An insight into chess from one of the greats

Through my journey, I have often revisited the great pieces of chess literature.

One that I have visited, with increasing frequency is “Lasker’s Manual of Chess”, written by Emanuel Lasker.

He was not only the world champion for 27 years (1894-1921), but was a great thinker, and mathematician as well.

Here is a taste from that classic work:

“Principle of justice!

Thou art a power effective in history in spite of all that has been done to thee by the army of liars, that want to hurt thee, yet have to play the hypocrite, for people instinctively love thee. Hypocrisy is tribute paid to thee by thine enemies. It is a tacit admission that the true statesman would at all risks uphold thee.

On the Chess-board lies and hypocrisy do not survive long. The creative combination lays bare the presumption of a lie; the merciless fact, culminating in a checkmate, contradicts the hypocrite. Chess in one of the sanctuaries, where this principle of justice has occasionally had to hide to gain sustenance and a respite, after the army of mediocrities had driven it from the marketplace. And many a man, struck by injustice as, say, Socrates and Shakespeare were struck, has found justice realized on the Chessboard and has thereby recovered his courage and vitality to continue to play the game of Life. Later generations, not so narrow-minded as ours, will recognize and appreciate this merit of our noble game.”