Sun Tzu Võ Nguyên Giáp, the strategist behind victories over French and American forces in Vietnam, was likewise an avid student and practitioner of Sun Tzu's ideas. America's Asian conflicts against Japan, North Korea, and North Vietnam brought Sun Tzu to the attention of American military leaders. The Department of the Army in the United States, through its Command and General Staff College, has directed all units to maintain libraries within their respective headquarters for the continuing education of personnel in the art of war. "The Art of War" is mentioned as an example of works to be maintained at each facility,
The Book of Taliesyn band's singer Rod Evans are very functional to the music and the marketing Deep Purple's record label was building up for the American hippie audience. Evans took inspiration for the fantasy-themed "Listen, Learn, Read On", which contains lyrical reference to the album's title, from the 14th-century Welsh manuscript Book of Taliesin, a collection of poems attributed to the 6th-century poet Taliesin. The title and cover art of the album were also inspired by the manuscript. Instead psychedelia and its rituals play a large part in the lyrics of "Shield". Simper thinks that Evans' lyrics are "far better than anything (...)