[Daehanjeiguk]

The Emperor was reviewing the Imperial Armed Forces in Hangyeong on an occasion and invited Marshal Ma to join him. Together, they surveyed the officers of the Imperial Guards, analyzing their disposition where the Emperor made inquiry into their character and what made them reputable soldiers and capable leaders of excellence.

(馬 - Ma)
(皇 - Emperor)

皇: We have reviewed the 1st Infantry Division, and I have surmised that they are an efficient unit. If war were to come to them, we will be ready to employ them to great effect.

馬: His Majesty is clearly deluded that this Division should ever go to war.

皇: Why do you not share my enthusiasm? The leaders are capable and they impart good instruction to their troops.

馬: This is true, but you have forgotten the excellence of disposition. They may be great instructors, but they have not imparted the most important skill of all: discipline. Did you not see the troops when they were set in formation? They were reckless and the ranks did not file properly. They appeared awful and did not resemble any unit of cohesion. They are skilled soldiers, but they do not exhibit excellence in meticulous manners. This is not a fault of the soldier but the pure fault of the commanders. While they may be great at fighting and using their arms, how will they act when ordered to storm the hill of a great enemy stronghold? They have not been tamed to tackle the pains of discipline, and in battle I cannot assure their courage or their resolve. If the unit cannot stand together in formation, how can they stay together in conflict?

皇: I see what you mean. In this case, we have a grievous situation, as I cannot have reckless soldiers. But who is responsible for these actions?

馬: Leaders have come and gone because they accepted responsibility to care for their men; if you seek to punish them, you must first look at the commander. The first thing to consider is the criterion of the Law – has His Majesty made the Law known? If so, His Majesty must correct this immediately. Otherwise, the fault lies with those who were supposed to execute the order. Always ensure that the opportunity to succeed has been made.

If a leader has been ordered to do something and does something in great excess of his orders – because of his merit to recognize the situation and adapt to it and execute the order efficiently and effectively – this leader must be rewarded for his disposition is the marvel of the state. Despite having little instruction, he is capable to doing more than what the leader expects and for this his loyalty is worthy of the greatest prizes. But if a leader has been ordered to do something and does not even accomplish this task – because his merit does not recognize the situation or refuses to comply with these commands of his own desire and not of superfluous circumstances – he must be punished greatly. His disposition is unworthy of even the beasts that roam the lands and he has no home in your Majesty’s Armed Forces or even the Land.

A person’s merit ought to judge his actions – whether the result was useful and gave us a better strategic advantage than what other actions would have achieved. The characteristics of the noble leader whose disposition is virtuous are many and even so unrecognizable by the eyes of men. But among those that are most common are loyalty, honesty, courage, passion, and strength.

皇: Tell me more of these traits that I may be better equipped to review my commanders.

馬: Loyalty is the most important and the least distinguishable of characteristics. You cannot have effective leaders who are not loyal to the state, so it is the most important quality to survey before all others. The loyal leader pledges all of his honor and glory to the state, and makes his effort to improve the State’s grace and power before his own. Selfish leaders bring the state to shame, for their actions are not for the state and do not uniquely benefit the state. They may defect to other states, carrying with them vital information, experience, and many more characteristics important to maintaining the security of the state.

The loyal leader is the foundation of the state, but even a dishonest leader can bring us shame. The loyal leader on campaign may be losing war but if he should lie, he brings us false comfort. The loyal leader must also be honest and convey the truth in his dealings, for better or for worse. Indeed, the most excellent and loyal leader would speak the truth as well, because he fears not defeat of one battle, but fears for defeat of an entire state – he preaches of the state’s end to ensure its survival in war. They are unpleasant and often blunt in their discussion, but they also unveil secret faults that may lead to worse consequences than their simple existences would permit.

Therefore, the loyal and honest leader may be vital, but if he fears for his life or of the life of his men, of what use is he? The leader must exhibit courage, to be willing to sacrifice his life to ensure victory. The Master Sun said that he who fears for his life shall surely lose while those who fear not even death can conquer the Seven States – the same must be spoken for the leader, as his army follows him to whatever end that he brings to them. If the leader is loyal, honest, and courageous, how can he not avoid imparting some of his courage to his soldiers?

But courage alone will not suffice, for he must carry a passion for war. The units must be prepared for every detail, the tactics must be sound, the strategy must match the circumstance, and the tools of war must be sharpened for violence. He must demonstrate a deep relationship with war and its natures. The commander must exhibit great comprehension of what makes the great state and the great commander. He must undertake to exhibit these characteristics – not of his self-interest but to quench his loyal passion to make the best war.

And again, the leader must be strong – he cannot be weak for his decisions will be poor. If the commander exhibits all of these characteristics except for strength, he is only useful on paper. But when it matters to the men around him, he must charge forward with strength and resolve to make even the Heavens thunder from awe. It is the combination of these traits together that makes the great leader, and these traits together make the virtuous leader whose excellence can only bring great honor and renown to the state that employs him.

皇: You speak of these five traits. Is there nothing to speak of wisdom?

馬: It is true that the leader must be wise, but one cannot expect that all great men were born wise. They must learn, and this is part of their passion and strength. His Majesty must recognize three great facts of all men – first, they err; second, they understand that they err; and third, they can learn from their errors. For this reason, his Majesty must skillfully employ rewards and punishments to bring out the excellence in all men, and banish their faults from their disposition.

皇: If a man should be born and have all of these characteristics in him already, what should I consider him?

馬: I would call him divine, for he exhibits character that is fitting for the Divine. But assure you that there is no man under Heaven that will ever exhibit such character. They are all like infants in war. Those infants that do not learn are considered stupid; those that learn slowly are retarded; those that learn quickly are treasured; and those that learned tactfully and expertly are genius. I caution his Majesty to shun the stupid but hold the genius in all people.

皇: Therefore, I must make rewards and punishments to sort the stupid from the genius. But what makes the genius different from the stupid, if they are all the same at birth?

馬: Again, there are many things that sort men from birth, things that are divine. But the one characteristic that makes the genius from the stupid is diligence. The stupid desire no work, while the genius strives for excellence. They seek to exceed their expectations by going beyond normal convention.

皇: What of those people who are stupid, yet try to improve themselves but fail miserably? Shall I consider them stupid still or should I reward their efforts?

馬: His Majesty make take pity with those stupid, but to those whose efforts do not match their results, they cannot be rewarded. If you were to reward the effort of a murderer not to murder yet he continues to murder, would your judges consider granting him amnesty for attempting not to murder? In the same manner, you cannot reward the same behavior in your generals, for it lowers your own expectations for the stupid. Even the dumbest dog can be trained to perform marvelously, and the stupid are not dumb animals. Enough incentive and any man can be molded into a virtuous character, but the objective is first not to mold men or to sort the stupid, but to sort the genius. In our great land, there are many people to discover, and to seek out the stupid and the retarded is a negative advancement. Look to your smartest people and make your expectations on par to their levels of excellence. If you set the standard to the stupid, then everyone shall be stupid. If you set the standard to the genius, then everyone shall be genius.

Therefore, seek not the stupid but the genius, and make efforts to reward them for they make the country great. If your ministers all possess excellent character, their virtuosity spills from themselves into others, and shares the nobility of character to others around them, and more great leaders can be borne from the land. The land that stoops to the ignorant and the stupid is itself ignorant and stupid.

皇: But is it not possible for the stupid to become genius?

馬: It is improbable, but if Your Majesty sets the standard to the genius, and your vigorously exhaust the character of your people, the stupid beggars of our land can become the great leaders of the next generation. For this reason, do not abandon the stupid but vigorously encourage them by instilling their behavior a strict rule of law, making reward and punishments known, and encouraging them to strive and succeed.

The Master Kong said that in the microcosm of the family mirrors the mechanics of society, and if he is correct, then you are the Royal Father of the Land. Like the father rearing his children, he must be liberal with their education but strict with their ethic. Do not be afraid to punish them and do not be disinclined to reward when they deserve it. By your guidance, our land can become greater than any other land that when Heaven surveys the disposition of our people, they can only be pleased with it, and they then bestow their blessings upon us all for possessing excellence and virtuosity, and you for acting as the responsible regent.

SUMMARY
- This chapter is more a “maturity” license, and while I aim to insult no one, if your actions do not demonstrate any excellence of sensible leadership, you deserve no respect from me or anyone else.
- You are the leader of your state; treat it responsibly and no one will have to pry it from your hands for abuse and misuse, especially if you launched the 5000 nukes at a pastureland of ten thousand cows.
- I should say “don’t be stupid” but then someone will ask me specifically makes a stupid person; if you are constantly on the bad side of people and no one is willing to cooperate with you country no matter what you do, then you’re doing something stupid.
- As with all things, expect great things always and aim to achieve them; otherwise, you will find yourself at the bottom.
- As with all other things, don’t expect that the stupid actions of some people inherently bar them from doing good things, but don’t lower your expectations at the same time.
- What separates n00bs from novices is the conduct of their character; what separates the veteran of many years (literally) from n00bish veteran of many years is the same, so it doesn’t matter if you say you have a pwnzor army of 100 million men or you really do have a pwnzor army of 100 million men, you can still be a n00b.
- Good things happen to good people usually (there are freak accidents, but whatever).