When campaigning, be swift as the wind; in leisurely march, majestic as the forest; in raiding and plundering, like fire; in standing, firm as the mountains. As unfathomable as the clouds, move like a thunderbolt.

Keep your friends close and your enemies even closer.

When the enemy is relaxed, make them toil. When full, starve them. When settled, make them move.

Of all those in the army close to the commander, none is more intimate than the secret agent.

Set the troops to their tasks without imparting your designs.

All war is deception.

Therefore, to estimate the enemy situation and to calculate distances and the degree of difficulty of the terrain so as to control victory are virtues of the superior general.