What are '36 Stratagems', China's ancient warfare wisdom, applied even today? 'Borrowed knife' is one of them

On Friday, Deputy Chief of Army Staff Lt Gen. Rahul R. Singh referred to the "borrowed knife" strategy of China while speaking about Beijing extending possible support to its all-weather ally Pakistan, during the latter's four-day intense military standoff with Indian recently.

Speaking at a seminar on 'New Age Military Technologies' organised by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FICCI) highlighted China's ancient military strategy of '36 stratagems', one of which is killing the enemy with a "borrowed knife." "Pakistan was the front face. We had China providing all possible support. This is no surprise because if you look at statistics, in the last five years, 81 per cent of the military hardware that Pakistan is getting is all Chinese," he said.

READ MORE: When India decided to strike nine targets in Pakistan during Operation Sindoor

The '36 Stratagems' are a classic collection of Chinese tactics and strategies, mainly applied in warfare. This warfare wisdom is also referenced in other fields as well, including business and politics.

These stratagems, which reportedly date back to the sixth century, focus on deception, misdirection, and psychological manipulation as core tools for achieving success in warfare.

The stratagems are grouped into six different chapters, each having six stratagems.

The following are the 36 points of war wisdom.

Cross the sea by deceiving the sky: In simple terms, this would mean achieving your goal by hiding your true intentions under the pretext of normalcy or by distracting attention.

Besiege Wei to rescue Zhao: This is a tactic that calls for avoiding direct confrontation with a strong adversary, and instead targeting them by attacking a more vulnerable or valuable target elsewhere.

Kill with a borrowed knife: The tactic, which found a mention in the speech of Lt Gen. Singh, refers to achieving your objective by using the strength, resources, or actions of a third party—in this case, Pakistan—to harm your enemy, rather than getting your hands dirty.

Relax while the enemy exhausts himself: A pretty self-explanatory stratagem, this calls for conserving your own strength while allowing your opponent to tire themselves out, so that you can strike when the enemy is stripped of strength and resources.

Loot a burning house: Take advantage of an opponent’s crisis or internal chaos to further your own interests.

Make a feint to the east while attacking in the west: A classic deception and misdirection strategy, this refers to making the enemy misinterpret your movements. While the enemy is focused on defending the area you have feinted toward, you strike where they are unprepared.

Create something out of nothing: Yet another deception strategy, this would mean creating an illusion or fabricating something where nothing exists, in order to deceive, mislead, or manipulate the enemy.

Secretly use the Chen Cang Passage/Pretend to advance down one path while taking another hidden path: Make use of a hidden or unexpected route to achieve your objective while distracting the enemy with a more obvious action.

Watch the fire burning from across the river: This tactic calls for remaining as a detached observer while your opponent is embroiled in internal conflict or is in conflict with another, and march with your full force once the enemy is exhausted.

Hide a knife in a smile: This refers to hiding your hostile intentions with a friendly or pleasant appearance, and gaining the trust of your opponent before harming or undermining them.

Sacrifice a plum tree to save a peach tree: This means making a deliberate sacrifice with the intention of securing a greater goal or benefit or protecting something more valuable.

Take away a goat in passing: When an opportunity presents itself, take advantage of a situation to gain something valuable with minimal effort.

Beat the grass to startle the snake: Make your enemy reveal his hand/position by doing something aimless, strange or unusual. The strategy calls for making a subtle or indirect move to observe how the opponent reacts, gaining valuable intelligence in the process.

Raise a corpse from the dead: Bring back an old idea, institution, or method, giving it new life or a new purpose to achieve your current goals.

Lure the tiger out of the mountain: This refers to drawing a powerful enemy out of their stronghold or advantageous position into a place where they are more vulnerable or you have an upper hand.

Let the adversary off in order to snare him: By intentionally letting your opponent escape or giving them temporary freedom, you can trick them into revealing their true intentions. By giving the opponent a false sense of complacency, you make them vulnerable and strike when they least expect.

Cast a brick to attract Jade: Offer your enemy a small gain to win something big for yourself.

To catch bandits, nab their ringleader first: Target/capture/kill the leader or central figure of an enemy group to destabilise and defeat the entire force.

Remove the fire from under the cauldron: This is a tactic by which, instead of targeting the enemy directly, you eliminate the sources of their strength, power or support so as to weaken their morale.

Muddle the water to catch the fish: Fish in troubled waters.

The cicada sheds its shells: Use clever tactics to mislead the enemy into thinking you remain in place while you have already escaped, or create the illusion that you are still present or vulnerable while you have actually escaped.

Fasten the door to catch a thief: To catch or defeat an enemy, first block their possible paths of escape or retreat. By closing all exits and controlling the environment, you force the adversary into a confined space where they can be defeated more easily.

Befriend a distant state while attacking a neighbouring state: Build alliances with nations or forces that are far away and pose no immediate threat, and focus your military strengths on neighbouring states or rivals, who are your most immediate threats.

Obtain a safe passage to conquer the Kingdom of Guo: Make use of the resources, territory, or cooperation of a third party to attack your real target, and then turn on the third party once your main objective is achieved.

Steal the dragon and replace it with the phoenix: Secretly replace something valuable, powerful, or essential with something of lesser value or different nature without your opponent noticing it. It would also mean destroying or damaginge structures on which your enemy depends and replacing them with systems that you control.

Point at the mulberry tree but curse the locust tree: Criticise or attack someone indirectly by pointing to or mentioning something else. This strategy would allow you to convey a message or exert pressure without openly provoking the actual target.

Feign madness, but keep your balance/Pretend to be pig to eat tiger: Play dumb while remaining smart. Pretend to be less capable, less knowledgeable, or less aware than you actually are to make the other less suspicious and gain a strategic advantage as they lower their guard.

Remove the ladder after your ascent/Cross the river and destroy the bridge: After you gain an advantageous posture, remove the means for your opponent to follow or escape.

Decorate the tree with fake blossoms: Present a facade that misleads the enemy into overestimating your strength or resources.

Turn yourself into a host from being a guest: This refers to the strategy of transforming from a passive or subordinate position into a dominant or controlling position, by means of strategic moves, and seizing opportunities at the right moment.

Use a beauty to ensnare a man: The 'classic' honey trap. Employ an attractive woman to seduce the head/leader of the enemy camp.

Open the gate of an undefended city: Also known as the 'Empty Fort Strategy, this involves acting with such calm and confidence when you are vulnerable and cannot defend yourself, that the enemy suspects that the 'open fort' is a trap.

Use adversary’s spies to sow discord in your adversary’s camp: Discover the enemy spies and feed them false information.

Inflict pain on oneself in order to infiltrate the adversary’s camp and win the confidence of the enemy: By showing an apparent suffering or punishment, you may be able to win the confidence of your enemy and in turn, deceive them.

Lead your adversary to chain together their warships: Trick your enemy into taking actions that seem beneficial but actually restrict their options or make them vulnerable. This way, you turn the strengths of your enemy into their weakness.

Retreat is the best option/If all else fails, run away.

Defence