九地

• Different situations require different behavior. The commander must understand what kind of ground he is really on.
• Alternate chapter title: The Nine Situations
• Chinese chapter title: 九地
• This chapter is grouped into three contextual rule cards while preserving the full traditional Chinese text.

• Core idea: Each kind of ground requires a different action: some call for motion, some for alliances, some for planning, and some for fighting.
• Meaning: One response does not fit every situation.
• Why it matters: The environment should decide the operating mode.
• How to apply: Use different playbooks for new-entry markets, contested markets, crisis markets, and retreat scenarios.

Original Text Explanation

孫子曰：用兵之法，有散地，有輕地，有爭地，有交地，有衢地，有重地，有圮地，有圍地，有死地。

Sun Zi says war recognizes nine kinds of ground: dispersive, facile, contentious, open, intersecting, serious, difficult, hemmed-in, and desperate.

諸侯自戰其地，為散地。

When a ruler fights on his own soil, the ground is dispersive.

入人之地不深者，為輕地。

When he has entered hostile territory but not deeply, the ground is facile.

我得則利，彼得亦利者，為爭地。

Ground whose possession gives major advantage to either side is contentious.

我可以往，彼可以來者，為交地。

Ground where both sides can move freely is open.

諸侯之地三屬，先至而得天下眾者，為衢地。

Ground that links several neighboring states, so that the first occupier can command broad influence, is intersecting ground.

入人之地深，背城邑多者，為重地。

When an army has gone deep into enemy territory and left fortified cities behind it, the ground is serious.

山林、險阻、沮澤，凡難行之道者，為圮地。

Mountain forests, steep ridges, marshes, and other hard country make difficult ground.

所從由入者隘，所從歸者迂，彼寡可以擊我之眾者，為圍地

Ground reached through narrow approaches and left only by winding exits, where a small enemy force could crush a larger one, is hemmed-in ground.

疾戰則存，不疾戰則亡者，為死地。

Ground where only immediate fighting can save you is desperate ground.

是故散地則無戰，輕地則無止，爭地則無攻，

So on dispersive ground, do not fight. On facile ground, do not halt. On contentious ground, do not attack head-on.

衢地則合交，

On open ground, do not try to block the enemy's path. On intersecting ground, strengthen your alliances.

重地則掠，圮地則行，

On serious ground, gather provisions from the land. On difficult ground, keep moving.

圍地則謀，死地則戰。

On hemmed-in ground, use stratagem. On desperate ground, fight.

• Core idea: Seize what the enemy values, and he will respond.
• Meaning: Pressure what matters most.
• Why it matters: People move fastest when something they care about is threatened.
• How to apply: If a rival ignores your messaging, target the customer segment or partner they cannot afford to lose.

Original Text Explanation

所謂古之善用兵者，能使敵人前後不相及，眾寡不相恃，貴賤不相救，上下不相收，

The skilled leaders of old knew how to drive a wedge between the enemy's front and rear, block coordination between large and small units, and keep officers and troops from restoring one another.

卒離而不，兵合而不齊。

When the enemy was united, they knew how to keep him disordered.

合于利而動，不合于利而止。

When it served their advantage, they advanced. When it did not, they stayed still.

敢問：“敵眾整而將來，待之若何？”曰：“先奪其所愛，則聽矣。”

If asked how to deal with a great enemy host drawn up in order and ready to attack, I would say: seize something your opponent values, and he will answer your will.

兵之情主速，乘人之不及，由不虞之道，攻其所不戒也。

Speed is the essence of war. Exploit unreadiness, take unexpected routes, and strike unguarded places.

凡為客之道：深入則專，主人不克。

These are the rules for an invading force: the deeper it goes, the more united the troops become, and the defenders cannot overcome them.

掠于饒野，三軍足食。

Forage fertile country so the army can feed itself.

謹養而勿勞，并氣積力，運并計謀，為不可測。

Study your soldiers' welfare carefully, do not overburden them, gather your energy, conserve your strength, keep the army moving, and design plans no one can see through.

• Core idea: Put people where survival depends on commitment, and they will fight to live.
• Meaning: Urgency concentrates effort.
• Why it matters: When retreat is too easy, execution becomes soft.
• How to apply: Give a critical team one clear deadline and one clear outcome instead of endless optional iteration.

Original Text Explanation

投之無所往，死且不北死焉不得，士人盡力。

Put soldiers where escape is impossible, and they will choose death over flight. Once they accept death, there is nothing they cannot do. Officers and troops alike will spend their full strength.

兵士甚陷則不懼，無所往則固，深入則拘，不得已則鬥。

In desperate straits, soldiers lose fear. With no refuge, they stand firm. In hostile country, they harden. When there is no alternative, they fight all the harder.

是故其兵不修而戒，不求而得，不約而親，不令而信。

So without waiting to be assembled, they stay alert; without waiting to be asked, they carry out your will; without pressure, they remain loyal; without repeated orders, they can be trusted.

禁祥去疑，至死無所之。

Forbid omens and sweep away superstitious hesitation. Then, until death arrives, nothing need be feared.

吾士無餘財，非惡貨也﹔無餘命，非惡壽也。

If soldiers do not cling to wealth, it is not because they dislike riches. If they do not cling too tightly to life, it is not because they despise living.

令發之日，士卒坐者涕沾襟，偃臥者淚交頤。投之無所往者，諸、劌之勇也。

On the day they are sent into battle, they may cry openly. But once driven into extremity, they will show fierce courage.

故善用兵者，譬如率然。率然者，常山之蛇也。擊其首則尾至，擊其尾則首至，擊其中則首尾俱至。

A skilled tactician can be compared to the Shuai-jan, the mountain snake that strikes with tail when hit on the head, with head when hit on the tail, and with both when hit in the middle.

敢問：“兵可使如率然乎？”曰：“可。”夫吳人與越人相惡也，當其同舟而濟，遇風，其相救也，如左右手。

Can an army be made like this? Yes. Men of Wu and Yueh were enemies, yet if they shared a boat in a storm, they would save each other like left hand helping right.

是故方馬埋輪，未足恃也。

So it is not enough to rely on tying horses fast or burying chariot wheels to keep men steady.

齊勇如一，政之道也，

The real method is to establish one common standard of courage for all.

剛柔皆得，地之理也。

How strong and weak troops are both used well depends on using the ground correctly.

故善用兵者，攜手若使一人，不得已也。

That is why the skilled general leads the army as if taking a single person by the hand and compelling him along.

將軍之事：靜以幽，正以治。

A general's work is to be quiet so secrecy holds, and upright and fair so order holds.

能愚士卒之耳目，使之無知。

He must be able to confuse even his own officers and men with appearances and reports, keeping them from seeing the whole design.

易其事，革其謀，使人無識。易其居，迂其途，使人不得慮。

By altering arrangements and changing plans, he keeps the enemy from certain knowledge. By shifting camp and taking indirect routes, he prevents anticipation of his purpose.

帥與之期，如登高而去其梯。帥與之深入諸侯之地，而發其機，

At the critical moment, the commander acts like a man who has climbed to a height and then kicked away the ladder behind him. He drives his men deep into hostile ground before he fully reveals his hand.

焚舟破釜，若驅群羊。驅而往，驅而來，莫知所之。

He burns the boats and breaks the cooking pots. Like a shepherd pushing a flock, he drives the army where he wants, and the men do not know the destination.

聚三軍之眾，投之于險，此謂將軍之事也。

Gathering the host and placing it in danger may be called the general's business.

九地之變，屈伸之力，人情之理，不可不察也。

The measures for the nine kinds of ground, the choice between offense and defense, and the fixed laws of human nature are all things that must be studied carefully.

凡為客之道：深則專，淺則散。

In invasion, the general rule is this: deep penetration brings cohesion, while shallow penetration brings dispersion.

去國越境而師者，絕地也﹔四達者，衢地也﹔

Once you leave your own country behind and cross neighboring borders with your army, you are on critical ground. Ground with routes open on all four sides is intersecting ground.

入深者，重地也﹔入淺者，輕地也﹔

Push deep into a country and you are on serious ground. Enter only a little way and you are on facile ground.

背固前隘者，圍地也﹔無所往者，死地也。

If enemy strongholds lie behind you and narrow passes ahead, you are on hemmed-in ground. If there is no place of refuge at all, you are on desperate ground.

是故散地，吾將一其志﹔輕地，吾將使之屬﹔

So on dispersive ground I would unite my men's purpose. On facile ground I would keep all parts of the army closely linked.

爭地，吾將趨其後﹔

On contentious ground I would hurry my rear forward.

交地，吾將謹其守﹔衢地，吾將固其結﹔

On open ground I would guard carefully. On intersecting ground I would consolidate alliances.

重地，吾將繼其食﹔圮地，吾將進其途﹔

On serious ground I would keep supplies flowing. On difficult ground I would keep pressing onward.

圍地，吾將塞其闕﹔死地，吾將示之以不活。

On hemmed-in ground I would close off retreat. On desperate ground I would show the soldiers that survival lies only in fighting.

故兵之情：圍則御，不得已則鬥，過則從。

A soldier's natural response is to resist stubbornly when surrounded, fight hard when trapped, and obey quickly when deep in danger.

是故不知諸侯之謀者，不能預交。不知山林、險阻、沮澤之形者，不能行軍。不用鄉導，不能得地利。

We cannot ally with neighboring rulers until we know their intentions. We cannot lead an army on the march until we know the country's mountains, forests, dangers, marshes, and swamps. And we cannot use the land well without local guides.

四五者，不知一，非霸、王之兵也。

A ruler fit for dominance cannot ignore even one of these principles.

夫霸、王之兵，伐大國，則其眾不得聚﹔威加于敵，則其交不得合。

When such a ruler attacks a great state, his skill appears in preventing the enemy from concentrating forces. He overawes opponents and keeps their allies from combining.

是故不爭天下之交，不養天下之權，信己之私，威加于敵，則其城可拔，其國可隳

So he does not chase every alliance under heaven or build up the power of other states. He follows his own hidden designs, keeps rivals in fear, and so can take their cities and break their kingdoms.

施無法之賞，懸無政之令，犯三軍之眾，若使一人。

Grant rewards outside the usual rule and issue orders outside the usual routine, and you can handle the whole army as if it were a single person.

犯之以事，勿告以言。犯之以利，勿告以害。

Put the soldiers in front of the actual situation, but do not explain every design in words. Show them the gain when things are bright; do not burden them with the darker side.

投之亡地然後存，陷之死地然後生。

Throw the army onto deadly ground and it will live. Drive it into desperate difficulty and it will find safety.

夫眾陷于害，然後能為勝敗。

Only when a force has fallen into danger does it become capable of striking for victory.

故為兵之事，在于佯順敵之意,

Success in war comes from adapting yourself carefully to the enemy's situation and tendency.

并敵一向，千里殺將，

By pressing the enemy hard along one decisive line, you can in the end strike down his commander from far away.

是謂巧能成事者也。

This is what it means to complete the task through cunning skill.

是故政舉之日，夷關折符，無通其使﹔

On the day you assume command, seal the border passes, break the official tallies, and stop the passage of emissaries.

勵于廊廟之上，以誅其事。

Be severe in council so that you keep control of the whole affair.

敵人開闔，必亟入之，

If the enemy leaves an opening, rush into it.

先其所愛，微與之期。

Get ahead of him by seizing what he values most, and quietly shape the timing of his movement.

踐墨隨敵，以決戰事。

Follow the path laid down by rule, adapt yourself to the enemy, and only then decide the battle.

是故始如處女，敵人開戶，後如脫兔，敵不及拒。

At first, be reserved like a maiden until the enemy opens the door. Then move like a released hare, too fast for him to resist.