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+The Project Gutenberg eBook, The Art of War, by Sun Tzu
+
+
+This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere at no cost and with
+almost no restrictions whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or
+re-use it under the terms of the Project Gutenberg License included
+with this eBook or online at www.gutenberg.org
+
+
+Title: The Art of War
+
+Author: Sun Tzu
+
+Translator: Lionel Giles
+
+Release Date: May 1994 [eBook #132]
+[Last updated: January 14, 2012]
+
+Language: English
+
+Character set encoding: ISO-646-US (US-ASCII)
+
+***START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE ART OF WAR ***
+
+Note: Please see Project Gutenberg's eBook #17405 for a version of
+this eBook without the Giles commentary (that is, with only the
+Sun Tzu text).
+
+
+
+ SUN TZU ON THE ART OF WAR
+
+ THE OLDEST MILITARY TREATISE IN THE WORLD
+
+ Translated from the Chinese with Introduction
+ and Critical Notes
+
+ BY
+
+ LIONEL GILES, M.A.
+
+ Assistant in the Department of Oriental Printed Books and MSS.
+ in the British Museum
+
+ First Published in 1910
+
+-----------------------------------------------------------------
+
+ To my brother
+ Captain Valentine Giles, R.G.
+ in the hope that
+ a work 2400 years old
+ may yet contain lessons worth consideration
+ by the soldier of today
+ this translation
+ is affectionately dedicated.
+
+-----------------------------------------------------------------
+
+Preface to the Project Gutenberg Etext
+--------------------------------------
+
+ When Lionel Giles began his translation of Sun Tzu's ART OF
+WAR, the work was virtually unknown in Europe. Its introduction
+to Europe began in 1782 when a French Jesuit Father living in
+China, Joseph Amiot, acquired a copy of it, and translated it
+into French. It was not a good translation because, according to
+Dr. Giles, "[I]t contains a great deal that Sun Tzu did not
+write, and very little indeed of what he did."
+ The first translation into English was published in 1905 in
+Tokyo by Capt. E. F. Calthrop, R.F.A. However, this translation
+is, in the words of Dr. Giles, "excessively bad." He goes
+further in this criticism: "It is not merely a question of
+downright blunders, from which none can hope to be wholly exempt.
+Omissions were frequent; hard passages were willfully distorted
+or slurred over. Such offenses are less pardonable. They would
+not be tolerated in any edition of a Latin or Greek classic, and
+a similar standard of honesty ought to be insisted upon in
+translations from Chinese." In 1908 a new edition of Capt.
+Calthrop's translation was published in London. It was an
+improvement on the first -- omissions filled up and numerous
+mistakes corrected -- but new errors were created in the process.
+Dr. Giles, in justifying his translation, wrote: "It was not
+undertaken out of any inflated estimate of my own powers; but I
+could not help feeling that Sun Tzu deserved a better fate than
+had befallen him, and I knew that, at any rate, I could hardly
+fail to improve on the work of my predecessors."
+ Clearly, Dr. Giles' work established much of the groundwork
+for the work of later translators who published their own
+editions. Of the later editions of the ART OF WAR I have
+examined; two feature Giles' edited translation and notes, the
+other two present the same basic information from the ancient
+Chinese commentators found in the Giles edition. Of these four,
+Giles' 1910 edition is the most scholarly and presents the reader
+an incredible amount of information concerning Sun Tzu's text,
+much more than any other translation.
+ The Giles' edition of the ART OF WAR, as stated above, was a
+scholarly work. Dr. Giles was a leading sinologue at the time
+and an assistant in the Department of Oriental Printed Books and
+Manuscripts in the British Museum. Apparently he wanted to
+produce a definitive edition, superior to anything else that
+existed and perhaps something that would become a standard
+translation. It was the best translation available for 50 years.
+But apparently there was not much interest in Sun Tzu in English-
+speaking countries since it took the start of the Second
+World War to renew interest in his work. Several people
+published unsatisfactory English translations of Sun Tzu. In
+1944, Dr. Giles' translation was edited and published in the
+United States in a series of military science books. But it
+wasn't until 1963 that a good English translation (by Samuel B.
+Griffith and still in print) was published that was an equal to
+Giles' translation. While this translation is more lucid than
+Dr. Giles' translation, it lacks his copious notes that make his
+so interesting.
+ Dr. Giles produced a work primarily intended for scholars of
+the Chinese civilization and language. It contains the Chinese
+text of Sun Tzu, the English translation, and voluminous notes
+along with numerous footnotes. Unfortunately, some of his notes
+and footnotes contain Chinese characters; some are completely
+Chinese. Thus, a conversion to a Latin alphabet etext was
+difficult. I did the conversion in complete ignorance of Chinese
+(except for what I learned while doing the conversion). Thus, I
+faced the difficult task of paraphrasing it while retaining as
+much of the important text as I could. Every paraphrase
+represents a loss; thus I did what I could to retain as much of
+the text as possible. Because the 1910 text contains a Chinese
+concordance, I was able to transliterate proper names, books, and
+the like at the risk of making the text more obscure. However,
+the text, on the whole, is quite satisfactory for the casual
+reader, a transformation made possible by conversion to an etext.
+However, I come away from this task with the feeling of loss
+because I know that someone with a background in Chinese can do a
+better job than I did; any such attempt would be welcomed.
+
+ Bob Sutton
+ al876@cleveland.freenet.edu
+ bobs@gnu.ai.mit.edu
+
+-----------------------------------------------------------------
+INTRODUCTION
+
+
+Sun Wu and his Book
+-------------------
+
+
+ Ssu-ma Ch`ien gives the following biography of Sun Tzu: [1]
+--
+
+ Sun Tzu Wu was a native of the Ch`i State. His ART OF
+ WAR brought him to the notice of Ho Lu, [2] King of Wu. Ho
+ Lu said to him: "I have carefully perused your 13 chapters.
+ May I submit your theory of managing soldiers to a slight
+ test?"
+ Sun Tzu replied: "You may."
+ Ho Lu asked: "May the test be applied to women?"
+ The answer was again in the affirmative, so arrangements
+ were made to bring 180 ladies out of the Palace. Sun Tzu
+ divided them into two companies, and placed one of the King's
+ favorite concubines at the head of each. He then bade them
+ all take spears in their hands, and addressed them thus: "I
+ presume you know the difference between front and back, right
+ hand and left hand?"
+ The girls replied: Yes.
+ Sun Tzu went on: "When I say "Eyes front," you must
+ look straight ahead. When I say "Left turn," you must face
+ towards your left hand. When I say "Right turn," you must
+ face towards your right hand. When I say "About turn," you
+ must face right round towards your back."
+ Again the girls assented. The words of command having
+ been thus explained, he set up the halberds and battle-axes
+ in order to begin the drill. Then, to the sound of drums, he
+ gave the order "Right turn." But the girls only burst out
+ laughing. Sun Tzu said: "If words of command are not clear
+ and distinct, if orders are not thoroughly understood, then
+ the general is to blame."
+ So he started drilling them again, and this time gave
+ the order "Left turn," whereupon the girls once more burst
+ into fits of laughter. Sun Tzu: "If words of command are
+ not clear and distinct, if orders are not thoroughly
+ understood, the general is to blame. But if his orders ARE
+ clear, and the soldiers nevertheless disobey, then it is the
+ fault of their officers."
+ So saying, he ordered the leaders of the two companies
+ to be beheaded. Now the king of Wu was watching the scene
+ from the top of a raised pavilion; and when he saw that his
+ favorite concubines were about to be executed, he was greatly
+ alarmed and hurriedly sent down the following message: "We
+ are now quite satisfied as to our general's ability to handle
+ troops. If We are bereft of these two concubines, our meat
+ and drink will lose their savor. It is our wish that they
+ shall not be beheaded."
+ Sun Tzu replied: "Having once received His Majesty's
+ commission to be the general of his forces, there are certain
+ commands of His Majesty which, acting in that capacity, I am
+ unable to accept."
+ Accordingly, he had the two leaders beheaded, and
+ straightway installed the pair next in order as leaders in
+ their place. When this had been done, the drum was sounded
+ for the drill once more; and the girls went through all the
+ evolutions, turning to the right or to the left, marching
+ ahead or wheeling back, kneeling or standing, with perfect
+ accuracy and precision, not venturing to utter a sound. Then
+ Sun Tzu sent a messenger to the King saying: "Your soldiers,
+ Sire, are now properly drilled and disciplined, and ready for
+ your majesty's inspection. They can be put to any use that
+ their sovereign may desire; bid them go through fire and
+ water, and they will not disobey."
+ But the King replied: "Let our general cease drilling
+ and return to camp. As for us, We have no wish to come down
+ and inspect the troops."
+ Thereupon Sun Tzu said: "The King is only fond of
+ words, and cannot translate them into deeds."
+ After that, Ho Lu saw that Sun Tzu was one who knew how
+ to handle an army, and finally appointed him general. In the
+ west, he defeated the Ch`u State and forced his way into
+ Ying, the capital; to the north he put fear into the States
+ of Ch`i and Chin, and spread his fame abroad amongst the
+ feudal princes. And Sun Tzu shared in the might of the King.
+
+ About Sun Tzu himself this is all that Ssu-ma Ch`ien has to
+tell us in this chapter. But he proceeds to give a biography of
+his descendant, Sun Pin, born about a hundred years after his
+famous ancestor's death, and also the outstanding military genius
+of his time. The historian speaks of him too as Sun Tzu, and in
+his preface we read: "Sun Tzu had his feet cut off and yet
+continued to discuss the art of war." [3] It seems likely, then,
+that "Pin" was a nickname bestowed on him after his mutilation,
+unless the story was invented in order to account for the name.
+The crowning incident of his career, the crushing defeat of his
+treacherous rival P`ang Chuan, will be found briefly related in
+Chapter V. ss. 19, note.
+ To return to the elder Sun Tzu. He is mentioned in two
+other passages of the SHIH CHI: --
+
+ In the third year of his reign [512 B.C.] Ho Lu, king of
+ Wu, took the field with Tzu-hsu [i.e. Wu Yuan] and Po P`ei,
+ and attacked Ch`u. He captured the town of Shu and slew the
+ two prince's sons who had formerly been generals of Wu. He
+ was then meditating a descent on Ying [the capital]; but the
+ general Sun Wu said: "The army is exhausted. It is not yet
+ possible. We must wait".... [After further successful
+ fighting,] "in the ninth year [506 B.C.], King Ho Lu
+ addressed Wu Tzu-hsu and Sun Wu, saying: "Formerly, you
+ declared that it was not yet possible for us to enter Ying.
+ Is the time ripe now?" The two men replied: "Ch`u's general
+ Tzu-ch`ang, [4] is grasping and covetous, and the princes of
+ T`ang and Ts`ai both have a grudge against him. If Your
+ Majesty has resolved to make a grand attack, you must win
+ over T`ang and Ts`ai, and then you may succeed." Ho Lu
+ followed this advice, [beat Ch`u in five pitched battles and
+ marched into Ying.] [5]
+
+ This is the latest date at which anything is recorded of Sun
+Wu. He does not appear to have survived his patron, who died
+from the effects of a wound in 496.
+ In another chapter there occurs this passage: [6]
+
+ From this time onward, a number of famous soldiers
+ arose, one after the other: Kao-fan, [7] who was employed by
+ the Chin State; Wang-tzu, [8] in the service of Ch`i; and Sun
+ Wu, in the service of Wu. These men developed and threw
+ light upon the principles of war.
+
+ It is obvious enough that Ssu-ma Ch`ien at least had no
+doubt about the reality of Sun Wu as an historical personage; and
+with one exception, to be noticed presently, he is by far the
+most important authority on the period in question. It will not
+be necessary, therefore, to say much of such a work as the WU
+YUEH CH`UN CH`IU, which is supposed to have been written by Chao
+Yeh of the 1st century A.D. The attribution is somewhat
+doubtful; but even if it were otherwise, his account would be of
+little value, based as it is on the SHIH CHI and expanded with
+romantic details. The story of Sun Tzu will be found, for what
+it is worth, in chapter 2. The only new points in it worth
+noting are: (1) Sun Tzu was first recommended to Ho Lu by Wu
+Tzu-hsu. (2) He is called a native of Wu. (3) He had previously
+lived a retired life, and his contemporaries were unaware of his
+ability.
+ The following passage occurs in the Huai-nan Tzu: "When
+sovereign and ministers show perversity of mind, it is impossible
+even for a Sun Tzu to encounter the foe." Assuming that this
+work is genuine (and hitherto no doubt has been cast upon it), we
+have here the earliest direct reference for Sun Tzu, for Huai-nan
+Tzu died in 122 B.C., many years before the SHIH CHI was given to
+the world.
+ Liu Hsiang (80-9 B.C.) says: "The reason why Sun Tzu at the
+head of 30,000 men beat Ch`u with 200,000 is that the latter were
+undisciplined."
+ Teng Ming-shih informs us that the surname "Sun" was
+bestowed on Sun Wu's grandfather by Duke Ching of Ch`i [547-490
+B.C.]. Sun Wu's father Sun P`ing, rose to be a Minister of State
+in Ch`i, and Sun Wu himself, whose style was Ch`ang-ch`ing, fled
+to Wu on account of the rebellion which was being fomented by the
+kindred of T`ien Pao. He had three sons, of whom the second,
+named Ming, was the father of Sun Pin. According to this account
+then, Pin was the grandson of Wu, which, considering that Sun
+Pin's victory over Wei was gained in 341 B.C., may be dismissed
+as chronological impossible. Whence these data were obtained by
+Teng Ming-shih I do not know, but of course no reliance whatever
+can be placed in them.
+ An interesting document which has survived from the close of
+the Han period is the short preface written by the Great Ts`ao
+Ts`ao, or Wei Wu Ti, for his edition of Sun Tzu. I shall give it
+in full: --
+
+ I have heard that the ancients used bows and arrows to
+ their advantage. [10] The SHU CHU mentions "the army" among
+ the "eight objects of government." The I CHING says:
+ "'army' indicates firmness and justice; the experienced
+ leader will have good fortune." The SHIH CHING says: "The
+ King rose majestic in his wrath, and he marshaled his
+ troops." The Yellow Emperor, T`ang the Completer and Wu Wang
+ all used spears and battle-axes in order to succor their
+ generation. The SSU-MA FA says: "If one man slay another of
+ set purpose, he himself may rightfully be slain." He who
+ relies solely on warlike measures shall be exterminated; he
+ who relies solely on peaceful measures shall perish.
+ Instances of this are Fu Ch`ai [11] on the one hand and Yen
+ Wang on the other. [12] In military matters, the Sage's rule
+ is normally to keep the peace, and to move his forces only
+ when occasion requires. He will not use armed force unless
+ driven to it by necessity.
+ Many books have I read on the subject of war and
+ fighting; but the work composed by Sun Wu is the profoundest
+ of them all. [Sun Tzu was a native of the Ch`i state, his
+ personal name was Wu. He wrote the ART OF WAR in 13 chapters
+ for Ho Lu, King of Wu. Its principles were tested on women,
+ and he was subsequently made a general. He led an army
+ westwards, crushed the Ch`u state and entered Ying the
+ capital. In the north, he kept Ch`i and Chin in awe. A
+ hundred years and more after his time, Sun Pin lived. He was
+ a descendant of Wu.] [13] In his treatment of deliberation
+ and planning, the importance of rapidity in taking the field,
+ [14] clearness of conception, and depth of design, Sun Tzu
+ stands beyond the reach of carping criticism. My
+ contemporaries, however, have failed to grasp the full
+ meaning of his instructions, and while putting into practice
+ the smaller details in which his work abounds, they have
+ overlooked its essential purport. That is the motive which
+ has led me to outline a rough explanation of the whole.
+
+ One thing to be noticed in the above is the explicit
+statement that the 13 chapters were specially composed for King
+Ho Lu. This is supported by the internal evidence of I. ss. 15,
+in which it seems clear that some ruler is addressed.
+ In the bibliographic section of the HAN SHU, there is an
+entry which has given rise to much discussion: "The works of Sun
+Tzu of Wu in 82 P`IEN (or chapters), with diagrams in 9 CHUAN."
+It is evident that this cannot be merely the 13 chapters known to
+Ssu-ma Ch`ien, or those we possess today. Chang Shou-chieh
+refers to an edition of Sun Tzu's ART OF WAR of which the "13
+chapters" formed the first CHUAN, adding that there were two
+other CHUAN besides. This has brought forth a theory, that the
+bulk of these 82 chapters consisted of other writings of Sun Tzu
+-- we should call them apocryphal -- similar to the WEN TA, of
+which a specimen dealing with the Nine Situations [15] is
+preserved in the T`UNG TIEN, and another in Ho Shin's commentary.
+It is suggested that before his interview with Ho Lu, Sun Tzu had
+only written the 13 chapters, but afterwards composed a sort of
+exegesis in the form of question and answer between himself and
+the King. Pi I-hsun, the author of the SUN TZU HSU LU, backs
+this up with a quotation from the WU YUEH CH`UN CH`IU: "The King
+of Wu summoned Sun Tzu, and asked him questions about the art of
+war. Each time he set forth a chapter of his work, the King
+could not find words enough to praise him." As he points out, if
+the whole work was expounded on the same scale as in the above-
+mentioned fragments, the total number of chapters could not fail
+to be considerable. Then the numerous other treatises attributed
+to Sun Tzu might be included. The fact that the HAN CHIH
+mentions no work of Sun Tzu except the 82 P`IEN, whereas the Sui
+and T`ang bibliographies give the titles of others in addition to
+the "13 chapters," is good proof, Pi I-hsun thinks, that all of
+these were contained in the 82 P`IEN. Without pinning our faith
+to the accuracy of details supplied by the WU YUEH CH`UN CH`IU,
+or admitting the genuineness of any of the treatises cited by Pi
+I-hsun, we may see in this theory a probable solution of the
+mystery. Between Ssu-ma Ch`ien and Pan Ku there was plenty of
+time for a luxuriant crop of forgeries to have grown up under the
+magic name of Sun Tzu, and the 82 P`IEN may very well represent a
+collected edition of these lumped together with the original
+work. It is also possible, though less likely, that some of them
+existed in the time of the earlier historian and were purposely
+ignored by him. [16]
+ Tu Mu's conjecture seems to be based on a passage which
+states: "Wei Wu Ti strung together Sun Wu's Art of War," which
+in turn may have resulted from a misunderstanding of the final
+words of Ts`ao King's preface. This, as Sun Hsing-yen points
+out, is only a modest way of saying that he made an explanatory
+paraphrase, or in other words, wrote a commentary on it. On the
+whole, this theory has met with very little acceptance. Thus,
+the SSU K`U CH`UAN SHU says: "The mention of the 13 chapters in
+the SHIH CHI shows that they were in existence before the HAN
+CHIH, and that latter accretions are not to be considered part of
+the original work. Tu Mu's assertion can certainly not be taken
+as proof."
+ There is every reason to suppose, then, that the 13 chapters
+existed in the time of Ssu-ma Ch`ien practically as we have them
+now. That the work was then well known he tells us in so many
+words. "Sun Tzu's 13 Chapters and Wu Ch`i's Art of War are the
+two books that people commonly refer to on the subject of
+military matters. Both of them are widely distributed, so I will
+not discuss them here." But as we go further back, serious
+difficulties begin to arise. The salient fact which has to be
+faced is that the TSO CHUAN, the greatest contemporary record,
+makes no mention whatsoever of Sun Wu, either as a general or as
+a writer. It is natural, in view of this awkward circumstance,
+that many scholars should not only cast doubt on the story of Sun
+Wu as given in the SHIH CHI, but even show themselves frankly
+skeptical as to the existence of the man at all. The most
+powerful presentment of this side of the case is to be found in
+the following disposition by Yeh Shui-hsin: [17] --
+
+ It is stated in Ssu-ma Ch`ien's history that Sun Wu was
+ a native of the Ch`i State, and employed by Wu; and that in
+ the reign of Ho Lu he crushed Ch`u, entered Ying, and was a
+ great general. But in Tso's Commentary no Sun Wu appears at
+ all. It is true that Tso's Commentary need not contain
+ absolutely everything that other histories contain. But Tso
+ has not omitted to mention vulgar plebeians and hireling
+ ruffians such as Ying K`ao-shu, [18] Ts`ao Kuei, [19], Chu
+ Chih-wu and Chuan She-chu [20]. In the case of Sun Wu, whose
+ fame and achievements were so brilliant, the omission is much
+ more glaring. Again, details are given, in their due order,
+ about his contemporaries Wu Yuan and the Minister P`ei. [21]
+ Is it credible that Sun Wu alone should have been passed
+ over?
+ In point of literary style, Sun Tzu's work belongs to
+ the same school as KUAN TZU, [22] LIU T`AO, [23] and the YUEH
+ YU [24] and may have been the production of some private
+ scholar living towards the end of the "Spring and Autumn" or
+ the beginning of the "Warring States" period. [25] The story
+ that his precepts were actually applied by the Wu State, is
+ merely the outcome of big talk on the part of his followers.
+ From the flourishing period of the Chou dynasty [26]
+ down to the time of the "Spring and Autumn," all military
+ commanders were statesmen as well, and the class of
+ professional generals, for conducting external campaigns, did
+ not then exist. It was not until the period of the "Six
+ States" [27] that this custom changed. Now although Wu was
+ an uncivilized State, it is conceivable that Tso should have
+ left unrecorded the fact that Sun Wu was a great general and
+ yet held no civil office? What we are told, therefore, about
+ Jang-chu [28] and Sun Wu, is not authentic matter, but the
+ reckless fabrication of theorizing pundits. The story of Ho
+ Lu's experiment on the women, in particular, is utterly
+ preposterous and incredible.
+
+ Yeh Shui-hsin represents Ssu-ma Ch`ien as having said that
+Sun Wu crushed Ch`u and entered Ying. This is not quite correct.
+No doubt the impression left on the reader's mind is that he at
+least shared in these exploits. The fact may or may not be
+significant; but it is nowhere explicitly stated in the SHIH CHI
+either that Sun Tzu was general on the occasion of the taking of
+Ying, or that he even went there at all. Moreover, as we know
+that Wu Yuan and Po P`ei both took part in the expedition, and
+also that its success was largely due to the dash and enterprise
+of Fu Kai, Ho Lu's younger brother, it is not easy to see how yet
+another general could have played a very prominent part in the
+same campaign.
+ Ch`en Chen-sun of the Sung dynasty has the note: --
+
+ Military writers look upon Sun Wu as the father of their
+ art. But the fact that he does not appear in the TSO CHUAN,
+ although he is said to have served under Ho Lu King of Wu,
+ makes it uncertain what period he really belonged to.
+
+He also says: --
+
+ The works of Sun Wu and Wu Ch`i may be of genuine
+ antiquity.
+
+ It is noticeable that both Yeh Shui-hsin and Ch`en Chen-sun,
+while rejecting the personality of Sun Wu as he figures in Ssu-ma
+Ch`ien's history, are inclined to accept the date traditionally
+assigned to the work which passes under his name. The author of
+the HSU LU fails to appreciate this distinction, and consequently
+his bitter attack on Ch`en Chen-sun really misses its mark. He
+makes one of two points, however, which certainly tell in favor
+of the high antiquity of our "13 chapters." "Sun Tzu," he says,
+"must have lived in the age of Ching Wang [519-476], because he
+is frequently plagiarized in subsequent works of the Chou, Ch`in
+and Han dynasties." The two most shameless offenders in this
+respect are Wu Ch`i and Huai-nan Tzu, both of them important
+historical personages in their day. The former lived only a
+century after the alleged date of Sun Tzu, and his death is known
+to have taken place in 381 B.C. It was to him, according to Liu
+Hsiang, that Tseng Shen delivered the TSO CHUAN, which had been
+entrusted to him by its author. [29] Now the fact that
+quotations from the ART OF WAR, acknowledged or otherwise, are to
+be found in so many authors of different epochs, establishes a
+very strong anterior to them all, -- in other words, that Sun
+Tzu's treatise was already in existence towards the end of the
+5th century B.C. Further proof of Sun Tzu's antiquity is
+furnished by the archaic or wholly obsolete meanings attaching to
+a number of the words he uses. A list of these, which might
+perhaps be extended, is given in the HSU LU; and though some of
+the interpretations are doubtful, the main argument is hardly
+affected thereby. Again, it must not be forgotten that Yeh Shui-
+hsin, a scholar and critic of the first rank, deliberately
+pronounces the style of the 13 chapters to belong to the early
+part of the fifth century. Seeing that he is actually engaged in
+an attempt to disprove the existence of Sun Wu himself, we may be
+sure that he would not have hesitated to assign the work to a
+later date had he not honestly believed the contrary. And it is
+precisely on such a point that the judgment of an educated
+Chinaman will carry most weight. Other internal evidence is not
+far to seek. Thus in XIII. ss. 1, there is an unmistakable
+allusion to the ancient system of land-tenure which had already
+passed away by the time of Mencius, who was anxious to see it
+revived in a modified form. [30] The only warfare Sun Tzu knows
+is that carried on between the various feudal princes, in which
+armored chariots play a large part. Their use seems to have
+entirely died out before the end of the Chou dynasty. He speaks
+as a man of Wu, a state which ceased to exist as early as 473
+B.C. On this I shall touch presently.
+
+ But once refer the work to the 5th century or earlier, and
+the chances of its being other than a bona fide production are
+sensibly diminished. The great age of forgeries did not come
+until long after. That it should have been forged in the period
+immediately following 473 is particularly unlikely, for no one,
+as a rule, hastens to identify himself with a lost cause. As for
+Yeh Shui-hsin's theory, that the author was a literary recluse,
+that seems to me quite untenable. If one thing is more apparent
+than another after reading the maxims of Sun Tzu, it is that
+their essence has been distilled from a large store of personal
+observation and experience. They reflect the mind not only of a
+born strategist, gifted with a rare faculty of generalization,
+but also of a practical soldier closely acquainted with the
+military conditions of his time. To say nothing of the fact that
+these sayings have been accepted and endorsed by all the greatest
+captains of Chinese history, they offer a combination of
+freshness and sincerity, acuteness and common sense, which quite
+excludes the idea that they were artificially concocted in the
+study. If we admit, then, that the 13 chapters were the genuine
+production of a military man living towards the end of the "CH`UN
+CH`IU" period, are we not bound, in spite of the silence of the
+TSO CHUAN, to accept Ssu-ma Ch`ien's account in its entirety? In
+view of his high repute as a sober historian, must we not
+hesitate to assume that the records he drew upon for Sun Wu's
+biography were false and untrustworthy? The answer, I fear, must
+be in the negative. There is still one grave, if not fatal,
+objection to the chronology involved in the story as told in the
+SHIH CHI, which, so far as I am aware, nobody has yet pointed
+out. There are two passages in Sun Tzu in which he alludes to
+contemporary affairs. The first in in VI. ss. 21: --
+
+ Though according to my estimate the soldiers of Yueh
+ exceed our own in number, that shall advantage them nothing
+ in the matter of victory. I say then that victory can be
+ achieved.
+
+The other is in XI. ss. 30: --
+
+ Asked if an army can be made to imitate the SHUAI-JAN, I
+ should answer, Yes. For the men of Wu and the men of Yueh
+ are enemies; yet if they are crossing a river in the same
+ boat and are caught by a storm, they will come to each
+ other's assistance just as the left hand helps the right.
+
+ These two paragraphs are extremely valuable as evidence of
+the date of composition. They assign the work to the period of
+the struggle between Wu and Yueh. So much has been observed by
+Pi I-hsun. But what has hitherto escaped notice is that they
+also seriously impair the credibility of Ssu-ma Ch`ien's
+narrative. As we have seen above, the first positive date given
+in connection with Sun Wu is 512 B.C. He is then spoken of as a
+general, acting as confidential adviser to Ho Lu, so that his
+alleged introduction to that monarch had already taken place, and
+of course the 13 chapters must have been written earlier still.
+But at that time, and for several years after, down to the
+capture of Ying in 506, Ch`u and not Yueh, was the great
+hereditary enemy of Wu. The two states, Ch`u and Wu, had been
+constantly at war for over half a century, [31] whereas the first
+war between Wu and Yueh was waged only in 510, [32] and even then
+was no more than a short interlude sandwiched in the midst of the
+fierce struggle with Ch`u. Now Ch`u is not mentioned in the 13
+chapters at all. The natural inference is that they were written
+at a time when Yueh had become the prime antagonist of Wu, that
+is, after Ch`u had suffered the great humiliation of 506. At
+this point, a table of dates may be found useful.
+
+B.C. |
+ |
+514 | Accession of Ho Lu.
+512 | Ho Lu attacks Ch`u, but is dissuaded from entering Ying,
+ | the capital. SHI CHI mentions Sun Wu as general.
+511 | Another attack on Ch`u.
+510 | Wu makes a successful attack on Yueh. This is the first
+ | war between the two states.
+509 |
+ or | Ch`u invades Wu, but is signally defeated at Yu-chang.
+508 |
+506 | Ho Lu attacks Ch`u with the aid of T`ang and Ts`ai.
+ | Decisive battle of Po-chu, and capture of Ying. Last
+ | mention of Sun Wu in SHIH CHI.
+505 | Yueh makes a raid on Wu in the absence of its army. Wu
+ | is beaten by Ch`in and evacuates Ying.
+504 | Ho Lu sends Fu Ch`ai to attack Ch`u.
+497 | Kou Chien becomes King of Yueh.
+496 | Wu attacks Yueh, but is defeated by Kou Chien at Tsui-li.
+ | Ho Lu is killed.
+494 | Fu Ch`ai defeats Kou Chien in the great battle of Fu-
+ | chaio, and enters the capital of Yueh.
+485 |
+ or | Kou Chien renders homage to Wu. Death of Wu Tzu-hsu.
+484 |
+482 | Kou Chien invades Wu in the absence of Fu Ch`ai.
+478 |
+ to | Further attacks by Yueh on Wu.
+476 |
+475 | Kou Chien lays siege to the capital of Wu.
+473 | Final defeat and extinction of Wu.
+
+ The sentence quoted above from VI. ss. 21 hardly strikes me
+as one that could have been written in the full flush of victory.
+It seems rather to imply that, for the moment at least, the tide
+had turned against Wu, and that she was getting the worst of the
+struggle. Hence we may conclude that our treatise was not in
+existence in 505, before which date Yueh does not appear to have
+scored any notable success against Wu. Ho Lu died in 496, so
+that if the book was written for him, it must have been during
+the period 505-496, when there was a lull in the hostilities, Wu
+having presumably exhausted by its supreme effort against Ch`u.
+On the other hand, if we choose to disregard the tradition
+connecting Sun Wu's name with Ho Lu, it might equally well have
+seen the light between 496 and 494, or possibly in the period
+482-473, when Yueh was once again becoming a very serious menace.
+[33] We may feel fairly certain that the author, whoever he may
+have been, was not a man of any great eminence in his own day.
+On this point the negative testimony of the TSO CHUAN far
+outweighs any shred of authority still attaching to the SHIH CHI,
+if once its other facts are discredited. Sun Hsing-yen, however,
+makes a feeble attempt to explain the omission of his name from
+the great commentary. It was Wu Tzu-hsu, he says, who got all
+the credit of Sun Wu's exploits, because the latter (being an
+alien) was not rewarded with an office in the State.
+ How then did the Sun Tzu legend originate? It may be that
+the growing celebrity of the book imparted by degrees a kind of
+factitious renown to its author. It was felt to be only right
+and proper that one so well versed in the science of war should
+have solid achievements to his credit as well. Now the capture
+of Ying was undoubtedly the greatest feat of arms in Ho Lu's
+reign; it made a deep and lasting impression on all the
+surrounding states, and raised Wu to the short-lived zenith of
+her power. Hence, what more natural, as time went on, than that
+the acknowledged master of strategy, Sun Wu, should be popularly
+identified with that campaign, at first perhaps only in the sense
+that his brain conceived and planned it; afterwards, that it was
+actually carried out by him in conjunction with Wu Yuan, [34] Po
+P`ei and Fu Kai?
+ It is obvious that any attempt to reconstruct even the
+outline of Sun Tzu's life must be based almost wholly on
+conjecture. With this necessary proviso, I should say that he
+probably entered the service of Wu about the time of Ho Lu's
+accession, and gathered experience, though only in the capacity
+of a subordinate officer, during the intense military activity
+which marked the first half of the prince's reign. [35] If he
+rose to be a general at all, he certainly was never on an equal
+footing with the three above mentioned. He was doubtless present
+at the investment and occupation of Ying, and witnessed Wu's
+sudden collapse in the following year. Yueh's attack at this
+critical juncture, when her rival was embarrassed on every side,
+seems to have convinced him that this upstart kingdom was the
+great enemy against whom every effort would henceforth have to be
+directed. Sun Wu was thus a well-seasoned warrior when he sat
+down to write his famous book, which according to my reckoning
+must have appeared towards the end, rather than the beginning of
+Ho Lu's reign. The story of the women may possibly have grown
+out of some real incident occurring about the same time. As we
+hear no more of Sun Wu after this from any source, he is hardly
+likely to have survived his patron or to have taken part in the
+death-struggle with Yueh, which began with the disaster at Tsui-
+li.
+ If these inferences are approximately correct, there is a
+certain irony in the fate which decreed that China's most
+illustrious man of peace should be contemporary with her greatest
+writer on war.
+
+
+The Text of Sun Tzu
+-------------------
+
+
+ I have found it difficult to glean much about the history of
+Sun Tzu's text. The quotations that occur in early authors go to
+show that the "13 chapters" of which Ssu-ma Ch`ien speaks were
+essentially the same as those now extant. We have his word for
+it that they were widely circulated in his day, and can only
+regret that he refrained from discussing them on that account.
+Sun Hsing-yen says in his preface: --
+
+ During the Ch`in and Han dynasties Sun Tzu's ART OF WAR
+ was in general use amongst military commanders, but they seem
+ to have treated it as a work of mysterious import, and were
+ unwilling to expound it for the benefit of posterity. Thus
+ it came about that Wei Wu was the first to write a commentary
+ on it.
+
+ As we have already seen, there is no reasonable ground to
+suppose that Ts`ao Kung tampered with the text. But the text
+itself is often so obscure, and the number of editions which
+appeared from that time onward so great, especially during the
+T`ang and Sung dynasties, that it would be surprising if numerous
+corruptions had not managed to creep in. Towards the middle of
+the Sung period, by which time all the chief commentaries on Sun
+Tzu were in existence, a certain Chi T`ien-pao published a work
+in 15 CHUAN entitled "Sun Tzu with the collected commentaries of
+ten writers." There was another text, with variant readings put
+forward by Chu Fu of Ta-hsing, which also had supporters among
+the scholars of that period; but in the Ming editions, Sun Hsing-
+yen tells us, these readings were for some reason or other no
+longer put into circulation. Thus, until the end of the 18th
+century, the text in sole possession of the field was one derived
+from Chi T`ien-pao's edition, although no actual copy of that
+important work was known to have survived. That, therefore, is
+the text of Sun Tzu which appears in the War section of the great
+Imperial encyclopedia printed in 1726, the KU CHIN T`U SHU CHI
+CH`ENG. Another copy at my disposal of what is practically the
+same text, with slight variations, is that contained in the
+"Eleven philosophers of the Chou and Ch`in dynasties" [1758].
+And the Chinese printed in Capt. Calthrop's first edition is
+evidently a similar version which has filtered through Japanese
+channels. So things remained until Sun Hsing-yen [1752-1818], a
+distinguished antiquarian and classical scholar, who claimed to
+be an actual descendant of Sun Wu, [36] accidentally discovered a
+copy of Chi T`ien-pao's long-lost work, when on a visit to the
+library of the Hua-yin temple. [37] Appended to it was the I
+SHUO of Cheng Yu-Hsien, mentioned in the T`UNG CHIH, and also
+believed to have perished. This is what Sun Hsing-yen designates
+as the "original edition (or text)" -- a rather misleading name,
+for it cannot by any means claim to set before us the text of Sun
+Tzu in its pristine purity. Chi T`ien-pao was a careless
+compiler, and appears to have been content to reproduce the
+somewhat debased version current in his day, without troubling to
+collate it with the earliest editions then available.
+Fortunately, two versions of Sun Tzu, even older than the newly
+discovered work, were still extant, one buried in the T`UNG TIEN,
+Tu Yu's great treatise on the Constitution, the other similarly
+enshrined in the T`AI P`ING YU LAN encyclopedia. In both the
+complete text is to be found, though split up into fragments,
+intermixed with other matter, and scattered piecemeal over a
+number of different sections. Considering that the YU LAN takes
+us back to the year 983, and the T`UNG TIEN about 200 years
+further still, to the middle of the T`ang dynasty, the value of
+these early transcripts of Sun Tzu can hardly be overestimated.
+Yet the idea of utilizing them does not seem to have occurred to
+anyone until Sun Hsing-yen, acting under Government instructions,
+undertook a thorough recension of the text. This is his own
+account: --
+
+ Because of the numerous mistakes in the text of Sun Tzu
+ which his editors had handed down, the Government ordered
+ that the ancient edition [of Chi T`ien-pao] should be used,
+ and that the text should be revised and corrected throughout.
+ It happened that Wu Nien-hu, the Governor Pi Kua, and Hsi, a
+ graduate of the second degree, had all devoted themselves to
+ this study, probably surpassing me therein. Accordingly, I
+ have had the whole work cut on blocks as a textbook for
+ military men.
+
+ The three individuals here referred to had evidently been
+occupied on the text of Sun Tzu prior to Sun Hsing-yen's
+commission, but we are left in doubt as to the work they really
+accomplished. At any rate, the new edition, when ultimately
+produced, appeared in the names of Sun Hsing-yen and only one co-
+editor Wu Jen-shi. They took the "original edition" as their
+basis, and by careful comparison with older versions, as well as
+the extant commentaries and other sources of information such as
+the I SHUO, succeeded in restoring a very large number of
+doubtful passages, and turned out, on the whole, what must be
+accepted as the closes approximation we are ever likely to get to
+Sun Tzu's original work. This is what will hereafter be
+denominated the "standard text."
+ The copy which I have used belongs to a reissue dated 1877.
+it is in 6 PEN, forming part of a well-printed set of 23 early
+philosophical works in 83 PEN. [38] It opens with a preface by
+Sun Hsing-yen (largely quoted in this introduction), vindicating
+the traditional view of Sun Tzu's life and performances, and
+summing up in remarkably concise fashion the evidence in its
+favor. This is followed by Ts`ao Kung's preface to his edition,
+and the biography of Sun Tzu from the SHIH CHI, both translated
+above. Then come, firstly, Cheng Yu-hsien's I SHUO, [39] with
+author's preface, and next, a short miscellany of historical and
+bibliographical information entitled SUN TZU HSU LU, compiled by
+Pi I-hsun. As regards the body of the work, each separate
+sentence is followed by a note on the text, if required, and then
+by the various commentaries appertaining to it, arranged in
+chronological order. These we shall now proceed to discuss
+briefly, one by one.
+
+
+The Commentators
+----------------
+
+
+ Sun Tzu can boast an exceptionally long distinguished roll
+of commentators, which would do honor to any classic. Ou-yang
+Hsiu remarks on this fact, though he wrote before the tale was
+complete, and rather ingeniously explains it by saying that the
+artifices of war, being inexhaustible, must therefore be
+susceptible of treatment in a great variety of ways.
+
+ 1. TS`AO TS`AO or Ts`ao Kung, afterwards known as Wei Wu Ti
+[A.D. 155-220]. There is hardly any room for doubt that the
+earliest commentary on Sun Tzu actually came from the pen of this
+extraordinary man, whose biography in the SAN KUO CHIH reads like
+a romance. One of the greatest military geniuses that the world
+has seen, and Napoleonic in the scale of his operations, he was
+especially famed for the marvelous rapidity of his marches, which
+has found expression in the line "Talk of Ts`ao Ts`ao, and Ts`ao
+Ts`ao will appear." Ou-yang Hsiu says of him that he was a great
+captain who "measured his strength against Tung Cho, Lu Pu and
+the two Yuan, father and son, and vanquished them all; whereupon
+he divided the Empire of Han with Wu and Shu, and made himself
+king. It is recorded that whenever a council of war was held by
+Wei on the eve of a far-reaching campaign, he had all his
+calculations ready; those generals who made use of them did not
+lose one battle in ten; those who ran counter to them in any
+particular saw their armies incontinently beaten and put to
+flight." Ts`ao Kung's notes on Sun Tzu, models of austere
+brevity, are so thoroughly characteristic of the stern commander
+known to history, that it is hard indeed to conceive of them as
+the work of a mere LITTERATEUR. Sometimes, indeed, owing to
+extreme compression, they are scarcely intelligible and stand no
+less in need of a commentary than the text itself. [40]
+
+ 2. MENG SHIH. The commentary which has come down to us
+under this name is comparatively meager, and nothing about the
+author is known. Even his personal name has not been recorded.
+Chi T`ien-pao's edition places him after Chia Lin,and Ch`ao Kung-
+wu also assigns him to the T`ang dynasty, [41] but this is a
+mistake. In Sun Hsing-yen's preface, he appears as Meng Shih of
+the Liang dynasty [502-557]. Others would identify him with Meng
+K`ang of the 3rd century. He is named in one work as the last of
+the "Five Commentators," the others being Wei Wu Ti, Tu Mu, Ch`en
+Hao and Chia Lin.
+
+ 3. LI CH`UAN of the 8th century was a well-known writer on
+military tactics. One of his works has been in constant use down
+to the present day. The T`UNG CHIH mentions "Lives of famous
+generals from the Chou to the T`ang dynasty" as written by him.
+[42] According to Ch`ao Kung-wu and the T`IEN-I-KO catalogue, he
+followed a variant of the text of Sun Tzu which differs
+considerably from those now extant. His notes are mostly short
+and to the point, and he frequently illustrates his remarks by
+anecdotes from Chinese history.
+
+ 4. TU YU (died 812) did not publish a separate commentary
+on Sun Tzu, his notes being taken from the T`UNG TIEN, the
+encyclopedic treatise on the Constitution which was his life-
+work. They are largely repetitions of Ts`ao Kung and Meng Shih,
+besides which it is believed that he drew on the ancient
+commentaries of Wang Ling and others. Owing to the peculiar
+arrangement of T`UNG TIEN, he has to explain each passage on its
+merits, apart from the context, and sometimes his own explanation
+does not agree with that of Ts`ao Kung, whom he always quotes
+first. Though not strictly to be reckoned as one of the "Ten
+Commentators," he was added to their number by Chi T`ien-pao,
+being wrongly placed after his grandson Tu Mu.
+
+ 5. TU MU (803-852) is perhaps the best known as a poet -- a
+bright star even in the glorious galaxy of the T`ang period. We
+learn from Ch`ao Kung-wu that although he had no practical
+experience of war, he was extremely fond of discussing the
+subject, and was moreover well read in the military history of
+the CH`UN CH`IU and CHAN KUO eras. His notes, therefore, are
+well worth attention. They are very copious, and replete with
+historical parallels. The gist of Sun Tzu's work is thus
+summarized by him: "Practice benevolence and justice, but on the
+other hand make full use of artifice and measures of expediency."
+He further declared that all the military triumphs and disasters
+of the thousand years which had elapsed since Sun Tzu's death
+would, upon examination, be found to uphold and corroborate, in
+every particular, the maxims contained in his book. Tu Mu's
+somewhat spiteful charge against Ts`ao Kung has already been
+considered elsewhere.
+
+ 6. CH`EN HAO appears to have been a contemporary of Tu Mu.
+Ch`ao Kung-wu says that he was impelled to write a new commentary
+on Sun Tzu because Ts`ao Kung's on the one hand was too obscure
+and subtle, and that of Tu Mu on the other too long-winded and
+diffuse. Ou-yang Hsiu, writing in the middle of the 11th
+century, calls Ts`ao Kung, Tu Mu and Ch`en Hao the three chief
+commentators on Sun Tzu, and observes that Ch`en Hao is
+continually attacking Tu Mu's shortcomings. His commentary,
+though not lacking in merit, must rank below those of his
+predecessors.
+
+ 7. CHIA LIN is known to have lived under the T`ang dynasty,
+for his commentary on Sun Tzu is mentioned in the T`ang Shu and
+was afterwards republished by Chi Hsieh of the same dynasty
+together with those of Meng Shih and Tu Yu. It is of somewhat
+scanty texture, and in point of quality, too, perhaps the least
+valuable of the eleven.
+
+ 8. MEI YAO-CH`EN (1002-1060), commonly known by his "style"
+as Mei Sheng-yu, was, like Tu Mu, a poet of distinction. His
+commentary was published with a laudatory preface by the great
+Ou-yang Hsiu, from which we may cull the following: --
+
+ Later scholars have misread Sun Tzu, distorting his
+ words and trying to make them square with their own one-sided
+ views. Thus, though commentators have not been lacking, only
+ a few have proved equal to the task. My friend Sheng-yu has
+ not fallen into this mistake. In attempting to provide a
+ critical commentary for Sun Tzu's work, he does not lose
+ sight of the fact that these sayings were intended for states
+ engaged in internecine warfare; that the author is not
+ concerned with the military conditions prevailing under the
+ sovereigns of the three ancient dynasties, [43] nor with the
+ nine punitive measures prescribed to the Minister of War.
+ [44] Again, Sun Wu loved brevity of diction, but his meaning
+ is always deep. Whether the subject be marching an army, or
+ handling soldiers, or estimating the enemy, or controlling
+ the forces of victory, it is always systematically treated;
+ the sayings are bound together in strict logical sequence,
+ though this has been obscured by commentators who have
+ probably failed to grasp their meaning. In his own
+ commentary, Mei Sheng-yu has brushed aside all the obstinate
+ prejudices of these critics, and has tried to bring out the
+ true meaning of Sun Tzu himself. In this way, the clouds of
+ confusion have been dispersed and the sayings made clear. I
+ am convinced that the present work deserves to be handed down
+ side by side with the three great commentaries; and for a
+ great deal that they find in the sayings, coming generations
+ will have constant reason to thank my friend Sheng-yu.
+
+ Making some allowance for the exuberance of friendship, I am
+inclined to endorse this favorable judgment, and would certainly
+place him above Ch`en Hao in order of merit.
+
+ 9. WANG HSI, also of the Sung dynasty, is decidedly
+original in some of his interpretations, but much less judicious
+than Mei Yao-ch`en, and on the whole not a very trustworthy
+guide. He is fond of comparing his own commentary with that of
+Ts`ao Kung, but the comparison is not often flattering to him.
+We learn from Ch`ao Kung-wu that Wang Hsi revised the ancient
+text of Sun Tzu, filling up lacunae and correcting mistakes. [45]
+
+ 10. HO YEN-HSI of the Sung dynasty. The personal name of
+this commentator is given as above by Cheng Ch`iao in the TUNG
+CHIH, written about the middle of the twelfth century, but he
+appears simply as Ho Shih in the YU HAI, and Ma Tuan-lin quotes
+Ch`ao Kung-wu as saying that his personal name is unknown. There
+seems to be no reason to doubt Cheng Ch`iao's statement,
+otherwise I should have been inclined to hazard a guess and
+identify him with one Ho Ch`u-fei, the author of a short treatise
+on war, who lived in the latter part of the 11th century. Ho
+Shih's commentary, in the words of the T`IEN-I-KO catalogue,
+"contains helpful additions" here and there, but is chiefly
+remarkable for the copious extracts taken, in adapted form, from
+the dynastic histories and other sources.
+
+ 11. CHANG YU. The list closes with a commentator of no
+great originality perhaps, but gifted with admirable powers of
+lucid exposition. His commentator is based on that of Ts`ao
+Kung, whose terse sentences he contrives to expand and develop in
+masterly fashion. Without Chang Yu, it is safe to say that much
+of Ts`ao Kung's commentary would have remained cloaked in its
+pristine obscurity and therefore valueless. His work is not
+mentioned in the Sung history, the T`UNG K`AO, or the YU HAI, but
+it finds a niche in the T`UNG CHIH, which also names him as the
+author of the "Lives of Famous Generals." [46]
+ It is rather remarkable that the last-named four should all
+have flourished within so short a space of time. Ch`ao Kung-wu
+accounts for it by saying: "During the early years of the Sung
+dynasty the Empire enjoyed a long spell of peace, and men ceased
+to practice the art of war. but when [Chao] Yuan-hao's rebellion
+came [1038-42] and the frontier generals were defeated time after
+time, the Court made strenuous inquiry for men skilled in war,
+and military topics became the vogue amongst all the high
+officials. Hence it is that the commentators of Sun Tzu in our
+dynasty belong mainly to that period. [47]
+
+ Besides these eleven commentators, there are several others
+whose work has not come down to us. The SUI SHU mentions four,
+namely Wang Ling (often quoted by Tu Yu as Wang Tzu); Chang Tzu-
+shang; Chia Hsu of Wei; [48] and Shen Yu of Wu. The T`ANG SHU
+adds Sun Hao, and the T`UNG CHIH Hsiao Chi, while the T`U SHU
+mentions a Ming commentator, Huang Jun-yu. It is possible that
+some of these may have been merely collectors and editors of
+other commentaries, like Chi T`ien-pao and Chi Hsieh, mentioned
+above.
+
+
+Appreciations of Sun Tzu
+------------------------
+
+
+ Sun Tzu has exercised a potent fascination over the minds of
+some of China's greatest men. Among the famous generals who are
+known to have studied his pages with enthusiasm may be mentioned
+Han Hsin (d. 196 B.C.), [49] Feng I (d. 34 A.D.), [50] Lu Meng
+(d. 219), [51] and Yo Fei (1103-1141). [52] The opinion of Ts`ao
+Kung, who disputes with Han Hsin the highest place in Chinese
+military annals, has already been recorded. [53] Still more
+remarkable, in one way, is the testimony of purely literary men,
+such as Su Hsun (the father of Su Tung-p`o), who wrote several
+essays on military topics, all of which owe their chief
+inspiration to Sun Tzu. The following short passage by him is
+preserved in the YU HAI: [54] --
+
+ Sun Wu's saying, that in war one cannot make certain of
+ conquering, [55] is very different indeed from what other
+ books tell us. [56] Wu Ch`i was a man of the same stamp as
+ Sun Wu: they both wrote books on war, and they are linked
+ together in popular speech as "Sun and Wu." But Wu Ch`i's
+ remarks on war are less weighty, his rules are rougher and
+ more crudely stated, and there is not the same unity of plan
+ as in Sun Tzu's work, where the style is terse, but the
+ meaning fully brought out.
+
+ The following is an extract from the "Impartial Judgments in
+the Garden of Literature" by Cheng Hou: --
+
+ Sun Tzu's 13 chapters are not only the staple and base
+ of all military men's training, but also compel the most
+ careful attention of scholars and men of letters. His
+ sayings are terse yet elegant, simple yet profound,
+ perspicuous and eminently practical. Such works as the LUN
+ YU, the I CHING and the great Commentary, [57] as well as the
+ writings of Mencius, Hsun K`uang and Yang Chu, all fall below
+ the level of Sun Tzu.
+
+ Chu Hsi, commenting on this, fully admits the first part of
+the criticism, although he dislikes the audacious comparison with
+the venerated classical works. Language of this sort, he says,
+"encourages a ruler's bent towards unrelenting warfare and
+reckless militarism."
+
+
+Apologies for War
+-----------------
+
+
+ Accustomed as we are to think of China as the greatest
+peace-loving nation on earth, we are in some danger of forgetting
+that her experience of war in all its phases has also been such
+as no modern State can parallel. Her long military annals
+stretch back to a point at which they are lost in the mists of
+time. She had built the Great Wall and was maintaining a huge
+standing army along her frontier centuries before the first Roman
+legionary was seen on the Danube. What with the perpetual
+collisions of the ancient feudal States, the grim conflicts with
+Huns, Turks and other invaders after the centralization of
+government, the terrific upheavals which accompanied the
+overthrow of so many dynasties, besides the countless rebellions
+and minor disturbances that have flamed up and flickered out
+again one by one, it is hardly too much to say that the clash of
+arms has never ceased to resound in one portion or another of the
+Empire.
+ No less remarkable is the succession of illustrious captains
+to whom China can point with pride. As in all countries, the
+greatest are fond of emerging at the most fateful crises of her
+history. Thus, Po Ch`i stands out conspicuous in the period when
+Ch`in was entering upon her final struggle with the remaining
+independent states. The stormy years which followed the break-up
+of the Ch`in dynasty are illuminated by the transcendent genius
+of Han Hsin. When the House of Han in turn is tottering to its
+fall, the great and baleful figure of Ts`ao Ts`ao dominates the
+scene. And in the establishment of the T`ang dynasty,one of the
+mightiest tasks achieved by man, the superhuman energy of Li
+Shih-min (afterwards the Emperor T`ai Tsung) was seconded by the
+brilliant strategy of Li Ching. None of these generals need fear
+comparison with the greatest names in the military history of
+Europe.
+ In spite of all this, the great body of Chinese sentiment,
+from Lao Tzu downwards, and especially as reflected in the
+standard literature of Confucianism, has been consistently
+pacific and intensely opposed to militarism in any form. It is
+such an uncommon thing to find any of the literati defending
+warfare on principle, that I have thought it worth while to
+collect and translate a few passages in which the unorthodox view
+is upheld. The following, by Ssu-ma Ch`ien, shows that for all
+his ardent admiration of Confucius, he was yet no advocate of
+peace at any price: --
+
+ Military weapons are the means used by the Sage to
+ punish violence and cruelty, to give peace to troublous
+ times, to remove difficulties and dangers, and to succor
+ those who are in peril. Every animal with blood in its veins
+ and horns on its head will fight when it is attacked. How
+ much more so will man, who carries in his breast the
+ faculties of love and hatred, joy and anger! When he is
+ pleased, a feeling of affection springs up within him; when
+ angry, his poisoned sting is brought into play. That is the
+ natural law which governs his being.... What then shall be
+ said of those scholars of our time, blind to all great
+ issues, and without any appreciation of relative values, who
+ can only bark out their stale formulas about "virtue" and
+ "civilization," condemning the use of military weapons? They
+ will surely bring our country to impotence and dishonor and
+ the loss of her rightful heritage; or, at the very least,
+ they will bring about invasion and rebellion, sacrifice of
+ territory and general enfeeblement. Yet they obstinately
+ refuse to modify the position they have taken up. The truth
+ is that, just as in the family the teacher must not spare the
+ rod, and punishments cannot be dispensed with in the State,
+ so military chastisement can never be allowed to fall into
+ abeyance in the Empire. All one can say is that this power
+ will be exercised wisely by some, foolishly by others, and
+ that among those who bear arms some will be loyal and others
+ rebellious. [58]
+
+ The next piece is taken from Tu Mu's preface to his
+commentary on Sun Tzu: --
+
+ War may be defined as punishment, which is one of the
+ functions of government. It was the profession of Chung Yu
+ and Jan Ch`iu, both disciples of Confucius. Nowadays, the
+ holding of trials and hearing of litigation, the imprisonment
+ of offenders and their execution by flogging in the market-
+ place, are all done by officials. But the wielding of huge
+ armies, the throwing down of fortified cities, the hauling of
+ women and children into captivity, and the beheading of
+ traitors -- this is also work which is done by officials.
+ The objects of the rack and of military weapons are
+ essentially the same. There is no intrinsic difference
+ between the punishment of flogging and cutting off heads in
+ war. For the lesser infractions of law, which are easily
+ dealt with, only a small amount of force need be employed:
+ hence the use of military weapons and wholesale decapitation.
+ In both cases, however, the end in view is to get rid of
+ wicked people, and to give comfort and relief to the good....
+ Chi-sun asked Jan Yu, saying: "Have you, Sir, acquired
+ your military aptitude by study, or is it innate?" Jan Yu
+ replied: "It has been acquired by study." [59] "How can
+ that be so," said Chi-sun, "seeing that you are a disciple of
+ Confucius?" "It is a fact," replied Jan Yu; "I was taught by
+ Confucius. It is fitting that the great Sage should exercise
+ both civil and military functions, though to be sure my
+ instruction in the art of fighting has not yet gone very
+ far."
+ Now, who the author was of this rigid distinction
+ between the "civil" and the "military," and the limitation of
+ each to a separate sphere of action, or in what year of which
+ dynasty it was first introduced, is more than I can say.
+ But, at any rate, it has come about that the members of the
+ governing class are quite afraid of enlarging on military
+ topics, or do so only in a shamefaced manner. If any are
+ bold enough to discuss the subject, they are at once set down
+ as eccentric individuals of coarse and brutal propensities.
+ This is an extraordinary instance in which, through sheer
+ lack of reasoning, men unhappily lose sight of fundamental
+ principles.
+ When the Duke of Chou was minister under Ch`eng Wang, he
+ regulated ceremonies and made music, and venerated the arts
+ of scholarship and learning; yet when the barbarians of the
+ River Huai revolted, [60] he sallied forth and chastised
+ them. When Confucius held office under the Duke of Lu, and a
+ meeting was convened at Chia-ku, [61] he said: "If pacific
+ negotiations are in progress, warlike preparations should
+ have been made beforehand." He rebuked and shamed the
+ Marquis of Ch`i, who cowered under him and dared not proceed
+ to violence. How can it be said that these two great Sages
+ had no knowledge of military matters?
+
+ We have seen that the great Chu Hsi held Sun Tzu in high
+esteem. He also appeals to the authority of the Classics: --
+
+ Our Master Confucius, answering Duke Ling of Wei, said:
+ "I have never studied matters connected with armies and
+ battalions." [62] Replying to K`ung Wen-tzu, he said: I
+ have not been instructed about buff-coats and weapons." But
+ if we turn to the meeting at Chia-ku, we find that he used
+ armed force against the men of Lai, so that the marquis of
+ Ch`i was overawed. Again, when the inhabitants of Pi
+ revolted, the ordered his officers to attack them, whereupon
+ they were defeated and fled in confusion. He once uttered
+ the words: "If I fight, I conquer." [63] And Jan Yu also
+ said: "The Sage exercises both civil and military
+ functions." [64] Can it be a fact that Confucius never
+ studied or received instruction in the art of war? We can
+ only say that he did not specially choose matters connected
+ with armies and fighting to be the subject of his teaching.
+
+ Sun Hsing-yen, the editor of Sun Tzu, writes in similar
+strain: --
+
+ Confucius said: "I am unversed in military matters."
+ [65] He also said: "If I fight, I conquer." Confucius
+ ordered ceremonies and regulated music. Now war constitutes
+ one of the five classes of State ceremonial, [66] and must
+ not be treated as an independent branch of study. Hence, the
+ words "I am unversed in" must be taken to mean that there are
+ things which even an inspired Teacher does not know. Those
+ who have to lead an army and devise stratagems, must learn
+ the art of war. But if one can command the services of a
+ good general like Sun Tzu, who was employed by Wu Tzu-hsu,
+ there is no need to learn it oneself. Hence the remark added
+ by Confucius: "If I fight, I conquer."
+ The men of the present day, however, willfully interpret
+ these words of Confucius in their narrowest sense, as though
+ he meant that books on the art of war were not worth reading.
+ With blind persistency, they adduce the example of Chao Kua,
+ who pored over his father's books to no purpose, [67] as a
+ proof that all military theory is useless. Again, seeing
+ that books on war have to do with such things as opportunism
+ in designing plans, and the conversion of spies, they hold
+ that the art is immoral and unworthy of a sage. These people
+ ignore the fact that the studies of our scholars and the
+ civil administration of our officials also require steady
+ application and practice before efficiency is reached. The
+ ancients were particularly chary of allowing mere novices to
+ botch their work. [68] Weapons are baneful [69] and fighting
+ perilous; and useless unless a general is in constant
+ practice, he ought not to hazard other men's lives in battle.
+ [70] Hence it is essential that Sun Tzu's 13 chapters should
+ be studied.
+ Hsiang Liang used to instruct his nephew Chi [71] in the
+ art of war. Chi got a rough idea of the art in its general
+ bearings, but would not pursue his studies to their proper
+ outcome, the consequence being that he was finally defeated
+ and overthrown. He did not realize that the tricks and
+ artifices of war are beyond verbal computation. Duke Hsiang
+ of Sung and King Yen of Hsu were brought to destruction by
+ their misplaced humanity. The treacherous and underhand
+ nature of war necessitates the use of guile and stratagem
+ suited to the occasion. There is a case on record of
+ Confucius himself having violated an extorted oath, [72] and
+ also of his having left the Sung State in disguise. [73] Can
+ we then recklessly arraign Sun Tzu for disregarding truth and
+ honesty?
+
+
+Bibliography
+------------
+
+
+ The following are the oldest Chinese treatises on war, after
+Sun Tzu. The notes on each have been drawn principally from the
+SSU K`U CH`UAN SHU CHIEN MING MU LU, ch. 9, fol. 22 sqq.
+
+ 1. WU TZU, in 1 CHUAN or 6 chapters. By Wu Ch`i (d. 381
+B.C.). A genuine work. See SHIH CHI, ch. 65.
+
+ 2. SSU-MA FA, in 1 CHUAN or 5 chapters. Wrongly attributed
+to Ssu-ma Jang-chu of the 6th century B.C. Its date, however,
+must be early, as the customs of the three ancient dynasties are
+constantly to be met within its pages. See SHIH CHI, ch. 64.
+ The SSU K`U CH`UAN SHU (ch. 99, f. 1) remarks that the
+oldest three treatises on war, SUN TZU, WU TZU and SSU-MA FA,
+are, generally speaking, only concerned with things strictly
+military -- the art of producing, collecting, training and
+drilling troops, and the correct theory with regard to measures
+of expediency, laying plans, transport of goods and the handling
+of soldiers -- in strong contrast to later works, in which the
+science of war is usually blended with metaphysics, divination
+and magical arts in general.
+
+ 3. LIU T`AO, in 6 CHUAN, or 60 chapters. Attributed to Lu
+Wang (or Lu Shang, also known as T`ai Kung) of the 12th century
+B.C. [74] But its style does not belong to the era of the Three
+Dynasties. Lu Te-ming (550-625 A.D.) mentions the work, and
+enumerates the headings of the six sections so that the forgery
+cannot have been later than Sui dynasty.
+
+ 4. WEI LIAO TZU, in 5 CHUAN. Attributed to Wei Liao (4th
+cent. B.C.), who studied under the famous Kuei-ku Tzu. The work
+appears to have been originally in 31 chapters, whereas the text
+we possess contains only 24. Its matter is sound enough in the
+main, though the strategical devices differ considerably from
+those of the Warring States period. It is been furnished with a
+commentary by the well-known Sung philosopher Chang Tsai.
+
+ 5. SAN LUEH, in 3 CHUAN. Attributed to Huang-shih Kung, a
+legendary personage who is said to have bestowed it on Chang
+Liang (d. 187 B.C.) in an interview on a bridge. But here again,
+the style is not that of works dating from the Ch`in or Han
+period. The Han Emperor Kuang Wu [25-57 A.D.] apparently quotes
+from it in one of his proclamations; but the passage in question
+may have been inserted later on, in order to prove the
+genuineness of the work. We shall not be far out if we refer it
+to the Northern Sung period [420-478 A.D.], or somewhat earlier.
+
+ 6. LI WEI KUNG WEN TUI, in 3 sections. Written in the form
+of a dialogue between T`ai Tsung and his great general Li Ching,
+it is usually ascribed to the latter. Competent authorities
+consider it a forgery, though the author was evidently well
+versed in the art of war.
+
+ 7. LI CHING PING FA (not to be confounded with the
+foregoing) is a short treatise in 8 chapters, preserved in the
+T`ung Tien, but not published separately. This fact explains its
+omission from the SSU K`U CH`UAN SHU.
+
+ 8. WU CH`I CHING, in 1 CHUAN. Attributed to the legendary
+minister Feng Hou, with exegetical notes by Kung-sun Hung of the
+Han dynasty (d. 121 B.C.), and said to have been eulogized by the
+celebrated general Ma Lung (d. 300 A.D.). Yet the earliest
+mention of it is in the SUNG CHIH. Although a forgery, the work
+is well put together.
+
+ Considering the high popular estimation in which Chu-ko
+Liang has always been held, it is not surprising to find more
+than one work on war ascribed to his pen. Such are (1) the SHIH
+LIU TS`E (1 CHUAN), preserved in the YUNG LO TA TIEN; (2) CHIANG
+YUAN (1 CHUAN); and (3) HSIN SHU (1 CHUAN), which steals
+wholesale from Sun Tzu. None of these has the slightest claim to
+be considered genuine.
+ Most of the large Chinese encyclopedias contain extensive
+sections devoted to the literature of war. The following
+references may be found useful: --
+
+ T`UNG TIEN (circa 800 A.D.), ch. 148-162.
+ T`AI P`ING YU LAN (983), ch. 270-359.
+ WEN HSIEN TUNG K`AO (13th cent.), ch. 221.
+ YU HAI (13th cent.), ch. 140, 141.
+ SAN TS`AI T`U HUI (16th cent).
+ KUANG PO WU CHIH (1607), ch. 31, 32.
+ CH`IEN CH`IO LEI SHU (1632), ch. 75.
+ YUAN CHIEN LEI HAN (1710), ch. 206-229.
+ KU CHIN T`U SHU CHI CH`ENG (1726), section XXX, esp. ch. 81-
+ 90.
+ HSU WEN HSIEN T`UNG K`AO (1784), ch. 121-134.
+ HUANG CH`AO CHING SHIH WEN PIEN (1826), ch. 76, 77.
+
+ The bibliographical sections of certain historical works
+also deserve mention: --
+
+ CH`IEN HAN SHU, ch. 30.
+ SUI SHU, ch. 32-35.
+ CHIU T`ANG SHU, ch. 46, 47.
+ HSIN T`ANG SHU, ch. 57,60.
+ SUNG SHIH, ch. 202-209.
+ T`UNG CHIH (circa 1150), ch. 68.
+
+ To these of course must be added the great Catalogue of the
+Imperial Library: --
+
+ SSU K`U CH`UAN SHU TSUNG MU T`I YAO (1790), ch. 99, 100.
+
+
+Footnotes
+---------
+
+
+1. SHI CHI, ch. 65.
+
+2. He reigned from 514 to 496 B.C.
+
+3. SHI CHI, ch. 130.
+
+4. The appellation of Nang Wa.
+
+5. SHI CHI, ch. 31.
+
+6. SHI CHI, ch. 25.
+
+7. The appellation of Hu Yen, mentioned in ch. 39 under the year
+637.
+
+8. Wang-tzu Ch`eng-fu, ch. 32, year 607.
+
+9. The mistake is natural enough. Native critics refer to a
+work of the Han dynasty, which says: "Ten LI outside the WU gate
+[of the city of Wu, now Soochow in Kiangsu] there is a great
+mound, raised to commemorate the entertainment of Sun Wu of Ch`i,
+who excelled in the art of war, by the King of Wu."
+
+10. "They attached strings to wood to make bows, and sharpened
+wood to make arrows. The use of bows and arrows is to keep the
+Empire in awe."
+
+11. The son and successor of Ho Lu. He was finally defeated and
+overthrown by Kou chien, King of Yueh, in 473 B.C. See post.
+
+12. King Yen of Hsu, a fabulous being, of whom Sun Hsing-yen
+says in his preface: "His humanity brought him to destruction."
+
+13. The passage I have put in brackets is omitted in the T`U
+SHU, and may be an interpolation. It was known, however to Chang
+Shou-chieh of the T`ang dynasty, and appears in the T`AI P`ING YU
+LAN.
+
+14. Ts`ao Kung seems to be thinking of the first part of chap.
+II, perhaps especially of ss. 8.
+
+15. See chap. XI.
+
+16. On the other hand, it is noteworthy that WU TZU, which is
+not in 6 chapters, has 48 assigned to it in the HAN CHIH.
+Likewise, the CHUNG YUNG is credited with 49 chapters, though now
+only in one only. In the case of very short works, one is
+tempted to think that P`IEN might simply mean "leaves."
+
+17. Yeh Shih of the Sung dynasty [1151-1223].
+
+18. He hardly deserves to be bracketed with assassins.
+
+19. See Chapter 7, ss. 27 and Chapter 11, ss. 28.
+
+20. See Chapter 11, ss. 28. Chuan Chu is the abbreviated form
+of his name.
+
+21. I.e. Po P`ei. See ante.
+
+22. The nucleus of this work is probably genuine, though large
+additions have been made by later hands. Kuan chung died in 645
+B.C.
+
+23. See infra, beginning of INTRODUCTION.
+
+24. I do not know what this work, unless it be the last chapter
+of another work. Why that chapter should be singled out,
+however, is not clear.
+
+25. About 480 B.C.
+
+26. That is, I suppose, the age of Wu Wang and Chou Kung.
+
+27. In the 3rd century B.C.
+
+28. Ssu-ma Jang-chu, whose family name was T`ien, lived in the
+latter half of the 6th century B.C., and is also believed to have
+written a work on war. See SHIH CHI, ch. 64, and infra at the
+beginning of the INTRODUCTION.
+
+29. See Legge's Classics, vol. V, Prolegomena p. 27. Legge
+thinks that the TSO CHUAN must have been written in the 5th
+century, but not before 424 B.C.
+
+30. See MENCIUS III. 1. iii. 13-20.
+
+31. When Wu first appears in the CH`UN CH`IU in 584, it is
+already at variance with its powerful neighbor. The CH`UN CH`IU
+first mentions Yueh in 537, the TSO CHUAN in 601.
+
+32. This is explicitly stated in the TSO CHUAN, XXXII, 2.
+
+33. There is this to be said for the later period, that the feud
+would tend to grow more bitter after each encounter, and thus
+more fully justify the language used in XI. ss. 30.
+
+34. With Wu Yuan himself the case is just the reverse: -- a
+spurious treatise on war has been fathered on him simply because
+he was a great general. Here we have an obvious inducement to
+forgery. Sun Wu, on the other hand, cannot have been widely
+known to fame in the 5th century.
+
+35. From TSO CHUAN: "From the date of King Chao's accession
+[515] there was no year in which Ch`u was not attacked by Wu."
+
+36. Preface ad fin: "My family comes from Lo-an, and we are
+really descended from Sun Tzu. I am ashamed to say that I only
+read my ancestor's work from a literary point of view, without
+comprehending the military technique. So long have we been
+enjoying the blessings of peace!"
+
+37. Hoa-yin is about 14 miles from T`ung-kuan on the eastern
+border of Shensi. The temple in question is still visited by
+those about the ascent of the Western Sacred Mountain. It is
+mentioned in a text as being "situated five LI east of the
+district city of Hua-yin. The temple contains the Hua-shan
+tablet inscribed by the T`ang Emperor Hsuan Tsung [713-755]."
+
+38. See my "Catalogue of Chinese Books" (Luzac & Co., 1908), no.
+40.
+
+39. This is a discussion of 29 difficult passages in Sun Tzu.
+
+40. Cf. Catalogue of the library of Fan family at Ningpo: "His
+commentary is frequently obscure; it furnishes a clue, but does
+not fully develop the meaning."
+
+41. WEN HSIEN T`UNG K`AO, ch. 221.
+
+42. It is interesting to note that M. Pelliot has recently
+discovered chapters 1, 4 and 5 of this lost work in the "Grottos
+of the Thousand Buddhas." See B.E.F.E.O., t. VIII, nos. 3-4, p.
+525.
+
+43. The Hsia, the Shang and the Chou. Although the last-named
+was nominally existent in Sun Tzu's day, it retained hardly a
+vestige of power, and the old military organization had
+practically gone by the board. I can suggest no other
+explanation of the passage.
+
+44. See CHOU LI, xxix. 6-10.
+
+45. T`UNG K`AO, ch. 221.
+
+46. This appears to be still extant. See Wylie's "Notes," p. 91
+(new edition).
+
+47. T`UNG K`AO, loc. cit.
+
+48. A notable person in his day. His biography is given in the
+SAN KUO CHIH, ch. 10.
+
+49. See XI. ss. 58, note.
+
+50. HOU HAN SHU, ch. 17 ad init.
+
+51. SAN KUO CHIH, ch. 54.
+
+52. SUNG SHIH, ch. 365 ad init.
+
+53. The few Europeans who have yet had an opportunity of
+acquainting themselves with Sun Tzu are not behindhand in their
+praise. In this connection, I may perhaps be excused for quoting
+from a letter from Lord Roberts, to whom the sheets of the
+present work were submitted previous to publication: "Many of
+Sun Wu's maxims are perfectly applicable to the present day, and
+no. 11 [in Chapter VIII] is one that the people of this country
+would do well to take to heart."
+
+54. Ch. 140.
+
+55. See IV. ss. 3.
+
+56. The allusion may be to Mencius VI. 2. ix. 2.
+
+57. The TSO CHUAN.
+
+58. SHIH CHI, ch. 25, fol. I.
+
+59. Cf. SHIH CHI, ch 47.
+
+60. See SHU CHING, preface ss. 55.
+
+61. See SHIH CHI, ch. 47.
+
+62. Lun Yu, XV. 1.
+
+63. I failed to trace this utterance.
+
+64. Supra.
+
+65. Supra.
+
+66. The other four being worship, mourning, entertainment of
+guests, and festive rites. See SHU CHING, ii. 1. III. 8, and
+CHOU LI, IX. fol. 49.
+
+67. See XIII. ss. 11, note.
+
+68. This is a rather obscure allusion to the TSO CHUAN, where
+Tzu-ch`an says: "If you have a piece of beautiful brocade, you
+will not employ a mere learner to make it up."
+
+69. Cf. TAO TE CHING, ch. 31.
+
+70. Sun Hsing-yen might have quoted Confucius again. See LUN
+YU, XIII. 29, 30.
+
+71. Better known as Hsiang Yu [233-202 B.C.].
+
+72. SHIH CHI, ch. 47.
+
+73. SHIH CHI, ch. 38.
+
+74. See XIII. ss. 27, note. Further details on T`ai Kung will
+be found in the SHIH CHI, ch. 32 ad init. Besides the tradition
+which makes him a former minister of Chou Hsin, two other
+accounts of him are there given, according to which he would
+appear to have been first raised from a humble private station by
+Wen Wang.
+
+-----------------------------------------------------------------
+
+I. LAYING PLANS
+
+ [Ts`ao Kung, in defining the meaning of the Chinese for the
+title of this chapter, says it refers to the deliberations in the
+temple selected by the general for his temporary use, or as we
+should say, in his tent. See. ss. 26.]
+
+ 1. Sun Tzu said: The art of war is of vital importance to
+the State.
+ 2. It is a matter of life and death, a road either to
+safety or to ruin. Hence it is a subject of inquiry which can on
+no account be neglected.
+ 3. The art of war, then, is governed by five constant
+factors, to be taken into account in one's deliberations, when
+seeking to determine the conditions obtaining in the field.
+ 4. These are: (1) The Moral Law; (2) Heaven; (3) Earth;
+(4) The Commander; (5) Method and discipline.
+
+ [It appears from what follows that Sun Tzu means by "Moral
+Law" a principle of harmony, not unlike the Tao of Lao Tzu in its
+moral aspect. One might be tempted to render it by "morale,"
+were it not considered as an attribute of the ruler in ss. 13.]
+
+ 5, 6. The MORAL LAW causes the people to be in complete
+accord with their ruler, so that they will follow him regardless
+of their lives, undismayed by any danger.
+
+ [Tu Yu quotes Wang Tzu as saying: "Without constant
+practice, the officers will be nervous and undecided when
+mustering for battle; without constant practice, the general will
+be wavering and irresolute when the crisis is at hand."]
+
+ 7. HEAVEN signifies night and day, cold and heat, times and
+seasons.
+
+ [The commentators, I think, make an unnecessary mystery of
+two words here. Meng Shih refers to "the hard and the soft,
+waxing and waning" of Heaven. Wang Hsi, however, may be right in
+saying that what is meant is "the general economy of Heaven,"
+including the five elements, the four seasons, wind and clouds,
+and other phenomena.]
+
+ 8. EARTH comprises distances, great and small; danger and
+security; open ground and narrow passes; the chances of life and
+death.
+ 9. The COMMANDER stands for the virtues of wisdom,
+sincerity, benevolence, courage and strictness.
+
+ [The five cardinal virtues of the Chinese are (1) humanity
+or benevolence; (2) uprightness of mind; (3) self-respect, self-
+control, or "proper feeling;" (4) wisdom; (5) sincerity or good
+faith. Here "wisdom" and "sincerity" are put before "humanity or
+benevolence," and the two military virtues of "courage" and
+"strictness" substituted for "uprightness of mind" and "self-
+respect, self-control, or 'proper feeling.'"]
+
+ 10. By METHOD AND DISCIPLINE are to be understood the
+marshaling of the army in its proper subdivisions, the
+graduations of rank among the officers, the maintenance of roads
+by which supplies may reach the army, and the control of military
+expenditure.
+ 11. These five heads should be familiar to every general:
+he who knows them will be victorious; he who knows them not will
+fail.
+ 12. Therefore, in your deliberations, when seeking to
+determine the military conditions, let them be made the basis of
+a comparison, in this wise: --
+ 13. (1) Which of the two sovereigns is imbued with the
+Moral law?
+
+ [I.e., "is in harmony with his subjects." Cf. ss. 5.]
+
+ (2) Which of the two generals has most ability?
+ (3) With whom lie the advantages derived from Heaven and
+Earth?
+
+ [See ss. 7,8]
+
+ (4) On which side is discipline most rigorously enforced?
+
+ [Tu Mu alludes to the remarkable story of Ts`ao Ts`ao (A.D.
+155-220), who was such a strict disciplinarian that once, in
+accordance with his own severe regulations against injury to
+standing crops, he condemned himself to death for having allowed
+his horse to shy into a field of corn! However, in lieu of
+losing his head, he was persuaded to satisfy his sense of justice
+by cutting off his hair. Ts`ao Ts`ao's own comment on the
+present passage is characteristically curt: "when you lay down a
+law, see that it is not disobeyed; if it is disobeyed the
+offender must be put to death."]
+
+ (5) Which army is stronger?
+
+ [Morally as well as physically. As Mei Yao-ch`en puts it,
+freely rendered, "ESPIRIT DE CORPS and 'big battalions.'"]
+
+ (6) On which side are officers and men more highly trained?
+
+ [Tu Yu quotes Wang Tzu as saying: "Without constant
+practice, the officers will be nervous and undecided when
+mustering for battle; without constant practice, the general will
+be wavering and irresolute when the crisis is at hand."]
+
+ (7) In which army is there the greater constancy both in
+reward and punishment?
+
+ [On which side is there the most absolute certainty that
+merit will be properly rewarded and misdeeds summarily punished?]
+
+ 14. By means of these seven considerations I can forecast
+victory or defeat.
+ 15. The general that hearkens to my counsel and acts upon
+it, will conquer: --let such a one be retained in command! The
+general that hearkens not to my counsel nor acts upon it, will
+suffer defeat: --let such a one be dismissed!
+
+ [The form of this paragraph reminds us that Sun Tzu's
+treatise was composed expressly for the benefit of his patron Ho
+Lu, king of the Wu State.]
+
+ 16. While heading the profit of my counsel, avail yourself
+also of any helpful circumstances over and beyond the ordinary
+rules.
+ 17. According as circumstances are favorable, one should
+modify one's plans.
+
+ [Sun Tzu, as a practical soldier, will have none of the
+"bookish theoric." He cautions us here not to pin our faith to
+abstract principles; "for," as Chang Yu puts it, "while the main
+laws of strategy can be stated clearly enough for the benefit of
+all and sundry, you must be guided by the actions of the enemy in
+attempting to secure a favorable position in actual warfare." On
+the eve of the battle of Waterloo, Lord Uxbridge, commanding the
+cavalry, went to the Duke of Wellington in order to learn what
+his plans and calculations were for the morrow, because, as he
+explained, he might suddenly find himself Commander-in-chief and
+would be unable to frame new plans in a critical moment. The
+Duke listened quietly and then said: "Who will attack the first
+tomorrow -- I or Bonaparte?" "Bonaparte," replied Lord Uxbridge.
+"Well," continued the Duke, "Bonaparte has not given me any idea
+of his projects; and as my plans will depend upon his, how can
+you expect me to tell you what mine are?" [1] ]
+
+ 18. All warfare is based on deception.
+
+ [The truth of this pithy and profound saying will be
+admitted by every soldier. Col. Henderson tells us that
+Wellington, great in so many military qualities, was especially
+distinguished by "the extraordinary skill with which he concealed
+his movements and deceived both friend and foe."]
+
+ 19. Hence, when able to attack, we must seem unable; when
+using our forces, we must seem inactive; when we are 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.
+
+ [All commentators, except Chang Yu, say, "When he is in
+disorder, crush him." It is more natural to suppose that Sun Tzu
+is still illustrating the uses of deception in war.]
+
+ 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 to
+irritate him. Pretend to be weak, that he may grow arrogant.
+
+ [Wang Tzu, quoted by Tu Yu, says that the good tactician
+plays with his adversary as a cat plays with a mouse, first
+feigning weakness and immobility, and then suddenly pouncing upon
+him.]
+
+ 23. If he is taking his ease, give him no rest.
+
+ [This is probably the meaning though Mei Yao-ch`en has the
+note: "while we are taking our ease, wait for the enemy to tire
+himself out." The YU LAN has "Lure him on and tire him out."]
+
+If his forces are united, separate them.
+
+ [Less plausible is the interpretation favored by most of the
+commentators: "If sovereign and subject are in accord, put
+division between them."]
+
+ 24. Attack him where he is unprepared, appear where you are
+not expected.
+ 25. These military devices, leading to victory, must not be
+divulged beforehand.
+ 26. Now the general who wins a battle makes many
+calculations in his temple ere the battle is fought.
+
+ [Chang Yu tells us that in ancient times it was customary
+for a temple to be set apart for the use of a general who was
+about to take the field, in order that he might there elaborate
+his plan of campaign.]
+
+The general who loses a battle makes but few calculations
+beforehand. Thus do many calculations lead to victory, and few
+calculations to defeat: how much more no calculation at all! It
+is by attention to this point that I can foresee who is likely to
+win or lose.
+
+
+[1] "Words on Wellington," by Sir. W. Fraser.
+
+---------------
<TRUNCATED>