"The Wisdom of Leadership in Zizhi Tongjian"

Author: Sima Guang of the Northern Song Dynasty
Publisher:
Publishing Date: 2003-01-01
Features: Mao Zedong said: "China has two great books, one is the Records of the Grand Historian and the other is the Zizhi Tongjian. They were both written by talented individuals who were politically unsuccessful. The Zizhi Tongjian is a book worth rereading. Some people say that politics cannot be separated from historical knowledge. Others say that politics cannot be separated from power politics and intrigue. Some even say that politics is all about deception. I want to give these people a sentence, but it’s not me who said it—I’m just passing on a flower to offer to the Buddha. It was said by Mr. Lu Xun: 'Deception has techniques and can be effective. However, it is limited. Therefore, those who achieve great things through deception have never existed in history.'" This book is a chronological universal history compiled by the Song Dynasty historian Sima Guang and others. It covers events from the 23rd year of King Weilie of the Zhou Dynasty in the Warring States period (403 BC) to the 6th year of Xiande in the Zhou Dynasty of the Five Dynasties (959 AD), recording a total of 1,362 years of history.