The use of the mysterious way

"A great strategist saith: -I dare not take the offensive. I prefer the defensive. I dare not advance an inch; I prefer to retreat a foot.- Place therefore the army where there is no army; prepare for action where there is no engagement; strike where there is no conflict; advance against the enemy where the enemy is not. There is no error so great as to engage in battle without sufficient force. To do so is to risk losing the gentleness which is beyond price. Thus when the lines actually engage, he who regretteth the necessity is the victor."