Sun Tzu Quotes

The supreme excellence is not to win a hundred victories in a hundred battles. The supreme excellence is to subdue the armies of your enemies without even having to fight them.
Sun Tzu
If you know the enemy and know yourself you need not fear the results of a hundred battles.
Sun Tzu
Every battle is won before it is fought.
Sun Tzu
He who advances without seeking fame,Who retreats without escaping blame,He whose one aim is to protect his people and serve his lord,The man is a jewel of the Realm
Sun Tzu
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.
Sun Tzu
One need not destroy one's enemy. One need only destroy his willingness to engage.
Sun Tzu
Thus it is that in war the victorious strategist only seeks battle after the victory is won, whereas he who is destined to defeat first fights and afterwards looks for victory.
Sun Tzu
O divine art of subtlety and secrecy! Through you we learn to be invisible, through you inaudible, and hence we can hold the enemy's fate in our hands.
Sun Tzu
5,6. The Moral Law causes the people to be in complete accord with their ruler, so that they will follow him regardless of their lives, undismayed by any danger.Excerpt From: Sunzi. “The Art of War.” iBooks. This material may be protected by copyright.
Sun Tzu
it is better to recapture an army entire than to destroy it, to capture a regiment, a detachment or a company entire than to destroy them.
Sun Tzu
If your opponent is of choleric temper, seek to irritate him. Pretend to be weak, that he may grow arrogant.
Sun Tzu
If he is taking his ease, give him no rest. If his forces are united, separate them.
Sun Tzu
He wins his battles by making no mistakes.Making no mistakes is what establishes the certainty of victory, for it means conquering an enemy that is already defeated.
Sun Tzu
Hold out baits to entice the enemy. Feign disorder, and crush him.
Sun Tzu
If, on the other hand, in the midst of difficulties we are always ready to seize an advantage, we may extricate ourselves from misfortune.
Sun Tzu
There are roads which must not be followed, armies which must be not attacked, towns which must not be besieged, positions which must not be contested, commands of the sovereign which must not be obeyed.
Sun Tzu
The rising of birds in their flight is the sign of an ambuscade. Startled beasts indicate that a sudden attack is coming.
Sun Tzu
The art of war is the art of deception.
Sun Tzu
If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.
Sun Tzu
Victorious warriors win first and then go to war, while defeated warriors go to war first and then seek to win
Sun Tzu
If equally matched, we can offer battle; if slightly inferior in numbers, we can avoid the enemy; if quite unequal in every way, we can flee from him. Though an obstinate fight may be made by a small force, in the end it must be captured by the larger force.
Sun Tzu
Therefore the clever combatant imposes his will on the enemy, but does not allow the enemy's will to be imposed on him.
Sun Tzu
There are five dangerous faults which may affect a general:(1) Recklessness, which leads to destruction;(2) cowardice, which leads to capture;(3) a hasty temper, which can be provoked by insults;(4) a delicacy of honor which is sensitive to shame;(5) over-solicitude for his men, which exposes him to worry and trouble.
Sun Tzu
If quick, I survive.If not quick, I am lost.This is "death.
Sun Tzu
Know the enemy, know yourself and victory is never in doubt, not in a hundred battles.
Sun Tzu
A clever general, therefore, avoids an army when its spirit is keen, but attacks it when it is sluggish and inclined to return.
Sun Tzu
At first, then, exhibit the coyness of a maiden,  until the enemy gives you an opening; afterwards emulate the rapidity of a running hare, and it will be too late for the enemy to oppose you.
Sun Tzu
Ground on which we can only be saved from destruction by fighting without delay, is desperate ground.
Sun Tzu
When an invading force crosses a river in its onward march, do not advance to meet it in mid-stream.  It will be best to let half the army get across, and then deliver your attack.
Sun Tzu
Attack him where he is unprepared, appear where you are not expected.
Sun Tzu
Knowing the enemy enables you to take the offensive, knowing yourself enables you to stand on the defensive.
Sun Tzu
If his forces are united, separate them.
Sun Tzu
who does not know the evils of war cannot appreciate its benefits
Sun Tzu
do many calculations lead to victory, and few calculations to defeat
Sun Tzu
Conceal your dispositions, and your condition will remain secret, which leads to victory;  show your dispositions, and your condition will become patent, which leads to defeat.
Sun Tzu
The good fighters of old first put themselves beyond the possibility of defeat, and then waited for an opportunity of defeating the enemy.
Sun Tzu
These military devices, leading to victory, must not be divulged beforehand.
Sun Tzu
So long as victory can be attained,  stupid haste is preferable to clever dilatoriness.
Sun Tzu
When your army has crossed the border, you should burn your boats and bridges, in order to make it clear to everybody that you have no hankering after home.
Sun Tzu
If there is disturbance in the camp, the general's authority is weak. 
Sun Tzu
the worst calamities that befall an army arise from hesitation
Sun Tzu
You can be sure of succeeding in your attacks if you only attack places which are undefended.
Sun Tzu
When the outlook is bright, bring it before their eyes; but tell them nothing when the situation is gloomy.
Sun Tzu
Success in warfare is gained by carefully accommodating ourselves to the enemy's purpose.
Sun Tzu
if you fight with all your might,  there is a chance of life; where as death is certain if you cling to your corner
Sun Tzu
You can ensure the safety of your defense if you only hold positions that cannot be attacked.
Sun Tzu
We cannot enter into alliances until we are acquainted with the designs of our neighbors.
Sun Tzu
Whether in an advantageous position or a disadvantageous one, the opposite state should be always present to your mind.
Sun Tzu
There are not more than five primary colors  (blue, yellow,  red, white, and black), yet in combination they produce more hues than can ever been seen.
Sun Tzu
When the common soldiers are too strong and their officers too weak, the result is INSUBORDINATION.
Sun Tzu
When the officers are too strong and the common soldiers too weak, the result is COLLAPSE.
Sun Tzu
The principle on which to manage an army is to set up one standard of courage which all must reach.
Sun Tzu
We are not fit to lead an army on the march unless we are familiar with the face of the country -- its mountains and forests, its pitfalls and precipices, its marshes and swamps.
Sun Tzu
Danger has a bracing effect.
Sun Tzu
first lay plans which will ensure victory, and then lead your army to battle;  if you will not begin with stratagem but rely on brute strength alone, victory will no longer be assured
Sun Tzu
If we wish to wrest an advantage from the enemy, we must not fix our minds on that alone, but allow for the possibility of the enemy also doing some harm to us, and let this enter as a factor into our calculations.
Sun Tzu
To begin by bluster, but afterwards to take fright at the enemy's numbers, shows a supreme lack of intelligence.
Sun Tzu
Be stern in the council-chamber, [Show no weakness, and insist on your plans being ratified by the sovereign.] so that you may control the situation.
Sun Tzu
Rewards for good service should not be deferred a single day.
Sun Tzu
If you do not take opportunity   to   advance and reward   the   deserving,   your subordinates will not carry out your commands, and disaster will ensue.
Sun Tzu