Martial Arts - Art Of War

Author: Cleary, Thomas

The Art of War is the Swiss army knife of military theory--pop out a different tool for any situation. Folded into this small package are compact views on resourcefulness, momentum, cunning, the profit motive, flexibility, integrity, secrecy, speed, positioning, surprise, deception, manipulation, responsibility, and practicality. Thomas Cleary's translation keeps the package tight, with crisp language and short sections. Commentaries from the Chinese tradition trail Sun-tzu's words, elaborating and picking up on puzzling lines. Take the solitary passage: "Do not eat food for their soldiers." Elsewhere, Sun-tzu has told us to plunder the enemy's stores, but now we're not supposed to eat the food? The Tang dynasty commentator Du Mu solves the puzzle nicely, "If the enemy suddenly abandons their food supplies, they should be tested first before eating, lest they be poisoned." Most passages, however, are the pinnacle of succinct clarity: "Lure them in with the prospect of gain, take them by confusion" or "Invincibility is in oneself, vulnerability is in the opponent." Sun-tzu's maxims are widely applicable beyond the military because they speak directly to the exigencies of survival. Your new tools will serve you well, but don't flaunt them. Remember Sun-tzu's advice: "Though effective, appear to be ineffective." --Brian Bruya

Book Description
Helps the reader apply the principles of military strategy to all challenges and conflicts of life.

Synopsis
This new translation of the Chinese masterpiece of military strategy helps readers apply the principles of military victory to relationships in their own lives and teaches how to bring about the desired outcome in all the challenges of life.

Annotation
The writings of the ancient warrior Sun Tzu have provided tremendous wisdom to generations through the ages. Now these philosophies are available with anecdotal extracts by the author of Shogun and Noble House.

Description from The Reader's Catalog
Written in China more than 2000 years ago, this series of aphoristic essays is the first known study of the planning and conduct of military operations

From The Publisher
Written approximately twenty-five hundred years ago, in a time of political turbulence and great military activity, Sun Tzu's The Art of War has exerted an extraordinary influence on the modern world. People of all persuasions have found inspiration and sound, practical guidance here for any number of activities that require strategy, from sports and normal business affairs to affairs of the heart. They have found the courage to view the world in which they live and work as a network of actual and potential combat zones, where the stakes are high and struggle is the primary mode of being; where no one is to be trusted and survival depends on unconditional victory. This edition, augmented by commentaries and anecdotal material, renders the classic text accessible to the contemporary reader, while maintaining the spare, near-poetic tone of the original.

Reviews
This classic of military strategy includes a detailed introduction & commentary on the history of Chinese warfare & military thought. Includes battle diagrams.
—
From David Rees
"A splendid new edition of Sun Tzu, the greatest of all Chinese writers on war, and one to whom Mao frequently refers." -- The Spectator (London)

Quotes
"As a reflection of the Chinese mind, this little work is as relevant as any Confucian classic." -- Brigadier General, ret. U.S. Marine Corps, is the author of The Battle for Guadalcanal, Peking and People and People's Wars, The Chinese People's Liberation Army, and editor and translator of Mao Tse-tung: On Guerilla War. —Samuel B. Griffith

Excerpt
Scholars disagree just exactly when it was written, whether Sun Tzu was a realperson or an amalgam of several, but the value of THE ART OF WAR is not indispute.

This guide to the application and nature of strategy, written in a sophist, aphoristic style, has long been considered an indispensableguide to warfare. However, businessmen in the East have long consulted it -- theydon't call them trade wars for nothing.

See if you achieve a measure of wisdom from one of the ancient masters of the Orient...

Editor's Note: This excerpt is from the public domain 1910 translation by Lionel Giles

FROM SUN TZU's ART OF WAR
II. WAGING WAR
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 weare 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 toirritate 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 whereyou are not expected.
25. These military devices, leading to victory,must not be divulged beforehand.
26. Now the general who wins a battle makes manycalculations in his temple ere the battle is fought.The general who loses a battle makes but fewcalculations beforehand. Thus do many calculationslead to victory, and few calculations to defeat:how much more no calculation at all! It is by attentionto this point that I can foresee who is likely to win or lose.
VI. WEAK POINTS AND STRONG
1. Sun Tzu said: Whoever is first in the field andawaits the coming of the enemy, will be fresh for the fight;whoever is second in the field and has to hasten to battlewill arrive exhausted.
2. Therefore the clever combatant imposes his will onthe 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 enemyto 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.

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