Sun Tzu

"The supreme military strategist does not fight battles."

"Victorious warriors win first and then go to war."

"Only the enlightened ruler and the wise general understand the importance of spying."

"The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting."

"All warfare is based on deception."

"Know your enemy and know yourself; in a hundred battles, you will never be defeated."

"If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles."

"The skillful fighter puts himself into a position which makes defeat impossible, and then waits for an opportunity to defeat the enemy."

"Victory is determined by those who are prepared."

"Appear weak when you are strong, and strong when you are weak."

"The greatest victory is that which requires no battle."

"In the midst of chaos, there is also opportunity."

"Water does not compete with rock, yet water always wins."

"A wise warrior avoids the battle."

"To win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the highest skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the highest skill."

"When you surround an army, leave an outlet free. Do not press a desperate foe too hard."

"The supreme commander employs strategy; he does not commit himself to a particular course of action."

"Build your opponent a golden bridge to retreat across."

"Opportunities multiply as they are seized."

"It is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles."

"Delay is the enemy of victory."

"Move swift as wind, keep as still as a forest, fierce as fire, immovable as a mountain."

"Strategy without tactics is the slowest route to victory. Tactics without strategy is the noise before defeat."

"Do not engage in prolonged warfare, as it will bring losses."

"A general who advances without covetousness, retreats without fearing disgrace, whose only thought is to protect his country and do good service for his sovereign, is a jewel of the kingdom."

"Hold out baits to entice the enemy. Feign disorder, and crush him."

"If soldiers are punished before they have grown attached to you, they will not prove submissive; if not submissive, then they will be practically useless."

"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."

"Thus we may know that there are five essentials for victory: knowing when to fight and when not to fight; managing large and small numbers; understanding high and low morale; maintaining discipline in preparation and action; and choosing competent commanders."

"The highest form of strategy is to attack your opponent's strategy."