Art of War 9.11
The Art of War (孫子兵法), The Army On The March 行軍篇
凡軍喜高而惡下貴陽而賤陰
All armies prefer high ground to low
and sunny places to dark.
Lionel Giles (1910), Sun Tzŭ on the Art of War (1910), with Giles' notes — public domain.
Lionel Giles's notes
“High ground,” says Mei Yao-ch‘ên, “is not only more agreeable and salubrious, but more convenient from a military point of view; low ground is not only damp and unhealthy, but also disadvantageous for fighting.” The original text and the T‘u Shu have 好 instead of 喜.
Character glossary
- 凡fánany, every, all; common, ordinary
- 軍jūnarmy, military; soldiers, troops
- 喜xǐto love; to enjoy, to be happy; joyful,
- 高gāotall, lofty; high, elevated
- 而érand, and then, and yet; but
- 惡èbad, evil, wicked; to hate, to loathe; f
- 下xiàbelow, underneath; inferior; to bring do
- 貴guìexpensive, costly; valuable, precious
- 陽yángthe male principle; bright, sunny; clear
- 賤jiàncheap, low, mean, worthless
- 陰yīnthe female principle; dark, shaded; hidd
Passages with shared wording
- Tao Te Ching Chapter 56
- Art of War 12.12
- Art of War 13.20
- Art of War 9.13
- Zhuangzi On Declining Power
- Tao Te Ching Chapter 62
Data: English Wikisource (Public domain texts; transcription CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.