Sun Tzu Quotes

The true objective of war is peace.

The control of a large force is the same principle as the control of a few men: it is merely a question of dividing up their numbers.

To perceive victory when it is known to all is not really skilful... It does not take much strength to lift a hair, it does not take sharp eyes to see the sun and moon, it does not take sharp ears to hear the thunderclap.

One need not destroy one's enemy. One need only destroy his willingness to engage.

When the general is weak and without authority; when his orders are not clear and distinct; when there are no fixed duties assigned to officers and men, and the ranks are formed in a slovenly haphazard manner, the result is utter disorganization.

Wait by the river long enough and the body of your enemy will float by you.

When the thunderclap comes, there is no time to cover the ears.

Order or disorder depends on organisation and direction; courage or cowardice on circumstances; strength or weakness on tactical dispositions.

Opportunities increase as they are taken.

The control of large numbers is possible, and like unto that of small numbers, if we subdivide them.

It is the business of a general to be quiet and thus ensure secrecy; upright and just, and thus maintain order.

Spies cannot be usefully employed without a certain intuitive sagacity.

Too frequent rewards indicate that the general is at the end of his resources; too frequent punishments that he is in acute distress.

There are not more than five primary colours, yet in combination they produce more hues than can ever been seen.

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

When the higher officers are angry and insubordinate, and on meeting the enemy give battle on their own account from a feeling of resentment, before the commander-in-chief can tell whether or not he is in a position to fight, the result is ruin.

These are the six ways of courting defeat - neglect to estimate the enemy's strength; want of authority; defective training; unjustifiable anger; nonobservance of discipline; failure to use picked men.

What is of the greatest importance in war is extraordinary speed: One cannot afford to neglect opportunity.

The best general is the one who never fights.

He will win who has military capacity and is not interfered with by the sovereign.

If those who are sent to draw water begin by drinking themselves, the army is suffering from thirst.

When the common soldiers are too strong and their officers too weak, the result is insubordination. When the officers are too strong and the common soldiers too weak, the result is collapse.

He who is not sage and wise, humane and just, cannot use secret agent.s. And he who is not delicate and subtle cannot get the truth out of them.

What is of supreme importance in war is to attack the enemy's strategy.

He whose ranks are united in purpose will be victorious.

The clever combatant looks to the effect of combined energy, and does not require too much from individuals. Hence his ability to pick out the right men and utilize combined energy

The natural formation of the country is the soldier's best ally

Those who do not know the plans of competitors cannot prepare alliances. Those who do not know the lay of the land cannot maneuver their forces. Those who do not use local guides cannot take advantage of the ground.

The dance of battle is always played to the same impatient rhythm. What begins in a surge of violent motion is always reduced to the perfectly still.

Thus the highest form of generalship is to balk the enemy's plans, the next best is to prevent the junction of the enemy's forces, the next in order is to attack the enemy's army in the field, and the worst policy of all is to besiege walled cities.

All warfare is based on deception. There is no place where espionage is not used. Offer the enemy bait to lure him.

If I wish to engage, then the enemy, for all his high ramparts and deep moat, cannot avoid engagement; I attack that which he is obliged to rescue.

In a position of this sort, even though the enemy should offer us an attractive bait, it will be advisable not to stir forth, but rather to retreat, thus enticing the enemy in his turn; then, when part of his army has come out, we may deliver our attack with advantage.

The successful person has unusual skill at dealing with conflict and ensuring the best outcome for all.

Without harmony in the State, no military expedition can be undertaken; without harmony in the army, no battle array can be formed.

He who relies solely on warlike measures shall be exterminated; he who relies solely on peaceful measures shall perish.

When envoys are sent with compliments in their mouths, it is a sign that the enemy wishes for a truce. If the enemy's troops march up angrily and remain facing ours for a long time without either joining battle or removing demands, the situation is one that requires great vigilance and circumspection. To begin by bluster, but afterward to take fright at the enemy's numbers, shows a supreme lack of intelligence.

In your deliberations, when seeking to determine the military conditions, let them be made the basis of a comparison, in this wise: which of the two generals has the most ability? on which side is Discipline most rigorously enforced? which army is stronger? on which side are the officers and men more highly trained? in which army is there the greater constancy both in reward and punishment?

What enables the wise sovereign and the good general to strike and conquer, and achieve things beyond the reach of ordinary men, is foreknowledge.

When you do battle, even if you are winning, if you continue for a long time it will dull your forces and blunt you edge...If you keep your armies out in the field for a long time, your supplies will be insufficient. Transportation of provisions itself consumes 20 times the amount transported.

No nation has ever benefited from a prolonged war.

Apparent confusion is a product of good order; apparent cowardice, of courage; apparent weakness, of strength.

Those who are victorious plan effectively and change decisively. They are like a great river that maintains its course but adjusts its flow...they have form but are formless. They are skilled in both planning and adapting and need not fear the result of a thousand battles: for they win in advance, defeating those that have already lost.

There are roads which must not be followed, armies which must not be attacked, towns which must not be besieged, positions which must not be contested, commands of the sovereign which must not be obeyed.

Know thy enemy and know thy self and you will win a hundred battles.

Military tactics are like unto water; for water in its natural course runs away from high places and hastens downwards... Water shapes its course according to the nature of the ground over which it flows; the soldier works out his victory in relation to the foe whom he is facing. Therefore, just as water retains no constant shape, so in warfare there are no constant conditions. He who can modify his tactics in relation to his opponent and thereby succeed in winning, may be called a heaven-born captain.

These are six ways of courting defeat, which must be carefully noted by the general who has attained a responsible post.

They [spies] cannot be properly managed without benevolence and straightforwardness.