental Factors: Moral Influence, Weather, Terrain, Command, Doctrine.
Build your foes a golden bridge to escape across.
Five circumstances in which victory may be predicted.
He who knows when he can fight and when he cannot will be victorious.
He who understands how to use both large and small forces will be victorious.
He whose ranks are united in purpose will be victorious.
He who is prudent and lies in wait for an enemy who is not, will be victorious.
He whose generals are able and not interfered with by the sovereign will be victorious.
National unity is an essential requirement of victorious war.
The actions of the general's tactical instruments are the Cheng and Ch’I forces. They are reciprocal; their efforts are mutually reproductive.
Cheng Force: The normal, direct, fixing force of decision.
Ch’I Force: The extraordinary, indirect, flanking or encircling force of distraction.
If he knows where he will give battle he knows when to concentrate or divide his forces.
Good Generals have the qualities of wisdom, sincerity, humanity, courage, and strictness.
A commander is able to recognize changing circumstances and to act expediently.
All Warfare is based on deception.
When capable, feign incapacity; when active, inactivity.
What is of the greatest importance in war is extraordinary speed.
With many calculations, one can win; with few one cannot.
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Ch 2: Waging War
The wise general cannot be manipulated. He may withdraw, but when he does, moves so swiftly that he cannot be overtaken. His retirements are designed to entice the enemy, to unbalance him, and to create a situation favorable for a decisive counter-stroke. They are, paradoxically, offensive. He conducts a war of movement; he marches with divine swiftness; his blows fall like thunderbolts from the nine layered heavens. He creates conditions certain to produce a quick decision; for him victory is the object of war, not lengthy operations however brilliantly conducted. He knows that prolonged campaigns drain the treasury and exhaust the troops; prices rise, the people are hungry: No country has ever benefited from a protracted war.
You can fight a war for a long time or you can make your nation strong. You cannot do both.
Thus, while we have heard of blundering swiftness in war, we have not yet seen a clever operation that was prolonged.
An attack may lack ingenuity, but it must be delivered with supernatural speed.
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Ch 3: Attack by Strategy
What is of supreme importance in war is to attack the enemy's strategy.
The expert approaches his objective indirectly.
The expert commander strikes only when the situation assures victory. To create such a situation is the ultimate responsibility of generalship.
A commander prizes above all freedom of action. He abhors a static situation and therefore attacks cities only when there is no alternative.
For to win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the acme of skill.
He who excels at resolving difficulties does so before they arise. He who excels in conquering his enemies’ triumphs before threats materialize.
The worst policy is to attack cities. Attack cities only when there is no alternative.
Thus, those skilled in war subdue the enemy's army without battle. They capture his cities without assaulting them and overthrow his state without protracted operations.
When ten to the enemy's one, surround him. When five times his strength, attack him. If my force is five times that of the enemy, I alarm him to the front, surprise him to the rear, create an uproar in the east, and strike in the west. If double his strength, divide him. If equally matched you may engage him; only the able general can win. If weaker numerically, be capable of withdrawing. The small certainly cannot equal the large, nor can the weak match the strong, nor the few the many.
A confused army leads to another’s victory.
Know the enemy and know yourself; in a hundred battles you will never be in peril. When you are ignorant of the enemy but know yourself, your chances of winning or losing are equal. If ignorant both of your enemy and of yourself, you are certain in every battle to be in peril- called mad bandits.
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Ch 4: Tactical Dispositions
Elements of the new armies, capable of coordinated movement in accordance with detailed plans, were responsive to systematic signals. The science (or art) of tactics was born. The enemy, engaged by the cheng (orthodox) force, was defeated by the ch'I (unorthodox, unique, rare, wonderful) forces; the normal pattern was a holding or fixing effort by the cheng while ch'I groups attacked the deep flanks and rear.
Those deprived of the initiative usually lose, those who retain it usually win.
No war can be won by adoption of a static attitude.
Flexibility in dispersion, in concentration and in shifting is the concrete manifestation of the initiative in guerrilla warfare.
A commander proves himself wise not by understanding how important the flexible employment of forces is but by being able to disperse, concentrate or shift his forces in time according to specific circumstances.
It is one of the most important tasks of command to effect timely and proper change of tactics according to the conditions of the units and of the terrain, both on the enemy's side and our own. One yields when it is expedient; he gives A in order that he may take B.
Invincibility lies in the defense; the possibility of victory in the attack.
One defends when his strength is inadequate; he attacks when it is abundant.
Now the elements of the art of war are first, measurements of space; second, estimation of quantities; third, calculations; fourth, comparisons; and fifth, chances of victory.
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Ch 5: Use of Energy
When torrential water tosses boulders, it is because of its momentum. Thus, the momentum of one skilled in war is overwhelming, and his attack precisely regulated.
If one wishes to feign disorder to entice an enemy, he must himself be well-disciplined. Only then can he feign confusion. One who wishes to stimulate cowardice and lie in wait for his enemy must be courageous, for only then is he able to simulate fear. One who wishes to appear to be weak in order to make his enemy arrogant must be extremely strong. Only then can he feign weakness.
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Ch 6: Weak Points and Strong
Psychological Warfare: The morale of the enemy is the target of high priority, its reduction an essential preliminary to the armed clash.
Rage had multiplied their strength by ten.
When the enemy is at ease, be able to weary him; when well fed, to starve him; when at rest, to make him move.
Appear in places to which he must hasten; move swiftly where he does not expect you.
And as water has no constant form, there are in war no constant conditions.
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Ch 7: Maneuvering
What is difficult about maneuver is to make the devious route the most direct and to turn misfortune to advantage.
The protection of metal walls is not as important as grain and food.
Now war is based on deception. Move when it is advantageous and create changes in the situation by dispersal and concentration of forces.
When campaigning, be swift as the wind; in leisurely march, majestic as the forest; in raiding and plundering, like fire; in standing, firm as the mountains. As unfathomable as the clouds, move like a thunderbolt.
The responsibility for a martial host of a million lies in one man. He is the trigger of its spirit.
Heart is that by which the general masters. Now order and confusion, bravery and cowardice, are qualities dominated by the heart. Therefore, the expert at controlling his enemy frustrates him and then moves against him.
Under fragrant bait there is certain to be a hooked fish.
Show him there is a road to safety, and so create in his mind the idea that there is an alternative to death, then strike.
Do not press an enemy at bay. Wild beasts, when at bay, fight desperately. How much more is this true of men! If they know there is no alternative they will fight to the death.
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Ch 8: Variation of Tactics
There are occasions when the commands of the sovereign need not be obeyed.
When you see the correct course, act; do not wait for orders.
The five variations are the following:
A Road, although it may be the shortest, is not to be followed if one knows it is dangerous and there is the contingency of ambush.
An army, although it may be attacked, is not to be attacked if it is in desperate circumstances and there is the possibility that the enemy will fight to the death.
A city, although isolated and susceptible to attack, is not to be attacked if there is the probability that it is well stocked with provisions, defended by crack troops under command of a wise general, that its ministers are loyal and their plans unfathomable.
Ground, although it may be contested, is not to be fought for if one knows that after getting it, it will be difficult to defend, or that he gains no advantage by obtaining it, but will probably be counter-attacked and suffer casualties.
The orders of a sovereign, although they should be followed, are not to be followed if the general knows they contain the danger of harmful superintendence of affairs from the capital.
Ponders the dangers inherent in the advantages, and the advantages inherent in the dangers.
Advantage and disadvantage are mutually reproductive. The enlightened deliberate.
When the world is at peace, a gentleman keeps his sword by his side.
5 qualities which are dangerous in the character of a general:
Reckless
Cowardly
Quick-Tempered: An impulsive man can be provoked to rage and brought to his death. One easily angered is irascible, obstinate, and hasty. He does not consider difficulties.
Too delicate a sense of humor: One anxious to defend his reputation pays no regard to anything else.
If he is of a compassionate nature you can harass him: he who is humanitarian and compassionate and fears only casualties cannot give up temporary advantage for a long-term gain and is unable to let go of this in order to seize that.
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Ch 9: The Army on the March
Take position on high ground facing the sunlight.
When their language is deceptive but the enemy pretentiously advances, he will retreat.
When troops are terrified and insecure, they are boisterous to reassure themselves.
In war, numbers alone confer no advantage. Do not advance relying on sheer military power.
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Ch 10: Classification of Terrain
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Ch 11: The Nine Situations
In death ground I could make it evident that there is no chance of survival. For it is the nature of soldiers to resists when surrounded; to fight to the death when there is no alternative, and when desperate to follow commands implicitly.
Speed is the essence of war. Take advantage of the enemy's unpreparedness; travel by unexpected routes and strike him where he has taken no precautions.
One ignorant of the plans of neighboring states cannot prepare alliances in good time.
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Ch 12: The Attack by Fire
If not in the interests of the state, do not act. If you cannot succeed, do not use troops. If you are not in danger, do not fight.
War is to be used as a last resort.
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Ch 13: The Use of Spies
One who confronts his enemy for many years in order to struggle for victory in a decisive battle yet who, because he begrudges rank, honors, and a few hundred pieces of gold, remains ignorant of his enemy's situation, is completely devoid of humanity. Such a man is no general; no support to his sovereign; no master of victory.
Foreknowledge cannot be elicited from spirits, nor from gods, nor by analogy with past events, nor from calculations. It must be obtained from men who know the enemy situation.
Five sorts of secret agents:
Native agents: those of the enemy's country people whom we employ.
Inside Agents: enemy officials whom we employ.
Doubled Agents: enemy spies whom we employ.
Expendable agents: those of our own spies who are deliberately given fabricated information.
Living agents: those who return with information.
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