there is a vast variety of good and ill events,
that are, in some degree,
the effect of prudence, or want of it.”
-- "The Morals of Chess," by Benjamin Franklin
Scroll down for answer.
Chess is an ancient game that has survived the centuries because it is challenging, fun, and mimics life quite successfully. (One of the best chess sites on the internet is chessgames.com). It is the most complex game I have ever tried to play, and yet all the rules are relatively simple. (The exception might be the en passant, which too many people do not understand or even know about). Although there are ruthless aspects of the game of chess, there are also religious lessons to be derived.
Each chess piece has abilities and limitations. Pawns, Knights, Bishops, Rooks, and the King and Queen each can move in certain unique directions and not in others. All the pieces interact in specific ways, often creating new situations that overwhelm even the most experienced chess players.
Early moves in the game affect later moves dramatically. One bad move early in the game (let's say in move #5) can lead to a crushing defeat, even if the game lasts another 40 moves.
Although there are almost an infinite number of ways to make opening moves in chess, there are only a finite number of ways to open the game without leaving vulnerabilities and weaknesses. As such, there are entire libraries devoted to how to open a chess game. These libraries contain hundreds upon hundreds of possible openings, and unless one follows one of those "book-moves," one is likely to go down to defeat against a skilled opponent.
To a good chess player those "book-move" openings are like scripture. They are the strait and narrow way to survival. They have been so well worked out (by humans) that computer playing chess programs have them memorized in their files. Many, if not most, of those book-openings were developed centuries before the age of the computer, and they represent a kind of ancient wisdom. Computers playing chess typically start to compute moves only after the "book-moves" have been made. Even modern computers rely upon this ancient wisdom.
The opening "book-moves" in chess are intense and complex. Even so, they are the product of the human mind, not computers. The human mind is slow, but it sees farther into the future than any digital machine. The human mind captures the forest and sees the big picture, whereas the computer has trouble analyzing pine needles.
Cultural evolution and ancient wisdom (such as memes) affect far more than chess. For example, religious values are a repository of ancient wisdom.
I am NOT arguing that we should blindly accept the past and never change it. Each generation has the OBLIGATION to determine what portions of the past will carry over to the present. Each generation must innovate and try to progress. Yet, such progress requires one to be careful NOT to throw the baby out with the bathwater.
The Bible is full of ancient wisdom. The Bible is also full of humans making unintelligent errors. Modern people may conclude such stories are obsolete, but nothing could be further from the truth. Humans need constant reminders of where the cliff suddenly drops off. We may feel stable on our feet, but we need to know where the lines are drawn. Otherwise, we step over them and fall to our deaths.
The words of Proverbs seem to be particularly applicable here:
Proverbs 4:7
7 Wisdom is the principal thing; therefore get wisdom: and with all thy getting get understanding.
Proverbs 19:8
8 He that getteth wisdom loveth his own soul: he that keepeth understanding shall find good.
To "keep understanding" is to discover the good from the bad.
Pawns are the weakest pieces on the board. Yet, near the end of the game when a pawn can make it to the 8th rank, it can be promoted into a Queen or some other major or minor piece.
In both chess and life, the meek inherit the "board" (Matthew 5:5). To me, the transformation from pawn to Queen reminds me of the principles of exaltation and theosis.
Please note that it took hard work for the pawn to be transformed, but the pawn hardly earned it. The pawn is too weak to march all the way across the board on its own. All of its fellow pieces made the march possible, often by sacrifice (being captured). Grace and works intermix in both chess and life.
Who knows what "guardian angels" (usually just a figure of speech in LDS parlance) make our movements across the board of life possible? In any case, without the ultimate sacrifice of Jesus, nothing would be possible.
Below is the best answer to the chess problem above. In any case, Rf7 eventually followed by Rd7 appears to be mandatory.
1. Rf7 Rb2
2. Rc8 Rf8
3. Rd7 Rxg2+
4. Kxg2 Rf2+
5. Kxf2 g5
6 Rcxd8#
Copyright 2008 S.Faux (Email: foxgoku54 [at] gmail [d0t] c0m; URL: http://mormoninsights.blogspot.com). Readers may distribute this post for noncommercial purposes provided such distributing is of the entire post, including author's copyright and contact information. All other rights reserved.
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3 comments:
I'm an old guy, used to the old notation. I thought the notation was the two squares
Looks like the move for black is c8-f8? I don't see a black piece on c8 to move to f8.
I should have learned the new notation thirty years ago.
Stephen,
I will give you some of the extended notation:
1. white Rook F1-F7, black Rook A2-B2
2. white Rook B8-C8, black Rook G8-F8
3. white Rook F7-D7, ...
The first move by the white Rook is unstoppable. Once that white Rook is on D7, then mate is easy to see.
Very nice post. Good way to illustrate the notion of the accumulated wisdom of ages past.
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