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36 War Strategies of Ancient China
Introduction
The
Thirty-Six Strategies is a unique collection of ancient Chinese proverbs that
describe some of the most cunning and subtle strategies ever devised. Whereas
other Chinese military texts such as Sun Zi's The Art of War focus on military
organization, leadership, and battlefield tactics, the Thirty-Six Strategies are
more suitably applied in the fields of politics, diplomacy, and espionage. These
proverbs describe not only battlefield strategies, but tactics used in
psychological warfare to undermine both the enemy's will to fight - and his
sanity. Tactics such as the 'double cross', the 'frame job', and the 'bait and
switch', can be traced back through thousands of years of Chinese history to
such proverbs as '#10
Hide the Dagger Behind a Smile', '#3
Kill With a Borrowed Sword', and '#17
Toss out a Brick to Attract Jade' respectively. Though other Chinese
military works of strategy have at least paid lip service to the Confucian
notion of honour, the Thirty-Six Strategies make no pretence of being anything
but ruthless.
For the
western reader the Thirty-Six Strategies offers timeless insights into the
workings of human nature under conditions of extreme stress. Many of the
proverbs are based on events that occurred during China's Warring States Era
(403-221 BC). This was a time so infamous, that a later Emperor banned history
books of that era on the grounds that they contained accounts of such a devious
nature, they would morally corrupt all who read them. Many of those accounts are
presented here along with the exploits of some of the orient's greatest
generals, kings, emperors, and shoguns. Over 118 anecdotes are included to both
explain and offer examples of each strategy's application. By learning from the
old masters of the art of deception, one is better able to spot the modern
pretenders, for, though the players come and go, the game remains the same.
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