“Success in warfare is gained by carefully accommodating ourselves to the enemy's purpose.”

“If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat.”

“Convince your enemy that he will gain very little by attacking you; this will diminish his enthusiasm”

“To secure ourselves against defeat lies in our own hands, but theopportunity of defeating the enemy is provided by the enemy himself.”

“If you know the enemy and know yourself, you need not fear the result of a hundred battles. If you know yourself but not the enemy, for every victory gained you will also suffer a defeat. If you know neither the enemy nor yourself, you will succumb in every battle.”

“What enables the enlightened rulers and good generals to conquer the enemy at every move and achieve extraordinary success is foreknowledge.”

“There is no instance of a nation benefitting from prolonged warfare.”