Sun Tzu quotes

Sun Tzu

Can you imagine what I would do if I could do all I can?

If you know the enemy and know yourself you need not fear the results of a hundred battles.

Be extremely subtle, even to the point of formlessness. Be extremely mysterious, even to the point of soundlessness. Thereby you can be the director of the opponent's fate.

The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting..

The opportunity to secure ourselves against defeat lies in our own hands, but the opportunity of defeating the enemy is provided by the enemy himself.

All men can see these tactics whereby I conquer, but what none can see is the strategy out of which victory is evolved.

He who knows when he can fight and when he cannot, will be victorious.

Opportunities multiply as they are seized.

For to win one hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the acme of skill. To subdue the enemy without fighting is the acme of skill.

You have to believe in yourself.

All war is deception.

Know your enemy and know yourself and you can fight a hundred battles without disaster.

Regard your soldiers as your children, and they will follow you into the deepest valleys; look on them as your own beloved sons, and they will stand by you even unto death.

Supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting.

Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win.

To fight and conquer in all our battles is not supreme excellence; supreme excellence consists in breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting.

Confront them with annihilation, and they will then survive; plunge them into a deadly situation, and they will then live. When people fall into danger, they are then able to strive for victory.

If you are far from the enemy, make him believe you are near.

Pretend inferiority and encourage his arrogance.

There is no instance of a nation benefitting from prolonged warfare.

It is essential to seek out enemy agents who have come to conduct espionage against you and to bribe them to serve you. Give them instructions and care for them. Thus doubled agents are recruited and used.

The general who wins the battle makes many calculations in his temple before the battle is fought. The general who loses makes but few calculations beforehand.

In the practical art of war, the best thing of all is to take the enemy's country whole and intact; to shatter and destroy it is not so good.

Thus it is that in war the victorious strategist only seeks battle after the victory has been won, whereas he who is destined to defeat first fights and afterwards looks for victory.

Thus, what is of supreme importance in war is to attack the enemy's strategy.

Now the reason the enlightened prince and the wise general conquer the enemy whenever they move and their achievements surpass those of ordinary men is foreknowledge.

If ignorant both of your enemy and yourself, you are certain to be in peril.

Hence that general is skilful in attack whose opponent does not know what to defend; and he is skilful in defense whose opponent does not know what to attack.

The general who advances without coveting fame and retreats without fearing disgrace, whose only thought is to protect his country and do good service for his sovereign, is the jewel of the kingdom.

The quality of decision is like the well-timed swoop of a falcon which enables it to strike and destroy its victim.

It is only the enlightened ruler and the wise general who will use the highest intelligence of the army for the purposes of spying, and thereby they achieve great results.

Of all those in the army close to the commander none is more intimate than the secret agent; of all rewards none more liberal than those given to secret agents; of all matters none is more confidential than those relating to secret operations.

The good fighters of old first put themselves beyond the possibility of defeat, and then waited for an opportunity of defeating the enemy.

There has never been a protracted war from which a country has benefited.

If our soldiers are not overburdened with money, it is not because they have a distaste for riches; if their lives are not unduly long, it is not because they are disinclined to longevity.

Hence the saying: If you know the enemy and you know yourself, your victory will not stand in doubt; if you now Heaven and you know Earth, you may make your victory complete.

To see victory only when it is within the ken of the common herd is not the acme of excellence.

If fighting is sure to result in victory, than you must fight, even though the ruler forbid it; if fighting will not result in victory, then you must not fight even at the ruler's bidding.

For them to perceive the advantage of defeating the enemy, they must also have their rewards.

The enlightened ruler is heedful, and the good general full of caution.

When envoys are sent with compliments in their mouths, it is a sign that the enemy wishes for a truce.

If we know that our own men are in a condition to attack, but are unaware that the enemy is not open to attack, we have gone only halfway towards victory.

Thoughts of Confucius

Confucius

 

 ABOUT PEOPLE, FRIENDS

Real knowledge is to know the extent of one's ignorance.

 If you think in terms of a year, plant a seed; if in terms of ten years, plant trees; if in terms of 100 years, teach the people.

He who learns but does not think, is lost! He who thinks but does not learn is in great danger.

 Without feelings of respect, what is there to distinguish men from beasts?

Wisdom, compassion, and courage are the three universally recognized moral qualities of men.
 The superior man understands what is right; the inferior man understands what will sell.

The more man meditates upon good thoughts, the better will be his world and the world at large.

To be wronged is nothing unless you continue to remember it.

It is more shameful to distrust our friends than to be deceived by them.

 Only the wisest and stupidest of men never change.

What you do not want done to yourself, do not do to others.

When anger rises, think of the consequences.

They must often change, who would be constant in happiness or wisdom.

 Look at the means which a man employs, consider his motives, observe his pleasures. A man simply cannot conceal himself!

 The superior man is distressed by the limitations of his ability; he is not distressed by the fact that men do not recognize the ability that he has.

Never contract friendship with a man that is not better than thyself.

The superior man acts before he speaks, and afterwards speaks according to his action.

The superior man thinks always of virtue; the common man thinks of comfort.

The superior man is modest in his speech, but exceeds in his actions.

The superior man makes the difficulty to be overcome his first interest; success only comes later.

The object of the superior man is truth.

 ABOUT WORLD

Everything has beauty, but not everyone sees it.

Silence is a true friend who never betrays.

Better a diamond with a flaw than a pebble without.

I hear and I forget. I see and I remember. I do and I understand.

By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.

Choose a job you love, and you will never have to work a day in your life. 


Life is really simple, but we insist on making it complicated.,

If I am walking with two other men, each of them will serve as my teacher. I will pick out the good points of the one and imitate them, and the bad points of the other and correct them in myself.

To practice five things under all circumstances constitutes perfect virtue; these five are gravity, generosity of soul, sincerity, earnestness, and kindness.

Old age, believe me, is a good and pleasant thing. It is true you are gently shouldered off the stage, but then you are given such a comfortable front stall as spectator.

You cannot open a book without learning something.

 Study the past, if you would divine the future.

Never give a sword to a man who can't dance.

To see and listen to the wicked is already the beginning of wickedness.

Death and life have their determined appointments; riches and honors depend upon heaven.

Ability will never catch up with the demand for it.

 He who speaks without modesty will find it difficult to make his words good.

To see the right and not to do it is cowardice.

The faults of a superior person are like the sun and moon. They have their faults, and everyone sees them; they change and everyone looks up to them.

If we don't know life, how can we know death?

When you know a thing, to hold that you know it, and when you do not know a thing, to allow that you do not know it - this is knowledge.

The expectations of life depend upon diligence; the mechanic that would perfect his work must first sharpen his tools.

Learning without thought is labor lost; thought without learning is perilous.

Virtue is not left to stand alone. He who practices it will have neighbors.

To go beyond is as wrong as to fall short.

 ABOUT AIM

Faced with what is right, to leave it undone shows a lack of courage.

Do not impose on others what you yourself do not desire.

If you look into your own heart, and you find nothing wrong there, what is there to worry about? What is there to fear? 

Success depends upon previous preparation, and without such preparation there is sure to be failure. 

It does not matter how slowly you go as long as you do not stop.

It is easy to hate and it is difficult to love. This is how the whole scheme of things works. All good things are difficult to achieve; and bad things are very easy to get.

The will to win, the desire to succeed, the urge to reach your full potential... these are the keys that will unlock the door to personal excellence. 

Our greatest glory is not in never falling, but in rising every time we fall.

When it is obvious that the goals cannot be reached, don't adjust the goals, adjust the action steps.
 
 Wherever you go, go with all your heart.

I will not be concerned at other men's not knowing me;I will be concerned at my own want of ability.

We should feel sorrow, but not sink under its oppression.

  ABOUT POLITICS

In a country well governed, poverty is something to be ashamed of. In a country badly governed, wealth is something to be ashamed of.

An oppressive government is more to be feared than a tiger.

The strength of nation derives from the integrity of the home

He who exercises government by means of his virtue may be compared to the north polar star, which keeps its place and all the stars turn towards it.