置之死地而后生、知彼知己,百战不殆……这些成语我们耳熟能详,但知道它们来自《孙子兵法》的人不多,知道它们在中外大大小小的战役中屡试不爽的人似乎更少。我们来看看二战中举世闻名的诺曼底登陆与《孙子兵法》有什么重大关系。
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It’s about 500 BC in ancient China. Sun Tzu’s adversary, the Chu Prime Minister Nang Wa, grows frustrated and loses some political allies. Nang Wa deploys his army to destroy a 1)rogue ally in the north called Cai. As the capital is about to be attacked, the Duke of Cai calls on Sun Tzu for help. Sun Tzu now faces a seemingly no-win situation. If he does nothing, his ally will be destroyed. If he tries to save his ally, Nang Wa will crush his army. But for Sun Tzu the solution is simple. He leads a small force towards Cai to act as bait to draw Nang Wa away from the city. It’s a key principle of Sun Tzu’s teaching, “To move your enemy, 2)entice him with something he is certain to take.” Nang Wa immediately stops his siege on Cai and mobilizes his army to 3)intercept Sun Tzu. Sun Tzu saves his ally without drawing a sword, but will he be able to save himself?
Sun Tzu has placed his men where there is no possibility of retreat. He has placed them on “death ground.” Sun Tzu says, “Put the army in the face of death where there is no escape and they will not flee or be afraid. There is nothing they cannot achieve.”
Sun Tzu studied every aspect of war including the psychology of men facing imminent death.
Prof. Foo Check Teck: Sun Tzu says that when the men know that they are in death ground, they will be transformed, they will become, overnight, fearless fighters, that they will fight with all they have in order to win.
On death ground is exactly where Sun Tzu wants his soldiers. And it is on death ground that another great army finds itself, with the fate of the world hanging in the balance.
June 6th, 1944. Allied troops in World War II invade Europe. They land on the 4)treacherous beaches of Normandy, France.
Prof. Richard Gabriel: If you put troops on a beach from which there is no retreat—and there’s almost no retreat from beaches—then they will fight ’cause they have to fight to survive, and you can see this at Normandy.
Bevin Alexander (Author of How Wars Are Won): What those men went through was almost unbelievable. When you see those beaches and you see what those men had to face, it was…it’s absolutely5)sobering to realize.
How they survive and ultimately defeat the Nazis is predicted in the pages of Sun Tzu’s Art of War.
大约在公元前五百年的古代中国,孙子的对手,楚相囊瓦挫败感日增,并失去了一些政治盟友。他派兵征伐已经不听指挥的原北方盟国蔡国。在国都兵临城下之际,蔡国国君向孙子求助。这使孙子陷入了一个似乎只输不赢的困境:如果他袖手旁观,盟友将不复存在。如果他伸出援手,囊瓦则会吞灭自己的军队。但对孙子来说,办法很简单。他带领一支小分队作为诱饵挺进蔡国,把对方引离蔡国的国都。这其实就是孙子用兵的关键原理之一:故善动敌者,形之,敌必从之;予之,敌必取之。囊瓦马上停止了对蔡国的围攻,调遣兵力去堵截孙子的队伍。就这样,孙子剑未出鞘就帮助了盟国,可是他救得了自己吗?
孙子让自己的部下处于一个毫无退路的境地。他让士兵置于绝境。他说:“兵士甚陷则不惧,无所往则固,深入则拘,不得已则斗。”
孙子研究了战争的各个方面,包括战争中人在死亡即将到来时的心理变化。
符绩德教授:孙子说,如果人知道自己身处绝境,他们就会脱胎换骨,一夜之间变成无所畏惧的战士,他们就会竭尽全力去争取胜利。
孙子正是想让他的部下身处绝境。另一支伟大的军队也同样身处绝境,全世界的命运就掌握在他们的手里。
1944年6月6日,二战盟军进入欧洲,他们在危险重重的法国诺曼底登陆。
理查德·加布里埃尔教授:如果你把部队放到毫无退路可言的海滩——在海滩上基本上不会有退路——他们就会拼死一战,不然就没有活路。这正是你在诺曼底看到的。
贝文·亚历山大(《如何赢得战争》的作者):这些士兵当时的经历是常人难以置信的。如果你看到诺曼底的海滩,看到那些士兵必须面对的一切……你一定会清楚地明白这一点。
《孙子兵法》早就预言了二战的这些士兵在此战中如何得以生还,又如何最终战胜纳粹德国。
翻译:BTW
《孙子兵法》之燎原星火
In many East Asian countries, The Art of War was part of the syllabus[课程大纲] for potential candidates of military service examinations.
During the Vietnam War, some Vietnamese army officers studied The Art of War, and reportedly could recite entire passages from memory.
Vietnamese General Vo Nguyen Giap[武元甲]successfully implemented tactics described in The Art of War during major French involvement in Indochina and Vietnam War.
The Art of War is listed on the U.S. Marine Corps Professional Reading Program. It is recommended reading for all United States Military Intelligence personnel and is required reading for all CIA officers.
Many Japanese companies make the book required reading for their key executives. The book is also popular among Western business management, who have turned to it for inspiration and advice on how to succeed in competitive business situations.
