The Art of War Sun Tzu (most read books of all time txt) 📖

I must candidly confess that I do not understand the syntax of 帥與之期, though the meaning is fairly plain. The difficulty has evidently been felt, for Tu Mu tells us that one text omits 期如. It is more likely, however, that a couple of characters have dropped out. ↩

發其機, literally, “releases the spring” (see chapter V, “Energy may be likened⁠ ⁠…”), that is, takes some decisive step which makes it impossible for the army to return⁠—like 項羽 Hsiang Yü, who sunk his ships after crossing a river. Chʽên Hao, followed by Chia Lin, understands the words less well as 發其心機 “puts forth every artifice at his command.” But 機 in this derived sense occurs nowhere else in Sun Tzǔ. ↩

Omitted in the Tʽu Shu. ↩

The Tʽu Shu inserts another 驅 after 羊. Tu Mu says: 三軍但知進退之命不知攻取之端也 “The army is only cognisant of orders to advance or retreat; it is ignorant of the ulterior ends of attacking and conquering.” ↩

Sun Tzǔ means that after mobilisation there should be no delay in aiming a blow at the enemy’s heart. With 投之於險 cf. supra: 投之無所往 “Throw your soldiers⁠ ⁠…”. Note how he returns again and again to this point. Among the warring states of ancient China, desertion was no doubt a much more present fear and serious evil than it is in the armies of today. ↩

Chang Yü says: 九地之法不可拘泥 “One must not be hidebound in interpreting the rules for the nine varieties of ground. ↩

The use of 屈伸 “contraction and expansion” may be illustrated by the saying 屈以求伸, which almost exactly corresponds to the French il faut reculer pour mieux sauter.789 Capt. Calthrop, more suo, avoids a real translation and has: “the suiting of the means to the occasion.” ↩

Cf. supra, “The following are the principles⁠ ⁠…” ↩

Chang Yü’s paraphrase is 而用師者. ↩

This “ground” is cursorily mentioned in chapter VIII (“When in difficult country⁠ ⁠…”), but it does not figure among the Nine 地 of this chapter or the Six 地形 in chap. X. One’s first impulse would be to translate it “distant ground” (絕域 is commonly used in the sense of “distant lands”), but this, if we can trust the commentators, is precisely what is not meant here. Mei Yao-chʽên says it is 進不及輕退不及散在二地之間也 “a position not far enough advanced to be called ‘facile,’ and not near enough to home to be called ‘dispersive,’ but something between the two.” That, of course, does not explain the name 絕, which seems to imply that the general has severed his communications and temporarily cut himself off from his base. Thus, Wang Hsi says: “It is ground separated from home by an interjacent state, whose territory we have had to cross in order to reach it. Hence it is incumbent on us to settle our business there quickly.” He adds that this position is of rare occurrence, which is the reason why it is not included among the 九地. Capt. Calthrop gives but a poor rendering of this sentence: “To leave home and cross the borders is to be free from interference.” ↩

The Tʽu Shu reads 通 for 達. ↩

From 四達 down to “When you have the enemy’s strongholds⁠ ⁠…”, we have some of the definitions of the early part of the chapter repeated in slightly different language. Capt. Calthrop omits these altogether. ↩

固 = 險固. ↩

This end, according to Tu Mu, is best attained by remaining on the defensive, and avoiding battle. Cf. supra, “On dispersive ground⁠ ⁠…” ↩

The Tʽung Tien has 其 instead of 之. The present reading is supported by the 遺說 of Chêng Yu-hsien. As Tu Mu says, the object is to guard against two possible contingencies: 一者備其逃逸二者恐其敵至 “(1) the desertion of our own troops; (2) a sudden attack on the part of the enemy.” Cf. chapter VII: 其徐如林 “… your compactness that of the forest.” Mei Yao-chʽên says: 行則隊校相繼止則營壘聯屬 “On the march, the regiments should be in close touch; in an encampment, there should be continuity between the fortifications.” He seems to have forgotten, by the way, what Sun Tzǔ says above: 輕地則無止. ↩

This is Tsʽao Kung’s interpretation. Chang Yü adopts it, saying: 當疾進其後使首尾俱至 “We must quickly bring up our rear, so that head and tail may both reach the goal.” That is, they must not be allowed to straggle up a long way apart. Mei Yao-chʽên offers another equally plausible explanation: 敵未至其地我若在後則當疾趨以爭之 “Supposing the enemy has not yet reached the coveted position, and we are behind him, we should advance with all speed in order to dispute its possession.” 其 would thus denote the enemy, 後 being the preposition, and 趨 would retain its usual intransitive sense. Cf. chapter VII: 後人發先人至 “Thus, to take a long and circuitous route⁠ ⁠…”