Art of War 5.15
The Art of War (孫子兵法), Energy 埶篇
埶如彍弩節如發機
Energy may be likened to the bending of a cross-bow; decision, to the releasing of the trigger.
Lionel Giles (1910), Sun Tzŭ on the Art of War (1910), with Giles' notes — public domain.
Lionel Giles's notes
“Energy” seems to be the best equivalent here for 埶, because the comparison implies that the force is potential, being stored up in the bent cross-bow until released by the finger on the trigger. None of the commentators seem to grasp the real point of the simile.
Character glossary
- 埶yìart
- 如rúas, as if, like, such as, supposing
- 彍guōto draw a bow to the full
- 弩nǔcrossbow; an arrow falling, a downward s
- 節jiéfestival; knot, joint; segment; to econo
- 發fāto issue, to dispatch, to send out; hair
- 機jīdesk; machine; moment, opportunity
Passages with shared wording
Data: English Wikisource (Public domain texts; transcription CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.