Sun Tsu - SunTsu's
Art of Warfare
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In the Spring and Autumn
Period, the King of the State of Wu, whose name was He Lu, had long been
thinking of launching an attack on the State of Chu. However, he had refrained
from taking any action owing to the fact that he did not have a capable
commander in chief. Meanwhile, there had occurred in the state of Qi a
great social turmoil which forced Sun Wu, a distinguished strategist,
to flee to Wu for safety. Since the King of Wu knew that he was a very
learned man and above all an expert in the art of warfare, he called on
him in person.
Sun Wu showed the king the books he had written on strategy and tactics.
While he was reading, the king was so elated that he found it hard to
contain himself and several times shouted out loud, "Wonderful! Wonderful'"
However, he was still unconvinced as to whether Sun Wu had the practical
abilities of commanding an army. This led him to decide that he had better
first put him through a test. So he said, "We have perused all the
thirteen books you wrote on the art of war. They certainly are well-written.
But are you sure what you've said there is applicable to the conditions
of the State of Wu?" In his reply, Sun Wu said, "Your Majesty,
I believe it is. It is applicable to every state, to both the nobility
and the commoners, and to both men and women. " "Good, then,"
said the king, "Can you use your methods in giving some kind of training
to a group of women?" "Of course, Your Majesty," answered
Sun Wu. But he continued, "Military training is hard and strenuous
work. An army must be subject to military law which should be severe and
from which no one can be exempt. In military drills, everyone is expected
to obey the rules and regulations or he will be punished. " To this,
the king assented. Then he ordered that one hundred and eighty pretty
young maidens be selected from among the palace maids to receive military
training under Sun Wu who divided the girls into two companies and made
two of the king's most favourite concubines their commanders. Sun Wu then
said to the king, "A good army cannot be built without strict discipline.
Although those girls are palace maids, discipline must be enforced without
exception. So please send me two soldiers to enforce military law. "
The king consented.
The drills soon began. Sun Wu first made known the rules and regulations
to be obeyed and then explained to the maidens how to execute such commands
as "March on!", "Fall back!", "Left face!",
"Right face!", "Kneel down!", "Stand up!"
and so on. After he was finished with this, he asked the ranks, "Is
it all clear now?" "Aye, Aye," the girls replied. But Sun
Wu explained the rules and regulations once again and then had the drummers
beat out martial music. At this, he shouted commands such as "Left
face! " and "Right face! " Instead of carrying out his
commands, the maids started giggling. Sun Wu said, turning very serious,
"It apparently is my fault not to have made the rules and regulations
and commands plain enough. " So he reiterated what he had said before,
explaining very carefully the rules and regulations and the way to carry
out the commands. After that he once again had the drummers beat out martial
music and started giving commands. However, he met with only rings of
laughter. Now Sun Wu looked very stern and said seriously, "If I
had not made sufficiently clear the discipline and the commands, it would
be my fault. Now that everything has been made clear and still you have
failed to execute my orders, the company commanders must be held responsible.
" He ordered that the two company commanders be beheaded immediately
in public, as a warning to all.
The King of Wu was filled with great consternation when he saw that his
two most beloved concubines were to be killed. Without delay he sent an
official to say to Sun Wu, "His Majesty can see you are very good
at military affairs. But those two are his favorites. Please let them
off. " In reply, Sun Wu said, "Military training is no child's
play. No one can be allowed to trifle with it. Since I have received the
king's express orders to be in charge of the drills, I am bound by duty
not to obey his command when I am trying to enforce military discipline.
" After saying that, Sun Wu had the two royal concubines executed
without delay.
When the two were beheaded in public, Sun Wu selected two others as commanders
and resumed the drills. Now, no matter what commands he gave, they were
carried out in a most punctilious manner, the actions orderly and precise.
Although the King of Wu was very depressed at losing two beloved concubines
, he decided to retain Sun Wu's service when he realized that to conquer
the State of Chu he needed a commander in chief as strict and impartial
as Sun Wu. Consequently he appointed the latter as general of his army
and Sun Wu eventually helped him defeat the army of Chu and capture its
state capital.
The Art of Warfare by Sun Zi, in which the author summed up the experience
and lessons of many great battles in history, is the oldest and most distinguished
book on warfare in Chinese history and the Chinese nation has taken pride
in it since ancient times. It has also attracted international attention
and interest, as can be testified by the various translations of the book,
published now in English, Japanese, German, French, Czech, etc.