Master Yellow Stone and Zhang Liang

This book is attributed to Jiang Shang 姜尚 of Qi 齊 “Taigong 太公 The Great Duke”, or his disciples, or to Master Yellow Stone Huangshi Gong 黃石公 (Huang is not his surname!) of the beginning of Han period 漢, who handed over the book to chancellor Zhang Liang 張良, or even later as a forgery using citings of different Daoist books. The final view is that it was composed at the end of Former Han 前漢.

The writing focuses primarily on government and military administration and control. Discussions of campaign strategy and battle tactics are almost absent. The fundamental concepts of Confucianism, such as benevolence, righteousness and humane government underlie the entire work. But pivotal measures espoused by the legalists, such as strengthening the state and rigorously enforcing the laws supplement the Confucian approach. Additionally, the Daoist spirit, which emphasizes the passive, being harmonious, not contending and preserving life, pervades the book but is modified to accept the reality of warfare. The names of the chapters do not seem to have a qualitative ranking.  Chapters of the Huangshigong Sanlüe:
 
1.上略 Shanglüe, Superior strategy
2.中略 Zhonglüe, Middle strategy
3.下略 Xialüe, Inferior strategy 
 
 Exemplary translation:

１．上略

夫主将之法，务揽英雄之心，赏禄有功，通志于众。故与众同好，靡不成；与众同恶，靡不倾。治国安家，得人也；亡国破家，失人也。含气之类，咸愿得其志。
《军谶》曰：“柔能制刚，弱能制强。”柔者，德也；刚者，贼也。弱者人之所助，强者怨之所攻。柔有所设，刚有所施；弱有所用，强用所加；兼此四者，而制其宜．．．
夫为国之道，恃贤与民。信贤如腹心，使民如四肢，则策无遗。所适如支体相随，骨节相救；天道自然，其巧无间。
军国之要，察众心，施百务。
危者安之，惧者欢之，叛者还之，怨者原之，诉者察之，卑者贵之，强者抑之，敌者残之，贪者丰之，欲者使之，畏者隐之，谋者近之，谗者覆之，毁者复之，反者废之，横者挫之，满者损之，归者招之，服者居之，降者脱之．．．

Superior strategy

The commander in chief’s method focuses on winning the minds of the valiant, rewarding and providing salaries to the meritorious, and having his will penetrate to the masses. Thus if he has the same likes as the masses, there is nothing he will not accomplish. If he has the same dislikes as the masses, there is nothing he will not overturn. Governing the state and giving security to one’s family is a question of gaining the people. Losing the state and destroying one’s family is a question of losing the people. All living beings want to realize their ambitions.

The Military Pronouncement states: “the soft can control the hard, the weak can control the strong.” The soft is virtue. The hard is a brigand. The weak is what the people will help, the strong is what resentment will attack. The soft has situations in which it is established; the hard has situations in which it is applied; the weak has situations in which it is employed; and the strong has situations in which it is augmented. Combine these four and control them appropriately…

Now the way to govern the state is to rely on worthies and the people. If you trust the worthy as if they were your belly and heart, and employ the people as if they were your four limbs, then all your plans will be accomplished. If your measures follow on each other as naturally as the four limbs, or the way the joints of the bones cooperate with each other, this is the Dao [natural way] of heaven. There is no gap in such skill.

The essence of the army and state lies in investigating the mind of the people and putting into effect the hundred duties of government.

Bring peace to those who are in danger. Give happiness to those who are afraid. Return those who rebel. Be indulgent to those who have grievances. Investigate the complaints of those who have legal suits. Raise up the lowly. Repress the strong. Destroy the enemy. Enrich the greedy. Use those that have desires. Conceal the fearful. Attract strategists. Investigate slanderers. Reproach the insulting. Eliminate the rebellious. Stifle those who act willfully. Diminish the arrogant. Summon those who turn their allegiance toward you. Give life to those who submit. Release those who surrender…

２．中略

夫三皇无言而化流四海．．．
帝者，体天则地，有言有令，而天下太平．．．
王者，制人以道，降心服志，设矩备衰．．．
霸者，制士以权，结士以信，使士以赏．．．
《军势》曰：“出军行师，将在自专；进退内御，则功难成。”
《军势》曰：“使智、使勇、使贪、使愚：智者乐立其功，勇者好行其志，贪者邀趋其利，愚者不顾其死；因其至情而用之，此军之微权也。”
《军势》曰：“无使辩士谈说敌美，为其惑众；无使仁者主财，为其多施而附于下。”
《军势》曰：“禁巫祝，不得为吏士卜问军之吉凶。”．．．

Middle strategy

Now the three august ones never spoke, but their transformation flowed throughout the seas…

The emperors embodies heaven and took earth as their model. They spoke and issued orders, and the world attained great peace…kings governed men by means of the Dao, causing their hearts to be compliant and their wills to be submissive while also establishing restrictive measures and making preparations against decline…

The hegemons governed their officers by virtue of authority - bonding them through trust, motivating them with rewards…

The “Army’s Strategic Power” states: When the army is mobilised and advances into the field, the sole exercise of power lies with the general. If in advancing or withdrawing the court interferes, it will be difficult to attain success.

The “Army’s Strategic Power” states: Employ the wise, courageous, greedy, and stupid. The wise take pleasure in establishing their acheivements. The courageous love to put their will into effect. The greedy fervently pursue profits. The stupid have little regard for death. Employ them through their emotions, for this is the military’s subtile exercise of authority.

The “Army’s Strategic Power” states: Do not allow your disputatious officers to discuss the enemy’s good points because they may delude the masses. Do not allow the benevolent to control the finances, for they will dispense too much and become attached to the lower ranks.

The “Army’s Strategic Power” states: Prohibit mediums or shamans from divining about the army’s good or bad fortune on behalf of the officials and officers…

３．下略

．．．贤人之政，降人以体；圣人之政，降人以心。体降可以图始，心降可以保终。降体以礼，降心以乐。
所谓乐者，非金石丝竹也；谓人乐其家，谓人乐其族，谓人乐其业，谓人乐其都邑，谓人乐其政令，谓人乐其道德。如此，君人者乃作乐以节之，使不失其和。故有德之君，以乐乐人；无德之君，以乐乐身。乐人者，久而长；乐身者，不久而亡．．．
道、德、仁、义、礼，五者一体也。道者人之所蹈，德者人之所得，仁者人之所亲，义者人之所宜，礼者人之所体；不可无一焉．．．
圣王之用兵，非乐之也，将以诛暴讨乱也。夫以义诛不义，若决江河而溉爝火，临不测而挤欲堕，其克必矣。所以优游恬淡而不进者，重伤人物也。夫兵者，不祥之器，天道恶之，不得已而用之，是天道也。夫人之在道，若鱼之在水；得水而生，失水而死。故君子者常畏惧而不敢失道。

Inferior strategy

… the government of a worthy causes men to submit with their bodies. The government of a sage causes men to submit with their minds. When their bodies submit the beginning can be planned; when their minds submit the end can be preserved. Their physical submission is attained through the forms of propriety; their mental submisson is attained through music.

What I refer to as music is not the sound of musical instruments- the stones, metal, strings, and bamboo. Rather, I refer to people taking pleasure in their families, clans, occupations, capitals, and towns, orders of government, the Dao, and virtue. One who rules the people in this fashion creates music in order to bring measure to their activities, to ensure that they do not lose their essential harmony. Thus the virtuous ruler uses music to give pleasure to the people; the debauched ruler uses music to give pleasure to himself. One who provided pleasure to others endures and prospers; one who pleasures himself does not endure, but perishes…

The Dao, virtue, benevolence, righteousness, and the forms of propriety-these five-are one body. The Dao is what men tread; virtue is what men gain; benevolence is what men approach; righteousness is what men consider appropriate; and the forms of propriety are what people embody. You cannot lack any of them…

The sage king does not take any pleasure in using the army. He mobilizes it to execute the violently perverse and punish the rebellious. Now using the righteous to execute the unrighteous is like releasing the Yangtse and Yellow rivers to douse a torch, or pushing a person tottering at the edge of an abyss. Their success is inevitable! Thus when action should be taken one who hesitates and is quiet, without advancing, seriously injures all living being. Weapons are inauspicious instuments, and the Dao of heaven abhors them. However, when their employment is unavoidable it accords with the Dao of heaven. Now men in the Dao are like fish in the water. If they have water they will live; if not they will die. Thus the ruler must constantly be afraid and dare not to lose the dao…