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VOLUME THREE
The Nine Varieties of Ground
Top. Part 77. Part 78. Part 79. Part 80. Part 81. Part 82. Part 83. Part 84. Part 85. Part 86. Part 87 Part 88. Part 89. Part 90. Part 91.
Part 77
Sun Tzu said: Ground can be classified into nine geographical positions according to the way of using military
operations. They are: dispersive ground, frontier ground, contentious ground, open ground, focal ground, serious ground, difficult ground, encircled ground and desperate
ground.
Part 78
When a prince wages a campaign in his own territory,
the place is called dispersive ground*.
Enemy territory which he enters, but not deeply, is
called frontier ground*.
The position that is favourable for both the enemy
and yourself to occupy is called contentious ground.
The position that is accessible to both sides is called
open ground.
A position, where three neighbouring states meet,
and which whoever first gets control of will gain the support of other neighbouring states, is called focal ground.
When a prince penetrates deeply into hostile territory, having passed through many enemy cities and towns,
he is in serious ground*.
A place with interlocking mountains, tangled forests
and impenetrable marshes or any place that is hard to
travel through is called difficult ground.
A place to which access is constricted and from which
return requires making a detour, so that a small troop will
suffice to defeat a large army, is called encircled ground.
Such a place where a desperate and speedy battle will
save you or else you will be defeated and destroyed is
called desperate ground.
* dispersive ground: Here both officers and soldiers long to return to
their nearby homes.
* frontier ground: Here the soldiers can all get
back home easily.
* serious ground: It is difficult for soldiers to return
home from this ground.
Part 79
As a conclusion, never fight in dispersive ground;
never stop in frontier ground; never attack the enemy who
first reaches contentious ground; never allow the army's
communication to be blocked in open ground; form
alliances with neighbouring princes in focal ground; plunder for provisions if arriving at serious ground, pass
through swiftly, if you meet difficult ground; devise plans
to escape in encircled ground; and fight a last-ditch battle
in desperate ground.
Part 80
In ancient times the generals who were skilled in military operations knew clearly how to make the enemy lose
contact between the van and the rear, prevent his main
body of soldiers and small divisions from cooperation,
make it impossible for the superiors and the subordinates
to support each other and communicate with each other,
scatter the enemy soldiers so that they could not concentrate, and keep them in disorder even if they were
assembled.
The skilled generals would advance when it was to
their advantage and halt when situations were unfavourable.
It may be asked, "If the enemy comes to attack you
with a large and well-ordered army, how do you deal with
it?"
The answer is, "Seize what he cherishes and he will
conform to your desires."
Part 81
The essence of military operations is speed, taking
advantage of the enemy's unpreparedness, going by routes
he docs not expect and attacking him where he is not on
guard.
Part 82
The principles for making war in the enemy state are
as follows. When you penetrate deeply into hostile territory, your soldiers will be united and single-minded, and it
will be impossible for the defenders to defeat you. If you
enter fertile land, you should plunder it for enough provisions for your men. Nourish them and do not exhaust
them; keep them in high morale and conserve their energy; direct your troops with ingenious tactics so that the
enemy cannot see through your plan.
You should throw your soldiers into a position from
which there is no retreat, and where they will not flee even
when facing death. Now that the soldiers are not afraid of
death, there will be nothing for them to fear. Both officers
and soldiers will do their uttermost to fight. Soldiers deep
in a dangerous territory will become fearless, there is no
road for them to retreat, they will stand firm. Stuck in the
enemy's land, they are bound together. As there is no
choice, they cannot but fight a desperate battle.
Soldiers as these need no training to be vigilant. They
will do what you want them to do before you ask them,
they will cooperate closely before you condition them and
they will consciously follow your direction before you order them. You should prohibit superstition and dispel
rumours and suspicion among your soldiers, then they will
not desert the army even in the face of death.
Soldiers have no surplus wealth not because they
have a dislike for possessions; they are fearless of death
not because they have a dislike for longevity.
On the day the army is ordered to make a decisive
battle, soldiers may sit crying with tears wetting their
garments, some may lie down there with tears flowing
down their cheeks*. But if you throw them into a position where there is no way for them to retreat, they will be
undaunted, as brave as Zhuan Zhu or Cao Gui*.
* Soldiers weep because they are so stirred.
* Zhuan Zhu: a famous hero in the Spring and Autumn Period; Cao Gui: another famous hero in the same period.
Part 83
Those who are skilled in military operations should
be as dexterous as the shuairan, the snake of Mount
Chang*. If you strike its head, its tail will launch an attack on you; if you hit its tail, its head will strike you; if
you beat its body, it will attack with both its head and tail.
It may be asked, "Can troops achieve instantaneous
coordination as that snake?"
The answer is "They can."
Everyone knows that the people of Wu and the
people of Yue are foes*, but when they travel by the
same boat caught in a storm, they will help each other just
as both the left and the right hands cooperate. So holding
the war horses together or burying the chariot wheels is
not a reliable way to keep the soldiers together. Uniting
the soldiers to fight bravely depends on good management
and command. The correct use of geographical situations
will make troops bring their courage and ability into full
play.
A skilful general should command thousands upon
thousands of horses and men as if he were leading a single
man who will obey without choice.
*Mount Chang: It was anciently known as Mount Heng.
* Wu, Yue: Two kingdoms of the Zhou Dynasty (about 500 B.C.)
Part 84
In commanding an army, a general must have a mind
that is serene and unfathomable. He must administrate his
troops in an impartial and upright manner. He should
keep his officers and soldiers ignorant of his military
plans. He changes his arrangements and alters his military
plans without anyone knowing. He shifts his campsites and
takes circuitous routes without anyone anticipating his
purpose.
A general who leads his troops to fight a decisive
battle should cut off all means of retreat as if he kicks off
the ladder behind the soldiers after they have climbed up
a height. When he leads his troops deep into a princedom,
he should have the momentum of an arrow that has been
released. He burns the boats and breaks the cauldrons to
make the soldiers resolute in fighting. He drives his
soldiers here and there as freely as he does a flock of
sheep without anyone knowing where he will go. He
assembles his whole army and puts it into dangerous
situations. This is what a commander should do.
Varying tactics according to geographical positions,
advancing or retreating according to what is advantageous
and observing the laws of human nature are what a general must study and examine carefully.
Part 85
The way to make war in the enemy's state is as
follows: the deeper your troops penetrate into hostile territory, the more they concentrate their spirit to fight; the
less deep they penetrate, the less their will to fight is.
Crossing a neighbouring country to a battlefield where
there is no way for soldiers to return, you are in critical
ground. In a position which extends in all directions, you
have entered focal ground. Deep in the enemy's territory,
you have entered serious ground. Penetrating a little distance, you are in frontier ground. When you arrive at a
place with rugged terrain at your back and a narrow pass
in front, you are in encircled ground. And when you enter
a region where there is no way to retreat, you are in desperate ground.
Part 86
Thus, when you are in dispersive ground, you should
unify the will of your soldiers; when you are in frontier
ground, you should keep the van and the rear linked up;
when you are in contentious ground, you should hasten up
your rear troops; when you are in open ground, you should
defend your camp carefully; when you are in focal ground,
you should form strong alliances with neighbouring
princes; when you are in serious ground, you should ensure a continuous flow of provisions; when you are in difficult ground, you should press forward swiftly; when you
are in encircled ground, you should block the points of access or egress; when you are in desperate ground, you must
show your soldiers that there is no choice but a last-ditch
fight.
So a general must know the psychology of soldiers:
that they will resist while surrounded, fight desperately
while being forced to and follow the general while fallen
into dangerous situations.
Part 87
A general who is ignorant of the intention of the
neighbouring princes cannot form alliances with them, he
who is ignorant of the interlocking mountains and tangled
forests, dangerous abysses and precipices, swamps and
marshes cannot move his troops; he who fails to hire
native guides cannot occupy the favourable ground; he
who is ignorant of advantages and disadvantages of various battle positions cannot command an army befitting an
overlord.
Part 88
If an overlord's army attacks a strong state, even the
strong state cannot collect its strength to resist. Wherever
such an army goes, it overawes its enemy and prevents his
allies from joining him.
Hence, a state with such an invincible army does not
need to seek alliances with other states, nor docs it need
to establish its power in these states. It only relies on its
own actual strength to overawe the enemy, and it will be
able to capture the enemy's cities and destroy his state.
Part 89
If you lead an overlord's army you must bestow
rewards irrespective of customary practice and issue
orders irrespective of convention, you can command
thousands upon thousands of horses and men as if you
were leading a single man. Set your troops to operation
but never tell them your plans; use them to gain advantage, but never tell them the dangers and disadvantage
involved. Only by throwing an army into a perilous position can they survive; only by putting them in desperate
ground can they live. Provided the troops are placed in
danger, they will be able to turn defeat into victory.
Part 90
Success in military operations lies in pretending to
follow the enemy's intentions, but in fact, concentrating
your troops to attack one aspect of the enemy. You will be
able to kill his commander even if you are a long drive of
a thousand li away. This is so-called using artful and ingenious plans to accomplish great tasks.
Part 91
On the day of making a final decision to fight, you
should close all passes, abrogate all official tallies*, and
terminate all contact with the enemy's emissaries. Carefully examine your military plans in the temple council*
and make decisions. If you find out the opponent's weak
point, you must break through it speedily. Seize what is
most valuable to the enemy first. Don't betray your time
of attack to him. In pursuring your plans modify them according to the enemy's situations in order to win. At first
assume the coyness of a maiden and when the enemy gives
you an opening, attack him as swiftly as a running hare.
This will make the enemy unable to resist you.
*official tally: In former times each traveller must possess an official pass which was examined by the wardens at the frontiers.
* the temple council: In ancient China, the most important decision must be made in the ancestral temple, which is a religious rite. So the temple is different from military headquarters.
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