Pieces of the Past

The Art of War by Sun Zi: A Book for All Times

By staff reporter HUO JIANYING

Copper yue (axe) with a dragon design, from the 14th century B.C.

OVER the past 2,500 years, the principles as set out by Sun Zi in The Art of War have been applied in innumerable wars, and his strategies also utilized within a broad scope of competition. The book is consequently indispensable to military strategists, although its readers are by no means confined to military men. It is a collection of maxims from the wisest of the wise, which is why it has compelled so many people right through to the present day to read, study, and apply its tenets.

About The Art of War

Totaling less than 6,000 Chinese characters in its original classical form, and about 20,000 modern Chinese characters, this is not a lengthy book. At just one- thousandth the magnitude of "On War" by Karl won Clausewitz (1780-1831), the famous 19th-century German strategist, it is nonetheless of equal status and significance, and has sustained the domino effect it initiated since first emerging. Countless scholars and specialists - ancient and modern, Chinese and foreign, have conducted research on the work, and the scholarly writings it has engendered are legion.

Application of The Art of War has extended the longest period of any such work: from the era of cold steel to that of firearms, and from mechanized war materiel to the digital apparatus of the 21st century. It is reported that the kit of every soldier in the US Marine Corps includes an English version of The Art of War.

On the eve of the 21st century, the Fifth International Symposium on The Art of War was held in China. Scholars from all over the world gathered to explore ways of maintaining world peace through discussion of the concepts of war as expounded in the book.

Gold-inlaid bronze tiger-shaped tally, issued to generals as imperial authorization for troop movement.

The Art of War is the most widely applied military philosophical work in the world. It is a source of reference for government leaders when working out policies of national security and defense, and a compulsory textbook at countless military academies. Businessmen use it as a guide to succeeding in market competition, as do entrepreneurs in order to develop and organize their enterprises effectively. Several websites calling themselves "Share Speculation Using The Art of War" have recently appeared, quoting strategies from the book for the use of aspirant speculators to guide them in their stock market dealings.

A news item broadcast by China Radio International (CRI) revealed that in "The Sopranos," a highly successful TV series aired in Britain last year, the protagonist tells his psychiatrist of his liking for The Art of War. He admits that his first impression of this ancient Chinese book was that it was nothing but a collection of platitudes, but that after a closer reading he realized that the principles expounded by Sun Zi 2,500 years ago are still universally applicable. This aroused great interest among British viewers, and the book rapidly became a bestseller, obliging the Oxford University Press to print another 25,000 copies in order to meet the demand.

This book has long enjoyed a high reputation abroad. In the early Tang Dynasty, over 1,300 years ago, it was introduced to Japan, and became known as the "greatest martial classic." In the latter half of the 18th century it was introduced to France, and later to Russia, Britain, Germany and the United States. There is currently a Hollywood movie entitled "Sun Zi," in progress, with The Art of War as its theme.

Martial Expert, Yes; Bellicose, No

Copper helmet, from the Spring and Autumn Period.

Sun Zi (Master Sun), born Sun Wu, alias Changqing, was born in 535 B.C., of a family of nobles. He lived in the late Spring and Autumn Period (770-476 B.C.), when wars were frequent, and was consequently all too aware of the cruelty and destruction they imbued. Although he engaged in research on war and military theory, he was by no means of a bellicose bent. He was, on the contrary, as a result of his research and practice, cautious in his approach to war. He pointed out in his book that military action is of vital importance to the state, as it is a matter of life and death, and the road that leads either to stability or ruin. Hence it is a subject that should on no account be neglected. It is clear when following the main thread of the book that Sun Zi believed that war could be a means to stopping and eliminating it, and that the problems encompassed by war could be solved by non-war methods.

War is the last resort when all other means have failed - this is Sun Zi's theory, and has been the traditional Chinese outlook on war for thousands of years.

The Chinese character wu (martial) comprises two parts: one that means "stop" and the other symbolizing a halberd - a weapon of war, so the character actually means "stop war."

In ancient times, the Chinese divided state affairs into two categories, military and civil. The former referred to politics, economics and administration, and the latter to military affairs and wars. This Chinese character therefore makes plain that ancients regarded "martial" as a way of stopping war and safeguarding peace.

A halberd of copper-nickel alloy, from the Warring States Period.

For thousands of years, Chinese people have followed the old maxim, "bellicosity leads to destruction, and ignoring the possibility of war to danger," regarding it as a basic guiding principle when drafting state policies. China's military strategy has always been one of self-defense. In Chapter Eight, "Variation of Tactics," Sun Zi wrote: "The art of war teaches us to rely not on the likelihood of the enemy's not coming, but on our own readiness to receive him; not on the chance of his not attacking, but rather on the fact that we have made our position unassailable." Here he stressed that only preparedness can ensure security. In order to prevent enemy attack, a country must have comprehensive national and military strength.

When expounding on governmental tactics, Shang Yang (390-338 BC), a statesman of the Warring States Period, said, "When a war is waged to stop war, then it is desirable."

The book documents the strategic principle commended by many military strategists: "Breaking down the enemy's resistance without fighting" (see Chapter Three: Attack by Stratagem). According to Sun Zi, fighting and conquering through battle is not the achievement of supreme excellence, but breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting is. In practicing the art of war, the highest form of generalship is to balk enemy plans; the next is to isolate him from his allies through diplomatic means, followed by attacking the enemy army in the field, the worst policy of all being to besiege a walled city.

Sword used by Gou Jian (496-465 B.C.), king of Yue, during the Warring States Period.

Since ancient times, when waging war through military action, both victor and loser have a price to pay. As the Chinese saying goes, "In order to kill 3,000 enemies, one must pay the price of 800 casualties within one's own forces." In the cold steel era, war casualties were unavoidable, but in modern warfare they became even heavier, as the proportion of civilian deaths and injuries increased. The appearance of weapons of mass destruction now means that casualties on either side of a war can be numbered in tens of thousands. The cruelty and destructiveness of modern war therefore dictates the need to treat it in a more rational and circumspect way, particularly large-scale, comprehensive war.

Today, the best policy for any nation working is to recognize and respect differences in values, under the prerequisite of respecting the sovereignty and human rights of diverse countries, and to seek strategic common points through dialogue, consultation and understanding. When facing discord and conflict, a mode of thinking should be adopted other than one that leads to military confrontation, and the most likely starting point for this may be found in The Art of War.

Of the 13 chapters of The Art of War, methods of fighting take up the greatest number. Sun Zi knew very well that when war is inevitable, the only option is to face it resolutely and bravely, and to eliminate the enemy in the shortest possible time and at the least cost. As he stressed repeatedly, "speed is everything in the conduct of war." He held that war, like other temporal matters, has its own laws, and is predictable. To a military commander, most important of all is to "know the enemy and know yourself," as only then is it possible to "fight a hundred battles without defeat."

The Art of War: Not a Secret Weapon

Pottery archer in kneeling position, Qin Dynasty (221-207 B.C.)

In ancient times, all generals were required to be familiar with martial classics and have a good mastery of the art of war. In 1972, bamboo slips inscribed with The Art of War were unearthed from a Western Han Dynasty (206-25 B.C.) tomb at Yinque Mountain, Linyi, Shandong Province, indicating that the work was widely read at that time. Cao Cao, the great strategist of the Three Kingdoms Period, produced annotations to The Art of War. It was also greatly valued by Li Shimin (598-649), Emperor Taizong of the Tang Dynasty, who commented, "Among all the books on the art of war, the one by Sun Wu is the most profound."

During the Yuanfeng reign (1078-1085) of the Song Dynasty, the imperial court selected seven martial classics as textbooks for the wuju (military elect -- the designation awarded men chosen as suitable for careers as military officers by virtue of having passed examinations in military skills), and The Art of War by Sun Zi was first on the list.

Mao Yuanyi, a military theoretician of the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) once commented, "Among the six pre-Qin military strategists, Sun Zi left none unnoticed, and of those after him, none can leave Sun Zi unnoticed." This indicates that The Art of War by Sun Zi, this seminal martial classic, embodies the essence of everything his predecessors wrote, and that nobody has ever been able to augment his theories.

The book is not, however, any kind of guarantee of victory in war. The more than 2,000 years since its appearance have proved that even when both antagonists in a war apply its principles, there nevertheless has to be a victor and a loser.

In war, this is of course inevitable, and in Chapter One, Sun Zi wrote of the many factors that decide victory or defeat. They are, in the main, the prevailing politics at the time; seasonal and climatic conditions; geographical environment and terrain; the wisdom of the ruler, talent of his generals, and quality of troops; and the people's support. Sun Zi realized all this more than 2,000 years ago, and that such factors can change at any time, so war is consequently much more than just a trial of military strength and technical equipment.

Bamboo slips inscribed with The Art of War by Sun Zi, unearthed from Yinque Hill.

Sun Zi further pointed out that such methods of analysis and judgement are known to all, but that it is only those able to apply them in a flexible fashion that win. Ancient strategists had a deep understanding of this phenomenon. Yue Fei (1103-1142), a famous general who won many battles against Jin invaders during the Southern Song Dynasty, said, "Ingenuity in varying tactics depends on innate wit."

In the history of war, there have, therefore, been many cases of the weak defeating the strong, of a small force defeating a larger one, and of defeat being turned into victory. Sun Zi wrote, "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, may be called a heaven-born captain." In a sense, no side is "absolutely invincible" in a war, at least not in every battle within an entire war.

At the start of the 21st century, peace and development are the main common goals, but war and its latency nevertheless threaten world safety. Today, as regards the study of and research into The Art of War, there is an ever-growing tendency for the focus to be shifted towards rational cognition, and transposing certain of its concepts and theories to a more academic rationale dedicated to world peace. One can only hope that this indicates a greater degree of civilization, progress, maturity and wisdom within humankind.