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打草惊蛇 (da3 cao3 jing1 she2) - Startle the snake, or not
By Zhang Ciyun |
September 28, 2008, Sunday
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It's a common practice that one will use a stick to beat the bush ahead when you are walking through a snake-infested wilderness. It's an effective way to startle away snakes or fend off surprise attacks from those reptiles hidden in the bush.
The same is true when you are going to fight your enemy.
When your enemy is hidden and his plans are unknown, you should create some stir to trigger a response from him. This will help you detect his strategy and find out his strong and weak points. That's a necessary reconnaissance trick to prevent you from blindly plunging into a battlefield.
However, people may also use this phrase to advise others "not to startle the snake by beating the grass." This means to avoid giving away your position or intentions before you launch an attack against your enemy.
It was a pity that this advice fell on the deaf ears of Lord Mu of the State of Qin in 627 BC when he decided to launch an attack on the State of Zheng by making use of a mole he had planted there.
His advisor Jian Shu advised strongly against this expedition because the State of Zheng was a long distance away and the enemy would be alerted by the news of the movement of Qin troops way ahead of their arrival.
He told Lord Mu that the enemy would have enough time to get well prepared to ward off the offensive. He predicted that not only the offensive would fail, the Qin troops could also be ambushed by troops from another state on their way back.
The lord refused to follow Jian Shu's advice and pressed ahead with his expedition plan.
The result turned out to be almost exactly what the advisor had predicted. After learning about Qin's attack, the State of Zheng ferreted out the mole and beefed up its defense.
After a long and harrowing journey, the Qin troops reached the border of the State of Zheng but could not find a way to breach the defense there. So, after some time, they decided to withdraw. But on their way home, they were ambushed by troops of the State of Jin and suffered a huge loss.
So, whether to startle the snake or not by beating the grass is the question here. But most people today seem to prefer the prudent act of not startling the snake.
The same is true when you are going to fight your enemy.
When your enemy is hidden and his plans are unknown, you should create some stir to trigger a response from him. This will help you detect his strategy and find out his strong and weak points. That's a necessary reconnaissance trick to prevent you from blindly plunging into a battlefield.
However, people may also use this phrase to advise others "not to startle the snake by beating the grass." This means to avoid giving away your position or intentions before you launch an attack against your enemy.
It was a pity that this advice fell on the deaf ears of Lord Mu of the State of Qin in 627 BC when he decided to launch an attack on the State of Zheng by making use of a mole he had planted there.
His advisor Jian Shu advised strongly against this expedition because the State of Zheng was a long distance away and the enemy would be alerted by the news of the movement of Qin troops way ahead of their arrival.
He told Lord Mu that the enemy would have enough time to get well prepared to ward off the offensive. He predicted that not only the offensive would fail, the Qin troops could also be ambushed by troops from another state on their way back.
The lord refused to follow Jian Shu's advice and pressed ahead with his expedition plan.
The result turned out to be almost exactly what the advisor had predicted. After learning about Qin's attack, the State of Zheng ferreted out the mole and beefed up its defense.
After a long and harrowing journey, the Qin troops reached the border of the State of Zheng but could not find a way to breach the defense there. So, after some time, they decided to withdraw. But on their way home, they were ambushed by troops of the State of Jin and suffered a huge loss.
So, whether to startle the snake or not by beating the grass is the question here. But most people today seem to prefer the prudent act of not startling the snake.
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