It's a classic... something that everybody wants to
have read and nobody wants to read. - Mark Twain
The Seven Military Classics is a Tang dynasty compilation that reflects the best of all strategy essays of ancient China.
The Seven Military Classics include the following seven texts:
- Jiang Ziya (Taigong)'s Six Secret Strategic Teachings
- The Methods of the Sima (also known as Sima Rangju Art of War)
- Sun-tzu's The Art of War
- Wu-zi Art of War
- Wei Liao-tzu
- The Three Strategies of Huang Shih-kung
- Questions and Replies between Tang Tai-tsung and Li Wei-Gong
From RalphSawyer.com
The Warring States period witnessed unmatched innovation in warfare, the emergence of new political and philosophical ideas, and rapid escalation in large scale, infantry based clashes. Confronted with the nearly insurmountable task of commanding vast forces, resolving logistical and deployment problems, and maintaining spirit (ch’i) among their troops, commanders were compelled to contemplate the nature of military activities, thereby creating China’s military science. Six Warring States texts supplemented by the Questions and Replies -- a late T’ang dynasty work that essentially constitutes a reflective overview -- preserving their concepts, tactical principles, operational guidelines, and world view comprise the Seven Military Classics: T’ai Kung Liu-t’ao (Six Secret Teachings), Ssu-ma Fa, Sun-tzu Ping-fa (Art of War), Wu-tzu, Wei Liao-tzu, and Huang Shih-kung San-lueh (Three Strategies).
Widely ranging and remarkably heterogeneous, their combined contents span the range from simple tactical principles through complex methods of organization and encompass extensive materials on command and control, campaigning, psychological operations and disinformation, maneuver, strategic power, intelligence, manipulating the enemy, deception, regulation and constraint, evaluating the enemy, mustering martial ch’i, and the very nature of warfare itself. Compiled at imperial behest in the mid eleventh century to preserve and disseminate martial knowledge when the Sung was confronted by almost insurmountable threats from beyond the steppe-sedentary demarcation, the seven classic writings were designated as essential materials for the imperial military examinations and thus disproportionately affected subsequent military thought. (Although the Art of War remains the only book known in the West, the Wu-tzu and Six Secret Teachings proved to be highly important sources for military wisdom over the centuries, and the latter continues to be held in higher esteem among contemporary PRC military professionals.)
While the amateurs are still trying to define the foundation of the Art of War, the upper-tier professionals utilize the principles from the Six Secret Teachings and the Wuzi (Wu Tzu) Art of War essay as a foundation for their strategic overview. Of course, they do use Sunzi AoW principles as the basics for the operational activities.
Our recommendation to the strategy newbies is to read this book and experiment with the various set of principles repeatedly until he or she can see all of the various principles in terms of generalities and specifics.
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