"As water has no constant form, there are in war no constant conditions."
Read quote
6 likes
Art quotes
Art
22.1K quotes on this topic — from poets, philosophers, and thinkers across history.
Explore further
Topics related to Art
Browse quotes that often appear alongside art — connected by shared ideas and recurring themes.
Quote collection
Art quotes (page 181 of 1107)
Follow a thought to its author, or read the full quote page.
"Should the enemy forestall you in occupying a pass, do not go after him if the pass is fully garrisoned, but only if it is weakly garrisoned."
Read quote
6 likes
"If the enemy has occupied them before you, do not follow him, but retreat and try to entice him away."
Read quote
6 likes
"If you are situated at a great distance from the enemy, and the strength of the two armies is equal, it is not easy to provoke a battle, and fighting will be to your disadvantage."
Read quote
6 likes
"If there is disturbance in the camp, the general's authority is weak. If the banners and flags are shifted about, sedition is afoot. If the officers are angry, it means that the men are weary."
Read quote
6 likes
"When orders are consistently trustworthy and observed, the relationship of a commander with his troops is satisfactory."
Read quote
6 likes
"The natural formation of the country is the soldier's best ally; but a power of estimating the adversary, of controlling the forces of victory, and of shrewdly calculating difficulties, dangers and distances, constitutes the test of a great general."
Read quote
6 likes
"He who wishes to fight must first count the cost. When you engage in actual fighting, if victory is long in coming, then men's weapons will grow dull and their ardor will be dampened. If you lay siege to a town, you will exhaust your strength."
Read quote
6 likes
"Victory is the main object in war."
Read quote
6 likes
"If we know that our own men are in a condition to attack, but are unaware that the enemy is not open to attack, we have gone only halfway towards victory. If we know that the enemy is open to attack, but are unaware that our own men are not in a condition to attack, we have gone only halfway towards victory. If we know that the enemy is open to attack, and also know that our men are in a condition to attack, but are unaware that the nature of the ground makes fighting impracticable, we have still gone only halfway towards victory."
Read quote
6 likes
"When he utilizes combined energy, his fighting men become as it were like unto rolling logs or stones. For it is the nature of a log or stone to remain motionless on level ground, and to move when on a slope; if four-cornered, to come to a standstill, but if round-shaped to go rolling down."
Read quote
6 likes
"Now this foreknowledge cannot be elicited from spirits; it cannot be obtained inductively from experience, nor by any deductive calculation."
Read quote
6 likes
"Carefully study the well-being of your men, and do not overtax them. Concentrate your energy and hoard your strength. Keep your army continually on the move, and devise unfathomable plans."
Read quote
6 likes
"Hence the saying: One may know how to conquer without being able to do it."
Read quote
6 likes
"The relative size of your force as against that of your adversary is by itself of no consequence. What controls is the relative size of your force at the point where you join in battle. You can strike with the few and be many if you strike your adversary in his gaps. Seek out places where the defense is not strict, the place not tightly guarded, the generals weak, the troops disorderly, the supplies are scarce and the forces are isolated."
Read quote
6 likes
"When the position is such that neither side will gain by making the first move, it is called temporising ground."
Read quote
6 likes
"From a position of this sort, if the enemy is unprepared, you may sally forth and defeat him. But if the enemy is prepared for your coming, and you fail to defeat him, then, return being impossible, disaster will ensue."
Read quote
6 likes
"These are six ways of courting defeat, which must be carefully noted by the general who has attained a responsible post."
Read quote
6 likes
"When the soldiers stand leaning on their spears, they are faint from want of food."
Read quote
6 likes
"He must be able to mystify his officers and men by false reports and appearances, and thus keep them in total ignorance."
Read quote
6 likes