If fighting is sure to result in victory, then you must fight, even though the ruler forbid it; if fighting will not result in victory, then you must not fight even at the ruler’s bidding. In this passage, Sun Tzu presents a profound principle of warfare and leadership: the decision to engage in battle should […]

He who knows these things, and in fighting puts his knowledge into practice, will win his battles. He who knows them not, nor practices them, will surely be defeated. In this section, Sun Tzu asserts a fundamental principle: knowledge, when combined with practical application, is the key to winning battles. He highlights that a commander

The natural formation of the country is the soldier’s best ally; but a power of estimating the adversary, of controlling the forces of victory, and of shrewdly calculating difficulties, dangers and distances, constitutes the test of a great general. In this section, Sun Tzu underscores the idea that the natural terrain and geography of a

When a general, unable to estimate the enemy’s strength, allows an inferior force to engage a larger one, or hurls a weak detachment against a powerful one, and neglects to place picked soldiers in the front rank, the result must be rout. In this section, Sun Tzu emphasizes the critical importance of correctly estimating the

When the higher officers are angry and insubordinate, and on meeting the enemy give battle on their own account from a feeling of resentment, before the commander-in-chief can tell whether or no he is in a position to fight, the result is ruin. In this section, Sun Tzu cautions against a particularly dangerous situation within

When the common soldiers are too strong and their officers too weak, the result is insubordination. When the officers are too strong and the common soldiers too weak, the result is collapse. In this section, Sun Tzu highlights the importance of maintaining a delicate balance of power within an army, specifically between officers and common

Other conditions being equal, if one force is hurled against another ten times its size, the result will be the flight of the former. In this section, Sun Tzu discusses the critical importance of considering relative force size when engaging in military conflicts. He emphasizes that, all other conditions being equal, when a smaller force

These six are the principles connected with Earth. The general who has attained a responsible post must be careful to study them. Now an army is exposed to six several calamities, not arising from natural causes, but from faults for which the general is responsible. These are (1) Flight;(2) insubordination;(3) collapse;(4) ruin;(5) disorganization;(6) rout. In

If you are situated at a great distance from the enemy, and the strength of the two armies is equal, it is not easy to provoke a battle, and fighting will be to your disadvantage. In this section, Sun Tzu offers insights into the dynamics of engaging in battle when an army is situated at