06.005 To march over a thousand li without becoming distressed...

[sonshi]

To march over a thousand li without becoming distressed, march over where the enemy is not present.

what the heck does this stuff here mean?

Well, if one has to march 1000 li, which I think is about 330 miles, it is preferable to march over that terrain that is NOT occupied by hostile elements.

Marching and fighting at the same time is very stressful. Just ask Xenophon.

The idea is that when in the field, the Wise General should take the precautions so that the troops have as few hardships as possble. The less extraneous stuff the troops have to worry about, the more they can focus on achieving their mission.

-BingFa

Originally posted by sonshi
To march over a thousand li without becoming distressed, march over where the enemy is not present.

Preparation process and basic marching to the battlefield can be stressful.

Focus on gaining principal key grounds that the opposition do not know of or have a strong hold at.

[gonzo]

To move where your enemy is, will slow down your momentum and it will also exhaust your forces because they have to constantly be on guard.

Gonzo

Sun Tzu said, "To march over a thousand li without becoming distressed, march over where the enemy is not present."

The general must also use paths that have the least resistance. But she must also be aware that the opposition will try to canalize her army into a disadvantaged position.

[Dan]

To march over a thousand li without becoming distressed, march over where the enemy is not present.

When moving troops try to avoid the enemy. It will make your troops less tired when you arrive at your destination.

To march over a thousand li without becoming distressed, march over where the enemy is not present.

In the march to take an opponent. Travel on the easiest ground possible so as to not be made weary befor the fight for the objective. It hard enough to win a fight....try not to unnecessarily tire oneself out befor it begins.

pawn11

[markb287]

Basically, to march a long distance like over 300 miles, you don't want to be attack by the enemy. Avoid the enemy when you are at a disadvantage or when have to travel far.

[MonteChristo]

Avoid the enemy. If the enemy is not present he can not fight. If there is no fight you can not loose.

Business equivalent would be to create/discover/define new markets. Market understood as composite of clients and their needs on one side and products and services on the other. To do that you can/should: Reach the clients faster through different channels, know client’s needs better, be innovative in creating new services/products.

[waterbearer]

To march over a thousand li without becoming distressed, march over where the enemy is not present.

One thing that Sun Tzu repeatedly emphasizes is the absolute need (demand) for planning and preparation.

A general who is able to move his troops such a great distance protects them from harassing rear guard actions and attacks from the flanks when he knows enough about the tactical situation in the area within which warfare is being conducted to move troops without the necessity of having to encounter enemy forces.

Intelligence (both of the "head" kind as well as of the "information" kind) is essential to keeping an upper hand in the strategies of war.

[Truthseeker]

Originally posted by sonshi
To march over a thousand li without becoming distressed, march over where the enemy is not present.

I believe a meaning of this could be to chart a path to the enemy camp that is open to attack. The reason for this is explained in the next verse.

In business terms I see this as meeting the maretplace's unmet needs. Solving problems the customer has before the competition discovers these problems is to "....march over where the enemy is not present".

Go into emptiness, strike voids, bypass what he defends, hit him where he does not expect you.

Ts'ao Ts'ao

[Bushranger]

To march over a thousand li without becoming distressed, march over where the enemy is not present.

Avoid the power ...

There are certain strategic configurations which gain their generally desirable status due to the factors which underly this passage. Internal Lines of communication, control of sea lanes, having access to neutral border territories all in theory allow one to travel without harrassment and (in the old days) with a good chance of secrecy.

Rommel's sweeping outflanking movements in the Western Desert utilised this principle. El Alamein happened because there were no ways to join the battle except front on. The true master of this was Chingis Kahn, especially in his Transoxianan campaign. Hannibal's crossing of the Alps and Caesar's doubletiming around Gaul also utilised the principle.

The march of a thousand li will be distressing enough to our troops without having to deal with the enemy. The enemy's presence will cause casualties, lessen sleep, increase fatigue. All of these will lead to further stress. As we want our troops as fresh as possible when the probability of combat is at its highest, our war of movement relies on both intelligence and good maps to be successful.

[dej2]

(One "li" equals .31 miles.) For men to march over 310 miles without becoming distressed (fatigued), march over where the enemy is not present.

If you plan to move your troops do not move over terrain where they constantly have to battle to reach there objective. Find a path which is not occupied by the enemy. Possibly going around and avoid the enemy will provide a better solution.

[Vesting]

Originally posted by sonshi
To march over a thousand li without becoming distressed, march over where the enemy is not present.

Strike emptiness with fullness. i.e., Find the path of the least resistance and cover your moves, especially if you strike with a large force accross a long distance, because a large force can be evaded and deflected easily due to a surprice counter attack using much less force.