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SUN TZU'S "THE ART OF WAR"
As the title so aptly describes, there is truly an art to both the pursuit and victory of war. Battle is no more an ill-conceived venture whereby a warrior's mission is incompletely calculated than it is a happenstance occurrence; war is not only premeditated from every possible angle, but it also incorporates a number of perspectives most people would not necessarily associate with combat. Sun Tzu understood to fundamental principles of war and what it took to win long before anyone on the planet today realized the complexities inherent to successful battle; it is not merely a political or social rampage but rather an undertaking that requires considerable contemplation of mind, body and soul. Only through the resurrection of The Art of War has the world embraced Tzu's ideology and applied it to more recent conflicts. "The art of war is of vital importance to the State. It is a matter of life and death, a road either to safety or to ruin. Hence it is a subject of inquiry which can on no account be neglected" (Tzu 5). Tzu was well versed when it came to the intrigue of war and how to create the most direct line between battle and victory. However, these were the fundamental components every good warrior understood or he would have no right to call himself a soldier. What Tzu wrote on those few but powerful pages described how to achieve holism within the esoteric nature of battle. Firing a weapon to kill the enemy is only the final step in the act of warfare; reaching that point through various spiritual, cognitive and strategic components is what comprises the artistic value of war. Anyone can aim and fire a gun by engaging but a minimal commitment to the efforts that lead up to that moment but as Tzu points out, there is much more to the art of war than discharging a
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