Sun Tzu Quotes

It is ten thousand times cheaper to pay the best spies lavishly than even a tiny army poorly.

The business of a general is to kick away the ladder behind soldiers when they have climbed up a height.

Those who would wage war, should first eliminate all domestic enemies before proceeding to attack the external foe.

Therefore the good fighter will be terrible in his onset, and prompt in his decision.

There is no place where espionage is not possible.

In peace prepare for war, in war prepare for peace. The art of war is of vital importance to the state. It is matter of life and death, a road either to safety or to ruin. Hence under no circumstances can it be neglected.

Be the first to seize intersecting ground, that is ground which lies the intersections of borders or intersections of main thoroughfares of commerce and travel. Your occupation of it gives you access to all who border it and all who would covet it. On intersecting ground, if you establish alliances you are safe, if you lose alliances you are in peril.

A sovereign of high character and intelligence must be able to know the right man, should place the responsibility on him, and expect results.

So it is that good warriors take their stance on ground where they cannot lose, and do not overlook conditions that make an opponent prone to defeat.

Making no mistakes is what establishes the certainty of victory, for it means conquering an enemy that is already defeated.

Therefore I say: know the enemy and know yourself; in a hundred battles you will never be in peril. When you are ignorant of the enemy but know yourself, your chances of winning or losing are equal. If ignorant both of your enemy and of yourself, you are certain in every battle to be in peril.

Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night.

Do not press an enemy at bay. Prince Fu Ch'ai said: "Wild beasts, when at bay, fight desperately. How much more is this true of men! If they know there is no alternative, they will fight to the death.