“Supreme excellence consists in breaking

the enemy’s resistance without fighting”

This presentation is compiled by Chakrapani K V from DSCI for M3@The

Midweek Motivation Mantra
1
 Biographical Sketch

• Names : Sun Tzu, Sun Wu, Sun Zi

• Name means : Master Sun

• Born : 5th Century BC

• Birthplace : Ch’i State, China

• Death : Before 473 BC

• Best known for : The Art of War

2
 Biographical Sketch
If the words of command are not clear and
distinct, or if the instructions are not
understood, it is the mistake of general

Having once received his majesty’s

commission to be general of these troops,
there are certain commands, which in this
capacity, I am unable to accept
If the orders are clear but the soldiers
disobey, it is the fault of their officers

3
 Doctrine of Sun Tzu

• Prepare adequate defenses to

repel any attack

• Seek ways to defeat the enemy

without engaging him in battle

• Follow the enemy situation in

order to decide on battle

4
Salient
Features
Ideas and Strategies

5
 Ideas and Strategies

“The art of war is of vital

importance to the state. It is
a matter of life or death, a
road to survival or to ruin.
Hence it is mandatory that it
be thoroughly studied.”
Sun Tzu

6
 Ideas and Strategies

1. Appraisals 7. Manoeuvre
2. Waging War 8. Nine Variables
3. Offensive 9. Marches
Strategy
10. Terrain
4. Dispositions
11. Nine Grounds
5. Energy
12. Act by Fire
6. Weaknesses and
Strengths 13. Secret Agents

7
 Appraisals

• Moral Law
• Weather
• Terrain
• Commander
• Doctrine

8
 Appraisals

• Moral Law To be in complete

• Weather harmony with their
leader, so that they
• Terrain accompany him in life
unto death, without fear
• Commander
of mortal perils
• Doctrine

9
 Appraisals

• Moral Law
Interaction of natural
• Weather forces; the effects of
winter’s cold and
• Terrain summer’s heat and the
• Commander conduct of military
operations accordingly
• Doctrine

10
 Appraisals

• Moral Law
• Weather • Ground – Ease or Difficulty
• Distances – Great or Small
• Terrain
• Places – Dangerous or Secure
• Commander • Lands – Open or Constricted
• Chances – Life or Death
• Doctrine

11
 Appraisals

• Moral Law
• Weather • Wisdom
• Sincerity
• Terrain
• Humanity
• Commander • Courage
• Firmness
• Doctrine

12
 Appraisals

• Moral Law
• Organization & Control
• Weather • Assignment of
appropriate ranks to
• Terrain officers
• Commander • Maintenance of supply
routes
• Doctrine • Provision of principal
items used by army

13
 Waging War

“Victory is the main object in

war. If this is prolonged,
weapons are blunted and
morale is depressed”

14
 Waging War

• No country has ever benefited

from prolonged war

• Speed and swiftness is the

essence of victory

• Rapidity is of supreme importance

in bringing it to a close

15
 Waging War

“Treat your captives well

and care for them”

16
 Offensive Strategy

• All the available resources of the

state should be used to wage war
against the enemy
• It is important to attack enemy’s
strategy and plans. Next to
disrupt his alliances and then to
attack his army
• The best policy is to take a state
intact; to ruin it is inferior to this

17
 Offensive Strategy

• Those skilled in war subdue the

enemy without fighting. They
capture his cities without
assaulting them and over throw
his state without protracted
operations

• Know the enemy and know

yourself; in hundred battles you
will never be in danger

18
 Dispositions

• Invincibility lies in defense; the

possibility of victory in attack
• A victorious army wins its
victories before seeking battle;
an army destined to defeat,
fights in the hope of winning
• Those skilled in war, cultivate
humanity and justice, and
preserve laws and therefore
formulate victorious policies

19
 Energy

• To control many is the same as to

control few through formations and
signals

• When the torrential water tosses the

rocks, it is because of its momentum

• When the strike of a hawk breaks

the body of its prey, it is because of
its timing

20
 Energy

• Momentum of one skilled in

war is overwhelming, and his
attack precisely regulated
• His potential is that of a fully
drawn crossbow; his timing,
the release of the trigger

21
 Weaknesses & Strengths

• If enemy is at ease, be able to

exhaust him
• If enemy is well fed, be able to
starve him
• If enemy is settled, be able to
move him
• Appear at places to which
enemy must rush to defend
• Rush to places where he least
expects

22
 Weaknesses & Strengths

• An army is like water; just as

flowing water avoids heights and
hastens to the lowlands, so an
army avoids the enemy strength
and strikes the weakness
• One able to gain victory by
modifying his tactics in
accordance with the enemy
situation, may be said to be divine

23
 Manoeuvre

• Speed and diversion

• Dispersion and concentration
of force to achieve deception
• Attack when enemy morale
is low
• Do not attack when enemy is
organized and advancing

24
 Manoeuvre

“He who knows the art of the

direct and the indirect
approach will be victorious”

25
 The Nine Variables

1. Not to encamp in low lying

ground
2. On communicating ground, unite
with your allies
3. On isolated ground, do not linger
4. On enclosed ground,
resourcefulness is needed
5. On death ground, fight

26
 The Nine Variables

6. Some roads, not to follow

7. Some troops, not to strike

8. Some cities, not to assault

9. Some grounds, not to be

contested

27
 Marches

1. Encamp on high ground

2. Fight downhill

3. When attacking, let half the

enemy cross the river and
then cut him to size

28
 Marches

4. After crossing a river move

away quickly

5. Prefer high ground and take

position upstream

6. Keep height to your rear and

right and battle in the front

29
 Marches

“He who lacks foresight

and under estimates his
enemy will surely be
captured by him”

30
 Terrains

• Accessible Land – Enemy can

traverse with equal ease
• Entrapping Land – Easy to get out
but difficult to return
• Indecisive Land – Ground equally
disadvantageous to both sides

31
 Terrains
• Constricted Land – Block the passes
and await the enemy
• Precipitous Land– Take position on
the sunny heights and await the
enemy
• Distant Land – When at a distance
from the enemy of equal strength, it
is difficult to provoke battle and
unprofitable to engage him in his
chosen position

32
 Nine Grounds
• Dispersive Ground – When a
feudal lord fights in his own
territory
• Frontier Ground – When a
shallow penetration has been
made into enemy territory
• Key Ground – Equally
advantageous for both sides
• Communicating Ground – Equally
accessible for both sides
• Focal Ground – When a state is
enclosed by three other states

33
 Nine Grounds
• Serious Ground – When
penetrated deep into hostile
territory
• Difficult Ground – Hard places
like swamps, marshlands,
mountains, forests etc
• Encircled Ground – Where
access is constricted and even
small enemy force can strike
• Death Ground – Where army
fights with the courage of
desperation

34
 Act by Fire

• Hide in inaccessible places

• Travel lightly & pay no
attention to weather
• Exhaust the enemy while
pursuing

35
 Act by Fire

• Camouflage well

• Vary your locations

frequently

• Learn to move at night

36
 Secret Agents

Foreknowledge cannot be
obtained from spirits, nor from
gods, nor by analogy with past
events, nor from calculations. It
must be obtained from men who
know the enemy situation

37
 Secret Agents

• Native Agents – Local inhabitants of the area

• Inside Agents – Grieved or rejected enemy officials
• Doubled Agents – Enemy agents used through
heavy bribes
• Expendable Agents – Own agents deliberately
employed to leak fabricated information to deceive
enemy
• Living Agents – Own clever, talented, tough and
loyal agents, who are trained to gain access to the
enemy and bring back true useful information

38
 Secret Agents

“If plans relating to a secret

operation are prematurely
divulged, then the agents
and all those in knowledge
should be put to death”

39
Impact of
his Ideas on

Conduct of War

40
 Impact on Conduct of War

• Doctrine
• Strategy
• Operations
• Tactics
• Deception
• Limited War
• Victory

41
 Impact on Conduct of War

• Every state must have a war

• Doctrine doctrine of her own to defend
• Strategy against external aggression
• Operations • It is a doctrine of war not to
• Tactics assume the enemy will not
• Deception come but rather to rely on
readiness to meet him; not to
• Limited War presume that he will not
• Victory attack, but rather to make
oneself invincible

42
 Impact on Conduct of War

• When enemy concentrates,

• Doctrine prepare against him
• Strategy • Anger his general and
• Operations confuse him
• Tactics • Keep him under strain to
• Deception wear him down
• Limited War • When united divide him
• Victory • Attack him where he is
unprepared

43
 Impact on Conduct of War
• Operational preparedness
• Doctrine • Swiftness
• Strategy • Speed
• Operations should have
• Operations specific aims
• Tactics • Victory is the main object
• Deception in war. If it is delayed
• Limited War weapons are blunted and
morale depressed, when
• Victory troops attack cities, their
strength will be exhausted

44
 Impact on Conduct of War
• When ten to enemy’s one,
surround him
• Doctrine
• When five times his
• Strategy strength, attack him
• Operations • If double the strength,
• Tactics divide him
• If equally matched, you
• Deception may engage him
• Limited War • If weaker numerically, be
• Victory capable of withdrawing
• If unequal, be capable of
eluding him

45
 Impact on Conduct of War

• Doctrine
• When capable, pretend
• Strategy incapacity; when active,
• Operations inactivity
• When near, make it
• Tactics appear that you are far
• Deception away; when far that you
• Limited War are near
• Offer the enemy a bait to
• Victory lure him, pretend disorder
and strike him

46
 Impact on Conduct of War

• Doctrine
• Strategy
• Operations • Protracted campaigns, lead
• Tactics to insufficient resources
• Deception • War demands victory, not
• Limited War prolonged operations
• Victory • Master of the people’s fate
and arbiter of the nation

47
 Impact on Conduct of War

• Doctrine • He who knows when to fight

and when not to fight
• Strategy
• He who knows the use of
• Operations small and large forces
• Tactics • He whose ranks are united in
• Deception purpose
• Limited War • Prudent and lies in wait for a
weak enemy
• Victory
• Able Generals not hindered by
the sovereign

48
 Art of Generalship
Dangerous Qualities
• Reckless

• Coward

• Short tempered

• Delicate sense of honour

• Compassionate

49
 Art of Generalship

“The ruin of army and the

death of the general are
inevitable results of these
shortcomings. These must
be deeply pondered”

50
 Impact on Leadership

“Fight no battle unprepared

and fight no battle you are
not sure of winning”

“Replenish strength with

arms and personnel
captured from the enemy”

51
Validity of His Ideas and
Doctrine to Modern Times

52
“When the enemy speaks
in the humble tone, he
continues his preparation
and will advance”

55
 Stratagem

“The skillful leader subdues the

enemy troops without fighting;
he captures their cities without
laying siege to them; he
overthrows their kingdom
without any lengthy operations
in field. With his forces intact,
his triumph will be complete”

56