Chapter 4 Tactical Dispositions

1. Sun Tzu said: The good fighters of old first put themselves beyond the possibility of defeat, and then waited for an opportunity of defeating the enemy.
2. To secure ourselves against defeat lies in our own hands, but the opportunity of defeating the enemy is provided by the enemy himself.
3. Thus the good fighter is able to secure himself against defeat,but cannot make certain of defeating the enemy.
4. Hence the saying: One may know how to conquer without being able to do it.
5. Security against defeat implies defensive¹ tactics;ability to defeat the enemy means taking the offensive.
6. Standing² on the defensive indicates insufficient³ strength; attacking, a superabundance of strength.
7. The general who is skilled in defense⁴ hides in the most secret recesses⁵ of the earth; he who is skilled in attack flashes forth⁶ from the topmost heights of heaven.Thus on the one hand we have ability to protect ourselves;on the other, a victory that is complete.
8. To see victory only when it is within the ken⁷ of the common herd⁸ is not the acme⁹ of excellence¹⁰.
9. Neither is it the acme of excellence if you fight and conquer and the whole Empire says, "Well done!"
10. To lift an autumn hair is no sign of great strength;to see the sun and moon is no sign of sharp sight;to hear the noise of thunder is no sign of a quick ear.
11. What the ancients called a clever fighter is one who not only wins, but excels in winning with ease.
12. Hence his victories bring him neither reputation for wisdom nor credit for courage.
13. 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.
14. Hence the skillful fighter puts himself into a position which makes defeat impossible, and does not miss the moment for defeating the enemy.
15. Thus it is that in war the victorious¹¹ strategist only seeks battle after the victory has been won,whereas he who is destined¹² to defeat first fights
and afterwards looks for victory.
16. The consummate¹³ leader cultivates the moral law,and strictly¹⁴ adheres to method and discipline; thus it is in his power to control success.
17. In respect of military method, we have,firstly, Measurement; secondly¹⁵, Estimation of quantity;thirdly, Calculation; fourthly, Balancing of chances;fifthly, Victory.
18. Measurement owes its existence to Earth;Estimation of quantity to Measurement; Calculation to Estimation of quantity; Balancing of chances to Calculation;and Victory to Balancing of chances.
19. A victorious army opposed to a routed one, is as a pound's weight placed in the scale against a single grain.
20. The onrush of a conquering force is like the bursting of pent-up waters into a chasm¹⁶ a thousand fathoms¹⁷ deep.

      原文：　 【军形第四】
      1.孙子曰： 昔之善战者，先为不可胜，以待敌之可胜。不可胜在己，可胜在敌。故善战者，能为不可胜，不能使敌之必可胜。故曰：胜可知，而不可为。
      2.不可胜者，守也；可胜者，攻也。守则不足，攻则有余。善守者藏于九地之下，善攻者动于九天之上，故能自保而全胜也。
      3.见胜不过众人之所知，非善之善者也；战胜而天下曰善，非善之善者也。故举秋毫不为多力，见日月不为明目，闻雷霆不为聪耳。古之所谓善战者，胜于易胜者也。故善战者之胜也，无智名，无勇功，故其战胜不忒。不忒者，其所措胜，胜已败者也。故善战者，立于不败之地，而不失敌之败也。
      4.是故胜兵先胜而后求战，败兵先战而后求胜。善用兵者，修道而保法，故能为胜败之政。
      5.兵法：一曰度，二曰量，三曰数，四曰称，五曰胜。地生度，度生量，量生数，数生称，称生胜。
      6.故胜兵若以镒称铢，败兵若以铢称镒。 胜者之战，若决积水于千仞之溪者，形也。
      　
      　　 译文：　　　　　　【军形第四】
      1.孙子说：以前善于用兵作战的人，总是首先创造自己不可战胜的条件，并等待可以战胜敌人的机会。使自己不被战胜，其主动权掌握在自己手中；敌人能否被战胜，在于敌人是否给我们以可乘之机。所以，善于作战的人只能够使自己不被战胜，而不能使敌人一定会被我军战胜。所以说，胜利可以预见，却不能强求。
      2.敌人无可乘之机，不能被战胜，且防守以待之；敌人有可乘之机，能够被战胜，则出奇攻而取之。防守是因为我方兵力不足，进攻是因为兵力超过对方。善于防守的，隐藏自己的兵力如同在深不可测的地下；善于进攻的部队就象从天而降，敌不及防。这样，才能保全自己而获得全胜。
      3.预见胜利不能超过平常人的见识，算不上最高明：交战而后取胜，即使天下都称赞，也不算上最高明。正如举起秋毫称不上力大，能看见日月算不上视力好，听见雷鸣算不上耳聪。古代所谓善于用兵的人，只是战胜了那些容易战胜的敌人。所以，真正善于用兵的人，没有智慧过人的名声，没有勇武盖世的战功，而他既能打胜仗又不出任何闪失，原因在于其谋划、措施能够保证，他所战胜的是已经注定失败的敌人。所以善于打战的人，不但使自己始终处于不被战胜的境地，也决不会放过任何可以击败敌人的机会。
      4.所以，打胜仗的军队总是在具备了必胜的条件之后才交战，而打败仗的部队总是先交战，在战争中企图侥幸取胜。善于用兵的人，潜心研究致胜之道，修明政治，坚持致胜的法制，所以能主宰胜败。
      5.兵法：一是度，即估算土地的面积，二是量，即推算物资资源的容量，三是数，即统计兵源的数量，四是称，即比较双方的军事综合实力，五是胜，即得出胜负的判断。土地面积的大小决定物力、人力资源的容量，资源的容量决定可投入部队的数目，部队的数目决定双方兵力的强弱，双方兵力的强弱得出胜负的概率。
      6.获胜的军队对于失败的一方就如同用“镒”来称“铢”，具有绝对优势优势，而失败的军队对于获胜的一方就如同用“铢”来称“镒”。胜利者一方打仗，就象积水从千仞高的山涧冲决而出，势不可挡，这就是军事实力的表现。

1 defensive   

adj.防御的；防卫的；防守的

参考例句：

• Their questions about the money put her on the defensive.他们问到钱的问题，使她警觉起来。
• The Government hastily organized defensive measures against the raids.政府急忙布置了防卫措施抵御空袭。

2 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

3 insufficient   

adj.(for，of)不足的，不够的

参考例句：

• There was insufficient evidence to convict him.没有足够证据给他定罪。
• In their day scientific knowledge was insufficient to settle the matter.在他们的时代，科学知识还不能足以解决这些问题。

4 defense   

n.防御，保卫；[pl.]防务工事；辩护，答辩

参考例句：

• The accused has the right to defense.被告人有权获得辩护。
• The war has impacted the area with military and defense workers.战争使那个地区挤满了军队和防御工程人员。

5 recesses   

n.壁凹( recess的名词复数 )；（工作或业务活动的）中止或暂停期间；学校的课间休息；某物内部的凹形空间v.把某物放在墙壁的凹处( recess的第三人称单数 )；将（墙）做成凹形，在（墙）上做壁龛；休息，休会，休庭

参考例句：

• I could see the inmost recesses. 我能看见最深处。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I had continually pushed my doubts to the darker recesses of my mind. 我一直把怀疑深深地隐藏在心中。 来自《简明英汉词典》

6 forth   

adv.向前；向外，往外

参考例句：

• The wind moved the trees gently back and forth.风吹得树轻轻地来回摇晃。
• He gave forth a series of works in rapid succession.他很快连续发表了一系列的作品。

7 ken   

n.视野，知识领域

参考例句：

• Such things are beyond my ken.我可不懂这些事。
• Abstract words are beyond the ken of children.抽象的言辞超出小孩所理解的范围.

8 herd   

n.兽群，牧群；vt.使集中，把…赶在一起

参考例句：

• She drove the herd of cattle through the wilderness.她赶着牛群穿过荒野。
• He had no opinions of his own but simply follow the herd.他从无主见，只是人云亦云。

9 acme   

n.顶点，极点

参考例句：

• His work is considered the acme of cinematic art. 他的作品被认为是电影艺术的巅峰之作。
• Schubert reached the acme of his skill while quite young. 舒伯特的技巧在他十分年轻时即已达到了顶峰。

10 excellence   

n.优秀，杰出，(pl.)优点，美德

参考例句：

• His art has reached a high degree of excellence.他的艺术已达到炉火纯青的地步。
• My performance is far below excellence.我的表演离优秀还差得远呢。

11 victorious   

adj.胜利的，得胜的

参考例句：

• We are certain to be victorious.我们定会胜利。
• The victorious army returned in triumph.获胜的部队凯旋而归。

12 destined   

adj.命中注定的；(for)以…为目的地的

参考例句：

• It was destined that they would marry.他们结婚是缘分。
• The shipment is destined for America.这批货物将运往美国。

13 consummate   

adj.完美的；v.成婚；使完美 [反]baffle

参考例句：

• The restored jade burial suit fully reveals the consummate skill of the labouring people of ancient China.复原后的金缕玉衣充分显示出中国古代劳动人民的精湛工艺。
• The actor's acting is consummate and he is loved by the audience.这位演员技艺精湛，深受观众喜爱。

14 strictly   

adv.严厉地，严格地；严密地

参考例句：

• His doctor is dieting him strictly.他的医生严格规定他的饮食。
• The guests were seated strictly in order of precedence.客人严格按照地位高低就座。

15 secondly   

adv.第二，其次

参考例句：

• Secondly,use your own head and present your point of view.第二，动脑筋提出自己的见解。
• Secondly it is necessary to define the applied load.其次，需要确定所作用的载荷。

16 chasm   

n.深坑，断层，裂口，大分岐，利害冲突

参考例句：

• There's a chasm between rich and poor in that society.那社会中存在着贫富差距。
• A huge chasm gaped before them.他们面前有个巨大的裂痕。

17 fathoms   

英寻( fathom的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The harbour is four fathoms deep. 港深为四英寻。
• One bait was down forty fathoms. 有个鱼饵下沉到四十英寻的深处。