Sun Bin
Chinese military strategist (c. 382–316 BCE), author of Sun Bin's Art of War, with whom tradition associates the martial art style Sun Bin Quan.
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Sun Bin was a Chinese military strategist and author who lived approximately in 382–316 BCE. Tradition associates him with the martial art style Sun Bin Quan (Commander Sun Bin's Fist), but in the sources about his life we found no mention of this style. He was reportedly a descendant of Sunzi, the author of the earlier Art of War.
He studied military strategy under the hermit Gui Guzi, where his fellow student was his later rival Pang Juan. He first served the state of Wei; there Pang Juan falsely accused him of treason and had his legs mutilated and a brand burned into him.
He fled to the state of Qi and became the chief military advisor to King Wei of Qi and General Tian Ji. He won two decisive battles against the state of Wei, at Guiling in 354 BCE and at Maling in 342 BCE, where Pang Juan died.
He is the author of the military treatise Sun Bin's Art of War (Sun Bin Bingfa). The text was lost for about 1,400 years, and its fragments were rediscovered in 1972 among bamboo strips from Yinqueshan. Sixteen surviving chapters were identified, while historical sources attributed 89 chapters to the treatise.