Engaging in Battle

AnonymousBashu Publishing House · ChinaJul 2024

3.4

Word count: 318 words
Chapters: 2

Summary

Jiaozhan is a piece of military doctrine recorded in the ancient Chinese military treatise Baizhan Qilue, intended to explain how to conduct diplomatic activity in support of military struggle. It holds that in war one should use humble words and generous gifts to befriend neighboring states and win them as allies. Thus, when one launches a frontal attack on the enemy, they can contain the enemy from the flank and rear, and victory can be achieved.

Editor's review

Jiaozhan is taken from the ancient Chinese military treatise Baizhan Qilue and is devoted specifically to how diplomacy and military affairs work together. Its core proposition is clear: in war, one should use humble words and generous gifts to befriend neighboring states and win them as allies; when one's own side attacks frontally, the ally then contains the enemy from the flank and rear, thereby increasing the chances of victory. The piece is not long, yet it sets out the idea that "diplomacy serves the military" in a direct and concrete way, reflecting the practical consideration ancient strategists gave to multilateral relations. For today's readers, its value lies not in offering strategies that can be applied directly but in presenting a mode of thinking centered on linking interests and containing through position. This separate edition is convenient for a quick read-through and is also suitable for reading alongside other chapters of Baizhan Qilue, to observe how ancient military treatises connect specific battle cases with principles.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Beginning readers interested in ancient Chinese military treatises and military thought
General readers concerned with the relationship between diplomacy and the military who enjoy strategic analysis
Students who need short classical Chinese materials for extracurricular reading

Not a good fit for

Advanced researchers hoping for detailed battle-history cases and full annotations
Readers expecting modern international-relations theory or a practical guide

Reading tips

First read the original to grasp its proposition, then consult the translation to confirm the specific meaning of key sentences.
Read alongside other chapters of Baizhan Qilue that deal with diplomacy and alliances, comparing their emphases.
After reading, summarize its logical chain in your own words and consider the conditions required for this line of thinking to hold.

About the publisher

Bashu Publishing House China · Founded in 1983

Bashu Publishing House is a publisher centered on collating and publishing classical Chinese cultural texts, with its main publishing areas covering classical literature, Eastern philosophy, ancient poetry, and educational classics. Its library currently holds 1,075 titles, including representative works such as Dream of the Red Chamber, the Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Gathering, Renjian Cihua, and Out to the Frontier, involving authors such as Cao Xueqin, Wang Xizhi, Wang Guowei, Wang Changling, Liu Xie, and Yan Yu. These reflect the publisher's focus on literary classics, poetry criticism, and philosophical readings. Its publishing character lies in working around ancient texts and canonical works, with attention to textual collation and presentation. Public information on its more detailed publishing background and series plans is limited; this introduction is based only on the library's book information.

版权信息
交战

FAQ

What is Jiaozhan mainly about?

It explains how to use diplomatic activity in support of military struggle: by befriending neighboring states with humble words and generous gifts and winning them as allies, so that when one's own side attacks frontally, the ally contains the enemy from the flank and rear, thereby creating a favorable position. The whole piece unfolds around this idea and is one chapter of Baizhan Qilue.

Is this book the complete Baizhan Qilue?

No. This book is a separate edition of the single chapter Jiaozhan and contains only that chapter, not the whole of Baizhan Qilue. To understand the entire military treatise, one needs to find a complete edition of Baizhan Qilue for comparison.

Do ancient military treatises still have meaning for modern readers?

Their specific tactical environment is long past, but their ways of thinking about linking interests, containing through position, and coordinating frontal with flank and rear operations remain instructive. It is best read as a text for understanding the strategic thinking of the ancients rather than as a manual to be applied directly.

Comments

Find this book

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Anonymous Author

Anonymous is not a real personal name but a general Chinese designation for authors whose names are unknown, lost, or unsigned. Neither nationality nor dates of birth and death can be verified, and available public information is limited, so the works attributed to this name are the only basis for description. The collection holds 2,078 works under Anonymous, spanning medicine, classics, historical readings, ancient poetry, classical literature, and philosophy. Representative works include The Yellow Emperor's Inner Canon: Lingshu, Mencius, The Book of Documents, Nineteen Old Poems, Complete Song Ci, and The Peacock Flies Southeast. Most of these works took shape through long transmission and editing, emerging either from collective folk creation or from authors whose names were lost over time. In ancient China, the Book of Songs, the Great Learning, and many popular storybooks and plays were signed Anonymous because their authors could not be traced. Anonymous works cross the classics, histories, philosophical writings, medical texts, and poetry; their subjects are broad, and their styles vary from archaic simplicity to clear naturalness, making them important and influential sources for understanding ancient Chinese thought, medicine, and literature.