My Chess Blog

" The direction of the brushstroke is no longer an aid to the reading of forms. It is without any support from structure that the beholder must mobilize his memory of visible world and project it into the mosaic of strokes and dabs on the canvas before him. The image, it might be said, has no firm anchorage left on the canvas - it is only "conjured up' in our minds ". - Gombrich   .....and so is perception in Chess....whether you are the onlooker or the creator of a game! Generally, I only scan the games in the tournament sites and other Chess portals......to select instructive ones.....but thanks to my friend Sagar , I watched the commentary by Karpov in Biel site on the rapid games for about 30 minutes.....pure gold.....a rare occasion where you get to witness the legend in flow! I shall give you a glimpse of it....before moving into my subject article... This was a position from Pelletier -Harikrishna, Biel Rapid - 2017 . Looking at W

" Men and women were out in the woods To celebrate spring To celebrate the festival of flowers The moonlight was smiling down on an empty city... A lone traveller Was on the road, ....in the moonlight, With the birds singing overhead, He walked on.... Alone.. .. "                                                               - Tagore " Don't think of what you have to do, don't consider how to carry it out! The shot will only go smoothly when it take the archer himself by surprise !" said Eugen Herrigel in his great book..."Zen in the art of archery" Some of the strokes by Roger Federer must have taken him by surprise.....when the master is in such flow state as he is in....now.....and most of his strokes takes us.....the lesser mortals....by great surprise! And so does a move like..... ......Nb8!! in the above position! This passing shot.....came after..... 1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5; 3.e5 c5 4.Nf3 cd4; 5.Qd4 Nc6; 6.Qf4 f5; 7.Bd3 N