The Art of War is an ancient Chinese military treatise dating from the late Spring and Autumn period (roughly 5th century BC). The work, which is attributed to the ancient Chinese military strategist Sun Tzu ("Master Sun"), is composed of 13 chapters. Each one is devoted to a different set of skills or art related to warfare and how it applies to military strategy and tactics. For almost 1,500 years, it was the lead text in an anthology that was formalized as the Seven Military Classics by Emperor Shenzong of Song in 1080. The Art of War remains the most influential strategy text in East Asian warfare,[1] has influenced both East Asian and Western military theory and thinking, and has found a variety of applications in myriad competitive non-military endeavors across the modern world including espionage,[2]
culture, politics, business, and sports.[3][4][5][6]
The book contains a detailed explanation and analysis of the 5th-century BC Chinese military, from weapons, environmental conditions, and strategy to rank and discipline. Sun also stressed the importance of intelligence operatives and espionage to the war effort. Considered one of history's finest military tacticians and analysts, his teachings and strategies formed the basis of advanced military training throughout the world.
The book was translated into French and published in 1772 by the French priest JesuitJean Joseph Marie Amiot; it was re-published in 1782. A partial translation into English was attempted by British officer Everard Ferguson Calthrop in 1905 under the title The Book of War. The first annotated English translation was completed and published by Lionel Giles in 1910.[7] Military and political leaders such as the Chinese communist revolutionary Mao Zedong, Japanese daimyōTakeda Shingen, Vietnamese general Võ Nguyên Giáp, is cited along with American military generals Douglas MacArthur and Norman Schwarzkopf Jr. as having drawn inspiration from the book.[8]
Outside of military use, The Art of War has also become a source of inspiration in business, politics, sports and esports, and its usage has extended to film and television.
History
Text and commentaries
The Art of War is traditionally attributed to an ancient Chinese military general known as Sun Tzu (pinyin: Sūnzǐ), meaning 'Master Sun'. Sun Tzu is said to have lived in the 6th century BC, but the earliest parts of The Art of War probably date to at least 100 years later.[9]
Sima Qian's Records of the Grand Historian, the first of China's 24 dynastic histories, records an early Chinese tradition that a text on military matters was written by one "Sun Wu" (孫武) from the State of Qi, and that this text had been read and studied by King Helü of Wu (r. 514–495 BC).[10] This text was traditionally identified with the received Master Sun's Art of War. The conventional view was that Sun Wu was a military theorist from the end of the Spring and Autumn period (776–471 BC) who fled his home state of Qi to the southeastern Kingdom of Wu, where he is said to have impressed the king with his ability to quickly train even court women in military discipline and to have made Wu's armies powerful enough to challenge their western rivals in the state of Chu. This view is still widely held in China.[11]
The strategist, poet, and warlord Cao Cao in the early 3rd century AD authored the earliest known commentary to the Art of War.[10] Cao's preface makes clear that he edited the text and removed certain passages, but the extent of his changes were unclear historically.[10]The Art of War appears throughout the bibliographical catalogs of the Chinese dynastic histories, but listings of its divisions and size varied widely.[10]
Authorship
Fragments of The Art of War discovered as a part of the Yinqueshan Han Slips, showing the version of The Art of War that was popular in Han dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD)
Beginning around the 12th century, Sun Tzu's historical existence began to be questioned by Chinese scholars, primarily on the grounds that he is not mentioned in the historical classic Zuo Zhuan, which mentions most of the notable figures from the Spring and Autumn period.[10] The name "Sun Wu" (孫武) does not appear in any text prior to the Records of the Grand Historian,[12] and has been suspected to be a made-up descriptive cognomen meaning "the fugitive warrior", glossing the surname "Sun" as the related term "fugitive" (xùn遜), while "Wu" (wǔ武) is (1) the ancient Chinese virtue of "martial, valiant" and (2) a Jianghuai dialectal synonym of 士; shì "knight",[13][14] which corresponds to Sunzi's role as the hero's doppelgänger in the story of Wu Zixu.[15] In the early 20th century, the Chinese writer and reformer Liang Qichao theorized that the text was actually written in the 4th century BC by Sun Tzu's purported descendant Sun Bin, as a number of historical sources mention a military treatise he wrote.[10] Unlike Sun Wu, Sun Bin appears to have been an actual person who was a genuine authority on military matters, and may have been the inspiration for the creation of the historical figure "Sun Tzu" through a form of euhemerism.[15]
In 1972, the Yinqueshan Han slips were discovered in two Han dynasty (206 BC – 220 AD) tombs near the city of Linyi in Shandong.[16] Among the many bamboo slip writings contained in the tombs, which had been sealed between 134 and 118 BC, respectively were two separate texts, one attributed to "Sun Tzu", corresponding to the received text, and another attributed to Sun Bin, which explains and expands upon the earlier The Art of War by Sunzi.[17] The Sun Bin text's material overlaps with much of the "Sun Tzu" text, and the two may be "a single, continuously developing intellectual tradition united under the Sun name".[18] This discovery showed that much of the historical confusion was due to the fact that there were two texts that could have been referred to as "Master Sun's Art of War", not one.[17] The content of the earlier text is about one-third of the chapters of the modern The Art of War, and their text matches very closely.[16] It is now generally accepted that the earlier The Art of War was completed sometime between 500 and 430 BC.[17]
The 13 chapters
The Art of War is divided into 13 chapters (or piān); the collection is referred to as being one zhuàn ("whole" or alternatively "chronicle").
Detail Assessment and Planning (Chinese: 始計; pinyin: shîjì)
First Calculations
Explores the five fundamental factors (the Way, seasons, terrain, leadership, and management) and seven elements (which of the two sovereigns is imbued with the way or moral law, which side's general is more capable, which side has superior in right time and right place, which side's laws and regulations can be enforced more strictly, which side has more resources, better equipment and stronger army, which side's officers and men are more well-trained and more capable of fighting, which side's rewards and punishments are more fair and clear) that determine the outcomes of military engagements. By thinking, assessing and comparing these points, a commander can calculate his chances of victory. Habitual deviation from these calculations will ensure failure via improper action. The text stresses that war is a very grave matter for the state and must not be commenced without due consideration.
II
Waging War
The Challenge
Waging War
Waging War (作戰; zuòzhàn)
Initiating Battle
Explains how to understand the economy of warfare and how success requires winning decisive engagements quickly. This section advises that successful military campaigns require limiting the cost of competition and conflict.
III
Attack by Stratagem
The Plan of Attack
Planning Offensives
Strategic Attack (謀攻)
Planning an Attack
Defines the source of strength as unity, not size, and discusses the five factors that are needed to succeed in any war. In order of importance, these critical factors are: Attack, Strategy, Alliances, Army and Cities.
IV
Tactical Dispositions
Positioning
Military Disposition
Disposition of the Army (軍形)
Forms to Perceive
Explains the importance of defending existing positions until a commander is capable of advancing from those positions in safety. It teaches commanders the importance of recognizing strategic opportunities, and teaches not to create opportunities for the enemy.
V
Use of Energy
Directing
Strategic Military Power
Forces (兵勢)
The Disposition of Power
Explains the use of creativity and timing in building an army's momentum.
VI
Weak Points and Strong
Illusion and Reality
Vacuity and Substance
Weaknesses and Strengths (虛實)
Weak and Strong
Explains how an army's opportunities come from the openings in the environment caused by the relative weakness of the enemy and how to respond to changes in the fluid battlefield over a given area.
VII
Maneuvering an Army
Engaging The Force
Military Combat
Military Maneuvers (軍爭)
Contending Armies
Explains the dangers of direct conflict and how to win those confrontations when they are forced upon the commander.
VIII
Variation of Tactics
The Nine Variations
Nine Changes
Variations and Adaptability (九變)
Nine Contingencies
Focuses on the need for flexibility in an army's responses. It explains how to respond to shifting circumstances successfully.
IX
The Army on the March
Moving The Force
Maneuvering the Army
Movement and Development of Troops (行軍)
Fielding the Army
Describes the different situations in which an army finds itself as it moves through new enemy territories, and how to respond to these situations. Much of this section focuses on evaluating the intentions of others.
X
Classification of Terrain
Situational Positioning
Configurations of Terrain
Terrain (地形)
Conformations of the Lands
Looks at the three general areas of resistance (distance, dangers and barriers) and the six types of ground positions that arise from them. Each of these six field positions offers certain advantages and disadvantages.
XI
The Nine Situations
The Nine Situations
Nine Terrains
The Nine Battlegrounds (九地)
Nine Kinds of Ground
Describes the nine common situations (or stages) in a campaign, from scattering to deadly, and the specific focus that a commander will need in order to successfully navigate them.
XII
Attack by Fire
The Fiery Attack
Incendiary Attacks
Attacking with Fire (火攻)
Attacks with Fire
Explains the general use of weapons and the specific use of the environment as a weapon. This section examines the five targets for attack, the five types of environmental attack and the appropriate responses to such attacks.
XIII
Use of Spies
The Use of Intelligence
Employing Spies
Intelligence and Espionage (用間)
Using Spies
Focuses on the importance of developing good information sources, and specifies the five types of intelligence sources and how to best manage each of them.
Across East Asia, The Art of War was part of the syllabus for potential candidates of military service examinations.
During the Sengoku period (c. 1467–1568), the Japanese daimyōTakeda Shingen (1521–1573) is said to have become almost invincible in all battles without relying on guns, because he studied The Art of War.[20] The book even gave him the inspiration for his famous battle standard "Fūrinkazan" (Wind, Forest, Fire and Mountain), meaning fast as the wind, silent as a forest, ferocious as fire and immovable as a mountain.
The translator Samuel B. Griffith offers a chapter on "Sun Tzu and Mao Tse-Tung" where The Art of War is cited as influencing Mao's On Guerrilla Warfare, On the Protracted War and Strategic Problems of China's Revolutionary War, and includes Mao's quote: "We must not belittle the saying in the book of Sun Wu Tzu, the great military expert of ancient China, 'Know your enemy and know yourself and you can fight a thousand battles without disaster.'"[20]
During the Vietnam War, some Viet Cong officers extensively studied The Art of War and reportedly could recite entire passages from memory. General Võ Nguyên Giáp successfully implemented tactics described in The Art of War during the Battle of Dien Bien Phu ending major French involvement in Indochina and leading to the accords which partitioned Vietnam into North and South. General Giáp, later the main PVA military commander in the Vietnam War, was an avid student and practitioner of Sun Tzu's ideas.[21]
Outside East Asia
The United States' defeat in the Vietnam War, more than any other event, brought Sun Tzu to the attention of leaders of U.S. military theory.[21][22][23] The Department of the Army in the United States, through its Command and General Staff College, lists The Art of War as one example of a book that may be kept at a military unit's library.[24]The Art of War is listed on the US Marine Corps Professional Reading Program (formerly known as the Commandant's Reading List). It is recommended reading for all United States Military Intelligence personnel.[25]The Art of War is also used as instructional material at the United States Military Academy (commonly known as West Point), in the course Military Strategy (470).[26] It is also recommended reading for Officer cadets at the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst. Some notable military leaders have stated the following about Sun Tzu and The Art of War:
According to some authors, the strategy of deception from The Art of War was studied and widely used by the KGB: "I will force the enemy to take our strength for weakness, and our weakness for strength, and thus will turn his strength into weakness".[29]
Application outside the military
The Art of War has been applied to many fields outside of the military. Much of the text is about how to outsmart one's opponent without actually having to engage in physical battle. As such, it has found application as a training guide for many competitive endeavors that do not involve actual combat.
The Art of War is mentioned as an influence in the earliest known Chinese collection of stories about fraud (mostly in the realm of commerce), Zhang Yingyu's The Book of Swindles (Du pian xin shu, 杜騙新書, c. 1617), which dates to the late Ming dynasty.[30]
Many business books have applied the lessons taken from the book to office politics and corporate business strategy.[31][32][33] Many Japanese companies make the book required reading for their key executives.[34] The book is also popular among Western business circles citing its utilitarian values regarding management practices. Many entrepreneurs and corporate executives have turned to it for inspiration and advice on how to succeed in competitive business situations. The book has also been applied to the field of education.[35]
The Art of War has been the subject of legal books[36] and legal articles on the trial process, including negotiation tactics and trial strategy.[37][38][39][40]
The book Sun Tzu Soccer by Liam Shannon is a direct translation of The Art of War into soccer language and scenarios.[46]
Playing To Win by David Sirlin analyses applications of the ideas from The Art of War in modern esports.[47]The Art of War was released in 2014 as an e-book companion alongside the Art of War DLC for Europa Universalis IV, a PC strategy game by Paradox Development Studios, with a foreword by Thomas Johansson.
Film and television
The Art of War and Sun Tzu have been referenced and quoted in many movies and television shows, including in the 1987 movie Wall Street, in which Gordon Gekko (Michael Douglas) frequently references it.[48] The 20th James Bond film, Die Another Day (2002) also references The Art of War as the spiritual guide shared by Colonel Moon and his father.[49] In The Sopranos, season 3, episode 8 ("He Is Risen"), Dr. Melfi suggests to Tony Soprano that he read the book.[50]
In the Star Trek: The Next Generation first-season episode "The Last Outpost", first officer William Riker quotes The Art of War: "Fear is the true enemy, the only enemy". Captain Picard expressed pleasure that Sun Tzu was still taught at Starfleet Academy. Later in the episode, a survivor from a long-dead nonhuman empire noted common aspects between his own people's wisdom and The Art of War with regard to knowing when and when not to fight.[51]
^McNeilly, Mark R. (2015). Sun Tzu and the Art of Modern Warfare (updated ed.). Oxford University Press. p. 301. ISBN9780199957859. Retrieved 14 December 2022. Sun Tzu is not talking about 'news' here but about espionage affairs, or matters or plans relating to espionage.
^Liu An (original compiler), Xu Shen (annotator). Huainan Honglie (Annotated), "Survey Obscurities". Main text: 「夫死生同域，不可脅陵，勇武一人，為三軍雄。」; Major et al.'s (2010) translation: "One for whom death and life are the same territory, who cannot be threatened, such a single brave warrior is the hero of the Three Armies."; Siku Quanshu version. vols. 4-7, p. 96 of 160Archived 15 April 2023 at the Wayback Machine; Annotation: 「武士也；江淮間謂士曰武。」
^Liu An (2010) The Huainanzi: A Guide to the Theory and Practice of Government in Early Han China. Translated and edited by John S. Major, Sarah A. Queen, Aandrew Seth Meyer, and Harold D. Roth. New York: Columbia University Press, 2010. p. 215
^Sunzi (2009). Shawn Conners (ed.). Sun-tzu ping fa [The art of war]. Translated by Lionel Giles (Classic ed.). El Paso, TX: El Paso Norte Press. ISBN978-1-934255-15-5. OCLC433665014.
^ abGriffith, Samuel B.The Illustrated Art of War. 2005. Oxford University Press. pp. 17, 141–43.
^ abMcCready, Douglas. Learning from Sun Tzu, Military Review, May–June 2003."Learning from Sun Tzu". Archived from the original on 11 October 2011. Retrieved 19 December 2009.
^Forbes, Andrew; Henley, David (2012). The Illustrated Art of War: Sun Tzu. Chiang Mai: Cognoscenti Books. ASINB00B91XX8U
^Army, U. S. (1985). Military History and Professional Development. U. S. Army Command and General Staff College, Fort Leavenworth, Kansas: Combat Studies Institute. 85-CSI-21 85.
^"Messages". Archived from the original on 2 October 2012. Retrieved 2 June 2009.
^Yevgenia Albats and Catherine A. Fitzpatrick. The State Within a State: The KGB and Its Hold on Russia – Past, Present, and Future. 1994. ISBN0-374-52738-5, chapter Who was behind perestroika?
^Jeffrey, D (2010). "A Teacher Diary Study to Apply Ancient Art of War Strategies to Professional Development". The International Journal of Learning. 7 (3): 21–36.
^Barnhizer, David. The Warrior Lawyer: Powerful Strategies for Winning Legal Battles Irvington-on-Hudson, NY: Bridge Street Books, 1997.
^Balch, Christopher D., "The Art of War and the Art of Trial Advocacy: Is There Common Ground?" (1991), 42 Mercer L. Rev. 861–73
Gawlikowski, Krzysztof; Loewe, Michael (1993). "Sun tzu ping fa 孫子兵法". In Loewe, Michael (ed.). Early Chinese Texts: A Bibliographical Guide. Berkeley, CA: Society for the Study of Early China; Institute of East Asian Studies, University of California, Berkeley. pp. 446–455. ISBN978-1-55729-043-4.
Graff, David A. (2002). Medieval Chinese Warfare, 300–900. Warfare and History. London: Routledge. ISBN978-0415239554.
Griffith, Samuel (2005). Sun Tzu: The Illustrated Art of War. New York: Oxford University Press. ISBN978-0195189995.
Smith, Kidder (1999). "The Military Texts: The Sunzi". In de Bary, Wm. Theodore (ed.). Sources of Chinese Tradition: From Earliest Times to 1600, Volume 1 (2nd ed.). New York: Columbia University Press. pp. 213–224. ISBN978-0-231-10938-3.
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