Motse said: If the rulers of to-day sincerely wish to be careful in condemnation and commendation, judicious in rewards and punishments, and temperate in government and jurisdiction;

Therefore Motse said: There is an ancient saying that, when one is not successful in making out plans then predict the future by the past and learn about the absent from what is present. When one plans like this then one can be intelligent.

Now, about a country going to war. If it is in winter it will be too cold; if it is in summer it will be too hot. So it should be neither in winter nor in summer. If it is in spring it will take people away from sowing and planting; if it is in autumn it will take people away from reaping and harvesting. Should they be taken away in either of these seasons, innumerable people would die of hunger and cold.

And, when the army sets out, the bamboo arrows, the feather flags, the house tents, the armour, the shields, the sword hilts—innumerable quantities of these will break and rot and never come back. The spears, the lances, the swords, the poniards, the chariots, the carts—innumerable quantities of these will break and rot and never come back. Then innumerable horses and oxen will start out fat and come back lean or will not return at all. And innumerable people will die because their food will be cut off and cannot be supplied on account of the great distances of the roads. And innumerable people will be sick and die of the constant danger and the irregularity of eating and drinking and the extremes of hunger and over-eating. Then, the army will be lost in large numbers or entirely; in either case the number will be innumerable. And this means [GOD] will lose [His] worshippers, and the number of these will also be innumerable.

Why then does the government deprive the people of their opportunities and benefits to such a great extent? It has been answered: "I covet the fame of the victor and the possessions obtainable through the conquest. So I do it."

Motse said: But when we consider the victory as such, there is nothing useful about it. When we consider the possessions obtained through it, it does not even make up for the loss. Now about the siege of a city of three li or a kuo of seven li—if these could be obtained without the use of weapons or the killing of lives, it would be all right. But (as a matter of fact) those killed must be counted by the ten thousand, those widowed or left solitary must be counted by the thousand, before a city of three li or a kuo of seven li could be captured. Moreover the states of ten thousand chariots now have empty towns to be counted by the thousand, which can be entered without conquest; and their extensive lands to be counted by the ten thousand (of mu), which can be cultivated without conquest. So, land is abundant but people are few. Now to pursue the people to death and aggravate the danger feared by both superiors and subordinates in order to obtain an empty city—this is to give up what is needed and to treasure what is already in abundance. Such an undertaking is not in accordance with the interest of the country.

Those who endeavour to gloss over offensive wars would say: "In the south there are the lords of Ching and Yüeh, and in the north there are the lords of Ch'i and Chin. When their states were first assigned to them, they were but a hundred li square in area, and but a few tens of thousands in number of people. By means of wars and attacks, their areas have increased to several thousand li square and the people to several million. So, then, offensive wars are not to be condemned."

Motse said: The four or five states may have reaped their benefits, still it is not conduct according to the Tao [Way of GOD]. It is like the physician giving his drugs to the patients. If a physician should give all the sick in the world a uniform drug among the ten thousand who took it there might be four or five who were benefited, still it is not to be said to be a common (commonly beneficial) medicine. Thus a filial son will not give it to his parent and a loyal minister will not give it to his king. After the empire was in the ancient time divided into states a great many of them died of attacks—the earlier cases we hear of through the ear, the recent cases we saw by the eye. How do we know it is so? In the east there was the state of Chü. It was a small state situated in the midst of big states. It did not show respect and obedience to the big states, and the latter therefore did not like it or favour it. So, on the east Yüeh cut and appropriated its land by force, and from the west Ch'i swallowed it up altogether. And it was due to offensive wars that Chü died between two big states. And it was due to offensive war too that in the south Ch'en and Ts'ai were extinguished by Wu and Yüeh. And it was also due to offensive wars that in the north Pü T'u Ho perished among Yen, Tai, Hu and Mo.

Therefore Motse said: If the rulers now really desire gain and avert loss, desire security and avert danger, they cannot but condemn offensive wars.

Those who endeavour to gloss over offensive wars would say: "These states perished because they could not gather and employ their multitudes. I can gather and employ my multitudes and wage war with them; who, then, dare to be unsubmissive?"

Motse said: You might be able to gather and employ your multitudes, but can you compare yourself with the ancient Ho Lü of Wu? Ho Lü of Wu (about 610 B.C.) in the ancient days drilled his soldiers seven years. With armour on and weapons in hand they could cover three hundred li (in a day) before encamping (for the night). Passing Chu Lin, they emerged at the narrow Pass of Min. They engaged in battle (with the state of Ch'u) at Po Chü. Subduing Ch'u, (Ho Lü) gave audience to Sung and Lu. By the time of Fu Ch'ai, he attacked Ch'i in the north, encamped on the Wen River, fought at Ai Ling and greatly defeated Ch'i and compelled surety from them at Mt. T'ai. In the east he attacked Yüeh, crossing the Three Rivers and the Five Lakes, and compelled surety at Kuei Chi. None of the nine tribes dared to show disrespect. Reaching home, however, he would not reward the orphaned or give to the numerous rustics. He depended on his own might, gloated over his success, praised his own cleverness, and neglected instructing and training his people. He built the Monument of Ku Su which was not completed even in seven years. By this time (the people of Wu) felt tired and disheartened. Seeing the friction between the superior and the subordinates in Wu, Kou Chien of Yüeh gathered his multitudes to take revenge. He broke into its kuo on the north, moved away its royal boat, and surrounded its palace. And thus Wu perished.

Some time ago Chin had six ministers and Chih Po (about 456 B.C.) was the most powerful. He considered the large area of his land and the great number of his people, and desired to attack the feudal lords in order to have a rapid spread of his courageous name through war and battle. So he ranked his brave warriors and arranged his boat and chariot forces. He attacked (the house of) Chung Hsing and seized it. This showed to him that his plans were satisfactory. Then he attacked Pan and totally defeated him. Thus he absorbed three families into one. He did not stop even there, but surrounded Minister Hsiang of Chao at Chin Yang. By this time Han and Wei came together and deliberated, saying: "An ancient proverb says: 'When the lips are removed the teeth will become cold.' The house of Chao dying in the morning we would be following it in the evening: the house of Chao dying in the evening we would be following it in the morning. A poet sings: 'If the fish would not act while yet in water, what can it do when it is already placed on land?'" Thereupon the three ministers worked with united strength and a single mind, opening passes and blazing trails, putting on armour and arousing the warriors. With Han and Wei from without and Chao from within, they battled Chih Po and totally defeated him.

Therefore Motse said: An ancient proverb says: "The superior man would not go to water but to man for a mirror. In water as a mirror one sees only one's face; in man as a mirror one can predict good and bad luck." Have those who now regard offensive wars as beneficial made use of Chih Po's story? It is plainly discernible to be not auspicious but ominous.