The Martial Lord of Wei asked one of his ministers what made a nation perish. The minister replied, "Numerous victories in numerous wars."Hmm. I wonder if our President and members of Congress have ever read the Huainanzi? If not, maybe we should suggest they do so!! I bet they could learn a thing or two.
The lord said, "A nation is fortunate to win numerous victories in numerous wars -- why would it perish thereby?"
The minister said, "When there are repeated wars, the people are weakened; when they score repeated victories, rulers become haughty. Let haughty rulers command weakened people, and rare is the nation that will not perish as a result."
~ a passage from The Book of Leadership and Strategy by Thomas Cleary ~
To read the introduction to this ongoing series, go here.
They've read the Bible.
ReplyDeleteOr...maybe the biblical writers read The Chinese Masters!
ReplyDelete