the art of war

The Art of War (Chinese: 孫子兵法; pinyin: sūn zĭ bīng fǎ) was a Chinese military text written during the 6th century BC by Sun Tzu. Composed of 13 chapters, it has long been praised as the definitive work on military strategies and tactics prior to the collapse of imperial China. It is one of the most famous studies of strategy and has had huge influence. Leaders as diverse as Mao Zedong, Giap, and Yamato have claimed to have drawn inspiration from the work. In many East Asian countries, it was part of the syllabus for potential candidates of military service examinations. Various translations are available and are used by some European military institutions, for instance, in Germany before World War I. The text of the art of war is very useful in war games ranging from board games like Risk and to computer games like StarCraft.

Applicability outside the military

Some have suggested or implied that it is applicable to more than just military endeavors. Much of the text is about how to fight wars without actually having to do battle. It gives tips for how to out-smart your opponent so that physical battle is not necessary. In more recent times it has been used as a training guide to prepare one for "office politics" and corporate culture.

History

First translated two hundred years ago by a French missionary, The Art of War has been credited with influencing Napoleon, the German General Staff, and even the planning of Operation Desert Storm. Verses from the book occur in modern daily Chinese idioms and phrases, such as the last verse of Chapter 3:

故曰：知彼知己，百戰不殆；不知彼而知己，一勝一負；不知彼，不知己，每戰必敗

So it is said that if you know others and know yourself, you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles; if you do not know others but know yourself, you win one and lose one; if you do not know others and do not know yourself, you will be imperiled in every single battle.

This has been more tersely interpreted and condensed into the modern proverb:

知己知彼, 百戰百勝

If you know yourself and know others you will win a hundred times in a hundred battles.

It has also been more dovishly interpreted and condensed into the modern proverb:

One hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the most skillful. Seizing the enemy without fighting is the most skillful..

Many Japanese companies make this book required reading for their key executives. In recent times the book has gained widespread popularity among Western business management, who are turning to this book for inspiration and advice on how to succeed in competive business situations. It has also crept its way into sport, with Australian cricket coach John Buchanan handing out excerpts from the book to his players before a match against England in 2001. At the same time this use has been criticized by many scholars of Chinese history for using The Art of War as a source of fortune cookie-like proverbs and not seeing the general coherence of the text.