兵者,所以禁暴除害也 – Chinese philosophy and culture

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bīng zhě, suǒyǐ jìn bào chú hài yě 兵者,所以禁暴除害也

War Is Fought to Stop Violence and Eliminate Evil.

战争是为了制止横暴、消除祸害。中国古人认为战争是违背人性的凶事,是不得已而采取的非正常手段,如果迫不得已而采取战争手段,也并非流于一般意义上的你争我夺、打打杀杀,而是坚持战争目的的正义性。这种战争观至今仍闪耀着人文主义的光辉。

The aim of war is to stop violence and eliminate evil. The people in ancient China regarded war as a violent action contrary to human nature, to be taken only as a last resort. If war was inevitable, it should be fought to uphold justice. This view of war still holds true today.

引例 Citations:

◎彼兵者,所以禁暴除害也,非争夺也。(《荀子·议兵》)

(那些用兵的人,是为了制止横暴、消除祸害,不是为了争夺。)

Soldiers are expected to fight a war to stop violence and eliminate evil, not to engage in contention and taking things by force. (Xunzi)

◎夫兵者,所以禁暴讨乱也。(《淮南子·兵略训》)

(战争是为了制止横暴、征讨祸乱。)

War is fought to stop violence and suppress evil. (Huainanzi)

◎古者作五兵,非以相害,以禁暴讨邪也。(《汉书·吾丘寿王传》)

(古人制作五种兵器,不是用来相互侵害的,是为了用来制止横暴、征讨邪恶的。)

The ancients made the five kinds of weapons, not for harming each other but for stopping violence and suppressing evil. (The History of the Han Dynasty)

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