. The sage manages affairs without doing anything, and conveys his instructions without the use of speech." (Tzu, ch 46) To some extent these two perceptions seem to connect in their view of reality, for both Tzu and Machiavelli seem to percieve a direct link between law and the military. The difference, of course, is that Tzu sees both as restrictive and lacking in usefulness, while Machiavelli sees both as indispensible. Machiavelli considers the army -- particularly the existence of an army which consists of men loyal to the prince and not of conquered people or of mercenaries -- to be sufficient to create the prince's power or to maintain it, and even goes so far as suggesting that warfare will allow the state to collect riches in plunder. In fact, Machiavelli even discusses the importance of violence in taking control of the state, describing the necessity to refrain from clemency early one in one's career, and saying that "a prince may rise from a private station in two ways. These methods are when, either by some wicked or nefarious ways, one ascends to the principality, or when by the favour of his fellow-citizens a private person becomes the prince of his country." (Machiavelli ch. 8) In short, Tzu speaks of military power as something which is unneccessary and even disgraceful, and refers to it as ugliness while Machiavelli, though he personally shows no sign of having enjoyed the war that drove him from his hometown, suggests that that war is necessary and even beautifully good and noble -- and subsequently Tzu argues that the best rulers are so strong that they do not need to fight.

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             Amusingly, both Machiavelli and Lao Tzu at first glance seem to agree that the divine cannot be named or truly spoken of in relationship to the state; a closer look will show that their perspectives are actually entirely different. Lao Tzu writes on the Tao as something which is ineffable and mysterious.