Sun Tzu Quotes

Appear weak when you are strong, and strong when you are weak.

But a kingdom that has once been destroyed can never come again into being; nor can the dead ever be brought back to life.

Even the finest sword plunged into salt water will eventually rust.

Foreknowledge cannot be gotten from ghosts and spirits, cannot be had by analogy, cannot be found out by calculation. It must be obtained from people, people who know the conditions of the enemy.

One hundred victories in one hundred battles is not the most skillful, subduing the other's military without battle is the most skillful.

Supreme excellence consists of breaking the enemy's resistance without fighting.

You can be sure of succeeding in your attacks if you only attack places which are undefended.You can ensure the safety of your defense if you only hold positions that cannot be attacked.

Ciente de tuas capacidades e limitações, não inicies nenhuma empreitada que não possas levar a cabo.

Quão lamentável é arriscar tudo em um único combate, negligenciando a estratégia vitoriosa, e fazer com que o destino de tuas armas dependa de uma única batalha!

It is best to keep one’s own state intact; to crush the enemy’s state is only second best.

Water shapes its course according to the nature of the ground over which it flows; the soldier works out his victory in relation to the foe whom he is facing.

The supreme art of war is to subdue the enemy without fighting.

Let your plans be dark and impenetrable as night, and when you move, fall like a thunderbolt.

All warfare is based on deception. Hence, when we are able to attack, we must seem unable; when using our forces, we must appear inactive; when we are near, we must make the enemy believe we are far away; when far away, we must make him believe we are near.

To know your Enemy, you must become your Enemy.

The art of war is of vital importance to the State. It is a matter of life and death, a road either to safety or to ruin. Hence it is a subject of inquiry which can on no account be neglected.

There is no instance of a nation benefitting from prolonged warfare.

Move swift as the Wind and closely-formed as the Wood. Attack like the Fire and be still as the Mountain.

When you surround an army, leave an outlet free. Do not press a desperate foe too hard.

One mark of a great soldier is that he fight on his own terms or fights not at all.