The Art of War

"If fighting is sure to result in victory, then you must fight."

"Thus one may know that the leader of an army is able to control chaos."

"Victory is determined by the side that has more and better information."

"When you surround an enemy, leave an outlet free."

"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."

"Do not repeat the tactics which have gained you one victory."

"In making tactical dispositions, the highest pitch you can attain is to conceal them."

"The value of time is immeasurable."

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

"The peak efficiency of knowledge and strategy is to make conflict unnecessary."

"There is no instance of a country having benefited from prolonged warfare."

"By method and discipline are to be understood the marshalling of the army in its proper subdivisions."

"Even the finest sword plunges rusted into the ground."

"Among the three armies, those that make no movement are the best."

"The good fighters of old first put themselves beyond the possibility of defeat."

"A clever general, therefore, avoids his strength and strikes his weakness."

"Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt."

"Discipline can be maintained by benevolence and justice."

"It is a military axiom not to advance uphill against the enemy, nor to oppose him when he comes downhill."

"The opportunity to secure ourselves against defeat lies in our own hands."

"Great results can be achieved with small forces."

"Treat your men as you would treat your own beloved sons."

"A wise general makes a point of foraging on the enemy."

"To win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill."

"The general who wins a battle makes many calculations in his temple before the battle is fought."

"When capable, feign incapacity; when active, inactivity."

"Concentrate your energy and hoard your strength."

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

"Water shapes its course based on the ground over which it flows."

"Rapidity is the essence of war."