The Art of War
by Sun Tzu

Publication date 2006-11-02
Usage Public DomainCreative Commons Licensepublicdomain
Topics librivox, audiobook, literature, war, Sun Tzu, Sunzi, Lionel Giles
Librivox recording of The Art of War by Sun Tzu, translated by Lionel Giles.
Read by Moira Fogarty.

"The Art of War is a Chinese military treatise written during the 6th century BC by Sun Tzu. Composed of 13 chapters, each of which is devoted to one aspect of warfare, it has long been praised as the definitive work on military strategies and tactics of its time. The Art of War is one of the oldest and most famous studies of strategy and has had a huge influence on both military planning and beyond. The Art of War has also been applied, with much success, to business and managerial strategies."
(summary from Wikipedia)
this is a librivox recording all librivox recordings are in the public domain for more information and to find out how you can volunteer please visit librivox.org recording by moyra fogarty art of war by sun tzu translated by lionel giles part 7 maneuvering sun tzu said in war the general receives his commands from the sovereign having collected an army and concentrated his forces he must blend and harmonize the different elements thereof before pitching his camp after that comes tactical maneuvering then which there is nothing more difficult the difficulty of tactical maneuvering consists in turning the devious into the direct and misfortune into gain thus to take a long and circuitous route after enticing the enemy out of the way and those starting after him to contrive to reach the goal before him shows knowledge of the artifice of deviation maneuvering with an army is advantageous with an undisciplined multitude most dangerous if you set a fully equipped army in march in order to snatch an advantage the chances are that you will be too late on the other hand to detach a flying column for the purpose involves the sacrifice of its baggage and stores thus if you order your men to roll up their buff coats and make forced marches without halting day or night covering double the usual distance at a stretch doing a hundred li in order to rest an advantage the leaders of all your three divisions will fall into the hands of the enemy the stronger men will be in front the jaded ones will fall behind and on this plan only one tenth of your army will reach its destination if you march 50 li in order to outmaneuver the enemy you will lose the leader of your first division and only half your force will reach the goal if you march 30 li with the same object two-thirds of your army will arrive we may take it then that an army without its baggage train is lost without provisions it is lost without basis of supply it is lost we cannot enter into alliances until we are acquainted with the designs of our neighbors we are not fit to lead an army on the march unless we are familiar with the face of the country its mountains and forests its pitfalls and precipices its marshes and swamps we shall be unable to turn natural advantage to account unless we make use of local guides in war practice to simulation and you will succeed whether to concentrate or to divide your troops must be decided by circumstances let your rapidity be that of the wind your compactness that of the forest in raiding and plundering be like fire in immovability like a mountain let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night and when you move fall like a thunderbolt when you plunder a countryside let the spoil be divided amongst your men when you capture new territory cut it up into allotments for the benefit of the soldiery ponder and deliberate before you make a move he will conquer who has learned the artifice of deviation such as the art of maneuvering the book of army management says on the field of battle the spoken word does not carry far enough hence the institution of gongs and drums nor can ordinary objects be seen clearly enough hence the institution of banners and flags gongs and drums banners and flags are means whereby the ears and eyes of the host may be focused on one particular point the host thus forming a single united body it is impossible either for the brave to advance alone or for the cowardly to retreat alone this is the art of handling large masses of men in night fighting then make much use of signal flyers and drums and in fighting by day of flags and banners as a means of influencing the ears and eyes of your army a whole army may be robbed of its spirit a commander-in-chief may be robbed of his presence of mind now a soldier's spirit is keenest in the morning by noonday it has begun to flag and in the evening his mind is bent only on returning to camp a clever general therefore avoids an army when its spirit is keen but attacks it when it is sluggish and inclined to return this is the art of studying moods disciplined and calm to await the appearance of disorder and hubbub amongst the enemy this is the art of retaining self-possession to be near the goal while the enemy is still far from it to wait at ease while the enemy is toiling and struggling to be well fed while the enemy is famished this is the art of husbanding one's strength to refrain from intercepting an enemy whose banners are in perfect order to refrain from attacking an army drawn up in calm and confident array this is the art of studying circumstances it is a military axiom not to advance uphill against the enemy nor to oppose him when he comes downhill do not pursue an enemy who simulates flight do not attack soldiers whose temper is keen do not swallow bait offered by the enemy do not interfere with an army that is returning home when you surround an army leave an outlet free do not press a desperate foe too hard such is the art of warfare end of part seven part 8 variation in tactics sun tzu said in war the general receives his commands from the sovereign collects his army and concentrates his forces when in difficult country do not encamp in country where high roads intersect join hands with your allies do not linger in dangerously isolated positions in hemmed in situations you must resort to stratagem in desperate position you must fight there are roads which must not be followed armies which must not be attacked towns which must not be besieged positions which must not be contested commands of the sovereign which must not be obeyed the general who thoroughly understands the advantages that accompany variation of tactics knows how to handle his troops the general who does not understand these may be well acquainted with the configuration of the country yet he will not be able to turn his knowledge to practical account so the student of war who is unversed in the art of war of varying his plans even though he be acquainted with the five advantages will fail to make the best use of his men hence in the wise leaders plans considerations of advantage and of disadvantage will be blended together if our expectation of advantage be tempered in this way we may succeed in accomplishing the essential part of our schemes if on the other hand in the midst of difficulties we are always ready to seize an advantage we may extricate ourselves from misfortune reduce the hostile chiefs by inflicting damage on them and make trouble for them and keep them constantly engaged hold out specious allurements and make them rush to any given point the art of war teaches us to rely not on the likelihood of the enemies 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 there are five dangerous faults which may affect a general one recklessness which leads to destruction two cowardice which leads to capture three a hasty temper which can be provoked by insults four a delicacy of honor which is sensitive to shame five over-solicitude for his men which exposes him to worry and trouble these are the five besetting sins of a general ruin us to the conduct of war when an army is overthrown and its leader slain the cause will surely be found among these five dangerous faults let them be a subject of meditation end of part nine recorded in toronto ontario by moyer fogarty october 2006.