Inspirational Quotes by Thomas Merton
“- استولِ قبل عدوك على الممرات الضيقة والنقاط المهمة وحين تصل إليها افترض احتلاله لها.”
“Comparar cuidadosamente el ejército enemigo con el propio, para saber donde abunda su fuerza y donde es deficiente.”
“Reliance on intelligence alone results in rebelliousness. Exercise of humaneness alone results in weakness. Fixation on trust results in folly. Dependence on the strength of courage results in violence. Excessive sternness of command results in cruelty. When one has all five virtues together, each appropriate to its function, then one can be a military leader.”
“Hay cinco elementos esenciales para la victoria: (1) Ganará, quien sabe cuándo luchar y cuándo no hacerlo. (2) Ganará, quien sabe manejar, tanto las fuerzas superiores como las fuerzas inferiores. (3) Ganará, quien posea el ejército que esté animado por el mismo espíritu en todas sus filas. (4) Ganará, quien preparado, sepa esperar para coger al enemigo desprevenido. (5) Ganará, quien dueño de la capacidad militar, no sea interferido por el soberano.”
“There are five qualities which are dangerous in the character of a general: If reckless, he can be killed. A general who is stupid and courageous is a calamity. As far as a general is concerned, courage is but one quality. If cowardly, captured. One who esteems life above all will be overcome with hesitance. Hesitance in a general is a great calamity. If quick-tempered you can make a fool of him. An impulsive man can be provoked to rage and brought to his death. One easily angered is irascible, obstinate and hasty. He does not consider difficulties. If he has too delicate a sense of honor you can calumniate him. One anxious to defend his reputation pays no regard to anything else. If he is of a compassionate nature you can harass him. He who is humanitarian and compassionate and fears only casualties cannot give up temporary advantage for a long-term gain and is unable to let go this in order to seize that. Now these five traits of character are serious faults in a general and in military operations are calamitous. The ruin of the army and the death of the general are inevitable results of these shortcomings. They must be deeply pondered.”
“Los soldados prisioneros deben ser bien tratados, para conseguir que en el futuro luchen para ti.”
“Si conoces al enemigo y te conoces a ti mismo, no debes temer el resultado de cien batallas. Si te conoces a ti mismo, pero no al enemigo, por cada victoria obtenida también sufrirás una derrota. Si no sabes nada ni del enemigo ni de ti mismo, sucumbirás en todas las batallas.”
“El primero de estos factores es la doctrina; el segundo, el tiempo; el tercero, el terreno; el cuarto, el mando; y el quinto, la disciplina.”
“- لا تفتح على نفسك عدة جبهات في وقت واحد.. تحالف مع أحد الأعداء حتى تنتهي من الآخر!”
“Si un general no es valiente, será incapaz de conquistar las dudas y de desarrollar grandes planes" | Estimativos”
“Generally, management of many is the same as management of few. It is a matter of organization.”
“SUN TZU ON THE ART OF WAR THE OLDEST MILITARY TREATISE IN THE WORLD Translated from the Chinese with Introduction and Critical Notes BY LIONEL GILES, M.A. Assistant in the Department of Oriental Printed Books and MSS. in the British Museum First Published in 1910 -----------------------------------------------------------------To my brother Captain Valentine Giles, R.G. in the hope that a work 2400 years old may yet contain lessons worth consideration by the soldier of today this translation is affectionately dedicated.”
“12. Therefore, in your deliberations, when seeking to determine the military conditions, let them be made the basis of a comparison, in this wise:— 13. (1) Which of the two sovereigns is imbued with the Moral law? [I.e., “is in harmony with his subjects.” Cf. ss. 5.] (2) Which of the two generals has most ability? (3) With whom lie the advantages derived from Heaven and Earth? [See ss. 7,8] (4) On which side is discipline most rigorously enforced? [Tu Mu alludes to the remarkable story of Ts’ao Ts”
“When an advancing army enemy crosses water do not meet him at the water's edge. It is advantageous to allow half his force to cross and then strike.”
“- حين تحاصر العدو اترك له فجوة للهرب.. فالضغط بقسوة يجعله يستأسد في القتال.”
“- الاحتفاظ بجاسوس في الداخل يعادل جيشاً بأكمله!! - وأفضل الجواسيس من يحمل جنسية العدو ولكنه يؤمن بأهدافك!! - وأخيرا.. ضمان النصر النهائي قد يتطلب التضحية بأفضل الجواسيس!!!”
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Thomas Merton wrote more than 70 books, mostly on spirituality, as well as scores of essays and reviews. Merton was a keen proponent of interfaith understanding.
Interest in his work contributed to a rise in spiritual exploration beginning in the 1960s and 1970s in the US. Merton's letters and diaries, reveal the intensity with which their author focused on social justice issues, including the civil rights movement and proliferation of nuclear arms. He had prohibited their publication for 25 years after his death. Publication raised new interest in Merton's life.