The Art of War

Sun TzuTranslated byThomas Cleary

Historical Background• Written during the Warring States period in China (from the fifth to the third century B.C.E.)

• Disintegration of the Zhou dynasty

Historical Background• “Destabilization

of interstate relationships and interminable warfare among aspirants to hegemony in the midst of ever-shifting patterns pf alliance and opposition” (Cleary 27)

• Confucius followers– Chuan-tzu

• He worked the problem from different angles rather than avoid them like Confucius

“Usurpers set themselves up as lords and kings, states run by pretenders and plotters set

up armies to make themselves superpowers. Increasingly they imitated one another in

this, and their posterity foll owed their example. Eventually they engulfed and destroyed

each other, colluding with larger territories and annexing smaller territories, passing years

in violent military operations, filing the fields with bloodshed. Fathers and sons were not

close to each other, brothers were not secure with each other, husbands and wives

separated – no one could safeguard his or her life. Virtue disappeared. In later years this

grew increasingly extreme, with seven large states and fie small states contesting each

other for power. In general, this was because the Warring States were shamelessly

greedy, struggling insatiably to get ahead”

Philosophy• Confucian principles (working

against the deterioration of human values)

• Taoism– Tao (way, path, route, or sometimes doctrine

or principle)

– The object of spiritual practice is to ‘become one with the tao’ or to harmonize one’s will with Nature

– This involves meditative and moral practices • Paradox of The Art of War is

being against war

Paradox• Win without

fighting – The “strategy is to overcome others’ armies without fighting is the best of skills”

• The master warrior knows the psychology and mechanics of the conflict.– He knows every move

of an opponent– He is unknown and

has the element of surprise on his side

“Plan for what is difficult while it is easy, do what is great while it is small. The most

difficult things in the worl d must be done while they are still easy; the greatest things in

the world must be done while they are still small. For this reason sages never do what is

great, and this is why they can achieve that greatness”.