Matching Heaven
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善為士者不武，善戰者不怒，善勝戰者不與，善用人者為下。是謂不爭之德，是謂用人之力，是謂配天，古之極。
One who is good at being a warrior is not warlike; one who is good at fighting does not get angry; one who is good at winning battles does not engage; one who is good at using people puts himself below them. This is called the virtue of not contending; this is called using the strength of others; this is called matching Heaven, the utmost of the ancients.
Restraint as the real skill behind mastering war, anger, and leadership.
Real skill in war, anger, victory and leadership looks like restraint from the outside, and refusing to contend is what lets a person use other people’s strength as if it were his own.
The more familiar version names an “enemy” in the third clause, good at defeating an enemy, where this text simply repeats “battle”. It is a small difference, and the whole chapter still turns on the same refusal to meet force with force.
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