Art of War Collection

Chapter 3: Scroll of the Earth (1)

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The art of war is a way for the samurai to settle down and stand on his own feet. Especially those warriors who are generals need to be familiar with the art of war and act in accordance with the art of war, and warriors who are ordinary soldiers must also have an understanding of the art of war. In this era, few samurai know the real art of war.

First of all, I want to explain the meaning of the way of survival. Buddhism pays attention to the way of salvation, while Confucianism emphasizes the way of cultural reform. For those who are engaged in the profession of a doctor, healing and saving people is his way of life; for poets, teaching poetry is his way. . Others are engaged in various skills such as divination, bows and arrows. People can freely choose their own way of survival according to their own hobbies and expertise. However, usually many people don't like to use "samurais" as their way of survival.

First of all, as a samurai, you must be proficient in both civil and martial arts. Even if you don't have the talent in this area, as long as you are willing to study hard and increase your cultural and military skills, you can eventually grow into a qualified warrior.

People think that a person who does not have the courage to regard death as home cannot be called a samurai. In fact, it is not the samurai's patent to regard death as home. Even if you are as cheap as a beggar, you will understand your responsibilities, and you will also be able to treat death as home. From this point of view, there is not much difference between them and the samurai.

To do anything, one must be better than others. This is the starting point of the samurai's way of being a human being. The value of the art of war lies in winning in a duel, winning a war, winning honor for the master, gaining benefit for oneself, becoming famous, and so on.

Of course, some people think that even if you are proficient in the art of war, it is difficult to guarantee what effect it can play in reality. In fact, the true art of war is suitable for anyone at any time and anywhere, and only this kind of art of war is the real art of war.

Art of War

In China, Japan, and even the entire East Asia, people who use martial arts as their way of survival are called warriors, or samurai. The art of war is the basic learning of the samurai.

In recent years, there have been many people who call themselves or others called strategists, but most of them are just kendo masters. Recently, the monks of the Kashima and Kantori temples in Hitachi have established some dojos. They claim that the knowledge they teach in the dojos comes from the gods, they are the teachings of the gods, and they spread their doctrines everywhere, but this is also a recent phenomenon. New phenomenon.

From ancient times to the present, the various arts of civil and military have been called "arts" and regarded as a kind of skill. Therefore, when we discuss "artistic ability", we cannot limit the discussion to the scope of swordsmanship. Even if it is the sword art itself, if it is only understood as a sword skill, it is difficult to truly understand the true meaning of the sword art, let alone understand the true meaning of the art of war.

With the popularity of swordsmanship, the art of war also began to become popular. However, what the people taught and learned are just fancy skills, or the pursuit of one-sided interests. This violates the taboo of the art of war, and the seriousness of the consequences is unpredictable. Someone once said that "the immature art of war is a curse." Source of origin", this is a very reasonable sentence.

The ways of earning a living in the world can be roughly divided into four types, namely, the traditional so-called: agriculture, business, scholars, and labor.

The first way to earn a living is the farmer's way of survival. Farmers use various farming tools to work hard, pay attention to weather changes, and plant in spring and harvest in autumn. This is how farmers make a living.

The second way of earning a living is the way of businessmen's survival. Bakers turn flour into bread and sell bread to earn income to support their lives. No matter what kind of business they are doing, businessmen need to be profitable, and profit is the source of food and clothing for businessmen. This is how a businessman makes a living.

The third way of making a living is the way of survival of the samurai. To live, a samurai must be familiar with the characteristics of various weapons, and be able to make and use them proficiently. This is the most basic survival skill of a samurai. If you can't do this, and you still talk about the way of a samurai, it's like talking about sword skills to a farmer. Isn't this playing the piano to a cow? How could he understand.

The fourth way of earning a living is the way of survival of the craftsman. For example, the blacksmith skillfully uses various tools to create all kinds of ironware that customers need. This is how a blacksmith makes a living.

Among these four different ways of earning a livelihood of farmers, businessmen, scholars, and workers, I will use the carpenter's way of earning a livelihood as a specific example to illustrate the art of war.

Appreciating the quality of a carpenter's craftsmanship is generally associated with the house. We usually say this: This is the house of the nobleman, that is the house of the samurai, this is the house of the scholars, this is the house that is about to collapse, that is the very strong house. We will also say what style or style of house this is, or just say the word "house". Just as I can evaluate the craftsmanship of a carpenter by evaluating the house, we can also explain the art of war by talking about the carpenter's life.

Whenever the word "carpenter" is mentioned, people think of "superb skill" and "exquisite idea." And the art of war, like the carpenter, is closely related to "superb skill" and "exquisite conception". It is precisely because of this that I explain the art of war with the carpenter's way of making a living.

If you are a person who is interested in learning the art of war, please think carefully about the truth in the book. The teacher is just a guide. When the teacher leads the door, learning depends on your own hard work.

Carpenters and the Art of War

As the leader of all carpenters, the foreman of carpenters must have an understanding of the laws of nature, national laws and carpenters' behavior.

The foreman of the carpenter must be familiar or proficient in the design and structure of various buildings, and understand what kind of workers to hire to build the house. From this point of view, the role of the carpenter foreman is somewhat similar to that of the samurai leader.

When building houses, special attention should be paid to the choice of wood materials, and we strive to make the best use of all kinds of wood materials. Wood that is straight and has no scars and looks very beautiful and solid can be used as a pillar in the front hall; although it is straight and strong but has some scars on the outside, it can be used as a pillar in the inner chamber. As for those wood that does not look very strong, but does not have any scars on the outside, it can be used for doors, thresholds, lintels or screens. Those woods that are curved and scarred, but are very strong, need to think about their usefulness by yourself, and find some places that can give play to their strong characteristics and can cover their defects of bending and scarring. Only by letting all kinds of wood materials do their best, the house built in this way can survive wind and rain and save materials.

Even wood that is crooked, densely scarred, and not very strong is useful. They can be used for scaffolding and can be removed for firewood after use.

As a leader, the carpenter foreman must also be familiar with the talents of everyone under him, and then assign jobs according to their abilities. Those who can do the floor let him do the floor, those who can do the door let him do the door, and those who can do the threshold let him do the threshold and so on. If his skills are not good enough, he can be asked to install the joists, and if the skills are worse than this, he can be asked to make wedges. If the foreman of the carpenter can be arranged properly, it will be difficult for the work to proceed smoothly and easily.

Knowing how to make the project go smoothly, knowing how to be familiar with the talents of all of them, knowing how to motivate the morale of the people, and be able to distinguish what requirements are reasonable and what is unreasonable-only if you understand these can you do it A qualified carpenter foreman. The principle of the art of war is the same as this.

How to learn the art of war

Carpenters, like soldiers, need to pay attention to maintaining their tools and sharpen them from time to time to keep them sharp and easy to use at all times. Under the command of the foreman, some people are making pillars and beams, some are making floors and bookshelves, and some are dedicated to carving. Work in an orderly manner according to the dimensions on the drawings to make objects that fit the dimensions. This is the minimum requirement for the carpenter. If a carpenter can skillfully use various techniques to make various utensils, then he can be competent for the job of a carpenter foreman, and a promotion is just around the corner.

Maintaining tools, constantly sharpening and polishing it is a compulsory course for carpenters' daily work, which occupies a large part of their daily work. Highly skilled carpenters can skillfully use a variety of tools, whether they are using it to make bookshelves, desks, pot covers, or waterwheels, they can lift heavy weights with ease. Warriors should do a little too. This is worth thinking about.

The essence of carpenter's skill lies in how to make use of the strengths of wood, avoid its shortcomings, avoid bending or scars, connect the most suitable joints, and cost-effectively reduce the cost to the least. These are essential skills for carpenters.

If you want to learn the art of war sincerely, then you must remember what I have said in your heart and appreciate it seriously.

The structure of "Five Wheels"

In order to better interpret my principles of art of war, and to make it easier for people to accept and understand, I divided this book into five parts, namely five volumes. The names of the scrolls are, in order, the scroll of earth, the scroll of water, the scroll of fire, the scroll of wind, and the scroll of empty.

The Scroll of Earth is the first volume of this book. It is an overview of the overall picture of the art of war, and it also has a preliminary touch on the "two-day first-class". I have repeatedly said that the art of war is not equal to swordsmanship. If someone has to equate them, he will only get further and further away from the true meaning of the art of war. If you can't see the big from the small, how can you go from shallow to deep, this first volume is like a path in the vast land, so I call it the scroll of the earth.

The Water Scroll is the second volume of this book. Water is the most supple thing in the world, and it is also the most flexible thing. It is its characteristic to conform to its shape. This is also a basic principle of the art of war. Water can be shaped according to its shape, and the shape of the container is what it is. It can be large and small, round and square; a small drop of water is it, and so is the vast sea. In the secluded deep pool, it is clear and blue; in the vast sea, it is azure. The purity, purity, and purity of water make me call this scroll the scroll of water.

If you are a person who understands the mystery of swordsmanship, then when you can defeat any enemy at will, it means you are invincible. There is no difference between winning one person and tens of thousands.

The commanders of the army can and can learn from individual duels the art of war that can be used in large corps operations. This is the same as a tiny model that can depict majestic mountains and rivers. It is difficult to explain it simply with words. If It must be clarified that the two idioms of analogy and analogy should be appropriate. This is one of the principles of the art of war. In this volume, I will explain the mystery of the "two-day first-class" swordsmanship, so that everyone can learn by analogy, draw inferences from one another, and gain some gains in the art of war.

The scroll of fire is the third volume of the book. The main content of this volume is to tell specific combat matters. Fire is always fierce, no matter how big or small, so I chose it to describe combat. Whether it is a duel between two people or a confrontation between two armies, the tactics can be used in common. You must observe carefully. Neither focus on the big or the small, nor on the small and magnify it. You must take all of the big and small, and don't let the details and overall aspects go.

Generally speaking, people tend to focus on the big aspects and ignore the small ones. Specifically, if you want to make a large-scale maneuvering, it will be difficult for you to be secretive, and it may be known to passers-by; and if you only mobilize one person, it will be difficult to detect even if you have the most advanced intelligence system. . This point needs to be experienced by everyone.

Many things recorded in the scroll of fire happened in an instant. If you don’t strengthen your daily training and treat accidents as normal, it will be difficult for you to remain calm when accidents happen. Calmness is the key to correct decision-making. Therefore, in the scroll of fire, what is mainly described is the strategy and tactics of specific operations.

Wind scroll is the fourth volume of this book. In this volume, the "two-day first-class" art of war is still the focus of the narrative, but there are also some other genres of art of war involved. Here, "wind" means style and tradition, just like modern style and classical style when talking about art. Therefore, in this volume, I will exhaust the art of war in the world. This is the meaning of "wind". If you don’t understand others, you cannot really understand yourself.