| The first excerpt represents the past or something you must release, and is drawn from Criminal Sociology by Enrico Ferri: population of a country is not the sole, or even the principal
consideration. Apart from physical characteristics (race),
intellectual and moral qualities, and the productiveness of the
soil on which M. Varigny dwells, we must take into account, as it
seems to me, the unquestionable law by virtue of which the
struggle for existence, amongst individuals as amongst nations,
becomes gradually less vehement and direct. War, which is an
everyday matter with savages, grows constantly more rare and
difficult. The varying social and international conscience of
civilised humanity is not to be neglected, and it must be reckoned
with as a positive factor in considering the destiny of nations.
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The second excerpt represents the present or the deciding factor of the moment, and is drawn from The Jungle Tales of Tarzan by Edgar Rice Burroughs: in a little overgrown clearing. The great cat lay stretched
upon the ground, while his mate, one paw across her lord's
savage face, licked at the soft white fur at his throat.
Tarzan increased his speed then until he fairly flew
through the forest, nor was it long before he came upon
the tribe. He saw them before they saw him, for of all
the jungle creatures, none passed more quietly than Tarzan
of the Apes. He saw Kamma and her mate feeding side
by side, their hairy bodies rubbing against each other.
And he saw Teeka feeding by herself. Not for long
would she feed thus in loneliness, thought Tarzan,
The Jungle Tales of Tarzan |
The third excerpt represents the future or something you must embrace, and is drawn from The Art of War by Sun Tzu: scene. And in the establishment of the T`ang dynasty,one of the
mightiest tasks achieved by man, the superhuman energy of Li
Shih-min (afterwards the Emperor T`ai Tsung) was seconded by the
brilliant strategy of Li Ching. None of these generals need fear
comparison with the greatest names in the military history of
Europe.
In spite of all this, the great body of Chinese sentiment,
from Lao Tzu downwards, and especially as reflected in the
standard literature of Confucianism, has been consistently
pacific and intensely opposed to militarism in any form. It is
such an uncommon thing to find any of the literati defending
The Art of War |
