The Art of War

The Art of War

This book include Sun Tzu's biography and his works.

The famous military treatise, "The Art of War" written by Sun Tzu depicts a philosophy of war for managing conflicts and winning battles. Some modern philosophers believe that apart from the writings of the author, it also contains commentary and clarifications from later military philosophers, such as Li Quan and Du Mu. This masterpiece, since its first publication, has been translated and distributed internationally, and was frequently referred and used by generals and theorists. There are numerous theories concerned with the completion of the text but it has been archeological proved that the Art of War was composed by at least the early Han dynasty. Since it is nearly impossible to predict the correct date of its completion, the differing theories regarding the work's author(s) and date of completion will never resolve. It was one of the six survived major works written before the unification of China in the 2nd century BC. In the late 1st millennium AD, during the Song Dynasty, these six major works were combined with a Tang Dynasty text into a collection also known as the Seven Military Classics. Being the central part of the collection, "The Art of War" formed the bases of orthodox military theory in China. The language used in the book can be distinguishable from a Western text on warfare and strategy. It was said that the text had recurrent mentions such as a leader must be "serene and inscrutable" and capable of comprehending "unfathomable plans", which was confusing for Western readers who lack the awareness of the East Asian context. These statements will make clear sense if studied with Taoist thought and practice.

Dettagli