The Enemy Quotes in The Art of War
The Way of War is
A Way of Deception.
Ultimate excellence lies
Not in winning
Every battle
But in defeating the enemy
Without ever fighting.
So it is said:
"Know the enemy,
Know yourself,
And victory
Is never in doubt,
Not in a hundred battles."
A victorious army
Is like
Pent-up water
Crashing
A thousand fathoms
Into a gorge.
In the dynamics of War,
There are but these two-
Indirect
And direct-
And yet their permutations
Are inexhaustible.
They give rise to each other
In a never-ending,
Inexhaustible circle.
The Skillful Warrior attacks
So that the enemy
Cannot defend;
He defends
So that the enemy
Cannot attack.
His form is visible,
But I am
Formless;
I am concentrated,
He is divided.
Military dispositions
Take form like water.
Water shuns the high
And hastens to the low.
War shuns the strong
And attacks the weak.
Water shapes its current
From the lie of the land.
The warrior shapes his victory
From the dynamic of the enemy.
War has no
Constant dynamic;
Water has no
Constant form.
Supreme military skill lies
In deriving victory
From the changing circumstances
Of the enemy.
The difficulty of the fray
Lies in making
The crooked
Straight
And in making
An advantage
Of misfortune.
To the question
"How should we confront
An enemy,
Numerous and well arrayed,
Poised to attack?"
My reply is
"Seize something
He cherishes,
And he will do your will."
Success in war
Lies in
Scrutinizing
Enemy intentions.
And going with them.
Focus on the enemy,
And from hundreds of miles
You can kill their general.
At first,
Be like a maiden;
When the enemy opens the door,
Be swift as a hare;
Your enemy will not
Withstand you.
It is therefore callous
To begrudge the expense of
A hundred taels
Of silver
For knowledge
Of the enemy's situation.
The Enemy Quotes in The Art of War
The Way of War is
A Way of Deception.
Ultimate excellence lies
Not in winning
Every battle
But in defeating the enemy
Without ever fighting.
So it is said:
"Know the enemy,
Know yourself,
And victory
Is never in doubt,
Not in a hundred battles."
A victorious army
Is like
Pent-up water
Crashing
A thousand fathoms
Into a gorge.
In the dynamics of War,
There are but these two-
Indirect
And direct-
And yet their permutations
Are inexhaustible.
They give rise to each other
In a never-ending,
Inexhaustible circle.
The Skillful Warrior attacks
So that the enemy
Cannot defend;
He defends
So that the enemy
Cannot attack.
His form is visible,
But I am
Formless;
I am concentrated,
He is divided.
Military dispositions
Take form like water.
Water shuns the high
And hastens to the low.
War shuns the strong
And attacks the weak.
Water shapes its current
From the lie of the land.
The warrior shapes his victory
From the dynamic of the enemy.
War has no
Constant dynamic;
Water has no
Constant form.
Supreme military skill lies
In deriving victory
From the changing circumstances
Of the enemy.
The difficulty of the fray
Lies in making
The crooked
Straight
And in making
An advantage
Of misfortune.
To the question
"How should we confront
An enemy,
Numerous and well arrayed,
Poised to attack?"
My reply is
"Seize something
He cherishes,
And he will do your will."
Success in war
Lies in
Scrutinizing
Enemy intentions.
And going with them.
Focus on the enemy,
And from hundreds of miles
You can kill their general.
At first,
Be like a maiden;
When the enemy opens the door,
Be swift as a hare;
Your enemy will not
Withstand you.
It is therefore callous
To begrudge the expense of
A hundred taels
Of silver
For knowledge
Of the enemy's situation.
