The Art of War: 36 Stratagems

Author: Liu Taihua
Notes:
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2004-04-01
Features: The Art of War has had a profound impact since its inception. Han Feizi, in the essay The Five Pests, remarked, "Within the state, all speak of war, and every household possesses the books of Sun Tzu and Wu Qi." This illustrates its prominence. During the Three Kingdoms period, Cao Cao pioneered the annotation of The Art of War, and thereafter, numerous scholars followed suit, producing influential works. The most widely circulated annotations were those of the ten schools from the Song Dynasty. The Art of War has also been widely disseminated abroad. In 753, during the reign of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang, the Japanese student Kibi no Makibi brought The Art of War to Japan. Subsequently, related works were published in Japan. In 1772, The Art of War was introduced to the West, with translations appearing in France, England, Germany, and other countries. Among these numerous translations, the version by General Griffiths, a British sinologist and military theorist, is considered the most outstanding, and it was included in UNESCO's "Chinese Representative Series." Military academies in the United States, the United Kingdom, and other countries often use this translation as a textbook. The great conqueror Napoleon, while exiled, saw The Art of War and lamented, "If I had read this book earlier, I would not have suffered such a defeat." The Art of War enjoys a high reputation in both Chinese military history and world military history. John Kessel, in his 1973 book Grand Strategy, stated, "Sun Tzu was a great figure in the formation of strategic thought, and his works are comparable to those of, including Clausewitz's writings two thousand two hundred years later. Today, no one has a deeper understanding of the interrelationships, considerations, and limitations of strategy than he. Most of his ideas remain as significant in our current context as they were at the time." During the 1990 Gulf War, every U.S. Marine was given a copy of The Art of War. After the war, a Western journalist remarked that, in a sense, America's victory was a victory of The Art of War. The ideas of The Art of War are not only applied in military affairs but also widely used in fields such as business management, commodity circulation, domestic and foreign affairs, sports competition, and interpersonal relationships. C. S. George, an American management scholar, wrote in The History of Management Thought, "If you want to become a management talent, you must read The Art of War." The Art of War is a masterpiece of ancient Chinese military thought and a treasure in the world's military theory treasury. The 36 Stratagems is another military classic that complements The Art of War. The author and time of composition of The 36 Stratagems are difficult to ascertain with certainty. From the Biography of Wang Jingze in the History of the Southern Qi Dynasty, it is evident that the 36 stratagems had already become a common saying at that time. The 36 Stratagems is divided into six sets: "Victory Stratagems," "Enemy Stratagems," "Attack Stratagems," "Chaos Stratagems," "Alliance Stratagems," and "Defeat Stratagems." The first three sets are used when in a superior position, while the last three are used when in a disadvantageous position. Each set includes six stratagems, totaling 36. The names of the stratagems are all well-known idioms familiar to all. The explanations for each stratagem are often derived from the principles of yin and yang in the I Ching, involving concepts such as numerology, yin and yang, constancy and change, division and unity, gain and loss, hardness and softness, truth and deception, motion and stillness, capture and release, dominance and subordination, madness and sanity, life and death, and their interrelationships and transformations. In particular, it demonstrates a deep understanding of the principles of yin and yang harmony and the idea that extremes lead to reversal. Many of the stratagems in The 36 Stratagems are specific manifestations and applications of the ideas in The Art of War. Each stratagem in The 36 Stratagems is followed by "annotations" from later scholars, which are included in this book to enhance understanding, make the work more complete, and present it in accurate, vivid, and concise language. One of our goals is to enable more people to gain wisdom from ancient Chinese military classics.