The Nine Grounds

S un Tzu said: war is fought on nine kinds of ground. Scattering ground. Easy ground. Contested ground. Open ground. Crossroads ground. Heavy ground. Broken ground. Hemmed-in ground. And deadly ground. Sun Tzu said: in the conduct of war there is scattering ground, easy ground, contested ground, open ground, crossroads ground, heavy ground, broken ground, hemmed-in ground, and deadly ground.

When you fight on your own soil, that is scattering ground — men close to home drift off. Push a little into enemy land but not deep, and that is easy ground — easy to turn back from. Ground that helps whoever holds it, yours or his, is contested. Ground open to both of you to come and go is open ground. Where three states' borders meet, so the first to arrive commands the region, is crossroads ground. When a feudal lord fights in his own territory, it is scattering ground. When he has entered hostile land but not far, it is easy ground. Ground that profits whoever takes it, you or the enemy, is contested ground. Ground where both you and he can freely come and go is open ground. Where three states adjoin, so that the first to arrive wins the multitudes of the empire, is crossroads ground.

Push deep into enemy land with walled towns at your back, and that is heavy ground. Mountains, forests, cliffs, marshes — any country hard to cross — is broken ground. Ground reached by a narrow gap and left by a long way round, where a small enemy force can crush your larger one, is hemmed-in ground. And ground where you survive only by fighting at once, and die if you do not, is deadly ground. When you have penetrated deep into hostile land, with many fortified cities behind you, it is heavy ground. Mountains, forests, defiles, marshes — all country that is hard to traverse — is broken ground. Ground entered through a narrow pass and left by a winding route, where a small enemy force can strike your larger one, is hemmed-in ground. Ground where you survive if you fight without delay and perish if you do not is deadly ground.

“Throw your men where there is no way out, and they will stand and die rather than run. Put them where they cannot live, and they live.”

So: on scattering ground, do not fight. On easy ground, do not halt. On contested ground, do not attack. On open ground, do not let your lines be cut. At a crossroads, join your alliances. On heavy ground, plunder for supply. On broken ground, keep moving. On hemmed-in ground, scheme your way out. On deadly ground — fight. Therefore on scattering ground do not fight; on easy ground do not stop; on contested ground do not attack; on open ground do not let your ranks be severed; on crossroads ground form your alliances; on heavy ground gather plunder; on broken ground press on; on hemmed-in ground use stratagem; on deadly ground, fight.

Asked how to meet a great enemy host, drawn up in order and about to come at you — seize first the thing he cannot afford to lose. Then he moves to your tune. If asked how to deal with a great host of the enemy, in good order and about to advance, I would say: first take away something he holds dear, and he will bend to your will.

Speed is the heart of war. Move before the enemy is ready. Come by the road he never watched. Strike the place he left unguarded. The essence of war is speed: ride on the enemy's failure to arrive, go by ways he does not expect, attack where he takes no precaution.

Throw your men where there is no way out, and they will stand and die rather than run. Put them where they cannot live, and they live. Drive a force into danger and only then can it turn defeat into victory. Cast them into a place from which there is no escape, and they will prefer death to flight. Place them in deadly ground, and they will live; plunge them into desperate straits, and they will come through. For it is only when a host has fallen into danger that it can wrest victory from defeat.

A good commander handles his army like the snake of Mount Chang. Strike its head, the tail comes at you. Strike its tail, the head comes at you. Strike the middle, and head and tail both come. One skilled in war may be compared to the shuairan, the snake of Mount Chang. Strike its head and the tail attacks; strike its tail and the head attacks; strike its middle and both head and tail attack.

Can troops be made to answer like that snake? They can. The men of Wu and the men of Yue hate each other. But put them in one boat to cross a river, let a storm hit, and they will help each other like the left hand helps the right. Can an army be made to act like the shuairan? It can. The people of Wu and the people of Yue detest one another; yet if they are crossing a river in the same boat and meet a storm, they will rescue each other like the left hand and the right.

When the day to act comes, set your men a deadline as if you had led them up a height and kicked the ladder away. Take them deep into another ruler's land, and there release the trigger. On the day the host is set in motion, fix the men a time as one who climbs a height and throws away the ladder behind him. Lead them deep into the territory of the feudal lords, and there spring the catch.

The general's work is to be quiet and hidden, upright and in command. He keeps his men and officers in the dark, so they know nothing of his plan. It is the business of a general to be still and inscrutable, upright and orderly. He keeps his officers and men ignorant, so that they have no knowledge of his designs.

Tethering the horses and burying the chariot wheels will not hold an army in place. The way to hold one is to bind every man to a single courage — that is the work of method. At first be shy as a maiden, until the enemy opens his door; then be quick as a bolting hare, and he will be too late to shut you out. Tethering horses and burying chariot wheels is not enough to rely on. The way to make a whole army one in courage lies in good order. So at first be like a maiden, until the enemy gives you an opening; afterwards be like a hare slipping the snare, and the enemy will have no time to resist.

九地 The original Chinese · honored as an artifact

孫子曰：用兵之法，有散地，有輕地，有爭地，有交地，有衢地，有重地，有圮地，有圍地，有死地。

Opening lines, classical Chinese · The Art of War 孫子兵法