Sun Tzu

Victory usually goes to the army who has better trained officers and men.

Move not unless you see an advantage; use not your troops unless there is something to be gained; fight not unless the position is critical.

Be extremely subtle even to the point of formlessness. Be extremely mysterious even to the point of soundlessness. Thereby you can be the director of the opponents fate.

He will win who knows when to fight and when not to fight.

Dont flail against the world use it. Flexibility is the operative principle in the art of war.

All men can see these tactics whereby I conquer, but what none can see is the strategy out of which victory is evolved.

Be extremely subtle, even to the point of formlessness. Be extremely mysterious, even to the point of soundlessness. Thereby you can be the director of the opponent's fate.

To fight and conquer in all our battles is not supreme excellence supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemys resistance without fighting.

If you are far from the enemy, make him believe you are near.

There is no instance of a nation benefitting from prolonged warfare.

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.

There has never been a protracted war from which a country has benefited.

Know your enemy and know yourself and you can fight a hundred battles without disaster.

All war is based on deception.

If your opponent is of choleric temper, irritate him.

So there are five ways of knowing who will win. Those who know when to fight and when not to fight are victorious. Those who discern when to use many or few troops are victorious. Those whose upper and lower ranks have the same desire are victorious.

If fighting is sure to result in victory, than you must fight, even though the ruler forbid it; if fighting will not result in victory, then you must not fight even at the ruler's bidding.

To not prepare is the greatest of crimes; to be prepared beforehand for any contingency is the greatest of virtues.

Rewards for good service should not be deferred a single day.

The general who wins the battle makes many calculations in his temple before the battle is fought. The general who loses makes but few calculations beforehand.

Of all those in the army close to the commander none is more intimate than the secret agent; of all rewards none more liberal than those given to secret agents; of all matters none is more confidential than those relating to secret operations.

Know thy self, know thy enemy. A thousand battles, a thousand victories.

When envoys are sent with compliments in their mouths, it is a sign that the enemy wishes for a truce.

The skilful employer of men will employ the wise man, the brave man, the covetous man, and the stupid man.

Ponder and deliberate before you make a move.

The good fighters of old first put themselves beyond the possibility of defeat, and then waited for an opportunity of defeating the enemy.

Do not repeat the tactics which have gained you one victory, but let your methods be regulated by the infinite variety of circumstances.

Ponder and deliberate before you make your move. He will conquer who has learned the artifice of deviation. Such is the art of maneuvering.

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.

All warfare is based on deception.

Prohibit the taking of omens, and do away with superstitious doubts. Then, until death itself comes, no calamity need be feared.

Great results, can be achieved with small forces.

The rising of birds in their flight is the sign of an ambuscade. Startled beasts indicate that a sudden attack is coming.

Energy may be likened to the bending of a cross bow decision to the releasing of the trigger.

Concentrate your energy and hoard your strength.

If fighting is sure to result in victory, then you must fight, even though the ruler forbid it; if fighting will not result in victory, then you must not fight even at the ruler's bidding.

Do not swallow bait offered by the enemy. Do not interfere with an army that is returning home.

The quality of decision is like the well timed swoop of a falcon which enables it to strike and destroy its victim.

Without subtle ingenuity of mind, one cannot make certain of the truth of their reports.

Hence the saying: If you know the enemy and you know yourself, your victory will not stand in doubt; if you know Heaven and you know Earth, you may make your victory complete.

Regard your soldiers as your children, and they will follow you into the deepest valleys; look on them as your own beloved sons, and they will stand by you even unto death.

To fight and conquer in all your battles is not supreme excellence supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemys resistance without fighting.

He who is prudent and lies in wait for an enemy who is not, will be victorious.

Speed is the essence of war. Take advantage of the enemy's unpreparedness; travel by unexpected routes and strike him where he has taken no precautions.

The opportunity to secure ourselves against defeat lies in our own hands, but the opportunity of defeating the enemy is provided by the enemy himself.

The line between disorder and order lies in logistics.

Opportunities multiply as they are seized.

These military devices, leading to victory, must not be divulged beforehand.

To see victory only when it is within the ken of the common herd is not the acme of excellence.

If our soldiers are not overburdened with money, it is not because they have a distaste for riches; if their lives are not unduly long, it is not because they are disinclined to longevity.

Standing on the defensive indicates insufficient strength; attacking, a superabundance of strength.

Regard your soldiers as your children, and they will follow you into the deepest valleys. Look on them as your own beloved sons, and they will stand by you even unto death!

Plan for what it is difficult while it is easy, do what is great while it is small.

Engage people with what they expect it is what they are able to discern and confirms their projections. It settles them into predictable patterns of response occupying their minds while you wait for the extraordinary moment that which they cannot anticipate.

To win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the acme of skill.

Can you imagine what I would do if I could do all I can?

It is essential to seek out enemy agents who have come to conduct espionage against you and to bribe them to serve you. Give them instructions and care for them. Thus doubled agents are recruited and used.

The art of giving orders is not to try to rectify the minor blunders and not to be swayed by petty doubts.

Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win.

For to win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the acme of skill.

In desperate position you must fight.

If ignorant both of your enemy and yourself, you are certain to be in peril.

The end and aim of spying in all its five varieties is knowledge of the enemy and this knowledge can only be derived in the first instance from the converted spy. Hence it is essential that the converted spy be treated with the utmost liberality.

Now the reason the enlightened prince and the wise general conquer the enemy whenever they move and their achievements surpass those of ordinary men is foreknowledge.

Of old the expert in battle would first make himself invincible and then wait for his enemy to expose his vulnerability.

The quality of decision is like the well-timed swoop of a falcon which enables it to strike and destroy its victim.

Supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting.

It is only the enlightened ruler and the wise general who will use the highest intelligence of the army for the purposes of spying, and thereby they achieve great results.

If you are far from the enemy make him believe you are near.

A leader leads by example not by force.

Keep your friends close your enemies even closer.

Quickness is the essence of the war.

He will win who knows how to handle both superior and inferior forces.

Fierce language and pretentious advances are signs that the enemy is about to retreat.

Convince your enemy that he will gain very little by attacking you; this will diminish his enthusiasm

Secret operations are essential in war; upon them the army relies to make its every move.

You have to believe in yourself.

To win without fighting is best.

Pretend inferiority and encourage his arrogance.

Thus the skilful general conducts his army just as though he were leading a single man, willy-nilly, by the hand.

If you know the enemy and know yourself you need not fear the results of a hundred battles.

A kingdom that has once been destroyed can never come again into being; nor can the dead ever be brought back to life.

Thus, what is of supreme importance in war is to attack the enemy's strategy.

Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat.

All war is deception.

The best victory is when the opponent surrenders of its own accord before there are any actual hostilities It is best to win without fighting.

The art of war is of vital importance to the state. 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.

Thus it is that in war the victorious strategist only seeks battle after the victory has been won, whereas he who is destined to defeat first fights and afterwards looks for victory.

Act after having made assessments. The one who first knows the measure of far and near wins - this is the rule of armed struggle.

Being unconquerable lies with yourself; being conquerable lies with your enemy.

In desperate position you must fight

He will win whose army is animated by the same spirit throughout all its ranks.

He who knows when he can fight and when he cannot, will be victorious.

A good commander is benevolent and unconcerned with fame.

Hence that general is skilful in attack whose opponent does not know what to defend; and he is skilful in defense whose opponent does not know what to attack.

To fight and conquer in all our battles is not supreme excellence; supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting.

The enlightened ruler is heedful, and the good general full of caution.

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 them to perceive the advantage of defeating the enemy, they must also have their rewards.

Balk the enemy's power; force him to reveal himself.