A dull blade does not cut. A weak spear does not pierce. A rent shield does not defend. A soft heart does not conquer. A slow mind does not win.
~ 2nd Aphorism of the Codes ~
If a weapon is too large for your use, yet use it you must, it is well to utilize both hands to wield it. So it is with all things.
~ 3rd Aphorism of the Codes ~
The softest of things in the world penetrates swiftly the hardest. Insubstantial, it enters in where no room is, and conquers.
~ 4th Aphorism of the Codes ~
In matters of stealth, let you be as soft as the wind, as silent as the shadows, and as still as the calm before the storm.
~ 5th Aphorism of the Codes ~
When you would hunt, hunt as the sleen hunts: tenacious, silent, and without mercy.
~ 6th Aphorism of the Codes ~
A careless mind betrays, and the body whispers its secrets. In combat, see into your opponent's mind thus and you will conquer.
~ 7th Aphorism of the Codes ~
To act without resistance; to move without hesitation; to strive without effort; to fight without the interference of unwieldy thought; that is the goal of all goals, the inner victory which brings outer triumph.
~ 8th Aphorism of the Codes ~
At the instant your foe decides to strike, strike. At the instant he decides to retreat, advance. There is no more powerful ally than the interrupted thoughts of your opponent, which tangle his wit and open the gate to victory.
~ 9th Aphorism of the Codes ~
Q: What is a Warrior's greatest enemy:
A: That foe which slips in undetected, poisoning him: an undecided mind.
~ 10th Aphorism of the Codes ~
It is perilous to detain a Warrior enroute to his city.
~ 11th Aphorism of the Codes ~
Within the circle of his own steel, every man is Ubar.
~ 12th Aphorism of the Codes ~
Learn to strike from the position of no position. Learn to fight in the stance of no stance. Learn to make war in the formation of no formation. In this way, you are always prepared to do what must be done.
~ 13th Aphorism of the Codes ~
Who can make war who is not free? Who has worth who would not keep his freedom?
~ 14th Aphorism of the Codes ~
A Warrior accepts his fate readily, nor does he seek to live beyond his freedom and usefulness. He will not suffer the chains of degradation, lest he bring dishonor to his city and homestone. Should he do so, let his name be forgotten by those of his caste.
~15th Aphorism of the Codes ~
There are no pleasant endings to things, even in victory and triumph; for nothing ever ends, as long at Tor-tu-Gor burns.
~16th Aphorism of the Codes ~
Do not fix your concentration upon a single object, action or goal. Be as expansive as the wind, as flexible as the reed, as fluid as Thassa. To be otherwise is to limit oneself to dire predictability.
~ 17th Aphorism of the Codes ~
There is a time for Ubars, and there is a time when Ubars must also bow. Let no Ubar stand longer than his city has need of him.
