Establishing the Foundation

AnonymousBashu Publishing House · ChinaJul 2024

3.2

Word count: 326 words
Chapters: 2

Summary

In all military undertakings, victory has three prerequisites: before troops are raised, laws must be established; once laws are established, customs take shape; and once customs take shape, implements and supplies are made ready. These three must be carried out within the state before troops can march forth. To carry out these three, two conditions are required: first, laws must be supported so that they are enforced; second, every action must succeed so that laws are firmly established. Thus, one who relies on numerical strength is said to patch together; one who relies on ornate equipment is said to be clever; one who relies on reputation and appearances is said to be deceptive.

Editor's review

"Li Ben" is a short, trenchant ancient treatise on military thought, built around the thesis that "the foundation of military action lies in first establishing laws and institutions, forming customs, and preparing implements and supplies," and stressing that military action must be rooted in domestic governance. The text advances layer by layer: it first sets out the "three prerequisites," then discusses the essentials of the "two conditions," and finally offers three failures—"relying on numbers," "relying on ornate equipment," and "relying on reputation and appearances"—as negative exemplars. Its logic is tight and its language concise. Its value lies not in specific tactics but in revealing the cautious view of war that "before troops are raised, internal affairs must first be ordered," which is instructive for understanding the relationship between military thought and the art of governance from the pre-Qin to the early Han. Its views can be read alongside relevant chapters of The Art of War and The Book of Lord Shang, and it also serves as supplementary material for the study of ancient military thought and Legalist statecraft. It should be read slowly and savored, with attention to the progressive relationship among "establishing laws," "forming customs," and "preparing implements," and to the tension between institution and execution emphasized by "laws supported so that they are enforced" and "every action succeeds so that laws are firmly established." Though brief, it rewards repeated chewing over, excerpting, and annotation.

Who it's for

A good fit for

General readers interested in pre-Qin and Han military thought
Students of literature and history studying the relationship between ancient governance and military institutions
Teachers and students seeking short classical argumentative texts for close reading
Readers who enjoy aphoristic classical prose and are willing to excerpt and annotate

Not a good fit for

Military enthusiasts hoping for specific battle examples and tactical operations
Beginners with weak classical Chinese reading skills who need line-by-line vernacular translation
Readers who prefer long narrative or literary prose

Reading tips

First read through once to grasp the framework of the "three prerequisites" and "two conditions," then revisit key words and sentences paragraph by paragraph.
Keep pen and paper ready to excerpt judgmental sentences such as "relying on numbers is said to patch together," annotating your own understanding alongside.
Read alongside the opening of The Art of War and relevant discussions in The Book of Lord Shang, comparing similarities and differences.

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
立本第十一

FAQ

What does "cuo fa" in "cuo fa er su cheng" mean?

Here "cuo" is equivalent to "cuo" meaning to set up or implement; "cuo fa" means to establish and carry out laws and institutions. The whole sentence stresses that laws and decrees must first be established so that social customs take shape accordingly, and only then are implements and supplies ready—only then is the precondition for sending forth troops in place. Only by understanding this can one grasp the main thesis of the whole piece: "first order internal affairs, then use troops."

What do the three criticisms "qi," "qiao," and "zha" point to?

"Relying on numbers is said to patch together" mocks relying merely on crowds without laws and institutions; "relying on ornate equipment is said to be clever" criticizes valuing only the external refinement of weapons; "relying on reputation and appearances is said to be deceptive" refers to relying on empty fame and surface display. All three abandon the root for the branch; the author uses them to set off by contrast that establishing laws and forming customs is the true foundation of military action.

Is this short piece suitable for reading in one sitting?

Though brief, it is conceptually dense, so do not rush. It can be read in two or three sessions: the first to grasp the structure, the second to dig into word meanings, the third to compare with other military texts. After each reading, write a few lines of summary; this absorbs its layers of argument better than a single skim.

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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.