Chapter VII: Manœuvering

1Sun Tzŭ said: In war, the general receives his commands from the sovereign.

2Having collected an army and concentrated his forces, he must blend and harmonise the different elements thereof before pitching his camp.

3After that, comes tactical manœuvering, than which there is nothing more difficult. The difficulty of tactical manœuvering consists in turning the devious into the direct, and misfortune into gain.

4Thus, to take a long and circuitous route, after enticing the enemy out of the way, and though starting after him, to contrive to reach the goal before him, shows knowledge of the artifice of deviation.

5Manœuvering with an army is advantageous; with an undisciplined multitude, most dangerous.

6If you set a fully equipped army in march in order to snatch an advantage, the chances are that you will be too late. On the other hand, to detach a flying column for the purpose involves the sacrifice of its baggage and stores.

7Thus, if you order your men to roll up their buff-coats, and make forced marches without halting day or night, covering double the usual distance at a stretch, doing a hundred li in order to wrest an advantage, the leaders of all your three divisions will fall into the hands of the enemy.

8The stronger men will be in front, the jaded ones will fall behind, and on this plan only one-tenth of your army will reach its destination.

9If you march fifty li in order to outmanœuver the enemy, you will lose the leader of your first division, and only half your force will reach the goal.

10If you march thirty li with the same object, two-thirds of your army will arrive.

11We may take it then that an army without its baggage-train is lost; without provisions it is lost; without bases of supply it is lost.

12We cannot enter into alliances until we are acquainted with the designs of our neighbours.

13We are not fit to lead an army on the march unless we are familiar with the face of the country: its mountains and forests, its pitfalls and precipices, its marshes and swamps.

14We shall be unable to turn natural advantages to account unless we make use of local guides.

15In war, practise dissimulation, and you will succeed. Move only if there is a real advantage to be gained.

16Whether to concentrate or to divide your troops, must be decided by circumstances.

17Let your rapidity be that of the wind, your compactness that of the forest.

18In raiding and plundering be like fire, in immovability like a mountain.

19Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt.

20When you plunder a countryside, let the spoil be divided amongst your men; when you capture new territory, cut it up into allotments for the benefit of the soldiery.

21Ponder and deliberate before you make a move.

22He will conquer who has learnt the artifice of deviation. Such is the art of manœuvering.

23The Book of Army Management says: On the field of battle, the spoken word does not carry far enough: hence the institution of gongs and drums. Nor can ordinary objects be seen clearly enough: hence the institution of banners and flags.

24Gongs and drums, banners and flags, are means whereby the ears and eyes of the host may be focussed on one particular point.

25The host thus forming a single united body, is it impossible either for the brave to advance alone, or for the cowardly to retreat alone. This is the art of handling large masses of men.

26In night-fighting, then, make much use of signal-fires and drums, and in fighting by day, of flags and banners, as a means of influencing the ears and eyes of your army.

27A whole army may be robbed of its spirit; a commander-in-chief may be robbed of his presence of mind.

28Now a soldier’s spirit is keenest in the morning; by noonday it has begun to flag; and in the evening, his mind is bent only on returning to camp.

29A clever general, therefore, avoids an army when its spirit is keen, but attacks it when it is sluggish and inclined to return. This is the art of studying moods.

30Disciplined and calm, to await the appearance of disorder and hubbub amongst the enemy: this is the art of retaining self-possession.

31To be near the goal while the enemy is still far from it, to wait at ease while the enemy is toiling and struggling, to be well-fed while the enemy is famished: this is the art of husbanding one’s strength.

32To refrain from intercepting an enemy whose banners are in perfect order, to refrain from attacking an army drawn up in calm and confident array: this is the art of studying circumstances.

33It is a military axiom not to advance uphill against the enemy, nor to oppose him when he comes downhill.

34Do not pursue an enemy who simulates flight; do not attack soldiers whose temper is keen.

35Do not swallow a bait offered by the enemy. Do not interfere with an army that is returning home.

36When you surround an army, leave an outlet free. Do not press a desperate foe too hard.

37Such is the art of warfare.