Quotes By Sun Tzu

If fighting is sure to result in victory, than you must fight, even though the ruler forbid it; if fighting will not result in victory, then you must not fight even at the ruler's bidding.

Now the reason the enlightened prince and the wise general conquer the enemy whenever they move and their achievements surpass those of ordinary men is foreknowledge.

If you know the enemy and know yourself you need not fear the results of a hundred battles.

Opportunities multiply as they are seized.

Hence the saying: If you know the enemy and you know yourself, your victory will not stand in doubt; if you now Heaven and you know Earth, you may make your victory complete.

The general who advances without coveting fame and retreats without fearing disgrace, whose only thought is to protect his country and do good service for his sovereign, is the jewel of the kingdom.

There is no instance of a nation benefitting from prolonged warfare.

There has never been a protracted war from which a country has benefited.

The quality of decision is like the well-timed swoop of a falcon which enables it to strike and destroy its victim.

It is only the enlightened ruler and the wise general who will use the highest intelligence of the army for the purposes of spying, and thereby they achieve great results.

For them to perceive the advantage of defeating the enemy, they must also have their rewards.

If you are far from the enemy, make him believe you are near.

The general who wins the battle makes many calculations in his temple before the battle is fought. The general who loses makes but few calculations beforehand.

In the practical art of war, the best thing of all is to take the enemy's country whole and intact; to shatter and destroy it is not so good.

Invincibility lies in the defence; the possibility of victory in the attack.

All men can see these tactics whereby I conquer, but what none can see is the strategy out of which victory is evolved.

Prohibit the taking of omens, and do away with superstitious doubts. Then, until death itself comes, no calamity need be feared.

Of all those in the army close to the commander none is more intimate than the secret agent; of all rewards none more liberal than those given to secret agents; of all matters none is more confidential than those relating to secret operations.

If ignorant both of your enemy and yourself, you are certain to be in peril.

To fight and conquer in all our battles is not supreme excellence; supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting.

All war is deception.

Thus it is that in war the victorious strategist only seeks battle after the victory has been won, whereas he who is destined to defeat first fights and afterwards looks for victory.

Hence that general is skilful in attack whose opponent does not know what to defend; and he is skilful in defense whose opponent does not know what to attack.

He who is prudent and lies in wait for an enemy who is not, will be victorious.

The enlightened ruler is heedful, and the good general full of caution.

It is essential to seek out enemy agents who have come to conduct espionage against you and to bribe them to serve you. Give them instructions and care for them. Thus doubled agents are recruited and used.

When envoys are sent with compliments in their mouths, it is a sign that the enemy wishes for a truce.

Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win.

The good fighters of old first put themselves beyond the possibility of defeat, and then waited for an opportunity of defeating the enemy.

If our soldiers are not overburdened with money, it is not because they have a distaste for riches; if their lives are not unduly long, it is not because they are disinclined to longevity.