第 11 章 九地篇

Sunzi said, there are nine types of places for fighting battles.

The first type is dispersive ground, fighting on one's own land.

The second type is light ground, just entering the enemy's land.

The third type is contentious ground, whoever arrives first has the advantage.

The fourth type is intersecting ground, both armies can pass through.

The fifth type is focal ground, connecting to other countries.

The sixth type is heavy ground, deep into the enemy's land.

The seventh type is difficult ground, the roads are hard to travel.

The eighth type is encircled ground, easy to enter but hard to exit.

The ninth type is death ground, one must fight quickly to survive.

In scattered ground, do not fight.

In light ground, do not stop.

When encountering contested ground, arrive before the enemy.

If the enemy arrives first, do not attack strongly.

In intersecting ground, the army should stay connected.

In thoroughfare ground, make friends with neighboring countries.

In heavy ground, take and use the enemy's things.

In difficult ground, walk fast.

In encircled ground, think of a good plan.

In death ground, be brave and fight quickly.

A person who knows how to use troops can make the enemy unable to help each other from front to back.

In this way, the enemy's formation becomes chaotic.

When the enemy is chaotic, we attack if it is advantageous, and stop if it is not.

If the enemy is numerous and the formation is very orderly, what should we do?

First attack the most important place of the enemy.

In this way, the enemy will listen to us.

Fighting must be fast.

Attack when the enemy is not prepared.

Take a route that the enemy does not expect.

Attack a place where the enemy is not on guard.

When entering an enemy country to fight, the soldiers' hearts are very united.

Take food in rich places to let the soldiers eat their fill.

Let the soldiers rest to improve their strength.

Place the army in a place with no retreat.

If the soldiers have no retreat, they will fight desperately.

If the soldiers are not afraid of death, they will be very brave.

A person who knows how to use troops makes the army like a snake.

If you hit the snake's head, the tail comes to rescue.

If you hit the snake's tail, the head comes to rescue.

If you hit the snake's middle, both the head and tail come to rescue.

The people of Wu and Yue are enemies.

But when they sit in the same boat, they will help each other when encountering strong winds.

Therefore, to make the army united, it relies on good command.

Commanding an army requires calm thinking.

Do not let the soldiers know the entire plan.

The methods of fighting should change frequently.

The path the army takes should be winding.

When giving tasks to the army, make them only able to advance.

When leading the army into another country, it should move forward like an arrow shot out.

Burning the boats and smashing the pots indicates that they must fight to the end.

Put soldiers in dangerous places and let them fight desperately.

This is the responsibility of the general.

The deeper one enters the enemy country, the more focused the soldiers become.

If the entry is shallow, soldiers are likely to flee.

A place with no road to go is called dead ground.

In scattered ground, make the army focused.

In light ground, keep the troops connected together.

When encountering contested ground, quickly move to its rear.

In intersecting ground, defend carefully.

In key ground, consolidate friendships with other countries.

In important territory, ensure there is food.

In ruined territory, pass through quickly.

In encircled territory, block the exit.

In deadly territory, show the determination to fight to the death.

When soldiers are surrounded, they will resist together.

When there is no way out, they will fight desperately.

When in danger, they will obey commands.

If you do not know the plans of other countries, you cannot make friends with them.

If you are not familiar with mountains, forests, and swamps, you cannot march.

If you do not use a guide, you cannot make good use of the terrain.

If one of the nine types of terrain is not understood, the army will not be strong enough.

A strong army attacking a large country can make it unable to prepare in time.

By using force on the enemy, it cannot make friends.

Relying on one's own strength, one can attack the enemy's cities.

One can give more rewards and issue special orders.

Command the entire army as if commanding one person.

Make soldiers do tasks without telling them the full purpose.

Only tell them the advantageous aspects.

Only by placing soldiers in dangerous places can they survive.

Soldiers fall into a desperate situation, and then they can strive for victory.

During war, pretend to listen to the enemy's thoughts.

When there is an opportunity, concentrate forces to attack one point.

In this way, even if traveling far, you can capture the enemy's general.

This is how to cleverly accomplish great things.

After deciding to go to war, close the passes.

Discuss and finalize the plan at court.

If you discover the enemy has a weakness, attack quickly.

First attack the enemy's most important place.

Do not agree on a time to fight with the enemy.

Plans should be changed according to the enemy's changes.

At the start of war, be like a quiet girl.

Make the enemy relax their guard.

After starting, be as fast as a running rabbit.

Make the enemy have no time to resist.