The Book of War: The Military Classic of the Far East / The Articles of Suntzu; The Sayings of Wutzu

has gone, and weapons have changed, these ancient masters have held their own, since they deal chiefly with the fundamental principles of war, w

ed on to maintain the moral of the levies. Instead of these, what may be called the force of despair is pointed out as the most powerful agent in giving cohesion and energy to an army. The general is urged to take a vigorous offensive; and to act at a distance

nstance of this, Sun observes that an opponent should on no account be completely surrounde

are perhaps unusually affected by climatic conditions. As is well known, the umbrella was part of a soldier's equipment; and fo

banners was to maintain the spirit of the troops. A forest of banners, held erect, gave a feeling of liveliness and security to the ranks, in the sam

ered from state to state at that time with the secrets of victory to impart to the highest bidder. The question of political interference with the general in the field naturally arises under these conditions. The two sages point out, that to unit

s offensive is no longer advised. "At first behave with the discretion of a maiden" is the counsel of Sun. The enemy must be induced

y of the offensive-defensive order-man?uvre before fighting, and non-committal until the enemy has shown his hand. The busin

olves, is to be everywhere weak, rendering the army liable to be taken in detail by the concentrated forces of the enemy. It is rather the defence which

should consist, broadly speaking, in the division of the army into two forces. The enemy is "attracted and engaged by one force, and defeated with the other;" and here we

r axioms, it is laid down that the passage of a river should not be disputed, as the enemy will probably give up the attempt, and make the passage untouched at some other point, but that he should be attacked when half hi

that "few are those who have gained power on earth by many victories," and he is insistent that war should not be undertaken until a careful comparison of the two sides sh

en, and the fact that many of the national heroes of China were spies, shows that the part that they played was not forgotten. They frequently toiled for years, and rose to high rank in the enemy's service; and thus, by wrong counsel and by