Interpretation of the Forty-first Self-exhortation in Zhuge Liang's Art of War. General Court

Forty-first exhortation

——Follow the example of sages to encourage yourself

The sage is heaven, the sage is earth, and the wise is ancient. Pride will bring destruction, arrogant people will know misfortune, talkative people will have little faith, those who believe in themselves will have little kindness, those who are rewarded with no merit will leave, those who are not guilty will be punished, and those who are not happy and angry will perish.

translation

Most sages advocate the law of heaven, while wise people respect the law of nature, while wise people take imitating the ancient sages as the fundamental way to stand up. The arrogant people are doomed to fail, the arrogant people are very easy to cause trouble, the boastful people have little faith to speak of, the people who only pay attention to their own boasting will be sentimental and ungrateful to others, and as a general, the reward for no merit will be abandoned by his subordinates, and the punishment of the innocent people will certainly make the people complain, and the moody people will be doomed to perish.

analysis

This article discusses that generals should be strict with themselves and guard against arrogance and rashness. It is very necessary to put forward this request to the general of the unified combat. The article also lists seven kinds of mistakes that generals are prone to make, and points out their serious consequences to warn generals.

Extension example

The paper soldier was destroyed

During the Warring States Period, there was a famous veteran general named Zhao She in the State of Zhao. His son's name is Zhao Kuo. Zhao Kuo was clever and studious since he was young. He especially liked to study military. He read a lot of military books and could recite them backwards. When talking about military strategy and tactics, he can also quote from classics and talk about it. Many people praised him and admired his talent. Zhao Kuo was elated when he heard this. He could not help saying, "It's very simple to fight. It's nothing."

Zhao Kuo's mother is also often happy with her son's talent. She praised her son and said, "If the tiger comes out of the door, my son will definitely become a great military strategist in the future." But Zhao She shook her head and sighed, "In the future, the state of Zhao will not need him. If he is allowed to lead the army, the state of Zhao will be destroyed in his hands." His wife heard this and thought he looked down on his son, very angry.

A few years later, the State of Qin attacked the State of Zhao. General Lianpo of the State of Zhao led troops to Changping. According to the situation that the enemy is strong and we are weak, he believes that we cannot fight hard, so he adopts defensive strategies and tactics in an attempt to hold down the enemy. However, King Zhao believed the rumor and fell into the counter plot of the Qin State. He believed that Lianpo was old and weak and could not resist the enemy. So Lianpo was replaced and Zhao Kuo was sent to fight against the Qin army.

Zhao Kuo came to the front in a commanding manner and redeployed his forces in accordance with the provisions of the military document, changing all the practices of Lianpo. As a result, he was quickly caught in a passive position and was soon besieged by the Qin army. Finally, he ran out of ammunition and food and was forced to break through. Zhao Kuo was shot dead by random arrows, and 400000 Zhao troops were completely destroyed.

 解读《诸葛亮兵法.将苑》 自勉第四十一

自勉第四十一

——效法圣贤以自勉

   圣人则天，贤者法地，智者则古。骄者招毁，妄者稔祸，多语者寡信，自奉者少恩，赏于无功者离，罚加无罪者怨，喜怒不当者灭。

译文

　　大凡圣人都崇尚天道，贤明之士则推崇自然法则，而有智慧的人则以效法古代的贤者为根本的立身之道。骄傲自大的人注定要失败，狂妄荒廖的人则极易招惹祸患，夸夸其谈的人很少有信义可言，只顾自我标榜的人对待他人则薄情寡义，身为将帅奖赏无功肯定会被部下离弃，惩罚无罪的人则肯定使百姓怨声载道，喜怒无常的人，难逃灭亡的厄运。

　　解析

　　本篇文章论述了将领要严格要求自己，戒骄戒躁。对统兵作战的将领提出这个要求十分必要的。文章还列举了将领易犯的七种错误，并指出其严重后果，用以警戒将领。

　　拓例

　　纸上谈兵遭灭亡
　　战国时代，赵国有个著名的老将叫赵奢。他的儿子叫赵括。赵括自幼聪明好学，尤其喜欢研究军事，读了不少兵书，并且可以倒背如流。每当谈论起军事战略战术，他还可以引经据典，滔滔不绝。许多人赞扬他，钦佩他的才能。赵括听了心里洋洋得意，嘴里情不自禁地说：“打仗很简单，没什么了不起。”
　　赵括的母亲也常常为儿子的才能感到高兴，她夸奖儿子说：“将门出虎子，我儿将来必定能成为了不起的军事家。”可赵奢却摇摇头，叹口气说：“将来赵国不用他便罢，如果让他统军作战，那赵国就要毁在他的手里啦。”他的妻子听了，认为他瞧不起自己的儿子，很生气。
　　几年后，秦国进攻赵国。赵国大将廉颇带兵驻守长平。他根据敌强我弱的形势，认为不能硬拼，于是采取防御的战略战术，企图拖住敌人。可是赵王听信了谣言，中了秦国的反间计，认为廉颇年老体衰，不能抵抗大敌。于是撤换了廉颇，派赵括为大将前去抵抗秦军。
　　赵括威风凛凛地来到前线，按照兵书上的条文，重新部署兵力，改变了廉颇的全部作法。结果很快陷于被动，不久就被秦军围困，最后弹尽粮绝，被迫突围。赵括被乱箭射死，４０万赵军全部覆灭。

(This article is an original article by Zhuge Changqing, and the pictures are selected from the Internet. Welcome to forward it, and please indicate the source for forwarding)

Introduction to Zhuge Changqing: Zhuge Changqing, the inheritor and promoter of traditional Chinese culture, is willing to "learn from sages, promote virtue, revitalize China and benefit the world" together with people with the same ideals in the world.

(Zhuge Changqing: zhuge8031@163.com ）

Zhuge Changqing mailbox：

zhuge8031@163.com

Zhuge Changqing's Chinese Dream

Learn from sages and carry forward virtue

Revitalizing China for the benefit of the world

 （本文是诸葛长青原创文章，图片选自网络。欢迎转发，转发引用请注明出处）

诸葛长青简介：诸葛长青，中国国学传统文化传承弘扬者，愿与天下志同道合者一起“学习圣贤、弘扬善德、振兴中华、造福世界”。

（诸葛长青：zhuge8031@163.com）

Zhuge Changqing mailbox：

zhuge8031@163.com

  诸葛长青中国梦  

学习圣贤 弘扬善德

振兴中华 造福世界

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