Sun Tzu Quotes
When strong, avoid them. If of high morale, depress them. Seem humble to fill them with conceit. If at ease, exhaust them. If united, separate them. Attack their weaknesses. Emerge to their surprise.
If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat.
The expert in battle seeks his victory from strategic advantage and does not demand it from his men.
Therefore, just as water retains no constant shape, so in warfare there are no constant conditions.
When I have won a victory I do not repeat my tactics but respond to circumstances in an infinite variety of ways.
You can prevent your opponent from defeating you through defense, but you cannot defeat him without taking the offensive.
Rapidity is the essence of war: take advantage of the enemy's unreadiness, make your way by unexpected routes, and attack unguarded spots.
In conflict, straightforward actions generally lead to engagement, surprising actions generally lead to victory.
When one treats people with benevolence, justice and righteousness, and reposes confidence in them, the army will be united in mind and all will be happy to serve their leaders.
Regard your soldiers as your children, and they will follow you into the deepest valleys; look upon them as your own beloved sons, and they will stand by you even unto death.
The skilful employer of men will employ the wise man, the brave man, the covetous man, and the stupid man.
Don't flail against the world, use it. Flexibility is the operative principle in the art of war.
O divine art of subtlety and secrecy! Through you we learn to be invisible, through you inaudible and hence we can hold the enemy's fate in our hands.
The good fighter is able to secure himself against defeat, but cannot make certain of defeating the enemy.
Of old the expert in battle would first make himself invincible and then wait for his enemy to expose his vulnerability.
No ruler should put troops into the field merely to gratify his own spleen; no general should fight a battle simply out of pique.
A military operation involves deception. Even though you are competent, appear to be incompetent. Though effective, appear to be ineffective.
Weak leadership can wreck the soundest strategy; forceful execution of even a poor plan can often bring victory.
And therefore those skilled in war bring the enemy to the field of battle and are not brought there by him.
Confront them with annihilation, and they will then survive; plunge them into a deadly situation, and they will then live. When people fall into danger, they are then able to strive for victory.
Whoever is first in the field and awaits the coming of the enemy, will be fresh for the fight; whoever is second in the field and has to hasten to battle will arrive exhausted.
Those who excel in war first cultivate their own humanity and and maintain their laws and institutions. By these means they make their governments invincible.
So a military force has no constant formation, water has no constant shape: the ability to gain victory by changing and adapting according to the opponent is called genius.
When you surround an army, leave an outlet free. Do not press a desperate foe too hard.
Order or disorder depends on organisation and direction; courage or cowardice on circumstances; strength or weakness on tactical dispositions.
Rely not on the likelihood of the enemy's not coming, but on our own readiness to receive him
In the practical art of war, the best thing of all is to take the enemy's country whole and intact; to shatter and destroy it is not so good.
For the wise man delights in establishing his merit, the brave man likes to show his courage in action, the covetous man is quick at seizing advantages, and the stupid man has no fear of death.
Generally, management of many is the same as management of few. It is a matter of organization. And to control many is the same as to control few. This is a matter of formations and signals.
