Reading Order
The Art of War Reading Order
Sun Tzu's The Art of War (c. 5th century BCE) is the oldest military strategy text in the world — a compact, aphoristic guide to warfare attributed to the Chinese general Sun Tzu and organized into thirteen chapters covering strategy, tactical positioning, the use of intelligence, and the relationship between victory and self-knowledge. It has been continuously studied for 2,500 years and has been applied to business, sports, politics, and diplomacy as well as military command.
Where to start
The Art of War
Complete The Art of War Book List
- 1Buy
The Art of War
Sun Tzu·-500·The complete text. Multiple translations available; the Samuel B. Griffith (1963) and the Thomas Cleary (1988) translations are highly regarded. Start here. - 2Buy
The Book of Five Rings
Miyamoto Musashi·1645·The Japanese samurai Musashi's guide to strategy and combat, written as he was dying — the closest Japanese equivalent to The Art of War. Read second for the East Asian strategy tradition.
The Art of War — Frequently Asked Questions
What are the key principles of The Art of War?
Sun Tzu's key principles include: (1) Know yourself and know your enemy — 'Know thy enemy and know thyself; in a hundred battles, you will never be in peril.' (2) Win without fighting — the greatest general is not the one who wins the most battles but the one who defeats the enemy without fighting, through strategic positioning and the use of intelligence. (3) All warfare is based on deception — appear weak when you are strong; appear strong when you are weak. (4) Adapt to circumstances — the victorious general adapts their strategy to the specific situation rather than following fixed principles. (5) Act on intelligence — success depends on accurate knowledge of the terrain, the enemy's dispositions, and your own forces.
How is The Art of War applied to business?
Business applications of The Art of War typically focus on competitive strategy: creating asymmetric advantages, avoiding head-on competition with stronger opponents, using intelligence (market research, competitive analysis) to inform decisions, choosing the terrain of competition, and the importance of flexibility and speed. The principle 'appear weak when you are strong' is applied to not revealing competitive advantages to rivals prematurely. 'Attack where your enemy is unprepared; appear where you are not expected' is applied to finding uncontested market spaces. The principle of winning without fighting is applied to strategies of preemption and positioning that make direct competition unnecessary. The most famous business application is in Japanese management, where The Art of War was studied extensively in the postwar period.
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