Maintaining momentum
“In war, you should never relax or become haughty after scoring a victory. You should be even more strictly on guard against enemies, still diligent even while at ease. Once you have prevailed, be as if you had not.”
From Lessons of War: Studies in Strategy
–Liu Ji circa 1365 AD

“After a victory, sharpen your knife.”
Marco Trezza

Use momentum to gain victory:
“In battle, momentum means riding on the force of the tide of events. If enemies are on their way to destruction, then follow up and press them unrelentingly; their armies will surely collapse. After gaining an advantage, use the force of momentum to crush them.”
From Lessons of War –Liu Ji, c. 1365 AD

On the expenditure of energy:
“The armed forces fight by energy. Energy prevails when it is drummed up. If you can energize your troops, don’t do it too frequently or their energy will easily wane. You should drum up the energy of your warriors when enemies are within a calculated critical distance. When enemies wane and you prevail, victory over them is assured.”
From Rigors of War –Wei Liaozi, circa 225 AD

Forgetting about winning:
“When in battle, if you fall into a situation where there is danger of destruction, you should inspire your soldiers to fight to the death, for they will win if they forget about surviving. When warriors are in great danger, then they have no fear.”
From Lessons of War –Liu Ji, c. 1365 AD

Staying level-headed:
“A hasty attack is an exceptionally bad thing. Press aggressively only after having properly prepared yourself mentally and having observed the situation thoroughly once the face-off has begun. It is essential not to get flustered.”
From The Book of Family Traditions –Yagyu Munenori

“In any venture, overvalue your negative estimates by 2. Undervalue
your positive estimates by half.”
Marco Trezza

On learning:
“When what you have studied leaves your mind entirely, and practice also disappears, then as you perform whatever art you are engaged in, you accomplish the techniques easily without being inhibited by concern over what you have learned, and yet without deviating from what you have learned. This is spontaneously conforming to learning without being consciously aware of doing so. The science of the art of war can be understood through this. To learn all the sword strokes, the physical postures, and the focus of the eyes, to thoroughly learn all there is to learn and practice it, is the spirit of consummating knowledge. When you have succeeded in learning, when everything you have learned disappears from your conscious mind and you become innocent, this is the spirit of perfecting things. When you have built up achievement in cultivation of learning and practice, even as your hands, feet, and body act, this does not hang on your mind. You are detached from your learning yet do not deviate from your learning. Whatever you do your action is free. At this time, you do not even know where your own mind is. The learning is for the purpose of reaching this state. Once you have learned this successfully, learning disappears. This is the ultimate sense and the progressive transcendentalism of all the Zen arts. Forgetting learning, relinquishing mind, harmonizing without any self-conscious knowledge thereof, is the ultimate consummation of the Way.”
From The Book of Family Traditions –Yagyu Munenori

On gaining victory:
“When you learn what not to do in order not to lose, only then can you begin to learn what to do in order to win.”
From Reminiscence of a Stock Operator
–Edwin Lefevre 1923 AD

Constant training:
“A certain swordsman in his declining years said the following: ‘In one’s life there are levels in the pursuit of study. In the lowest level, a person studies but nothing comes of it and he feels that both he and others are unskillful. At this point he is worthless. In the middle level he is still useless but is aware of his own insufficiencies and can also see the insufficiencies of others. In a yet higher level he has pride concerning his own ability, rejoices in praise from others, and laments the lack of ability in his fellows. In the highest level a man has the look of knowing nothing’. These are the levels in general, but there is one transcending level, and this is the most excellent of all. This person is aware of the endlessness of entering deeply into a certain Way and never thinks of himself as having finished. He truly knows his own insufficiencies and never in his whole life thinks that he has succeeded. He has no thoughts of pride but with self-abasement knows the Way to the end. It is said that Master Yagyu (Munennori) once remarked, ‘I do not know the Way to defeat others, I only know the Way to defeat myself’. Throughout your life advance daily, becoming more skillful than yesterday, this is never ending.”
From The Hagakure

“Victories are always temporary. So are defeats.”
MT

“Don’t waste your time trying to change your enemies, try to control
them. Know where they are, what they think, and whom they trust.”
MT

“If you are forced to bow, bow very, very low. And hold that bitter
memory until you take your revenge.”
MT

“There is no such thing as a harmless enemy.”
MT

“If you can’t win, make the price of your enemy’s victory exorbitant.”
MT

“The best armor is to keep out of range.”
MT