The skillful tactician may be likened to the shuai-jan. Now the shuai-jan is a snake that is found in the ChUng mountains. Strike at its head, and you will be attacked by its tail; strike at its tail, and you will be attacked by its head; strike at its middle, and you will be attacked by head and tail both. Asked if an army can be made to imitate the shuai-jan, I should answer, Yes. For the men of Wu and the men of Yueh are enemies; yet if they are crossing a river in the same boat and are caught by a storm, they will come to each other's assistance just as the left hand helps the right.Go here to read the introductory post to the verses of The Art of War.
~ from The Art of War, Giles translation ~
Sunday, January 16, 2011
Chapter 11, Verses 29 and 30 - Sun Tzu
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment
Comments are unmoderated, so you can write whatever you want.