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A Standard Benchmark
Gagliardi's Translation
Sawyer's Translation
"Clavell's" Translation
Griffith's Translation
Ames' Translation
Cleary's Translation
Kaufman's Translation
The
Denma Translation
Clavell's Translations
Clavell's
Version: Although James Clavell did not do this translation
himself (it is
a version of an older translation by Giles), his name appears prominently on its cover, so
we refer to it by his name.
This is the book for readers who want a little more
explanation about what the nineteenth-century author thought Sun Tzu meant, mixed in
with the text itself. The
actual text and
its sentences and paragraphs have little to do with the original text.
The goal of this work is to explain Sun Tzu's ideas. In most cases, this explanation was not offered by Sun Tzu
himself. This stanza, for
example, appears as a single group of characters in the original, but Clavell's
translation starts it in the middle of one paragraph and combines several of the lines
together into a single paragraph. This implies that Sun Tzu meant them to be taken
together, but we don't know that. This translation cannot resist expanding and
explaining the master's words well beyond anything Sun Tzu actually said. See
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Our
Character Translation |
Clavell's
Translation |
 Without
 invitation
 right
correct ’s
 banner, |
To refrain from intercepting an enemy
whose banners are in perfect order, |
 Do not
 attack
 hall hall
of  formation, |
to refrain from attacking an army drawn
up in calm and confident array— |
 Here  govern
 transform  one
 also; |
this is the art of studying
circumstances. |
 Make  use
 war’s
 method, |
It is a military
axiom... |
 High  mound
do not  face, |
not to advance uphill against the
enemy, |
 Back  walls
do not  oppose, |
nor to oppose him when he comes down
hill. |
 Pretend  flee
do not  follow, |
Do not pursue an enemy that simulates
flight; |
 Sharp  soldiers
do not  attack, |
do not attack soldiers whose
temperament is keen. |
 Bait war
do not  feed, |
Do not swallow bait offered by the
enemy. |
 Returning home
 legion
do not  block, |
Do not interfere
with an army that is returning home because a man whose heart is set on returning home
will fight to the death against any attempt to block his way. |
 Encircling
troops
 must  watch-tower, |
When you surround
an army, leave an outlet free. This does not mean that the enemy should be allowed
to escape. The object is to make him believe that there is a road to safety, and thus
prevent his fighting with the courage of despair. |
 Poor  pillage
do not  force, |
For you should not press a desperate foe too hard. |
Here use
war’s
method also. |
Such is the art of warfare. |
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