Sun Tzu; The Art of War, Chapter 4 "Tactical Advantages; Defense & Offense"

Thermopylae is a good example for Sun Tzu's chapter on tactical advantages, both offensive and defensive.

One's defeat is his own to give.

But, one's victory is his opponent's to give.

The Creator has granted each individual the power of self defeat (our free will), but not the power of self elevation (glorification). These are essentially the same terms for us as they were for Jesus.

This is a brief quote about Leonidas and the Battle of Thermopylae from another blogger. It appears to be accurate from the sources that I checked. Also, I watched the History Channel special, which was a run-up to the theatrical release of a Hollywood movie named "300", from early 2007. The quote is hyperlinked if you want to read the full post.

The Persians continued via a land march to the Pass of
Thermopylae, where they were faced by 300 Spartans and 8700 Greek soldiers from
allied cities. These were an advance force representing the Greek cities,
because troops from the other cities were occupied and could not assemble in
time. Xerxes demanded the surrender of the Greek force, proclaiming that
the Persian arrows would fill the sky. The king of the Spartans replied
"Good, then we'll fight in the shade."

The Sun Tzu chapter on tactical disposition, which is under consideration in my latest styled presentation, really addresses how 300 Spartans could effectively hold 1.7 million Persians for three days.

Leonidas' force, of about 1300 strong, killed 20,000 of Xerxes' Persian warriors.

Leonidas was prepared in mind and deed, for the epic battle. Leonidas was defeated only by Leonidas' own forces, whom he had sent to guard a little known pass called the "path of Anopaea".

Consider this inscription from the banner for the Greek 15th Infantry Brigade, with the words of Leonidas inscribed upon it. "This number is good enough" These are the words of Leonidas, when he was asked how he could hope to defeat the vast Persian forces.

Yet, Leonidas had one caveat "...the entire Greece does not have so many soldiers [as Xerxes Persian force], but depending on how we fight this number is enough."

The caveat defeated him.

I wonder about the power that God has granted humans. I believe that Sun Tzu has accurately given the boundaries for our failure or success.

Mr. Tzu makes a good case for an objective standard of who will be victorious and who will go down to defeat.

Nevertheless, Leonidas eventually won the war over Xerxes, even if he fell at Thermopylae, because Greece would not allow themselves to be conquered and the King from the east, left the islands with much less Persian blood and much less Persian treasure.

Sun Tzu The Art of War Chapter 3; War by Stratagem

This requires some analysis. War by stratagem is seen in many biblical battles, e.g. Gideon's 300 fighting men with only torches and shofars.



Also, the David and Goliath story meets the criteria for War By Stratagem. The opposing army's general had a very wise stratagem. If he had succeeded, the battle would've been over without a fight.

However, Israel's general baulked this plan, & trumping the Philistine general with a "wild card", i.e. an adolescent boy with a wrist rocket.

How far is too far in life's spiritual war?
When does cunning become deceit?
Where is the line? And, should we look for such a distinction?

Sun Tzu The Art of War Chapter 2

Theme: Count the cost of war.

Also, Mr. Tzu gives important advice on protecting the resources of the state, the people & augmenting your strengths with the resources of your opponent's.

All of this is given in the context of; 'How one is to effectively wage his war.'

The question of, whether or not war should be waged has already been answered, in Sun Tzu's philosophy.


Again, I beleive that Sun Tzu's world sees Life and War as distinct, yet coeval.

Ergo, war is ever present to all who exist.
Humans are not given a choice of war, we only have free-will of how to pursue our battles in the war and conduct our affairs in war.

Please note that I am giving my opinions & interpretation of Sun Tzu's philosophy. If you disagree please comment to these posts.

There is a great deal of information in this chapter, which puts Bush & Rumsfeld's war making skill in question. Obviously, most who read this blog already believe the current administration to be unskilled in matters of state.

Sun Tzu The Art of War Chapter 1 part 2of2

Mr. Tzu lays forth an axiom, which is common knowledge among nation states, malevolent neighbors, competing corporations, and department store shoppers on the day after thanksgiving, i.e. deception is absolutely necessary to prevail in a "dog-eat-dog world."

If this is true, what does this say about God?
As a faithful believer in Christ and the Father, I believe that God cannot lie. Deception is antithetical to Jesus' nature.


How does the axiom relate to faith in an Omni-benevolent Creator, who never deceives, and yet is at war with the adversary of humankind?

Our nation is at war. Our generals and president understand Sun Tzu's axiom and employ this principal at all turns. We, as citizens are not privy to truth of the war, because when we know truth, the enemy of the state necessarily has the same knowledge.

Scott, on this blog, has been rightly critical of the leaders of the USA, because of their duplicity in disseminating "knowledge". Yet, the leaders are following the axiom that the world has established for the Art of War. How does one accept these paradoxes?

Your thoughts are important.
God bless,
DSM

Sun Tzu The Art of War Chapter 1 part 1 of 2

I have long wanted to present this information and contemplate its value in light of faith.

I believe that the wisdom of Sun Tzu is valid, however, I also believe that it is inextricably tied to the carnal.
Life and war are coeval in Sun Tzu's philosophy, and I would tend to agree with him.
Whether or not there has ever been a moment when life has been devoid of war I cannot say for certain, however, it is true that the scriptures state that the Creator has been at war with the adversary from the beginning of the physical creation.
There are certain specific things in Sun Tzu's philosophy that require consideration, e.g. 'Fighting a war requires deception'. I must grapple with this concept, because God cannot deceive. How then could this be true, since God is fighting against the adversary?

I will post this now and if anyone wants to give input or would like me to continue to produce the full series, please let me know.
DSM