Chapter 3: Attack By Stratagem - The Art of War - Sun Tzu

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Episode Transcript

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Chapter three, Attack by Stratagem Sanzusaid, in the Practical Art of war,
the best thing of all is totake the enemy's country whole and intact
to shatter and destroy it. Isnot so good. So too, it
is better to recapture an army entirethan to destroy it, to capture a

(00:22):
regiment, a detachment, or acompany entire than to destroy them. Hence,
to fighting conquer in all your battlesis not supreme excellence. Supreme excellence
consists in breaking the enemy's resistance withoutfighting. Thus, the highest form of
generalship is to balk the enemy's plans. The next best is to prevent the

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injunction of the enemy's forces. Thenext in order is to attack the enemy's
army in the field. And theworst policy of all is to besiege walled
cities. The rule is not tobesiege walls at ease, if it can
possibly be avoided. The preparation ofmantelets, movable shelters, and various implements

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of war will take up three wholemonths, and the piling up of mounds
over against the wall will take threemonths more. The general, unable to
control his irritation, will launch hismen to the assault like swarming ants,
with the result that one third ofhis men are slain while the town still
remains untaken. Such are the disastrouseffects of a siege. Therefore, the

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skillful leader subdues the enemy's troops withoutany fighting. He captures their cities without
laying siege to them. He overthrowstheir kingdom without lengthy operations in the field.
With his forces intact, he willdispute the mastery of the empire,
and thus, without losing a man, his triumph will be complete. This

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is the method of attacking by stratagem. It is the rule in war.
If our forces are ten to theenemies one to surround him, If five
to one to attack him. Iftwice as numerous, to divide our army
into two. If equally matched,we can offer battle. If slightly inferior

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in numbers, we can avoid theenemy. If quite unequal in every way,
we can flee from him. Hence, though an obstinate fight may be
made by a small force, inthe end it must be captured by the
larger force. Now, the generalis the bulwark of the state. If
the bulwark is complete at all points, the state will be strong. If

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the bulwark is defective, the statewill be weak. There are three ways
in which a ruler can bring misfortuneupon his army. One by commanding the
army to advance or to retreat,being ignorant of the fact that it cannot
open bay. This is called hovelingthe army. Two by attempting to govern

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an army in the same way ashe administers a kingdom, being ignorant of
the conditions which obtain in an army. This causes restlessness in the soldier's minds.
Three by employing the officers of hisarmy without discrimination through ignorance of the
military principle of adaptation to circumstances.This shakes the confidence of the soldiers.

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But when the army is restless anddistrustful, trouble is sure to come from
the other feudal princes. This issimply bringing anarchy into the army and flinging
victory away. Thus we may knowthat there are five essentials for victory.
One he will win who knows whento fight and win not to fight.

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Two he will win who knows howto handle both superior and inferior forces.
Three he will win whose army isanimated by the same spirit throughout all its
ranks. Four, he will winwho prepared himself waits to take the enemy
unprepared. Five he will win whohas military capacity and is not interfered with

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by the sovereign. Hence the saying, if you know the enemy and know
yourself, you need not fear theresult of a hundred battles. If you
know yourself but not the enemy,for every victory gained, you will also
suffer a defeat. If you knowneither the enemy nor yourself, you will

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succumb in every battle. End ofChapter three