Examining the Basis for Reliance

To rely on the momentum already formed by others in order to attack evil—even the Yellow Emperor could not compete with such authority. To rely on the strength already gathered by others in order to decide victory—even Tang and Wu could not compete with such achievement. If one can examine and make use of these bases for reliance, and then apply one’s own authority to win, then even a mighty general capable of holding a pass against ten thousand men can be schemed against, and the heroes of the four seas can all be constrained. Modern Application:The previous chapter, “Good Generals,” discussed the completeness and consistency of an organization’s internal rule system; this chapter turns its gaze outward and deals with a question about the source of power: victory does not always come from strength directly accumulated by oneself, but often comes from identifying and relying on external trends and forces that already exist and are already at work. Zhuge Liang places “relying on the momentum of others” and “relying on the strength of others” side by side, pointing to......