Sun Tzŭ on the Art of War: The Oldest Military Treatise in the WorldSunzi, active 6th century B.C.
Philosophy
Sun Tzŭ on the Art of War: The Oldest Military Treatise in the World
Sunzi, active 6th century B.C.
Military art and science -- Early works to 1800; War -- Early works to 1800
throat with an exclamation of despair, after the rout of his army.]
He sacrifices something, that the enemy may snatch at it.
予 here = 與.
20. 以利動之以卒待之
By holding out baits, he keeps him on the march; then with a body of
picked men he lies in wait for him.
This would appear to be the meaning if we retain 卒, which Mei
Yao-ch‘ên explains as 精卒 “men of spirit.” The _T‘u Shu_ reads 本,
an emendation suggested by 李靖 Li Ching. The meaning then would
be, “He lies in wait with the main body of his troops.”
21. 故善戰者求之於埶不責於人故能擇人而任埶
The clever combatant looks to the effect of combined energy, and does
not require too much from individuals.
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 man according to his capabilities. He does not demand
perfection from the untalented.”
Hence his ability to pick out the right men and to utilise combined
energy.
Another reading has 之 instead of 埶. It would be interesting if
Capt. Calthrop could tell us where the following occurs in the
Chinese: “yet, when an opening or advantage shows, he pushes it to
its limits.”
22. 任埶者其戰人也如轉木石木石之性安則靜危則動方則止圓則行
When he utilises combined energy, his fighting men become as it were
like unto rolling logs or stones. For it is the nature of a log or
stone to remain motionless on level ground, and to move when on a
slope; if four-cornered, to come to a standstill, but if round-shaped,
to go rolling down.
Ts‘ao Kung calls this 任自然勢 “the use of natural or inherent
power.” Capt. Calthrop ignores the last part of the sentence
entirely. In its stead he has: “So await the opportunity, and so
act when the opportunity arrives”—another absolutely gratuitous
interpolation. The _T‘ung Tien_ omits 任.
23. 故善戰人之埶如轉圓石於千仞之山者埶也
Thus the energy developed by good fighting men is as the momentum of a
round stone rolled down a mountain thousands of feet in height. So
much on the subject of energy.
The _T‘ung Tien_ omits 善. The chief lesson of this chapter, in Tu
Mu’s opinion, is the paramount importance in war of rapid
evolutions and sudden rushes. “Great results,” he adds, “can thus
be achieved with small forces.”
VI. 虛實篇
WEAK POINTS AND STRONG.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account