Fight or not to Fight

The Art of War is also known as the Art of Peace. As stated in every art of war, the best strategy is to win without any fighting, thus no bloodshed and death will be involved. A wise general or sovereign must not think about winning or domination, he/she must have Tao. Tao, also known as the Path, have been emphasized in the first chapter of Sun Tzu's Art of War. To be successful, the sovereign must have the support of the people. With a strong support from the people, a united army can be produced.

How to win over the hearts of people?

• Go with the interest of the people, not against
  
• Government must be observant
  
• Do not go to war due to self anger or frustration
  
• The sovereign must practice virtue and wisdom
  
• He must not take people's expenses to satisfy his personal desire
  
• He must not resort to violence and torturing

With a wise and generous ruler, the country will become prosperous. People will follow him for he make decisions that benefits the people, he goes to war only in the interest of the whole state. Therefore, a ruler should not wage war to satisfy oneself or due to anger and frustration. For Sun Tzu said: Anger or sadness can turn into happiness and delight easily, but a perished state cannot be revived and the dead cannot be brought back to life. For example, during the Three Kingdom Era, when Guan Yu was executed by Sun Quan, Shu Emperor Liu Bei lead thousands of troops to attack the state of Wu in order to avenge his sworn-brother. He did not listen to his advisor's advices and in the end, he was defeated by Wu strategist Lu Xun. A Kingdom or nation must have an observant and perceptive government. It will look at subtle phenomena and listens to small voices. The Sovereign must rid all evil and arrogant and seek the wise. He must make good use of people's talents, and treat everyone equally. Uphold justice and punish the unjust.

"The world is not the private possession of the ruler but the common property of all. He who shares the benefits of the world gains the world, he who tries to grab the benefits of the world all for himself is certain to lose the world."