01.013 Warfare is the Way of deception.

Warfare is the Way of deception.

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My thoughts are. . .

And it would seem that because the stakes of warfare are so darn high, that deception is a mandatory element.

And a very critical element as well.

Fortunately, or not, mankind has demonstrated a proclivity and talent to engage in mendacious behaviour at nearly every turn. Thus it is hardly surprising that the sheer lethality and capability of killing fellow human beings has increased over the centuries.

Ahhhh, progress.

When I read The Sun Tzu I have a habit of trying to relate one passage to some other passage and I attempt to see if the interconnectedness of the two passages might hold a more esoteric and deeper meaning.

Hence, the excerpt that "Warfare is the Way of deception," to me points to several other things. First, I think that Sun Tzu was indirectly creating and reemphasizing the important link between being able to win without fighting by managing the perceptions of the opposing General and his Army.

So, paradoxically, whereas most folks would read that excerpt concerning "deception" and construe it to mean one should use deception in order to inflict MORE casualities on an enemy; I hold an opposite point of view and think that this particular excerpt is more accurately interpreted when it is linked to Sun Tzu's admonition that "to win without fighting is the acme of skill."

I am not suggesting that other perspectives are incorrect, but I am saying that my perspective seems to run counter to conventional wisdom.

Stated another way, I believe that Sun Tzu's excerpt concerning "deception" is itself deceptive. Crazy notion, I know. It would take me awhile to explain it, but if you have spent any significant time studying the Art of War, I think you can readily grasp where I am coming from.

I could be imagining things but I really do think that hidden meanings and some not so hidden meanings abound in the Art of War. I mean, simply take the title as an example of my thesis. "Art of War." It sure sounds menancing, doesn't it? To the uninitiated it does. However, one of the more insightful things about the Denma Translation is their interpreattion about "taking whole." They really nailed that one.

Therefore, I have long felt (well, at least since 1989 or 1990) that the Art of War is really a manual on the Art of Peace. And this is one reason why I think The Art of War should be taught in primary schools. I know my idea will not fly in those bastions of liberality that are Cambridge, MA and Berkeley, CA, but one has to still hold on to their dreams.

Peace.
(And I am NOT trying to be deceptive by saying "peace.". . . . . . Okay, I was being deceptive.)

-BingFa

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"Warfare is the Way of deception."-Sun-tzu.

Perhaps the most important quote in the whole book. Sun-tzu goes by this law throughout the book in many situations. Appearance is everything in warfare. What the enemy sees and what the enemy knows, however, are two different things. For the enemy doesn't go by what he knows about his enemy, for he can't find out easily, but he must go by what he sees of his enemy. Therefore, deception is key in tricking the enemy.

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Deception makes your opponent believe in something that is not true. His or her idea about the world is going to be wrong. So accordingly his or her calculations and estimates will be wrong as well. When he or she will act on the false assumptions most likely the enemy will make a mistake. The mistake, which can be used to our advantage.

However the effects of enemy’s mistake will not last forever. As other things those mistakes can be fixed. That is why I think that timing is essential in utilizing someone’s mistakes. Being wrong as a state of mind does not last forever. Sooner or later the deceived one will realize this and adjust his/her position or actions. And opportunity will be gone.

Another thing is worthwhile considering. There is a chance that your enemy will learn the way you lead, the way you carry out the warfare. After sometime he/she might be able to predict when you want to deceive him and act accordingly. Also he might use the same weapon against you.

All and all the deception is very powerful thing as it can save a lot of time and human lives however it should not be taken lightly and used all the time. If you use it too often your enemy will stop believing you at all.

I think it is worth noted that effectiveness of the deception is actually based on the trust. Your opponent believes that your actions represent your true intentions. When this trust is broken the deception cannot be equally effective as before. Therefore this tool should not be used too often. People are learning too fast to allow for those things too many times.

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MonteChristo
And there is only blue sky above us.

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ANOTHER POV

Regardless of the metaphorical battlefield, all warfare demands a corresponding masking of one's plan. In order to mask one's plan, deception is required. Via deception, one can create a schematic of traps and tricks to catch those intelligence operators that are working against him.

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{* CARDINAL999 *}

"In the Field of Observation, Fortune Favors the Prepared (and the Bold)."

"The stillness in stillness is not the true stillness; only when there is stillness in motion does the universal rhythm manifest." - Old Daoist Text

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Warfare is the way of deception.

Few words that can take so long to understand.

This passage goes back to the point in which SunTzu was saying if you are strong, make them think you are weak, if you are weak, make them think that you are strong.

If you confuse your opponent, then you have an advantage.

Gonzo

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Clauswitz

Not much to say, but cf. von Clauswitz on "surprise". Sunzi reminds us to preserve surprise.

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Lies and Secrets

Deception has two parts. One is making the enemy believe a lie, or an untruth. The other is keeping the enemy from discovering a truth, or a secret. There is as much deception in truth that is not spoken as in lies which are spoken.

A battle field example of a lie would be using secondary effects (dust rising, sounds of hardware, etc…) to create the impression of a larger army (when small, look big). However, if you did have a large amount of troops, you could keep this secret and only reveal a small number to entice the enemy to attack you (when big, look small).

I agree that Sun Tzu is using deception in this book, specifically a lie, as BingFa pointed out. He has tricked us into thinking we are reading a book about how to fight battles. In reality, the Art of War is a book about waging war with as few battles as possible, preferably none.

Toker

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you must make an impression on the enemy, that contours to advantage for you. If you are weak at the moment, that is when you must seem your strongest, you have to make traps, or trick your enemy to do as much damage as possible.

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I must agree that the art of war is more than just how to win a war but rather to win a war with as little confrontation as possible. This, in fact, is a reason I firmly believe that if one is to succeed with minimum casualties one must make the primary objective of ones unit to take out or capture the enemy's command. If the command is taken then soldiers moral with surely be depleted, making them almost certain to surrender.

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Logan,

Cut off the head and the body will die.

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Sun Tzu said, "Warfare is the Way of deception."

The resourceful, skilled and devious measures designed to mislead the opposition by maskirovka, manipulation, distortion, or falsification of evidence to confuse and disorganize the opposition. Deception also acts to induce the opposition to jump to conclusions and act in a manner prejudicial to their own interests.

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Re: 01.013 Warfare is the Way of deception.

quote:

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Originally posted by sonshi
Warfare is the Way of deception.

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I remember a translation of the Art of War, that said:

"All warfare is based upon deception"

rather then

"Warfare is the Way of deception"

I feel that there are no hidden meanings in what Sun Tzu wrote, A man of Sun Tzu's nature would have been very sharp and very precise, like all good leaders he would not twist his words, he would be sharp and to the point.

Indeed if there were are hidden meanings we cannot critically look into them in an english translation.
Remember, The english translations are the interpretations of another person.

I 100% agree with SunZulu. Deception not just as is, but deception in every way and form possible. I believe this because there is no other point in the art of war which he goes on and elaborates and examplifies more.

I also agree with Logan's point, A good General can capture their enemy without fighting. The use of deception is crucial to this.

As for the art of peace , remember the opposite of peace, is not war, but conflict.

Sun Tzu teaches warfare, there is no doubt he teaches how to conquer over the enemy, he teaches how to conquer as peacefully as possible.

When you get to the stage where Sun Tzu's strategies must be applied, just remember you are applying warfare strategy, your not applying peaceful strategy, your applying strategy to conquer as peacefully as possible. Whilst it can achieve peace, is doesn't mean it is strategy for peace. (Yes the strategy is extremely versitile but let's stick to the fact, it is warfare strategy)

Oh and I wouldn't recommend this to be taught to 10 year olds .

I think the art of war is for the mature mind. It is extremely dangerous. There minds at that age are still young, to me it would be like giving kids lessons on how to use rifles in school.

That may sound over the top, I'll elaborate & explain in detail if I have to.

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"Warfare is the Way of deception. "

A controversial statement.
This principle has been criticized by many generals and philosophers of every century.
Many generals sacrified whole armies to a romantic view of warfare, preferring an honourable but bloody defeat to a great but "dishonourable" victory.

Sunzi's AoW is heavily based on information :
collecting every real and useful information about the enemy ( e.g. chapter XIII )
and negating every true and reliable information to the enemy intelligence system ( the majority of tactics suggested in the Art of War uses some sort of deception).

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quote:

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Warfare is the Way of deception.

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Dan

"Never let morality stop you from doing what is right." Character from the Foundation series by Isaac Asimov

"Never let the righteous stop you from doing what is moral." SunZulu

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