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Artofwar13 Spies

Chapter 13: Spies

A summary of Sun Tzu Chapter 13.

Source: https://suntzusaid.com/book/13

More footnotes: http://www.sacred-texts.com/tao/aow/aow21.htm

Also try to find the remarks of Frederick the Great on spies.

Also see the Military Memoirs and maxims of Marshal Turenne.

Notes

The word 'spy' is not an excellent translation for this chapter, te term is broader.

Apparently there is some history between the chinese word for "spy" and the word for "a crack in the door between which the moonlight can slip". So the context of this document must be adjusted. Additionally, there is something about it meaing "a crack or a chink", so this is probably related to the modern computer concepts of bugs and cracking an enemy's loyalty strategies and other parts of his personnell substrate not fully under his control.

"Divine Manipulation" == Control. This definition probably relates to the definitions of control we give to performers rather than coercive power.

Another translation recommends that 'doomed' spies are also enemy spies who are fed false information, but this is disputed.

Another translation of "pay spies generously" is to also "show them complete trust in their work"

Tu Mu added a warning: "Just as water, which carries a boat from bank to bank, may also be the means of sinking it, so reliance on spies, while productive of great results, is oft-times the cause of utter destruction."

Chia Lin added: "An army without spies is like a man without ears or eyes."

Summary

If your objective has a high ongoing and total cost, don't try to save a fraction of the daily cost in payments, e.g. "emoluments" and "honors" for information.

Foreknowledge of an opponent cannot come from calculation, mystics, or experience.

Foreknowledge of an opponent can only come from other people.

  1. Five Classes of Spies
  2. local: inhabitants of a opponent district
  3. inward: officials of the opponent
  4. converted: enemy spies turned by bribe carrot or stick
  5. doomed: deceive your own spies who are then captured by the enemy and report false information. the enemy will kill this spy when their information is found to be false.
  6. surviving: a traditional spy, seek and bring back news from the enemy camp
    • an apparent fool with a will of iron and keen intellect
    • active, robust, strng, courageous
    • accustomed to dirty work, able to endure hunger and cold
    • able to put up with and ignominy

The "divine manipulation of the threads" is having all five kinds of spies at work at once. Claimed to be "the soverign's most precious faculty" as well as "an undiscoverable secret system".

The relationship with spies is the most intimate in the army. They should be the most well rewarded and should have the highest level of secrecy.

Employ spies with wisdom, Manage them with benevolence and straightforwardness as necessary.

Without "subtle ingenuity" you cannot trust your spies. Use your spies for every kind of business. "Be subtle! Be Subtle!"

If a spy reveals news before you need it, kill the spy and the recepient of the knowledge.

  • Get the names of:
    • attendants
    • aides-de-camp
    • door-keepers and sentries of the leader

The 'converted' spy has information which is the source of 'inward' and 'local' spies.

Create 'converted' spies with bribes, housing.

Goal: Knowledge of your opponent.

The 'converted' spy is the foundation of this knowledge. Therefore, the 'converted' spy is treated with the "utmost liberality".

Spies are a more important element in water because the army's ability to move depends on them.