The Tripartite Struggle:An Analogy

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Subject: The Tripartite Struggle:An Analogy to Romance of the Three Kingdoms

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SHAN HERALD AGENCY FOR NEWS

26 October 1999

No: 10 - 27

The Tripartite Struggle:
An Analogy to Romance of the Three Kingdoms

In my mind, the junta in Rangoon has always been T'sao T'sao and his Wei =

bunch; Aung San Suu Kyi and the Burmese Opposition, Liu Pei and Shu; and =

the non-Burmans, as a whole, Sun Ch'uan and Wu.

I had been fascinated during my early years by "Red Star Over China", a=20
book written in the late 1930's by Edgar Snow. It was about the Chinese=20
Communist Party's struggle against the Kuomintang and the Japanese just=20
before the beginning of World War II. In fact, the book became sort of a =

political bible for me until fires consumed it sometime in 1996.

Snow had made reference to Romance of the Three Kingdoms a lot, but I =
never=20
had a chance to know what it was all about until 1987, when Jim Hamerle, =
a=20
close friend until his death in 1994, presented to me a complete set, in =

two volumes, totalling 1,261 pages, translated by Brewitt-Taylor.

It was the story of the tripartite struggles among the three groups in=20
China. -Wei, Shu and Wu- between the years 220-265 A.D. The gist of the=20
romance is as follows:

Towards the end of the Han Dynasty, the kings became weaker and the=20
ministers, especially the prime ministers, who were supposed to =
represent=20
the King in all matters, became de facto rulers of the country. They =
were=20
corrupt and, as a result, to no surprise, the people suffered. =
Rebellions=20
and coups inevitably took place. Corrupt governments were, again to no=20
surprise, replaced by more corrupt governments. Until T'sao T'sao came =
into=20
power and he was the worst and the smartest of them all.

Not unexpectedly, his injustices and oppressive policies only served to=20
create more uprisings and breakup of the country. The country was =
divided=20
roughly into three parts:

North of the Yangtze, south of the Great Wall was Wei, ruled by Tsao =
Tsao;

South of the Yangtze, the western section was Shu, ruled by Liu Chang;

And South of the Yangtze, the eastern section was Wu, ruled first by Sun =

T'se, then later, by Sun Ch'uan.

Both latter groups were satisfied just to be left alone and have nothing =
to=20
do with the former.

Enter Liu Pei, his two sworn brothers, Kuan Yu and Chang Fei, and his=20
brilliant chief of staff, Chuko Liang, better known as K'ung Ming (Khong =

Beng in Thai).

The author, Lo Kuang-chung, portrays Liu as a demi-Buddha. He had long =
ears=20
that touched his shoulders and arms long enough to touch his knees with =
his=20
fingers when standing upright. He, as a scion of the Hans, was there to=20
restore their power and to bring peace and justice to the people.

Liu and his brothers, backed by the people, fought relentlessly against=20
T'sao T'sao only to be defeated. And every time he was defeated, he went =

back to the people for more support, which he got only to be lost again =
in=20
the following campaign.

His defeat brought more reprisals by his universally hated enemy aganist =

the people until finally he thought he himself was the cause of more=20
suffering for the people and even contemplated commiting suicide.

Then some knowledgeable supporters advised him he should have a chief of =

staff, one who could do both strategic and tactical planning for him. =
The=20
man that they recommended was K'ung Ming.

K'ung Ming's Strategy
Liu Pei was already 46 when he first met K'ung Ming who was 20 years=20
younger. Yet Liu Pei, almost always a humble man,listerned attentively =
to=20
the latter outlining his ideas in the following way:

"The people trust and support you because of your regard for their =
welfare.=20
Unfortunately you have made at least two mistakes.

"The first is the resort to confrontation without having adequate or=20
superior force. Ts' ao Ts'ao (Jo Cho in Thai) is all powerful now. He =
rules=20
an immense army and the various feudal lords in the north i.e. Wei as =
well.=20
You cannot think of opposing him here. Yet you have opposed him several=20
times -- and lost.

"The second mistake is the lack of a permanent base from where you can =
both=20
defend yourself and expand your force.

"I would suggest you yield to Ts'ao Ts'ao in the north till the time =
Heaven=20
beckons. As for establishing yourself in the south i.e. Wu, it is also =
out=20
of the question. The Suns have been there for three generations. Their=20
position may not appear too secure, but they have popularity to appeal =
to.=20
You can gain your support but shall gain no success there. Thus you will =

have to yield to Sun Ch'uan till the position may become favorable.

(Map here)

"However we can move to the western territory which extends to the =
ancient=20
states of Pa and Shu. The people there are noble and the country is=20
prosperous. But their problem is that they are being subject to frequent =

intrusions by the Barbarians to the southwest. As a result, the farmers=20
cannot plow their fields, and the traders cannot conduct their business =
in=20
peace. The ruler, Liu Chang, from the same house as yourself, is weak =
and=20
ignorant. He does not know how to hold the country. All of them may =
welcome=20
you, well-known throughout the land as trusty and righteous, a =
wholehearted=20
hero, with open arms.

If you are able to defend the land from the Barbarians and maintain good =

government, they will be able to pursue their livelihood in peace and=20
prosper. Then your granaries will be well stocked, and your coffers will =
be=20
full. You will be able to train a great army, kept Ts'ao Ts'ao occupied=20
with the revolts of dissatisfied people in his rear, make an alliance =
with=20
Sun, and can await confidently the day Heaven shall offer you the =
desired=20
opportunity. Then you may depute a worthy leader to go to the northeast=20
while you yourself take command of an expedition to the northwest and =
will=20
you not find the warmest welcome prepared for you by the people? The=20
campaign will be brief and decisive and the Hans will be restored.=20
Afterwards, we can take back Wu".

End Result
Liu Pei (Laopi in Thai) followed K'ung Ming's counsel and, in due =
course,=20
became the ruler of Shu. What remained for him was to maintain his =
alliance=20
with Wu and continue the buildup of his forces until, as K'ung Ming puts =

it, "the day Heaven shall offer you the desired opportunity".

However, three things happened one after another to prevent Liu's dream=20
from coming true.

The first was the dispute between Shu and Wu over the possession of a =
town=20
called Chingchow that led to the killing of Kuan Yu and Chang Fei, Liu's =

sworn brothers. Out of anger and anguish for his brothers' deaths, Liu=20
simply ignored K'ung Ming's advice to uphold the alliance with Wu and=20
instead declared war against it. The result was not surprising. The =
weaker=20
Wu, unable to stand alone against Shu, formed a pact with Wei, hitherto=20
both Shu and Wu's common enemy. In the ensuing fight, Liu was killed.

The second thing was Chuko's own mistake where he placed loyalty to a=20
person over his loyalty to the ideal.

At his deathbed, Liu told Chuko that since the principal mission was the =

defeat of Wei, he should not hesitate to remove his heir, Liu Chan, if =
he=20
proved himself incompetent.

K'ung Ming, however, out of loyalty for his leader, found reason to =
ignore=20
his boss's counsel and, instead, chose to put Liu Chan to the throne.=20
Eventually, Shu was divided into two irreconcilable factions that ended=20
with the abortion of their lofty aim.

The third thing was the emergence of an able leadership in the Wei camp=20
after Tsao Tsao's death. Ssuma-i, formerly Tsao Tsao's lieutenant,=20
introduced reorganization of his government and army. Thus although he =
was=20
often defeated in battles with Shu, his forces were never broken up. He =
was=20
able to exercise authority and discipline over his troops at all times.=20
Consequently, at Chuko's death, he was able to defeat both Shu and Wu =
and=20
began a new dynasty for the reunified China.

If this story teaches something, it is of course that the bad guy can =
win=20
if he improves and the good guy can still lose if he doesn't.

Wu - Lesson for the non-Burmans
We now know what can happen to the good and the bad. Now what about the =
ugly?

Wu, unlike Shu, did not entertain aspirations to restore the former =
empire,=20
but to be left by itself, not unlike the non-Burmans who have no real=20
interest in seizing central power.

It is therefore interesting to analyze albeit summarily why Wu failed, =
and=20
conclude some historical lessons from it.

Its leader, Sun Ch'uan, did not want to be involved in the Shu-Wei=20
politics, but both were trying to enlist his support. Had he been more =
able=20
and farsighted, he would be in a position to take advantage both for=20
himself and his people. He might even have become a kingmaker, deciding =
who=20
should be what in Loyang, then China's capital.

Regrettably, he so coveted the little city of Chingchow then in Shu's=20
possession that he attacked it and started an unnecessary war with Shu.=20
This inevitably forced the weaker Wu to ally with its sworn enemy, Wei, =
and=20
finally be subjugated by the latter.

A lesson might be taken here how the third party, by overlooking its=20
strategic advantages and long-term interests at the expense of its=20
short-term interests, can lose.

I think there are lots of other lessons for the interested reader as =
well.=20
But my advice is you read it either twice or four times. Because my Thai =

friends say, "Never befriend anybody who reads the Three Kingdoms three=20
times".

Khuensai Jaiyen.
(07/10/99)

N.B. This Article appears in Independence, October issue.

Shan Herald Agency for News.=20


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<DIV align=3Djustify><FONT face=3DArial size=3D4><STRONG><EM>SHAN HERALD =
AGENCY FOR=20
NEWS</EM></STRONG></FONT></DIV>
<DIV align=3Djustify>&nbsp;</DIV>
<DIV align=3Djustify><FONT face=3DArial>26 October 1999<BR><BR>No: 10 -=20
27<BR><BR><STRONG><FONT size=3D4>The Tripartite Struggle:<BR>An Analogy =
to Romance=20
of the Three Kingdoms<BR><BR></FONT></STRONG>In my mind, the junta in =
Rangoon=20
has always been T'sao T'sao and his Wei <BR>bunch; Aung San Suu Kyi and =
the=20
Burmese Opposition, Liu Pei and Shu; and <BR>the non-Burmans, as a =
whole, Sun=20
Ch'uan and Wu.<BR><BR>I had been fascinated during my early years by =
"Red Star=20
Over China", a <BR>book written in the late 1930's by Edgar Snow. It was =
about=20
the Chinese <BR>Communist Party's struggle against the Kuomintang and =
the=20
Japanese just <BR>before the beginning of World War II. In fact, the =
book became=20
sort of a <BR>political bible for me until fires consumed it sometime in =

1996.<BR><BR>Snow had made reference to Romance of the Three Kingdoms a =
lot, but=20
I never <BR>had a chance to know what it was all about until 1987, when =
Jim=20
Hamerle, a <BR>close friend until his death in 1994, presented to me a =
complete=20
set, in <BR>two volumes, totalling 1,261 pages, translated by=20
Brewitt-Taylor.<BR><BR>It was the story of the tripartite struggles =
among the=20
three groups in <BR>China. -Wei, Shu and Wu- between the years 220-265 =
A.D. The=20
gist of the <BR>romance is as follows:<BR><BR>Towards the end of the Han =

Dynasty, the kings became weaker and the <BR>ministers, especially the =
prime=20
ministers, who were supposed to represent <BR>the King in all matters, =
became de=20
facto rulers of the country. They were <BR>corrupt and, as a result, to =
no=20
surprise, the people suffered. Rebellions <BR>and coups inevitably took =
place.=20
Corrupt governments were, again to no <BR>surprise, replaced by more =
corrupt=20
governments. Until T'sao T'sao came into <BR>power and he was the worst =
and the=20
smartest of them all.<BR><BR>Not unexpectedly, his injustices and =
oppressive=20
policies only served to <BR>create more uprisings and breakup of the =
country.=20
The country was divided <BR>roughly into three parts:<BR><BR>North of =
the=20
Yangtze, south of the Great Wall was Wei, ruled by Tsao =
Tsao;<BR><BR>South of=20
the Yangtze, the western section was Shu, ruled by Liu Chang;<BR><BR>And =
South=20
of the Yangtze, the eastern section was Wu, ruled first by Sun <BR>T'se, =
then=20
later, by Sun Ch'uan.<BR><BR>Both latter groups were satisfied just to =
be left=20
alone and have nothing to <BR>do with the former.<BR><BR>Enter Liu Pei, =
his two=20
sworn brothers, Kuan Yu and Chang Fei, and his <BR>brilliant chief of =
staff,=20
Chuko Liang, better known as K'ung Ming (Khong <BR>Beng in =
Thai).<BR><BR>The=20
author, Lo Kuang-chung, portrays Liu as a demi-Buddha. He had long ears =
<BR>that=20
touched his shoulders and arms long enough to touch his knees with his=20
<BR>fingers when standing upright. He, as a scion of the Hans, was there =
to=20
<BR>restore their power and to bring peace and justice to the =
people.<BR><BR>Liu=20
and his brothers, backed by the people, fought relentlessly against =
<BR>T'sao=20
T'sao only to be defeated. And every time he was defeated, he went =
<BR>back to=20
the people for more support, which he got only to be lost again in =
<BR>the=20
following campaign.<BR><BR>His defeat brought more reprisals by his =
universally=20
hated enemy aganist <BR>the people until finally he thought he himself =
was the=20
cause of more <BR>suffering for the people and even contemplated =
commiting=20
suicide.<BR><BR>Then some knowledgeable supporters advised him he should =
have a=20
chief of <BR>staff, one who could do both strategic and tactical =
planning for=20
him. The <BR>man that they recommended was K'ung Ming.<BR><BR>K'ung =
Ming's=20
Strategy<BR>Liu Pei was already 46 when he first met K'ung Ming who was =
20 years=20
<BR>younger. Yet Liu Pei, almost always a humble man,listerned =
attentively to=20
<BR>the latter outlining his ideas in the following way:<BR><BR>"The =
people=20
trust and support you because of your regard for their welfare.=20
<BR>Unfortunately you have made at least two mistakes.<BR><BR>"The first =
is the=20
resort to confrontation without having adequate or <BR>superior force. =
Ts' ao=20
Ts'ao (Jo Cho in Thai) is all powerful now. He rules <BR>an immense army =
and the=20
various feudal lords in the north i.e. Wei as well. <BR>You cannot think =
of=20
opposing him here. Yet you have opposed him several <BR>times -- and=20
lost.<BR><BR>"The second mistake is the lack of a permanent base from =
where you=20
can both <BR>defend yourself and expand your force.<BR><BR>"I would =
suggest you=20
yield to Ts'ao Ts'ao in the north till the time Heaven <BR>beckons. As =
for=20
establishing yourself in the south i.e. Wu, it is also out <BR>of the =
question.=20
The Suns have been there for three generations. Their <BR>position may =
not=20
appear too secure, but they have popularity to appeal to. <BR>You can =
gain your=20
support but shall gain no success there. Thus you will <BR>have to yield =
to Sun=20
Ch'uan till the position may become favorable.<BR><BR>(Map =
here)<BR><BR>"However=20
we can move to the western territory which extends to the ancient =
<BR>states of=20
Pa and Shu. The people there are noble and the country is =
<BR>prosperous. But=20
their problem is that they are being subject to frequent <BR>intrusions =
by the=20
Barbarians to the southwest. As a result, the farmers <BR>cannot plow =
their=20
fields, and the traders cannot conduct their business in <BR>peace. The =
ruler,=20
Liu Chang, from the same house as yourself, is weak and <BR>ignorant. He =
does=20
not know how to hold the country. All of them may welcome <BR>you, =
well-known=20
throughout the land as trusty and righteous, a wholehearted <BR>hero, =
with open=20
arms.<BR><BR>If you are able to defend the land from the Barbarians and =
maintain=20
good <BR>government, they will be able to pursue their livelihood in =
peace and=20
<BR>prosper. Then your granaries will be well stocked, and your coffers =
will be=20
<BR>full. You will be able to train a great army, kept Ts'ao Ts'ao =
occupied=20
<BR>with the revolts of dissatisfied people in his rear, make an =
alliance with=20
<BR>Sun, and can await confidently the day Heaven shall offer you the =
desired=20
<BR>opportunity. Then you may depute a worthy leader to go to the =
northeast=20
<BR>while you yourself take command of an expedition to the northwest =
and will=20
<BR>you not find the warmest welcome prepared for you by the people? The =

<BR>campaign will be brief and decisive and the Hans will be restored.=20
<BR>Afterwards, we can take back Wu".<BR><BR>End Result<BR>Liu Pei =
(Laopi in=20
Thai) followed K'ung Ming's counsel and, in due course, <BR>became the =
ruler of=20
Shu. What remained for him was to maintain his alliance <BR>with Wu and =
continue=20
the buildup of his forces until, as K'ung Ming puts <BR>it, "the day =
Heaven=20
shall offer you the desired opportunity".<BR><BR>However, three things =
happened=20
one after another to prevent Liu's dream <BR>from coming =
true.<BR><BR>The first=20
was the dispute between Shu and Wu over the possession of a town =
<BR>called=20
Chingchow that led to the killing of Kuan Yu and Chang Fei, Liu's =
<BR>sworn=20
brothers. Out of anger and anguish for his brothers' deaths, Liu =
<BR>simply=20
ignored K'ung Ming's advice to uphold the alliance with Wu and =
<BR>instead=20
declared war against it. The result was not surprising. The weaker =
<BR>Wu,=20
unable to stand alone against Shu, formed a pact with Wei, hitherto =
<BR>both Shu=20
and Wu's common enemy. In the ensuing fight, Liu was killed.<BR><BR>The =
second=20
thing was Chuko's own mistake where he placed loyalty to a <BR>person =
over his=20
loyalty to the ideal.<BR><BR>At his deathbed, Liu told Chuko that since =
the=20
principal mission was the <BR>defeat of Wei, he should not hesitate to =
remove=20
his heir, Liu Chan, if he <BR>proved himself incompetent.<BR><BR>K'ung =
Ming,=20
however, out of loyalty for his leader, found reason to ignore <BR>his =
boss's=20
counsel and, instead, chose to put Liu Chan to the throne. =
<BR>Eventually, Shu=20
was divided into two irreconcilable factions that ended <BR>with the =
abortion of=20
their lofty aim.<BR><BR>The third thing was the emergence of an able =
leadership=20
in the Wei camp <BR>after Tsao Tsao's death. Ssuma-i, formerly Tsao =
Tsao's=20
lieutenant, <BR>introduced reorganization of his government and army. =
Thus=20
although he was <BR>often defeated in battles with Shu, his forces were =
never=20
broken up. He was <BR>able to exercise authority and discipline over his =
troops=20
at all times. <BR>Consequently, at Chuko's death, he was able to defeat =
both Shu=20
and Wu and <BR>began a new dynasty for the reunified China.<BR><BR>If =
this story=20
teaches something, it is of course that the bad guy can win <BR>if he =
improves=20
and the good guy can still lose if he doesn't.<BR><BR>Wu - Lesson for =
the=20
non-Burmans<BR>We now know what can happen to the good and the bad. Now =
what=20
about the ugly?<BR><BR>Wu, unlike Shu, did not entertain aspirations to =
restore=20
the former empire, <BR>but to be left by itself, not unlike the =
non-Burmans who=20
have no real <BR>interest in seizing central power.<BR><BR>It is =
therefore=20
interesting to analyze albeit summarily why Wu failed, and <BR>conclude =
some=20
historical lessons from it.<BR><BR>Its leader, Sun Ch'uan, did not want =
to be=20
involved in the Shu-Wei <BR>politics, but both were trying to enlist his =

support. Had he been more able <BR>and farsighted, he would be in a =
position to=20
take advantage both for <BR>himself and his people. He might even have =
become a=20
kingmaker, deciding who <BR>should be what in Loyang, then China's=20
capital.<BR><BR>Regrettably, he so coveted the little city of Chingchow =
then in=20
Shu's <BR>possession that he attacked it and started an unnecessary war =
with=20
Shu. <BR>This inevitably forced the weaker Wu to ally with its sworn =
enemy, Wei,=20
and <BR>finally be subjugated by the latter.<BR><BR>A lesson might be =
taken here=20
how the third party, by overlooking its <BR>strategic advantages and =
long-term=20
interests at the expense of its <BR>short-term interests, can =
lose.<BR><BR>I=20
think there are lots of other lessons for the interested reader as well. =
<BR>But=20
my advice is you read it either twice or four times. Because my Thai =
<BR>friends=20
say, "Never befriend anybody who reads the Three Kingdoms three=20
<BR>times".<BR><BR>Khuensai Jaiyen.<BR>(07/10/99)<BR><BR>N.B. This =
Article=20
appears in Independence, October issue.<BR><BR>Shan Herald Agency for =
News.=20
<BR></DIV></FONT></BODY></HTML>

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