《狂飙》意外带火《孙子兵法》！“穷寇勿迫”用英语怎么说？

上兵伐谋

The best strategy in warfare is to foil the enemy's strategy

用兵的上策是挫败敌方的计谋。在孙子看来，武力攻伐对于双方都会造成极大的伤害，因此是不得已的选择。

Armed attacks will do great damage to both sides, so they should be avoided if at all possible. 

善于用兵之人应在武力斗争发动之前，运用谋略破除敌人的进攻威胁，或为己方的武力攻伐扫清障碍，以最小的代价实现战略目标。

Those who are good at leading armies should be able to use stratagems to eliminate the threat of enemy attack in advance or clear the obstacles to their own armed forces to achieve their strategic goals at minimal cost.

▌引例

故上兵伐谋，其次伐交，其次伐兵，其下攻城。攻城之法，为不得已。（《孙子·谋攻》）

The preferred way is to foil the enemy’s plans, the next best to use diplomacy, failing that to attack the enemy’s forces, and the least desirable is to assault the enemy’s cities. Assaulting cities is a last resort when all else has failed.

不战而胜

Win without resorting to war

不用交战就已战胜敌人。孙武提出，最高明的用兵方略是“不战而屈人之兵”，方法有二：

The best military strategy is “to defeat the enemy without going to war.” Sun Wu listed two ways for achieving this:

其一“伐谋”，挫败敌方的计谋，使敌人无计可施；

1) the use of stratagems to foil the enemy’s plans;

其二“伐交”，破坏敌方的外交，使敌人孤立无援。

2) the use of diplomacy to totally isolate the enemy.

由此造成敌必败、我必胜的战略态势，最终迫使敌人屈服。

The opponent is thus forced into a hopeless situation and compelled to submit. 

▌引例

百战百胜，非善之善者也；不战而屈人之兵，善之善者也。（《孙子·谋攻》）

Winning every battle is not the wisest use of force. Making the enemy surrender without fighting is the best military strategy. 

不战在我

To fight or not to fight is one’s own decision

若无胜算就不与敌人交战。是否交战取决于我，而不可受制于敌。

Do not engage the enemy if victory is not guaranteed. To fight or not to fight is one’s own decision, not the enemy’s. 

▌引例

故善战者，致人而不致于人。 （《孙子·虚实》）

Therefore, a competent commander can move around the enemy instead of being moved. 

兵形象水

Troop should charge forward like the flow of water.

意思是说，指挥打仗，不能拘泥于固定的战法，必须根据具体情况，迅即进行调整变换，扬长避短，就像水流随着地形地势的变化而呈现不同的形态一样。

It means that in directing a battle, one must not adhere to a predetermined plan. Depending on the specific situation, rapid adjustments must be made to make the best use of one's strengths and to avoid one's weaknesses, just as water assumes different shapes as its flow follows the lie of the land. 

▌引例

夫兵形象水。水之形，避高而趋下；兵之形，避实而击虚。水因地而制流，兵因敌而制胜。故兵无常势，水无常形，能因敌变化而取胜者谓之神。 （《孙子·虚实》）

Troops should charge forward like water. Water takes its shape by flowing from high to low; troops attack weak points and avoid the strong. Water flows according to the shape of the land; troops achieve victory according to the situation of the enemy. Hence there is no set formation for troops and no set shape for water. The one who can win by understanding the enemy's situation can be called a godlike commander.

兵贵胜，不贵久

In war, seek quick victory, not prolongation

用兵贵在速胜，不宜持久。对于主动作战的一方而言，这一原则尤为重要。

It is of particular importance to the party that initiates a war.

因为久战不决，会造成士气低落、战斗力下降，各种消耗增大，补给困难，最终难以达成作战目标，甚至得不偿失，还可能节外生枝，危及国家安全。 

If the war continues without a decisive outcome, it will result in poor morale, weakened combat ability, an increase in various types of consumption, and difficulty in maintaining supply lines. Ultimately it will be hard to achieve the aims of the war and losses may even exceed gains; complications may also ensue which endanger the country's security. This is a comprehensive concept of war which incorporates political, economic and other factors.

▌引例

其用战也胜，久则钝兵挫锐，攻城则力屈（jué），久暴师则国用不足。……故兵贵胜，不贵久。 （《孙子兵法·作战篇》）

The crux of war is gaining a victory. Hence prolonged warfare tires the troops and saps their morale; they will be thwarted when attacking cities; if they are deployed away from home for a long time, the country's finances will be in difficulty… Hence warfare should seek quick victory and not prolongation.

上下同欲者胜

Triumph comes when leaders and followers share the same goal

上下齐心协力，才能取得胜利。大到国家、军队，小到一个单位，无论职位高低，都应该抱持同样的愿望、意志和目标，这样就能凝聚众人的智慧、发挥最大的战力。

No matter what their position or level, the people in a state, an army or even a work unit should share the same aspiration, will and goal. Only then can all their wisdom be pooled together and their combat capacity be brought to the full.

▌引例

故知胜有五：知可以战与不可以战者胜，识众寡之用者胜，上下同欲者胜，以虞待不虞者胜，将能而君不御者胜。（《孙子·谋攻》）

There are five ways to predict victory in a battle. Victory can be achieved by: knowing under what conditions one can or cannot go to a battle; knowing how to use flexible tactics to win a battle based on the number of troops under one’s command; when officers and soldiers are united as one; when well-prepared troops attack an unprepared enemy; and when commanders are talented and capable, and the monarch does not interfere.