Qi in Battle

AnonymousBashu Publishing House · ChinaJun 2024

3.5

Word count: 284 words
Chapters: 2

Summary

This is a military treatise recorded in the ancient Chinese book of military strategy Bai Zhan Qi Lue (A Hundred Battles and Strange Stratagems). It sets out the importance of troop morale in combat against an enemy and the issues to which attention should be paid in rousing morale on the eve of battle. It holds that a commander's conduct of battle against an enemy depends on the troops' high morale, and that high morale depends on exhortation. In the immediate pre-battle state, however, "exhortation" must be moderate and must not be repeated too frequently; too frequent, and morale easily flags. The troops' shock power must not be committed from too great a distance; too great a distance, and their physical strength is easily exhausted. Only by attacking when the distance of the charge is appropriate and the enemy's morale is low and strength spent can victory in battle be won. The phrase quoted in this piece, "When morale is full, fight; when morale is taken away, withdraw," comes from the book Wei Liao Zi; it means that in battle against an enemy, if morale is full and high one throws oneself into battle at once, while if morale is low and depressed one swiftly avoids the enemy and retreats. The practical experience of war proves that the high or low, flourishing or declining state of troop morale is the main factor determining victory or defeat in war. Generally speaking, when troops' fighting spirit is high they may win many battles, while when their morale is low they are bound to suffer defeat.

Hence how to keep one's own troops in high fighting spirit and prevent morale from sagging has always been a major question of army governance that military thinkers of achievement have paid attention to studying and solving. This piece, precisely on the basis of a relatively good understanding of this question, and under the title "Qi Zhan" (Battle of Morale), specifically discusses the relationship between pre-battle exhortation and the raising of morale, and the matters to which attention should be paid in beating drums to stir morale. This is worthy of people's reference.

Editor's review

Qi Zhan (The Qi of Troops) comes from the ancient military classic Baizhan Qilue (A Hundred Strategies for Warfare) and deals specifically with the relationship between morale and encouragement in the pre-battle state. Its central argument is notably dialectical: a commander wins through morale, and morale is aroused through encouragement, but encouragement must be moderate; if it is too frequent, morale is apt to flag. Likewise, the soldiers' shock power must not be exerted from too great a distance, for too great a distance exhausts their strength. The text quotes Wei Liaozi: "When qi is full, they fight; when qi is taken from them, they flee," making clear that the rise and fall of morale directly determines attack and defense, advance and retreat. It then proposes that victory comes only by attacking when the enemy's qi is fading and his strength is spent. This short piece presents "governing qi" as an essential task of military management; it has value in military studies and can readily be extended to everyday situations such as team mobilization and managing performance under pressure. It is well suited as an introductory text to ancient military thought: brief, worth repeated reading, and rewarding when read alongside other chapters of Baizhan Qilue to appreciate how ancient strategists grasped the notion of "measure."

Who it's for

A good fit for

General readers interested in ancient military texts and military thought
Managers hoping to draw lessons in team mobilization from classical texts
Students who need short classical Chinese passages for recitation and accumulation
Beginning readers studying chapters related to Baizhan Qilue

Not a good fit for

Readers expecting a systematic history of warfare or detailed battle case studies
Readers unaccustomed to short classical Chinese texts who prefer direct vernacular analysis
Readers seeking support from empirical research in modern psychology

Reading tips

First read the original text through, using annotations to clarify key concepts such as "full qi" and "taken qi," then review the overall thread of the piece.
Extract the two claims—"moderate encouragement" and "appropriate distance for the shock"—and add brief notes relating them to situations in your own life.
Read it alongside other chapters of Baizhan Qilue and observe how ancient strategists discussed the problem of "measure."
After reading, retell the core argument in three to five sentences to test whether you have truly grasped the relationship between morale and encouragement.

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
气战

FAQ

What is Qi Zhan mainly about?

It discusses the importance of troop morale in fighting the enemy and the issues to watch for in arousing morale before battle. Its core is that encouragement must be moderate and the distance for the shock must be appropriate, and it advocates attacking when the enemy's qi is fading and his strength is spent.

What does "When qi is full, they fight; when qi is taken from them, they flee" mean?

This sentence comes from Wei Liaozi. It means that when morale is full and vigorous, troops join battle; when morale is low and dispirited, they quickly avoid the enemy and retreat. The text quotes it to show that the level of morale directly determines whether to attack or retreat.

Why should pre-battle encouragement not be too frequent?

The text holds that too frequent encouragement actually makes morale apt to flag, and that the soldiers' shock power must not be exerted from too great a distance, for too great a distance exhausts their strength. Only by keeping to moderation can morale and strength be preserved while waiting for the moment to attack.

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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.